Graham Ruthven: Why would anyone want the Chelsea job after Graham Potter’s sacking?

THE total cost of Graham Potter’s seven months as Chelsea manager ultimately amounted to around £50m. There was the world record fee of £22m paid to Brighton to appoint the 47-year-old in the first place, the £13m payoff handed to Thomas Tuchel and finally the severance package to release Potter from the five-year contract signed only in September.

Chelsea are rich, but not so rich they can write off this amount of money without any sort of course correction or self-reflection. This is why their next appointment is so important. Having wasted an entire season (and £50m), they can’t afford to get it wrong. Todd Boehly must find a new manager capable of pointing the Blues in the right direction.

Graham Potter's Chelsea career by numbers:

◉ 31 games◉ 12 wins◉ 11 defeats◉ 8 draws◎ 33 goals scored◎ 31 goals conceded

His 39% win rate is the lowest of any permanent manager at the club in the 21st century. 😬 pic.twitter.com/xwRP34nQtD

— Squawka (@Squawka) April 2, 2023

Julian Nagelsmann is believed to be Chelsea’s first pick with the 35-year-old now unattached following his surprise sacking by Bayern Munich last week. Mauricio Pochettino, another free agent, has also been linked with the job along with Sporting CP’s Ruben Amorim and former Spain boss Luis Enrique.

Why, though, would anyone want the Chelsea job at this moment in time? This is a club so chaotic it has chewed up and spat out two highly regarded managers (one of them a former Champions League winner) in just one season. Tuchel is better off for now being at Bayern Munich and Potter will also be better off wherever he lands on his feet again (Leicester City reportedly see Potter as a candidate to replace Brendan Rodgers).

Whoever takes over at Stamford Bridge will inherit the same issues that cost Tuchel and Potter their jobs. As a club, Chelsea have no strategy and no identity. They have an owner and figurehead in Boehly without the qualifications to succeed at football’s elite level. The American also seemingly lacks the humility to delegate.

The timeline of this season is surely off-putting to any potential new Chelsea manager. Tuchel was sacked just one week after the end of a summer transfer window that saw £250m of new players signed largely on the instruction of the German coach. Then Potter was hired as a project manager only to be handed a glut of new signings he never really wanted and sacked after just seven months in charge.

There isn’t a manager out there who wouldn’t have struggled in such challenging circumstances. Chelsea made it impossible for Potter to succeed and there’s little to suggest the circumstances will be any easier for the next manager in line. The best coaches in the game would be wise to steer clear of Stamford Bridge.

Nagelsmann’s (and Enrique’s) possession-heavy approach would be a problem for a Chelsea squad without many natural controllers of the ball. Enzo Fernandez might work in a Nagelsmann system, but Chelsea’s squad isn’t built to control possession, nor is it suited to a fluid approach in the attacking third of the pitch.

🚨 Understand there have been already approaches for Julian Nagelsmann to be the new Chelsea head coach. Talks will continue to make final decision — but he’s the favorite. #CFC

No confirmation on Pochettino links at this stage. Nagelsmann, mentioned in internal talks yesterday. pic.twitter.com/1jcxrgjRYd

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) April 2, 2023

Of course, there is a lot of talent within the Stamford Bridge dressing room and Chelsea is still one of the biggest clubs in the Premier League. The attraction of living and working in London also mustn’t be understated, but Chelsea are a long, long way from reaching the top of the English and European game again.

Chelsea might argue they have undone a mistake by sacking Potter. A project manager can only succeed if there is progress at all stages of the project and Potter failed to deliver this. Chelsea regressed under his control. Potter looked out of place in the Stamford Bridge dugout. However, finding someone who looks at home amid all the chaos will be difficult if not impossible.