Alan Shearer was the pundit in charge of watching Chelsea’s game against Southampton yesterday, and he came away with the same conclusion that most of us have when watching Graham Potter’s teams this season.
The decisions the coach has made, both in selections and in his changes in the middle of games, are just baffling at times, as Shearer explained.
“At times, I’m lost to see what they’re trying to do. The first half they had Fofana up there, they took him off, brought Sterling on, because they didn’t create anything,” the former England striker said in quotes picked up by Daily Mail.
‘This is what I mean when I say I struggle when I look at Chelsea. Ok Havertz there, Felix there, they brought Sterling on, who was probably their best player in the second half.
“But Sterling’s got the ball there, there’s no options, so he goes back, he goes square, that allows Southampton to get men behind the ball and make it very difficult for them.”
The other pundits, all sitting there rather glumly, had to agree. Potter was the great white hope of English coaching, and just like us, they were keen to see him do well. We’re all searching for excuses now
Of course, the most damning thing for Potter in all of this is his predecessor. Thomas Tuchel turned the team around in 90 minutes – the new guy looks like he could be given 90 years without any results.