Until last September, when Graham Potter found himself abruptly thrust into the position of Chelsea manager, he had never so much as attended a match in the Champions League.
It was a curious gap in the career of a coach who has always been intrepid, an Englishman who built up his reputation in provincial Sweden by taking Ostersund from the lower divisions into the Europa League, and who established Brighton as a force in the Premier League.
Taking up a VIP spectator seat at European Cup games is no measure of a coach’s potential. Potter has mostly been too busy to travel on midweek evenings to events he could more easily watch on television.
Yet six months into a Chelsea career that began with a group stage fixture between the 2021 European champions and Salzburg, he cannot help wondering if there may be a wait rather longer than half a year after Tuesday’s meeting with Borussia Dortmund, before he again experiences, live, the atmosphere of a Champions League night.
His team are trailing 1-0 from the Dortmund leg of their last-16 tie; Chelsea are only in the top half of the Premier League thanks to goal difference, and 11 points beneath fourth place, the last of the qualifying spots for next season’s Champions League. On potency — goals scored — Chelsea would sit 14th in the domestic table. On form they look alarmingly mismatched with the latest visitors to Stamford Bridge.
Dortmund are chasing an 11th successive victory, and looking to maintain a 100 per cent record since they returned to action after the break for the World Cup, a run that has thoroughly endorsed the club’s decision to appoint Edin Terzic as manager last summer. The 40-year-old had previously held a number of Dortmund roles, including interim coach in 2020/21. He had been a fellow student of Potter’s as they earned their professional badges.
They stay in touch, have a bond and some empathy: Terzic knows what it is to encounter scepticism and how, being promoted sharply upwards invites criticism that, as a young manager, you may not be ready for the bigger stage.
Terzic heard some of that in his first spell in charge of Dortmund’s first-team. Potter, who has overseen just two victories in 12 games since the new year, has lately listened to loud booing and derision of his pedigree, although he is eager to channel any goodwill from the grandstands generated by Saturday’s 1-0 home win against Leeds United.
Dortmund 1 Chelsea 0: Player ratings
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BORUSSIA DORTMUND RATINGS: Gregor Kobel 8 – Pulled off some excellent saves, the standout being a sprawling stop to tip Reece James’ effort over the bar. AFP -
Marius Wolf 7 – Excellent in the final third, firing several rasping shots just wide, while also working tirelessly to win possession back quickly. Getty -
Niklas Sule 6 – Dependable for the most part, although the towering German’s lack of mobility was exposed at times against Chelsea’s pacy attack. PA -
Nico Schlotterbeck 7 – Crucial in the final moments of the game, stepping up as Chelsea rained crosses into the penalty area. AFP -
Raphael Guerreiro 6 – Got into some excellent attacking positions but was wasteful with his end product. Seemed to tire in the second half. AFP -
Emre Can 7 – Energetic and committed - evidenced best by his dramatic goal-line clearance from Koulibaly’s second-half strike. His enthusiasm boiled over at times, leading to the midfielder picking up a second-half yellow. EPA -
Julian Brandt 8 – The 26-year-old extended his sparkling run of form with another classy display tonight. As the German side’s creative hub, he threaded several perfect through balls to his teammates in advanced positions. Reuters -
Jude Bellingham 8 – Dortmund’s young superstar pulled the strings all evening, leading from the front both defensively and offensively. Everything good that the hosts did seemed to go through the Englishman. Getty -
Salih Ozcan 7 – The quieter of BVB’s midfielders, he kept things neat and tidy in possession, while helping to mop things up on the defensive side. His efforts to track the movements of Joao Felix were less effective. AFP -
Karim Adeyemi 8 – Scorer of the only goal, having streaked away from Enzo Fernandez before rounding Kepa. It was a deserved reward for Adeyemi, whose movement caused Chelsea problems from the first minute. AFP -
Sebastien Haller 6 – Showcased some flashes of his old brilliance. His link-up play was very effective in the first half. AFP -
SUBS: Anthony Modeste 6 – Didn’t see a great deal of the ball as Chelsea pushed for a leveller in the final 20 minutes. AFP -
Julian Ryerson 5 – Picked up a yellow card for time wasting, which ended up instigating a touchline fracas between the two sets of players. Getty -
Jamie Bynoe-Gittens N/A – Lively on the counter, although chances to stride forward were few and far between. Getty -
CHELSEA RATINGS: Kepa Arrizabalaga 5 – Was rounded very easily by Adeyemi for the goal. That aside, the Spaniard had very little to do. Getty -
DF: Reece James 7 – Chelsea’s best performer, forcing a couple of excellent saves from Kobel, while also turning provider from wide right. Led from the front defensively too. Getty -
Thiago Silva 7 – Used his hand to try and score in first half. However, the Brazilian made amends with some standout interceptions and headed clearances. AFP -
Kalidou Koulibaly 6 – Solid at the back, growing as the game wore on. Saw his firm strike inside the Dortmund box cleared off the line by Can on the hour mark. AFP -
Ben Chilwell 6 – Dangerous at set-pieces, although the England international looked less than convincing defensively. Was replaced by Marc Cucurella in the 70th minute. Getty -
Ruben Loftus-Cheek 6 – Influential in spells, especially on the defensive side. Having started brightly, he did fade in the second half. EPA -
Enzo Fernandez 7 – The World Cup winner oozed quality, keeping things ticking over nicely for Chelsea in the middle of the park. But was beaten by Adeyemi before the German slotted home the winner. EPA -
Hakim Ziyech 7 – Very dangerous from the wide right, showing manager Graham Potter just how much he has left to give in a Chelsea shirt. The Moroccan was unfortunate not to have grabbed an assist. AFP -
Joao Felix 7 – Should have ended up on the scoresheet, having squandered two golden opportunities. But the early signs are good for the Blues, as his movement caused so many problems for the BVB backline. AFP -
Mykhailo Mudryk 6 – Another underwhelming performance from the Ukrainian winger. Showed some flashes of what he’s capable of, but all too often he was wasteful in the final third. EPA -
Kai Havertz 6 – Linked play nicely in the opening stages, but lacked killer instinct inside the Dortmund box. AFP -
SUBS: Mason Mount 5 – A forgettable cameo from the 24-year-old, who picked up a late yellow card. PA -
Marc Cucurella 7 – Whipping some teasing crosses into the Dortmund box in a bid to force an equaliser. Getty
“When you win a game, your smile comes back,” said Potter. “Fans are entitled to air their view and they have been suffering, like the rest of us. They want the team to go through and know how important they are. They will help make it tough for Dortmund. Our thoughts are on being positive.”
The manager’s mood will improve considerably if, after a fitness examination Tuesday morning, Reece James is deemed ready to take part. The right wing-back missed the Leeds game with a tight hamstring. Midfielder N’Golo Kante, out since August, is also in training, although the Dortmund visit is too early in his comeback timetable.
Chelsea are hardly short of big-match calibre, for all that their manager is new to the environment. Nine of the squad who travelled to Porto to beat Manchester City in the European Cup final 22 months ago are still at Potter’s disposal and a huge outlay in the winter transfer window has brought in a World Cup winner, in Enzo Fernandez, and a playmaker, Joao Felix, who had secured league titles in two different countries, Portugal and Spain, by the time he turned 21.
Felix is still only 23, but should this evening play his 38th game in Uefa competition. He acknowledged on Monday that being in the Champions League will be a factor in any choices he makes about his medium-term future. He is on loan until June from Atletico Madrid, and the player and Chelsea are weighing up whether to push for a permanent move.
“The Champions League is a competition everyone wants to play in, an important decision,” Felix said, “but nobody knows about the future, and we have a lot of games in the league yet to try to reach the Champions League.”
Alternatively, Chelsea could qualify by going past Dortmund, through the next two rounds and winning the final in Istanbul in June. Given their goalscoring record — just two in their last seven games — that sounds a tall order.
“The lack of goals is frustrating,” said Felix, whose strike against West Ham United last month, from a Fernandez pass, is so far the most substantial return from the winter recruits. “You have to keep working and pushing and the goals will appear.”
