“Not playing football manager”- PL pundit urges Todd Boehly to retain faith in key Chelsea man

A Stamford Bridge Too Far

·5 February 2023

“Not playing football manager”- PL pundit urges Todd Boehly to retain faith in key Chelsea man

Paul Merson suggests Todd Boehly to be patient with Chelsea boss Graham Potter

Speaking on Sky Sports, quoted by Metro, Football pundit and former Arsenal player Paul Merson has suggested Chelsea owner Todd Boehly to be patient with Graham Potter after heavy spending in the January transfer window.

After signing eight new players last month, including breaking the British transfer record to sign Enzo Fernandez on deadline day, there will always be a period of settlement where the new players will gel with the existing squad and the manager would mould them together into a system.

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The goalless draw against Fulham on Friday night showed that. While the team looked solid at the back there were issues in creating chances. Those things will come, the more this team plays together with the new players.

Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is suggested to have patience with Graham Potter. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/IKIMAGES/AFP via Getty Images)

Keeping that in mind, here’s what Merson said about the time and why Boehly needs to be patient when judging the performance of Potter (h/t Metro):

“It didn’t surprise me yesterday to be honest. I didn’t think they were going to instantly win.“You know we’re not playing Football Manager here! Can’t just get them all together, put them in and they win.“It’s going to be hard. There’s a lot of languages, a lot of players who have played different ways in their career for their clubs and it is going to take time.“It’s how patient Todd Boehly’s going to be.”

While the ambition shown by the Chelsea owners is commendable, it needs to be backed by a sensible approach to the performance judgement of the team under the current manager.

Chelsea boss Graham Potter must be feeling the pressure to deliver after heavy backing in the transfer market. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Some of the new players may take time to settle down, some might need a pre-season under their belt to start performing consistently. So, although it would be financially tough to miss on the Champions League spot for next season, it is only right that Potter is backed irrespective of the finishing position in the league table.

Now, Potter also must make sure there are signs of encouragement from now till the end of this season. The first bit has been on display in the last few games, with Chelsea not conceding a goal in the last three league games.

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So, there is a base to work with moving forward. They will have Joao Felix back from suspension in the next game, which would help in having more creativity in the final third. Patience, positivity and encouragement are all part of the game that needs exercising at the same time!