Graham Potter has the support of Chelsea's owners despite losing three straight Premier League games before the World Cup.
According to a report in The Athletic, Todd Boehly and Clearlake ownership are 'unwavering' in their support of the 47-year-old despite social media cries for him to be replaced after the Newcastle defeat.
After being handed a five-year deal in September to replace Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea's new hierarchy are not going to be knee-jerk despite a sudden downturn in form that has soured the mood before the World Cup, leaving Potter's side in eighth place, eight points behind the Champions League places.
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There has become a natural expectation at Chelsea due to the Roman Abramovich era that when results quickly turn sour, the head coach is swiftly axed.
That was the eventual consequence for Jose Mourinho in November 2015, shortly after he lost three straight league games, leaving his defending Champions hovering above the relegation zone. Although the outlook is bleak for Potter after a dismal few weeks, Chelsea's position in the table is not as desperate.
Questions will always be posed whenever a club of Chelsea's talent, size and wealth lose consecutive matches, only heightened when they come in the big games against teams they are supposed to be competing with. When Potter was at Brighton, winless runs were not forensically scrutinised with as much ferocity. Potter has quickly found out how different the expectation level is at Chelsea.
The drop in confidence has happened pretty quickly, given Potter's first league game in charge only came at the beginning of October. It was only three weeks ago the English coach had led Chelsea to Champions League qualification from their group as group winners, despite ending matchday two at the bottom of Group E.
The unrelenting schedule has congested a lot of games into a shorter period before the World Cup break. His side has not been aided by a growing injury list that has seen Potter consistently lose key players like Wesley Fofana, Reece James, Kepa Arrizabalaga and Ben Chilwell, not being able to use N'Golo Kante at all due to a hamstring injury. This has all been whilst Potter has been trying to find the right formula with a new group of players that were assembled in a transfer window without his input.
On the other hand, performances have not been good, particularly against Arsenal and Newcastle, where Chelsea looked timid and afraid to commit many bodies forward, making them pretty blunt in attack. This is where criticism is valid.
If fans cannot see a process or signs of an approach that can further be improved, then it is hard to see much optimism. Both Aaron Ramsdale and Nick Pope had relatively comfortable afternoons in goal against Chelsea despite the scoreline in both games being close. An xG (expected goal) of under 1 in both games reflects the lack of creativity, something Potter was injecting into the Blues during his first run of games.
The clear identity of this team is still unclear. The frequent changing of formations seems to be creating confusion beyond just onlookers trying to predict the upcoming lineup. The disruption of consistent injuries obviously forces rotation and change, especially when those injuries are to players as influential as Reece James.
Part of what has got Chelsea into their current confused mess is the frequent change in the dugout since the last title win, along with consistent mistakes in the transfer window.
Boehly and co. made a huge call when they decided to part ways with Thomas Tuchel in September. Part of the justification for that call was a lack of unified vision along with a view to a more long-term collaborative process. Granted, these are nice ideals, truly tested when results are poor, and the mood amongst a demanding supporter base is angry. But to flippantly change again would likely only create more chaos in what has been a ridiculous year for the club.
Time for reflection is needed, and Potter will need to earn that trust with improved performances and results, but calling for him to be sacked due to mitigating circumstances feels like an overreaction.
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