Graham Potter reveals the one mistake he made at Chelsea – as former boss admits it felt like ‘the world was closing in’ during nightmare six-month spell at Stamford Bridge

Graham Potter has revealed the one mistake he made during a miserable six-month spell as Chelsea boss in a rare appearance on TV.

The Englishman was appointed Blues boss in September 2022 after a successful spell at Brighton which saw him take the Seagulls to ninth in the Premier League table – their highest finish in the competition at the time.

Potter suffered a setback within his first month at Stamford Bridge, slipping to a humiliating 4-1 defeat against his old side, and the manager struggled to revive his perception among the fans. He was fired in April 2023 with several games left in the season. 

Over the last year or so, Potter has rarely been spotted in public but has still been linked to various jobs offering him a route back into football, including the England role.

In a surprise return to fans’ screens on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, the 49-year-old impressed with his tactical analysis and also shed light on where things went wrong for him in west London.

He said: ‘The mistake I made was thinking that new ownership means there’s a chance of a change of culture. 

‘But actually culture runs a lot deeper than that. Before the World Cup we only lost three matches – Arsenal, Newcastle and Brighton but already the world was closing in, it was close to crisis. 

‘Perspective is sometimes not so easy to get, Chelsea were used to winning and it was an easy thing to think “we’re not winning, it must be the coach who’s not worked at that level, maybe he’s the problem” and I can understand why they think that because the results weren’t what they expected.’

Potter also shed light on why he went off the radar after he was sacked by Chelsea 18 months ago, vowing to ‘come back stronger’ after the setback. 

‘It has [been deliberate] to be honest – spend some time with the family, connect with them after a 12-year journey which starts in the fourth tier of Swedish football and ends in the last eight of the Champions League. 

‘It’s a journey that doesn’t come for free. It’s nice to be able to spend some time with them and connect with them, and see what the journey brings.

‘It’s disappointing. It’s never nice when you lose your job, but you have to treat it as a learning experience, you have to treat it as an opportunity to grow and improve.

‘I’m grateful for the opportunity I had and grateful for the experience. It was tough and it was challenging, but there were some highlights as well. 

‘It’s about putting it into perspective, not trying to blame yourself completely but not trying to blame everybody else either. It’s about finding the balance, reflecting and coming back stronger.

‘I have [watched a lot of football]. It’s been nice to take my lads to football and it’s nice to watch it in my house away from prying eyes of the media and scrutiny that comes with the job.’

Potter joined fellow pundit Jamie Carragher in watching Bournemouth sweep Southampton aside in a South Coast derby, with the home side cruising to a 3-1 win over the newly-promoted team.

Many saw the former Swansea boss’s appearance on the show as an audition to take over at Manchester United as he wowed viewers with astute observations on the game.

The future of Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford remains unclear with the manager under increasing pressure following his club’s dismal 3-0 defeat by Tottenham on Sunday afternoon.

Should the club look elsewhere, Potter would be one of the favourites for the job despite having been out of work for well over a year.