The simple nature of the mythical 'new manager bounce.' An unexplained non-scientific phenomena that exists in the ether of football. The hows and whys are understood, just about, but the secret to expanding the golden run long enough to create long-term success is so far all but impossible.
It's almost harsh to call it a 'new manager bounce' because it takes away the fundamental success that one manager has had despite the fortunes of a team often being so dire that their predecessor needed to lose their job. For Graham Potter it's a new feeling, but then again so is everything about his takeover at Chelsea.
He was sat down in a kitted out Aston Martin DB5 by Q and told to test the gadgets as he wished, but careful, there's a driver side ejector seat in there somewhere.
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Potter has been asked to turn the fortunes of a struggling team back into a side that resembles an organisation with £250m worth of recent transfer investment. That itself is something most managers would struggle with, but the level of expectation that he is now elevated onto is a new world in itself too. From Brighton to Chelsea, 50 miles apart, but different planets in a footballing sense.
Potter's first month has now passed and he's unscathed. He's come through as a quiet but methodical figure, in other words, he's done what Graham Potter does, but on a bigger scale with more attention. Perfect, that's what Chelsea employed. But the real test is coming. As much as managing the initial weeks with new players in a new structure and club are tough, results are relentless, undiscriminating and define managers, regardless of everything else.
In that sense he has a massive tick next to his name. Five games, four wins, 11 scored, two conceded, four wins in a row, three clean sheets on the bounce. Previously exiled senior players have been called back in and are performing, the stars are shining once more, there's even been a high-profile goalkeeping change. Ask Siri or Alexa to define 'new manager bounce' and this is what you'd get.
In reality, this is what Chelsea could always be. Unlike when Thomas Tuchel took over a group of relative misfits in January 2021, Potter has a squad that is coordinated - to some extent - and extremely talented. His job was to first get them going, and then continue the job, not to rip up the playbook but to redirect it.
His ability to communicate simply is already showing. Players that have proven their skills are doing them once again and Potter's careful management of people is exactly what is needed for this situation, but that's textbook 'new manager bounce.' The grass is always greener until a team starts to lose and Potter is then seen as not intense enough. For now though, these are all unknown expectations of the future because we've seen it all before.
The real challenge is what comes next. How does Potter balance 10 games in four weeks ahead of a World Cup? Tottenham manager Antonio Conte has been in his current role less than one year and knows the struggle. "It is not simple and I think it is a difficult situation for all the teams and the clubs to play every three days, it's a big effort," he said ahead of Spurs' home Champions League match against Frankfurt.
Conte, who won the league with Chelsea in 2016/17 playing without European football, had the benefit of midweek breaks and elongated recovery periods, something he doesn't have now, and neither does Potter. His words on the subject are still transferable though, and send a message that Potter must heed.
"You have to try to manage the situation but at the same time you know that you have to make rotation, but at the same time you need to get good results otherwise there are a lot of criticism for the result," the Italian added.
"Fingers crossed that I will have all the players available with great balance because it's important to have balance in every game and also you make a lot of rotation you can't lose intensity, that is the most important thing for every team, to keep the club at a good level."
Potter has managed through stressful times and has admitted that in football the risk is no different to leaving his house or moving to Sweden to pursue a career, but nevertheless, his challenge with Chelsea is not only already of heightened expectation and intensity, it is something he didn't have to consider to this extent during his time on the south coast.
As far as his matches so far are concerned, Potter has managed his squad perfectly, able to rotate seven players out against Wolves and win 3-0 before six players returned to the starting XI in Milan to win 2-0. That is just the tip of the iceberg, though.
For Conte it was part of his second season implosion at Stamford Bridge. Once things turn, they turn hard and he couldn't handle the decline. Winning is the best way to overcome that and Potter has started strongly in that regard, but it's only the small head start he needs because the race is longer than these five matches and the obstacles get bigger.
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