Chelsea confirmed the appointment of Graham Potter following the firing of Thomas Tuchel, just seven matches into the season.
The 47-year-old English had an excellent three-year spell at Brighton and Hove Albion. His philosophy of football and style of play was clear in the Brighton team and players. His style of football and how he set up his team have earned applause from top managers like Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp.
The appointment of Graham Potter by Todd Boehly seems to fit into the way the new owners intend to run Chelsea. Todd Boehly was quoted saying he wishes to copy how the Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group backed Jurgen Klopp.
Potter was handed a five-year contract at Chelsea worth over £50 million and £12 million a year.
Graham Potter has the promise to make history at Chelsea following the club traditions. Potter will want to be the first English manager to win a major trophy since 2008.
What did Graham Potter say?
“The history of the club speaks for itself, but it’s about trying to create that again, in our way.
“It’s an amazing history, fantastic tradition, a historic football club. You only have to walk around the place here and you see the pictures, trophies, and names. It’s incredible, and it’s a huge honor for me to be part of that now.
“It’s about creating a team that competes, that has respect, for each other, that is honest, that works together, so a combination of football and human values that we try to work with.
“It’s nice to be able to take the next step and to be able to work with an exciting group of players that we have here and compete at the top, try to create a winning team and that’s a fantastic opportunity for me.
“It’s the start of a really exciting period. I was really excited and impressed by [the new ownership], firstly as people and then the vision for the club and what they wanted to do.”
The Chelsea job is Graham Potter’s biggest managerial appointment. What remains Graham Potter’s biggest challenge at Chelsea will deal with the egos of the Chelsea players.
“I try to find some common ground, try to build relationships, to communicate effectively on a daily basis and build respect, trust and honesty, so my starting point would always be the person first, “Potter added.
“I think that you have to understand that they’re human beings first, and the key thing is to try to understand them, understand what motivates them and understand what they’re like as people.
“Chelsea is a really, really tough place to play so I’m looking forward to being on the other end of that and getting that support with the team because it’s amazing, the atmosphere is fantastic and it’s something I’m really into.
“It’s one of those places that fill you with incredible excitement when you come as an away team. The crowd is always very, very passionate. They’re always getting behind the home side.”
