On Wednesday morning, the footballing world was sent into shock as the news of Thomas Tuchel's sacking at Chelsea surfaced on the internet.
The news emerged just days after new the summer transfer window had slammed shut, a period that had seen the Londoners smash the world record for biggest outlay in one window.
Among those to make the move to Stamford Bridge was Pierre-Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who had joined from La Liga giants Barcelona and cited his relationship with Tuchel, whom he had worked with at Borussia Dortmund, as paramount in his decision to move back to the Premier League.
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The former Arsenal man had been earmarked by Tuchel as the solution to Chelsea's barren run in front of goal, which had seen the likes of Kai Havertz and Raheem Sterling help their side find the back of the net just eight times in their opening six Premier League games.
Despite backing the German with such huge decisions during the window, such as bringing in defender Wesley Fofana for a near-world-record fee, allowing club-record signing Romelu Lukaku to depart as well as Timo Werner, new owner Todd Boehly decided to part with the Tuchel just four weeks into the new season.
Tuchel's departure was quickly followed up by the appointment of Graham Potter from Brighton & Hove Albion, with the club's new American ownership deciding that Potter's style of play and man management was what was needed to take the club in the desired direction.
On the surface of it, it seems like a smart appointment from Boehly and co. However, it's a style of appointment that Liverpool's owners Fenway Sports Group have already experimented with during their early days as the club's owners.
After firing club legend Sir Kenny Dalglish in May 2012, despite reaching both domestic cup finals, FSG started the procedure of looking for the Scot's successor. Having shortlisted Roberto Martinez and Brendan Rodgers, it was the young, swanky Northern Irishman and his possession-based philosophy that was enough to land him an interview with FSG's Principal Owner John. W Henry.
Having secured the job shortly after his interview in Boston, Rodgers presented Henry with a 180-page dossier of his vision for Liverpool, a document that he had crafted together during his 15 years in coaching.
“I started over 15 years ago, and it’s something I’ve been piecing together for many years since,” said Rodgers in 2012.
“Then, when I became a manager, I put it into a format with a philosophy and methodology. I’ve added to it throughout and when I came to Liverpool, I presented it to the owners.
“It’s a document on the culture, philosophy and game plan going forward. It’s a model, a shortcut to how I work, the kind of players I want tactically and the personality traits of players.”
He added: “The vision is simple – to win the most trophies we can. That’s the bigger picture. The second is to play attractive, attacking football, and the third is to bring through as many of the young players as we possibly can.
“That’s what I set down, and I’ve developed it along the way. When I became a manager I always wanted to go into a club with a clear philosophy so it’s clear in terms of where everyone is heading.
“That’s what I presented to the owners, a model of how we will go forward and make things work. Thankfully at two of my three clubs as manager I’ve been able to create a one-club mentality and it’s been successful.”
The then 39-year-old had excelled during his first season in the Premier League with Swansea City, after he guided the Welsh outfit to the Premier League for the first time in their history, as he recorded an impressive eleventh-place finish in May 2012.
However, his time at Liverpool, despite coming so close to delivering the club's maiden Premier League title in 2014, proved ultimately to be underwhelming and led to the Northern Irishman being sacked in October 2015 and replaced by Jurgen Klopp.
For Boehly, wanting to appoint a young, British manager, which has cost him a world-record compensation pay-out for such an appointment, there are obvious parallels to draw between the events of this week and those of June 2012.
While Potter has played nice, progressive, possession-based football during his time at the Amex, his appointment as Chelsea boss and the scrutiny that comes with it feels that it may have come too soon during his managerial career.
It was only last October that Brighton went on a 12-game winless run, which was punctuated by his side getting booed off after a 0-0 draw with Leeds United in late November, leaving Potter publicly frustrated at the crowd's reaction.
“You have to understand how Leeds United play, they go man for man and it’s not easy to play forward,” the former Brighton manager told reports after the game.
“You have to use your spare men which is your centre-backs. You have to construct attacks well, which we did if you look at the chances we created.
“But again, I’m confused.”
He added: "It’s frustrating but that happens in football,” he said to Sky Sports. “We created chances today and if we maintain that level of performance we’ll score goals.
“The fans are entitled to their opinions but I disagree with them. You have to understand the game, who we played and what we did. We are sitting eighth in the Premier League but maybe I need a history lesson on this club.”
Of course, judging off the early months of Boehly's reign, Potter will have a far greater pool of resources at his disposal than Rodgers did during his time and Liverpool, but given the nature of the Premier League schedule this season prior to the World Cup, Potter will have to ensure he hits the ground running at Stamford Bridge.
Because the early signs show that while Chelsea's ownership may have changed, the ruthless nature of their decision-making has not.
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