Graham Potter makes worrying "tough to see green shoots" statement about Chelsea

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Graham Potter makes worrying "tough to see green shoots" statement about Chelsea
Graham Potter makes worrying "tough to see green shoots" statement about Chelsea

Graham Potter has admitted it is “tough” to see any light at the end of the tunnel.

Chelsea are a club stuck in crisis, beset by injuries, marooned in mid-table after managing just one win in their last nine Premier League games. There is probably a point where you begin to think whether Potter is going to work for Chelsea. A home defeat by Crystal Palace under normal circumstances would probably be that point.

But Potter is benefitting from continuing support from the owners. Chelsea fans also backed him - even in defeat at Fulham on Thursday night - but even the beleaguered boss admits he needs a change in fortunes, and fast.

Potter has confessed that it will be hard to turn things around quickly, with 11 players on the injury list - including Reece James, Wesley Fofana and Raheem Sterling - while new loan signing Joao Felix is banned for three games.

Potter said: “We have to make sure we act well going forward but at the moment, it’s tough to see any light, it’s tough to see any green shoots because we’re still suffering from defeats. It’s hard to say that now because of the results we’ve had. We started the break back and thought about certain things then lost Reece, Wesley, Raheem and Christian [Pulisic].

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“So it’s almost like back to the drawing board, that’s how it felt, it felt like taking one step, feel like you’re making progress watching Joao Felix then all of a sudden: ‘whoosh, he’s not here for three matches’. That’s where we’ve been at the moment.

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Graham Potter makes worrying "tough to see green shoots" statement about ChelseaGraham Potter is under huge pressure as Chelsea manager (Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

“I’m sure our supporters don’t want to hear that, they want to see better results and performances. But that’s the position we’re in, we’re suffering and trying our best to improve it.

“Again, I can’t sit here and say that things are improving when the results are like they are. What we do know is that we know more about the club, more about the players, a lot more about what we need to get the club back to where it could be, where it should be. But at the moment, it’s not there. Lots of things have happened over a period of time that manifests itself into the situation.”

James has been such a big miss for Chelsea and he is hoping to be back in three weeks after the knee injury which kept him out of the World Cup and reoccured after the tournament. Potter admits there is a concern about why his side have got so many injuries. T they have looked for deeper reasons but have yet to find any answers.

In a general sense, Potter admits there is no one easy solution but he insists the players are firmly on-side and there is no issue with attitude. Potter added: “Everybody at the club is suffering, is looking for answers, not necessarily looking for someone to blame but looking for a simple answer. Obviously, it’s not that simple.

“The players are supportive, they want to do better and get better results. We know the challenges we have, we don’t want to use them as an excuse, but they are what they are.

“The players, even down to 10 men, kept going and the spirit and the attitude was good with 10 men and I don’t think Fulham did that much, that’s why I’m disappointed with the goal and we kept pushing as well.”

John Cross

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