Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly has ignored Antonio Rudiger's plea for the Blues to change their managerial sacking culture after Thomas Tuchel's exit.
Graham Potter is being lined up as Tuchel's successor with the Brighton manager currently in London to hold talks regarding the vacant managerial position at Stamford Bridge, football.london understands. Chelsea earned a reputation for changing managers on a regular basis under the previous ownership model implemented by Roman Abramovich.
Boehly's decision to sack Tuchel from his position as Blues' boss was not a knee-jerk one with tensions having been built up throughout the summer transfer window between the co-owner and manager. The west London outfit are hoping to have a new head coach in place for the clash against Fulham at the weekend, and Potter looks set to be Boehly's choice.
READ MORE: Mauricio Pochettino named as potential next Chelsea manager after Thomas Tuchel sacked
Tuchel was Abramovich's final appointment as owner at Stamford Bridge with the German replacing club legend. Mauricio Pochettino and Potter were the leading two candidates for Boehly as the club continue their search for a replacement manager, with a decision set to be made by the weekend.
The decision to sack the former Paris Saint-Germain boss has divided a club, which after a poor start to the season, was in need of unity. Boehly's shock decision to axe Tuchel as manager has also directly ignored a plea from former Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger.
Despite being a fan-favourite amongst Blues' supporters, Rudiger was deemed surplus to requirements by Tuchel with the German defender leaving Stamford Bridge upon expiry of his contract this summer to join Real Madrid. Rudiger's exit led the west Londoners to search for a suitable replacement with the club signing Kalidou Koulibaly and Wesley Fofana as part of a new-look backline this season.
Speaking to The Times in May, the German international said: "I hope for this club that the mentality changes of sacking coaches so early when success is not there. I like to trust the process and, with this coach, you can see there is a process.
"Chelsea can be very proud to have a coach like this, the way he handled himself. The way he handled things in those tough moments, you have to give him kudos for that, you have to give him credit for that.”
Rudiger continued: “With all this noise around and everything the way he managed us, to go out there in Santiago Bernabéu with all that was going on and to deliver something like this [beating Real Madrid away but being eliminated from the Champions League in extra time] you have to give him credit for that. For me, he is a phenomenal coach. He is up there with Pep Guardiola and Jürgen Klopp.”
Times are changing at Stamford Bridge and Boehly will be hoping his next appointment fits in with his long-term project for Chelsea.
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