Graham Potter has reiterated his gratitude for the support he has received at Chelsea after admitting he is no stranger to being written off as rubbish.
Four defeats in five games put Potter on the back foot heading into the World Cup break, even with all the mitigation that could be offered for Chelsea’s dip.
Such a loss of form usually spells danger for a Chelsea manager but the club’s new owners intend to do things differently and underlined their long-term plans with Potter by handing him a five-year deal.
Following Chelsea’s winning return to action against Bournemouth, Potter said: ‘Of course, I hope they [fans] do [understand the path the club are trying to take].
‘But I can also understand that when we’re not playing well and things don’t look as they would like, everybody gets frustrated. I understand that. I’m not naive, I know there will be people saying I’m not good, or this or that. It’s happened throughout my career.
‘If you go back to [former club] Ostersund and go on a website in the first 18 months and Potter was rubbish. So that is normal. There will be people in this room who thinks the same but I can probably give you a lot of evidence to suggest otherwise.
‘Thankfully, they [the owners] have a similar opinion and there has been a lot of support out there for me in terms of interactions I’ve had with our supporters that understand the situation we’re in and are very supportive.
‘But, haven’t been perfect so we have to accept any criticism that comes our way when we don’t get the performances and results we want here.’
