“Was he given enough time?”- Chelsea icon gives verdict on Graham Potter’s sacking

John Obi Mikel says Chelsea made right decision after relieving Graham Potter of his duties

Blues icon John Obi-Mikel believes Chelsea made the correct choice in firing Graham Potter after a poor run under him. Potter’s tenure began on a positive note, but subsequently, the Blues embarked on a dreadful run of losing games.

Following Chelsea’s 2-0 loss to Aston Villa, the club eventually made a difficult choice and fired the 47-year-old. In his 30 games as manager, the team only managed 12 victories. When his departure was confirmed, Chelsea were in 10th place.

Following his sacking the Blues hired Frank Lampard, who will serve as temporary manager till the end of the current campaign.

Mikel also made the comparison that Potter would be long gone if he had been Chelsea’s manager during the era of Roman Abramovich. (h/t Mirror) On the radio programme Dubai Eye, Mikel continued.

“So when you look at it, I think he’s been given enough time. If it was the Roman Abramovich era…Then Mikel decided to burst out laughing at the suggestion Potter could have been in charge during that era, with Abramovich arguably the most brutal at sacking managers.”

“So was he given enough time? I think the club made the right decision. Was the club too big for him to manage? Maybe. Because when I look at him sometimes on the touchline, he doesn’t really know what to do. He’s not communicating to the players; he doesn’t tell them what to do on the pitch.”

It is true that he had been sacked by Abramovich, who never tolerated a run of unsuccessful outcomes and would fire managers even if they were new to the role.

However, Potter is not solely to blame; if Todd Boehly hadn’t fired Tuchel, who had Chelsea having a respectable season, Potter wouldn’t have been in charge. He was given a team that was full of injured and out-of-form players.

Fresh additions also required time to establish themselves, so it is true that he would have wanted a full season to make a competitive Chelsea squad. If he had been given more time, he could have changed the tide.

More Chelsea News:

• Glen Johnson has advised Chelsea to sell Liverpool and Manchester United target Mason Mount
• Ben Chilwell is set to extend his Chelsea contract to two years
• Jamie Redknapp say Frank Lampard has unfinished business at Chelsea

But modern football has no patience. If Claudio Ranieri was fired by Leicester even after winning them the Premier League title, then anything is possible. Short-term profits and gains make it impossible for any owner to give a manager time at the helm when results aren’t going in the team’s favour.