Chelsea need a midfield revamp. (Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images)
According to The Athletic (subscription required) [h/t The Mirror], Graham Potter appears to be closing in on the Chelsea manager role. This comes after his latest Brighton & Hove Albion press conference was cancelled.
The Blues sacked Thomas Tuchel on Wednesday after a disappointing loss against Dinamo Zagreb in their Champions League opener. Since then, the hunt for a new manager is one with Potter being the favourite.
Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly was granted permission to open talks with the 47-year-old by Brighton after the new owner expressed his intent to pay the release clause in Potter’s current contract.
The Guardian says that a fee of about £16 million will have to be paid as compensation to the Seagulls for letting their manager leave. They also report that the 47-year-old has verbally agreed to take on the Chelsea job after holding talks for the same.
A former Ostersund and Swansea manager, he helped the Swedish club into their top-flight league and also led them to a Europa League spot. He was appointed by the Seagulls in the summer of 2019 and led them to their highest top-flight finish last season to ninth place.
This season too his side have got off to a fantastic start. They have won four of their six league games and currently sit fourth on the table with 13 points, three more than Chelsea who sit at sixth.
It remains to be seen if he is appointed as there is no official announcement for the same yet. But his press conference being cancelled could be a very big hint that he may not be continuing at Brighton this season.
If all goes smoothly, then Potter could be in the dugout for the Blues’ next game. They travel to face Fulham this Saturday and that could be the 47-year-old’s first game in charge of the west London club.
The Cottagers showed great fight against Tottenham Hotspur but there would be worse fixtures for Potter to start his Chelsea career with.
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