Todd Boehly sent strong honest message to Graham Potter as Chelsea Champions League prediction made
The hiring of Graham Potter may prevent Chelsea from competing in the UEFA Champions League, Todd Boehly has been informed. Just days after the summer transfer window closed due to two losses, the 47-year-old replaced Thomas Tuchel as the manager of Stamford Bridge.
However, When Crystal Palace plays home to the west Londoners at Selhurst Park on Saturday, Potter will be anxious to record his first victory since joining the Blues. With 10 points and a seventh-place finish in the Premier League, Chelsea is still some distance behind rivals Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal, who are currently in third and first place, respectively.
The international break should have allowed the former Brighton manager some time to plan a path for Chelsea to qualify for the Champions League. But according to former Blues defender Robert Huth, Potter is unable to compete with Mikel Arteta, Antonio Conte, Pep Guardiola, and Jurgen Klopp, thus the race may already be gone.
Speaking to Ladbrokes, as quoted by the Express, Huth said: “How many times do we see these kind of decisions being made, where a manager is losing their job a couple of days after the transfer window closing?
“Chelsea should really be close to the top four, but I just think in terms of the other managers at the top end of the table – without being disrespectful to Potter whatsoever – the likes of Pep, Klopp, Conte and Arteta, I think they’re all ahead of him in terms of experience at this level.
“I fear that Chelsea will miss out on the top four. Potter’s not had to compete for prizes, for trophies and for Champions League football before – not at this level. The top five or six teams in the division are very close in terms of quality on the pitch, but when it comes to the dugout, there are at least four other sides with more experienced managers which will be a massive advantage over the course of the season.”
However, while Huth has cast doubt as to whether Potter is the man to secure Champions League qualification for Chelsea, he has sympathised with the Englishman – and Thomas Tuchel. Speaking on the German’s exit, the former Leicester City title-winner said: “It’s such a vital time for players and managers, so it just doesn’t make sense to me.
“Whether or not something has gone on behind the scenes, I don’t know. If you’re [Pierre-Emerick] Aubameyang, you’re obviously looking forward to working with Tuchel again, and now it’s gone out of the window and you’re playing for a new guy. I can’t make sense of it at all; it would have made much more sense if it happened before the season started, or if they gave him more time with this new group of players.”