With Chelsea’s dismal run continuing in their London derby defeat at Tottenham Hotspur, one question was on everyone’s lips – how long will manager Graham Potter be given to turn things around?
The Blues boss, who outlined the toll that criticism has placed on his family and mental health last week, has very little credit in the bank in terms of results.
Chelsea have won just twice in their last 15 games in all competitions and have scored the fewest number of goals among Premier League teams since November.
With the Blues now 10th, 14 points adrift of a top-four place, Potter, who only took over in September, looks in an increasingly precarious position.
“If results aren’t good enough, which they aren’t at the moment, you can’t rely on support forever that is for sure,” said Potter.
“I take full responsibility for those results and it isn’t good enough for Chelsea. We want to improve it absolutely. My job is to keep going, to keep working with the team to try and change the moment. The players are hurting. It’s a tough moment for us.”
Blues players behind beleaguered boss
Chelsea are closer to the bottom three than the Champions League places, with Potter tasked with getting the best from an inflated and expensively assembled squad yet one that appears to lack a player who can score regularly.
In his defence the 47-year-old could point to having limited opportunities to work with his best XI as a result of an extensive injury list in a World Cup-interrupted season.
Nor has he had a summer transfer window to shape his squad or a pre-season with his players, with Potter drawing comparisons from his situation to other top-flight managers.
“We were talking before the game about watching All or Nothing and Arsenal two years into Mikel’s [Arteta] reign, he is close to getting the sack, people are wanting him out and it is a disaster,” Potter added.
“Obviously now things have changed a little bit, but that is just the way it is. You look at Jurgen’s [Klopp] situation. He hasn’t got the results and all of a sudden people want him out. That is just the nature of football.”
Speaking after Sunday’s defeat to Spurs, Chelsea defender Reece James said the club’s players are still fully supportive of their manager.
“We are still all together,” James told Sky Sports. “Nobody has gone their own way. The manager, the owners, players and stuff.
“The manager does his job and we are the ones out on the pitch so we have to take responsibility. We speak as a group and team to try and work out what is going on.
“It is not easy but we are working to get out of the hole we are in. Talent is one thing. Executing it and winning games is a completely different story.”
‘We are in a results business’ – the pundits’ take
Chelsea host struggling Leeds United in their next Premier League game before trying to overturn a 1-0 deficit in the second leg of their last 16 Champions League tie against Borussia Dortmund at Stamford Bridge.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live former Tottenham and England goalkeeper Paul Robinson suggested those fixtures could determine Potter’s fate.
“The abuse Potter has got is unacceptable but we are in a result business and they haven’t been good enough, nor have the performances,” said Robinson.
“They are lacking a number nine. You can see a progression but they aren’t good enough in the final third. Out of the FA Cup, out of the League Cup, 10th in the league, if they go out of Europe you really are questioning his future and you don’t want to.”
Ex-Crystal Palace and Republic of Ireland forward Clinton Morrison added: “I wanted Graham Potter to get a big job. I thought the job he did at Brighton was excellent and I thought he was ready to make the next step.
“I thought he would be a success at Chelsea. It hasn’t worked out. I’m not completely writing him off because I still think he will turn it around with time but you don’t get time in the Premier League.
“Potter lost some Chelsea fans before he stepped foot in the club. Thomas Tuchel won the Champions League in his first season in charge. Even though the team was on a bad run, the fans didn’t want Tuchel to go.
“If fans don’t want you at their club – it doesn’t matter that the hierarchy say they believe in you – in the end the fans will win.”
