This end came as a great surprise!
Thomas Tuchel (49) is no longer the manager of Chelsea FC. After the embarrassing bankruptcy at Dinamo Zagreb (0:1), the former Bundesliga coach was released from his duties. There is said to have been a break between him and the club’s management in the pre-season.
But the “Blues” quickly have a successor for Tuchel, who will still be with the Premier League club in 2021 Champions League could win, found: Graham Potter (47)!
Graham who? Potter will probably only be die-hards Premier-League-Be a household name to fans.
The 47-year-old Englishman is the 15th coach since Roman Abramovich (55) took over the club in 2003. No coach before him has lasted more than two years and four months. The fact that a new era is beginning at Chelsea with new owner Todd Boehly can also be seen in Potter’s appointment as the new head coach of the “Blues”. Instead of relying on a big name, they are now trying to use specialist knowledge.
And: He immediately gets a say!
As reported by the London Evening Standard, Potter is to be involved in the search for a new sporting director. He could even veto it. An early vote of confidence from the club bosses. And an important indication that Chelsea will break old, entrenched structures for the new coach. This is also sorely needed if this is to be successful.
Potter had last worked successfully in the Premier League at Brighton & Hove Albion and had a modern football structure there. This is currently missing at Chelsea. A good start: Potter comes with four of his assistant trainers. They will be joined by Kyle Macaulay, most recently deputy head of Brighton’s scouting department. With a new, experienced sports director, a perfect club structure would then be created.
The beginning!
Potter’s meteoric rise began in Sweden’s fourth division. There he led Östersunds FK from the fourth division to the first in 2011 – and that in just five years.
A success story that culminated in winning the Swedish Cup in 2017 and qualifying for the Europa League. There they caused a sensation in qualifying and in the group phase. Only in the first knockout round was the final stop against Arsenal.
In 2018 he moved to the Premier League to Swansea City. There he immediately introduced his own game idea. He quickly abandoned the tactical 4-4-2 popular on the island. His idea: a flexible style of play that can change more often during the game. In addition, a high pressing with a lot of ball possession – even against significantly stronger opponents.
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Source: PressBox
He didn’t go on a big shopping spree at his new club, but rather tries to develop the full potential of the existing players. The players have to internalize a formation change during the game under him. This is practiced over and over again.
His basic idea: Possession football aimed at dominating the opponent or attack-type counterattacks.
“There are systems, but if you look at a game at any point, the systems are pretty fluid,” Potter explained to The Argus about a month ago. “There’s a basic formation, for example 4-3-3 or 3-4-3, but generally in a game players move and then it’s more about what they do when they attack, what they do, when they attack, defend where the spaces are.”
He also implemented these ideas at Brighton & Hove from 2019. There he managed to establish the team in the league. This season he managed a dream start with the team. In the first six games they won four, drew one and lost only one. Currently means fourth place in England. So it’s no wonder that Chelsea quickly got down to business after the Tuchel exit. According to the “Guardian”, the “Blues” activated the exit clause of 18.5 million euros for their dream coach.
Potter, the new Chelsea magician!
This makes Potter behind Julian Nagelmann – Bayern paid 25 million euros to RB Leipzig – the second most expensive coach in history. It was also not surprising that Brighton had given him such a high release clause. Potter enjoys the reputation of being one of the best coaches in England. Even the English Association is said to have him on the slip in case national coach Gareth Southgate (52) should resign.
But now Chelsea FC are waiting – and thus a completely different house number than Brighton. Because: So far, Potter has always been the star of the team. He had never worked with big stars like Raheem Sterling, Kai Havertz or Thiago Silva before.
However, Potter’s reputation as an excellent communicator precedes him and can really captivate players. But don’t overwhelm the players with information and formations.
00:44
The reason? Crazy!
Fans throw money at opponents
What: Twitter: @jwlinares
Prior to joining Chelsea, Potter said he felt empowered for a higher task, but also recognized the dangers: “The truth is that there is nothing easy in this league. You look elsewhere and think, ‘More money, more problems’.”
He’ll soon be able to prove at Chelsea that he’s up to these problems. With the Blues, Potter can show he can captivate the club…