Jamie Carragher admits he would be ‘SURPRISED’ if Graham Potter is still Chelsea manager next season

Jamie Carragher claimed that struggling Chelsea boss Graham Potter would not have been appointed under previous owner Roman Abramovich, and it would be a surprised if he was still at the club without major improvement by May. 

The former Liverpool defender insisted that Potter would not have been brought to Stamford Bridge under Abramovich and that it would take drastic change for him to still be in the job come the end of the season. 

Potter’s Blues lost in the west London derby to Fulham for the first time since 2006, with new signing Joao Felix sent off on his debut, with the defeat doing little to dampen the already growing cries for the ex-Brighton boss to be removed. 

Jamie Carragher does not believe Graham Potter would have been hired under Roman Abramovich

Chelsea suffered a first west London derby defeat against Fulham since 2006 on Thursday

Potter is widely-regarded as one of the leading British managers, who regularly places an emphasis on developing young players, which is starkly contrasted to Abramovich’s tendency to spend big on ready-made stars.

And Carragher believes it is the fact that Boehly will not want to be proven wrong so early in his tenure that is keeping Potter in the job, but he would still be surprised if he was in the hot seat in May without ‘major improvement’.

Carragher wrote in the Telegraph: ‘I and most people in football would like to see Potter get time, but unless there is a major improvement between now and May – especially against the usual top-four rivals – it would be a surprise if he is still in charge next season. 

Abramovich was known to be an owner that placed emphasis on world-class managers

‘His best chance of surviving is Boehly’s reluctance to undermine his strategy. He won’t want an embarrassing U-turn so soon into his ownership.

Jose Mourinho guided Chelsea to their first Premier League titles

‘With the utmost respect to Potter – a fine coach whose legacy at Brighton and Hove Albion speaks for itself – he would never have been hired during the Abramovich era, where the remit was to come in and hit the ground running, and once the motor stalled you were out, usually replaced by a proven winner of the world-class calibre of Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti or Antonio Conte. 

‘Even the great Chelsea managers would not have survived a run of poor results and performances culminating in the worrying gulf in class in the recent fixtures against Manchester City.’

However the Blues have still spent vast sums of money since the summer of 2022 – more than £300million in fact – although Boehly seems prepared to show greater patience with his manager. 

Deals for the likes of Andrey Santos, David Datro Fofana, Joao Felix, Christopher Nkunku and Benoit Badiashile were completed just this month, although the RB Leipzig striker will not join until the end of the season.

Boehly had himself been operating as the club’s sporting director, although it was unclear whether there was a transfer strategy in place, or the American was catering to the demands of his manager.   

But despite his apparent intentions to let Potter have the time he needs to grow the team around his ethos, it could be the case that results continue to worsen and the American owner’s hand is forced.  

If a manager was struggling Abramovich would often turn to a proven world-class coach such as Carlo Ancelotti