3 players who could revive their Chelsea careers under new head coach Graham Potter
Chelsea have appointed former Brightonn & Hove Albion manager Graham Potter as the club's new head coach on Thursday, September 8.
The English tactician will now take over from Thomas Tuchel, who was dismissed earlier following a slow start to the west London club's 2022-23 football season. The Blues, with three wins from six games, stand sixth in the league table and lost their first European game against Dinamo Zagreb.
Potter is regarded as one of the best English managers in the Premier League and will be hoping to bring his tactical ability to Stamford Bridge.
Throwback to Pep Guardiola praising Graham Potter as a manager 🗣 "I'm a big fan of Graham Potter."
🎥 Throwback to Pep Guardiola praising Graham Potter as a manager
https://t.co/hvIgCTuHM1
For Chelsea players, the appointment of Potter could create a new environment for them to impress their new head coach.
Usually when a new manager takes charge of a club, the morale of the players tends to go up. This is because everyone will have a sense of belief and hope of being a key part of the manager's plans.
The classic examples were the likes of Antonio Rudiger and Marcos Alonso, who revived their Chelsea careers following the arrival of Tuchel in 2021.
A similar scenario could happen with the arrival of Potter, as few players could revive their Chelsea careers under the English tactician. As such, this article will take a look at three of those players.
#3 Kepa Arrizabalaga
One player who will be hoping to impress new Blues head coach Potter in the coming weeks is Kepa Arrizabalaga.
The world's most expensive shot-stopper was used as the second-choice goalkeeper behind Edouard Mendy during Tuchel's tenure at the club. However, the Senegal international hasn't been at his best this season, conceding nine goals and keeping just one clean sheet for the Blues in the league.
Considering Mendy's poor form this season, the goalkeeping department could be examined closely by Chelsea's new head coach.
It might be kepa time with the appointment of potter he loves ball playing GK https://t.co/B2nXzAbgoH
Potter has brought along Ben Roberts, who was the goalkeeping coach during his time at Brighton. As such, Kepa could be presented with an opportunity to relaunch his career at Stamford Bridge.
#2 Christian Pulisic
The American winger was one of the few players who didn't feature consistently under former Blues manager Tuchel.
Christian Pulisic played 1285 minutes of football in the Premier League last season, scoring six goals and providing two assists. He was also been used out of position a couple of times by Tuchel, operating as a false-nine and a wing-back.
Thierry Henry talking about Christian Pulisic. https://t.co/9EJetgbCSK
Pulisic was also among a couple of Chelsea players who were linked with possible moves out of the club this summer. However, the transfer never materialized for the winger.
The former Borussia Dortmund winger will be hoping that Potter's arrival will usher in a new opportunity for him to revive his career at Stamford Bridge.
#1 Hakim Ziyech
The Moroccan was linked with a few European clubs this summer, including AC Milan and Juventus. However, no transfer was sanctioned for the player to leave Chelsea.
Ziyech will be keen on rejuvenating his somewhat stagnated Chelsea career with the arrival of Potter at the club.
He is regarded as one of the most creative players in the Blues squad and will be hoping to catch the eye of his new manager.
Ziyech has only managed a combined total of 160 minutes of football action across all competitions for the Blues this season. He has also looked short of confidence in the three games he has played so far.
His most recent performance against Dinamo Zagreb in the UEFA Champions League, where he played 44 minutes, was tagged as disappointing.
Hakim Ziyech was 0% from his attempted take-ons (0/4), attempted crosses (0/9) and attempted total duels (0/5) in 45 minutes for Chelsea against Dinamo Zagreb.
🇲🇦 Hakim Ziyech was 0% from his attempted take-ons (0/4), attempted crosses (0/9) and attempted total duels (0/5) in 45 minutes for Chelsea against Dinamo Zagreb.
Poor. #UCL #CHE #CFC #DINCHE #Chelsea https://t.co/GaSfzJZGDE
He attempted zero succesful take-ons against the Croatian club and completed none of his nine attempted crosses during the encounter.
He was ordinary last season as well, with only 2428 minutes to show for across 44 appearances in all competitions. He tallied eight goals and six assists. He will look to make a good impression on Potter and get more minutes to improve his output.