Graham Potter has been sacked as Chelsea manager after less than seven months in charge, the Premier League club announced on Sunday night.
Potter replaced Champions League-winning manager Thomas Tuchel last September after being identified by new Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly as the coach to lead the club's new long-term project. However, after an encouraging start in which he led Chelsea to six wins and three draws in his opening nine games in charge, results have sharply declined.
The Blues have slipped into the bottom half of the Premier League with a 2-0 home loss by Aston Villa on Saturday - their 10th league defeat of the season - to sit 12 points behind the top four. The one bright spot of Potter's short reign has been Chelsea's form in the Champions League, where they defeated Italian champions AC Milan home and away in the group stages and eliminated Borussia Dortmund in the Round of 16.
"Chelsea FC has announced that Graham Potter has departed the club. Graham has agreed to collaborate with the Club to facilitate a smooth transition," the club announced in a statement. "In his time with the club, Graham has taken us to the quarter final of the Champions League, where we will face Real Madrid. Chelsea would like to thank Graham for all his efforts and contribution and wish him well for the future."
Potter's assistant Bruno Saltor has taken interim charge of the Chelsea first team as the club begin their search for a permanent manager.
"On behalf of everyone at the club, we want to thank Graham sincerely for his contribution to Chelsea," co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali said in a joint statement. "We have the highest degree of respect for Graham as a coach and as a person. He has always conducted himself with professionalism and integrity and we are all disappointed in this outcome.
"Along with our incredible fans, we will all be getting behind Bruno and the team as we focus on the rest of the season. We have 10 Premier League games remaining and a Champions League quarter final ahead. We will put every effort and commitment into every one of those games so that we can end the season on a high."
Since being taken over by Boehly and Clearlake Capital last summer, Chelsea have embarked on a remarkable spending spree to overhaul the squad, spending around £500 million of 15 new players. While integrating so many new players into the squad was always going to be a challenge for Potter, ultimately results have not been god enough.
It will now be the task of Potter's permanent replacement to shape the squad into the title challengers the owners expect from such an outlay. Several out-of-work managers are being linked with the vacancy, including recent Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann, former Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino, and former Spain and Barcelona coach Luis Enrique.
Chelsea v Aston Villa - player ratings
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CHELSEA PLAYER RATINGS: Kepa Arrizabalaga - 6. Had nothing to do apart from picking the ball out of his own net twice. Can’t be faulted for either of the goals. Getty -
Kalidou Koulibaly - 6. Showed great stamina to outmuscle Ramsey off the ball as he tried to run through on goal in the 31st minute. Made a number of clearances in the second half but looked shaky against Bailey late on. Reuters -
Reece James - 6. Did well to track Ramsey and deny him the chance to play Watkins through on goal in the 27th minute. Made a crucial header to deny Watkins the chance to run through on goal in the 65th minute. AFP -
Marc Cucurella - 4. An ill-judged header played Watkins through on goal to open the scoring. Showed good composure to find Felix in the box with a sideways pass despite pressure from Aston Villa's defenders. Reuters -
Enzo Fernandez - 6. Pinched the ball off Kamara to set up Mudryk for an early attempt at goal. Played a beautiful cross for Chilwell to head home but the goal was disallowed for a foul. AFP -
Mateo Kovacic - 6. Blazed his shot high and wide in the second minute. Played Mudryk through a goal with a perfectly weighted pass in the 32nd minute. Reuters -
Ben Chilwell - 7. Unlucky to see his shot come off the frame of goal in the 35th minute. Almost picked out Havertz with a first-time pass across goal in the 37th minute. Thought he had grabbed the equaliser on the stroke of halftime but the goal was cancelled out for a foul on Young. Chelsea’s standout player. AFP -
Ruben Loftus-Cheek - 5. Struggled with his role on the right-hand side of midfield. He lacked the pace to get behind Moreno and deliver crosses into the box. AFP -
Joao Felix - 6. Almost dragged Chelsea level with a shot that was saved by Martinez in the 20th minute. Unlucky to see his toe-poked shot parried by Martinez in the 61st minute. Getty -
Mykhailo Mudryk - 4. Wrongly elected to shoot instead of passing to Havertz who would have been tasked with a simple tap-in early in the game. Could only manage a tame attempt at Martinez’s goal when he was played through on goal by Kovacic. AFP -
Kai Havertz - 6. Took one touch too many when he was presented with a chance to test Martinez in the 14th minute. Saw his deflected shot saved by Martinez in the 43rd minute. AP -
SUBS: Noni Madueke (Mudryk 58’) - 6. Hit his shot high and wide when Felix found him on the edge of the box in the 62nd minute. Did well to set up Kante for a shot at goal a minute later. AFP -
N’Golo Kante (Loftus-Cheek 58’) - 6. Went close to scoring with a shot that went agonisingly wide in the 63rd minute. He added something different to a Blues attack that lacked spark after coming on. AFP -
Conor Gallagher (Kovacic 80’) - N/A. Was everywhere after coming on but couldn’t help the Blues reduce the deficit. EPA -
Christian Pulisic (Cucurella 80’) - N/A. His cross-shot almost caught Martinez out in the 90th minute. AFP -
ASTON VILLA PLAYER RATINGS: Emiliano Martinez - 8. Almost cost his team a goal when he played a shot pass to Kamara that was seized upon by Mudryk but he made amends by making the save. Made another superb stop to deny Felix in the 21st minute. AFP -
Ashley Young - 7. A testing game on the right-hand side for Young against Chilwell and Felix. Despite being outnumbered on a number of occasions, the experienced right-back never seemed fazed by the situation. Reuters -
Alex Moreno - 7. Dominated the left wing and kept Loftus-Cheek quiet. Found it tougher to deal with Madueke but he never shied away from his duties. AFP -
Tyrone Mings - 8. His lax pass almost cost Aston Villa a goal in the 14th minute. His aerial presence was crucial in the second half as he repeatedly won headers in his penalty area. Getty -
Ezri Konsa - 8. Made a last-ditch tackle to deny Havertz the chance to have a shot at goal in the 14th minute. Made a double block to deny Kante in the second half. Getty -
Douglas Luiz - 7. Played the pass which Cucurella headed into the path of Watkins for Aston Villa’s opener. Sat back in the second half and helped break up several Blues attacks. AFP -
Boubacar Kamara - 6. Booked just four minutes into a game for stopping a Chelsea counterattack. Tracked back well to deny Havertz the chance of getting on the end of Loftus-Cheek’s cross in the 41st minute. Getty -
John McGinn - 9. Displayed great vision to send Watkins through on goal in the 7th minute. Doubled Aston Villa’s lead with a left-footed shot into the bottom corner. Reuters -
Jacob Ramsey - 8. A tireless performance in the first half. Ramsey was involved in almost every good attacking move by Villa. Created the second goal by playing a pass to the edge of the box which McGinn finished with aplomb. AP -
Emiliano Buendia - 7. Combined well with Ramsey and set up McGinn for a shot which came off the crossbar. Worked hard in the middle of the pitch in the second half. Reuters -
Ollie Watkins - 8. Should have at least tested Kepa when he was played through on goal by McGinn in the seventh minute. Made amends a few minutes later as he got behind the Blues backline and lobbed the ball past the helpless Kepa into the back of the net. Getty -
SUBS: Calum Chambers (Kamara 46’) - 7. Brought on in an unfamiliar midfield role, Chambers was superb as a defensive midfielder. Tracked back to block Felix’s effort at goal in the 59th minute. AP -
Leon Bailey (Buendia 76’) - N/A. A real thorn in the side of Chelsea’s defenders after coming on as they struggle to deal with his pace and trickiness. PA -
Leander Dendoncker (Luiz 87’) - N/A. PA -
Lucas Digne (Moreno 89’) - N/A. Reuters
