Graham Potter ‘told the Chelsea board Enzo Fernandez was too expensive at £106.8m and warned they were making too many purchases’…and now Todd Boehly wonders if he should have given him more time’
- Graham Potter ‘told board Enzo Fernandez was too expensive at £106.8m’
- Chelsea played a British record fee to bring Fernandez from Benfica to Chelsea
- He also expressed concern about the size of the squad, which was problematic
Former Chelsea manager Graham Potter “told the board Enzo Fernandez was too expensive at £106.8m” and insisted they were “making too many purchases”.
The Premier League giants signed the Argentina international for a British record fee after agreeing a deal with Benfica late on deadline day.
Chelsea’s owner Behdad Eghbali, who approved Jorginho’s move to Arsenal, led negotiations over the World Cup winner with London’s Benfica.
They were desperate for Fernandez – who won the Young Player Award at last year’s World Cup in Qatar – and spent a worrying sum.
Potter felt Chelsea paid too much for Fernandez and expressed his concerns to the board The protector.
Former Chelsea manager Graham Potter expressed concern over the club’s spending
Potter ‘told Chelsea board Enzo Fernandez (left) was overpriced at £106.8m’
Potter expressed concern about the bloated squad after they spent £600 million this season
The former Chelsea manager was also frustrated with the number of players the club brought in as it created rifts between players.
Chelsea’s affairs in January left them with a squad of over 30 players, giving Potter and his temporary replacement Frank Lampard a string of squad headaches.
Since taking over Boehly-Clearlake, Chelsea have signed 12 senior players on permanent contracts, while seven existing team members have signed new terms.
In addition, Chelsea have only sold one player. They agreed with Arsenal on Jorginho but failed to send Hakim Ziyech to PSG as his deal fell through due to technical issues.
As a result, Potter and Lampard were forced to make some tough decisions – with both players on the bench fit enough to play for the Premier League giants.
Those players are particularly annoyed that the Chelsea hierarchy had told them during negotiations that they would be “key” in the “exciting new Chelsea project”.
Thiago Silva highlighted the problem saying: ‘We had to enlarge the dressing room because it didn’t fit the size of the squad.
“A positive point is that there are great players in the squad, but on the other hand there are always players who will be unhappy.
“Someone will always be angry because not everyone can play. The manager can only pick 11 out of 30. That is heavy.
Some cannot make the selection. We signed eight in January. We have to stop and put in a strategy, otherwise we could make the same mistakes next season.’
Potter was blamed for being indecisive during his tenure, but it was almost impossible to come up with a coherent plan after Chelsea’s recent investments.
Chelsea have confirmed the appointment of Mauricio Pochettino as new manager
He becomes the fourth boss at Chelsea under Behdad Eghbali (left) and Todd Boehly (right)
Therefore according to The protectorBoehly wonders if he should have given Potter more time in the role.
Nevertheless, Chelsea have confirmed the appointment of Mauricio Pochettino as the club’s new permanent manager.
The Argentina manager has signed an initial two-year contract, including an option for a further year at the club.
Pochettino will start on July 1 ahead of next season, bringing his trusted backroom teammates, Jesus Perez, Miguel d’Agostino, goalkeeping coach Toni Jimenez plus son and fitness coach Sebastiano Pochettino.