“There is a lot of work to do.”
Graham Potter took charge of Chelsea for the first time last night in a disappointing draw against RB Salzburg at Stamford Bridge.
Despite taking the lead thanks to a Raheem Sterling goal, a calamity at the back saw Thiago Silva make an unusual error that resulted in the opposition’s equaliser.
Ex-Blues defender Scott Minto saw some glimmers of hope in Potter’s first game, but admits that there is los of work to do.
“It’s a big disappointment,” Minto told talkSPORT. “You knew, the way they weren’t controlling the game in midfield. At 1-0, you control the pace of the game, and Chelsea weren’t doing that.
“Having said that, the goal itself… we’ve waxed lyrical about him, but Thiago Silva. What are you doing diving in? He doesn’t normally dive in. I don’t know if it’s a tiredness thing.
“He dives in when he didn’t need to. Cesar Azpilicueta wasn’t tight enough, either.
“If it was a boxing match, I’d give it to Chelsea on points, but they didn’t do enough to really deserve the win.
“They dominated but Potter would give that a six out of ten. There is a lot of work to do, both defensively and going forward.
“He swapped half the team with his substitutions. Some worked, some didn’t. You can make it a little bit scrappy when you take half the team off.
“I liked what he was doing with the system. It was difficult to read before the game but it suited individual players.
“Chelsea’s big problem has been scoring goals and Aubameyang looked a mile off it tonight.”
Of course it is still early days, and Potter hasn’t had very long to work with his new players yet. Not to mention the fact that he hasn’t managed at European level before so last night would have been very new to him.
The international break might actually suit the new manager, as it gives him time to work with players before their next game in a few weeks.
