Agreement in sight as Graham Potter asks for three key Brighton backroom staff to follow him to Chelsea
Graham Potter is understood to be keen on bringing three key members of his backroom staff with him to Chelsea, according to a report.
Chelsea were given permission to speak to Brighton boss Potter about replacing the sacked Thomas Tuchel. And Potter, 47, is understood to have spoken to Blues owner and interim sporting director Todd Boehly on Wednesday afternoon.
American Boehly did not waste any time approaching Potter, who has seen his stock rise in the last few years.
Chelsea are looking for a new manager after Boehly pulled the trigger on Tuchel’s 20-month reign on Wednesday. The German had won three trophies in that time, including the Champions League but he that seemingly did not buy him any time. And on new owners’ 100th day in charge after their third defeat of the season, Boehly axed the Chelsea boss.
Now Boehly is deep in talks with the former Swansea and Ostersunds coach, who is well respected on the south coast.
Potter has Brighton to fourth in the table this season after winning four and drawing one of their six Premier League games.
He was been with the Seagulls since May 2019 and has led the club to 15th, 16th and ninth-place finishes in his three seasons in charge.
Talks between the parties have “been progressing” and The Telegraph claim “they are getting closer to reaching full agreement” with Potter.
But the Solihull-born manager wants to bring three members of his Brighton backroom staff with him to Chelsea. Potter wants his key recruitment analyst Kyle Macaulay to head north.
Macaulay has worked with Potter in Sweden and was his head of recruitment at Swansea. The pair have had tremendous success in the transfer window buying the likes of Marc Cucurella and Moises Caicedo.
Will Barry stay alongside Potter?
Cucurella signed for Chelsea for £63m this summer, while Caicedo is already being talked about as the club’s next big departure.
Potter is also believed to want to bring his assistant Billy Reid and coach Bjorn Hamberg along with him. Both have followed him in recent years and Chelsea will need backroom bodies.
German’s coaches Arno Michels and Zsolt Low have followed Tuchel out of Stamford Bridge. While Boehly is also still hunting for a sporting director and he also saw head of international scouting Scott McLachlan move on.
Whether coach Anthony Barry will stay at Chelsea is unclear. Barry, who was appointed by Frank Lampard, took first-team training on Wednesday at Cobham.
Merson baffled
Meanwhile, Paul Merson has said he is baffled by the decision to sack Tuchel after the 1-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb.
“I did not see it coming. They won the other day. They beat West Ham 2-1. Yes, they rode their luck with VAR but it was still a win,” Merson told Sky Sports.
“Then they go away to Zagreb, not the easiest place to go to, play a couple of fringe players and get beat. But there are five more games left in that Champions League group.
“Let’s be honest, they have brought Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in for Thomas Tuchel. They have not brought him in for any other reason. Now Tuchel has gone. I just don’t get it. Why would you bring in Aubameyang and then get rid of Tuchel?”
