Chelsea 0 Aston Villa 2

[Mark Kelly]

Just now, Max Fowler said:

Why wasn't James played RWB today? I know Tuchel did this from time to time (also somewhat controversially) but felt like we really missed a trick today not having Reece further forward.

Potter will obviously explain it away as wanting him on the pitch but concerned he was feeling his hamstring or some other cobblers. 

[Original 21]

13 minutes ago, Backbiter said:

Pick the positives out of that

Potter getting sacked? 

[Backbiter]

14 minutes ago, Backbiter said:

Pick the positives out of that

Apparently we won 2.09 - 0.81 on xG.

[Super Kenny Monkou]

Just now, Backbiter said:

Apparently we won 2.09 - 0.81 on xG.

Probably the same but in reverse from the game we won at Villa park.

[JaneB]

It’s easy to be critical of the players and I am (with the odd exception) but there’s just a feeling of hopelessness out there.  How can they play for Potter when it’s all such a mess?  And some players are losing confidence in themselves which just adds to everything going rotten.

[Super Kenny Monkou]

4 minutes ago, JaneB said:

It’s easy to be critical of the players and I am (with the odd exception) but there’s just a feeling of hopelessness out there.  How can they play for Potter when it’s all such a mess?  And some players are losing confidence in themselves which just adds to everything going rotten.

The truth is Jane this result is not really a surprise is it.

[Mark Kelly]

Potter bingo 

The lads gave everything 

That's football

I only need "well organised opposition" for a line. 

[Original 21]

22 minutes ago, Miguelito07 said:

I think they’ll wait till the season has ended  - as in, no more fixtures. It ended for us a long  long time ago 

Potter is just crushing the confidence and reputation of the players. He needs to go before he does any more damage. He’s dragging the club through the dirt. We need a serious manager in now and use the rest of the season to get to know the players - kind of a pre-season pre-season. This really can’t go on surely. 

[boratsbrother]

17 minutes ago, Super Kenny Monkou said:

Serious question. Of the new signings who has made a real positive influence to the team?

Imho, not a single one of them has been an upgrade on what we had last season and a number of them are worse than what we had. Its quite mind boggling for any club  to have spent £600m and become a worse team😩

Everyone has a go at Cucu and rightly so, but we paid a British record fee for Enzo and apart from producing an accassional good pass, what else does he bring to the table?  

This insane year of spending could hold the club years.

[paulw66]

3 hours ago, RDCW said:

What a ridiculous selection. Is this guy trying to get sacked?

That's exactly what it felt like 

Never left so early in my life 

[My Blood Is Blue]

Didn’t see it. Won’t watch highlights. Potter out.

[thevelourfog]

First half can maybe be sold as a hard luck story, but we were irredeemable in the second. There is no pattern or shape to anything to do. There's no option but to take the current results and performances on the chin, but I think you'd genuinely have to have lost it to have any hope this is going to click. There is no indication anyone is practicing anything that just hasn't clicked yet.

Whoever we have to sell to balance the books well enough to pay Potter off, it's depressingly worth it. No player here is worth more than Potter going. Unfortunately, the owners will have a say in who is hired when it finally happens (and I still don't think it will be before October).

[thevelourfog]

1 hour ago, McCreadie said:

22 attempts on goal. 0 goals. Can’t really see how that is on GP. We are creating enough to win 3 games. Until someone learns how to kick the ball in the net, this will go on and on. No new manager is going to change that.

Funny, De Zerbi sorted it out in exactly ... Less than one game.

If this happened every once in a while, fine. It happens every week. Whatever else is going on with individual players, it is very clearly a systemic issue that relates to how the players are being prepared and set up to play.

[martin1905]

I can only imagine there is some clause in his contract that if he doesn't hit certain targets the cost of sacking him much smaller at the end of the season. It's the only thing that makes sense.

I no longer care about the results, the worrying thing is how much damage he is doing to the players, all of whom have gone massively backwards playing under him. Even Enzo has been pony in his last couple of games whereas he looked different level in his first few. Potter is single handedly destroying every player at this club with his ineptitude and I seriously worry the lasting damage him being here for this long will have.

Edited April 1, 2023 by martin1905

[JaneB]

10 minutes ago, Super Kenny Monkou said:

The truth is Jane this result is not really a surprise is it.

No it’s not and that’s what’s so depressing.

No disrespect but losing to AV 0 2 at home?  ‘Freak’ results are no more.

[Blue Kratos]

Just now, JaneB said:

No it’s not and that’s what’s so depressing.

No disrespect but losing to AV 0 2 at home?  ‘Freak’ results are no more.

I'm starting to think our recent wins were the blip.

[paulw66]

1 hour ago, McCreadie said:

22 attempts on goal. 0 goals. Can’t really see how that is on GP. We are creating enough to win 3 games. Until someone learns how to kick the ball in the net, this will go on and on. No new manager is going to change that.

Really!?  Attempts are one thing.... That line up was ridiculous. We have one of world's best crossers playing centre back and two center backs on the bench. 

So, so strange. 

[thevelourfog]

3 minutes ago, martin1905 said:

I can only imagine there is some clause in his contract that if he doesn't hit certain targets the cost of sacking him much smaller at the end of the season. It's the only thing that makes sense.

I no longer care about the results, the worrying thing is how much damage he is doing to the players, all of whom have gone massively backwards playing under him. Even Enzo has been pony in his last couple of games whereas he looked different level in his first few. Potter is single handedly destroying every player at this club with his ineptitude and I seriously worry the lasting damage him being here for this long will have.

Exactly this. We've been past the point of results mattering (in a positive sense, at least) for about three months. The thing to worry about is not the results that have been, it's the ones to come. Hanging on for the odd win now is the reactionary, short-term position.

[chrisb]

7 minutes ago, JaneB said:

No it’s not and that’s what’s so depressing.

No disrespect but losing to AV 0 2 at home?  ‘Freak’ results are no more.

13 years ago (almost to the day) we beat them 7-1 with Super Frank getting a hat-trick, that result put us 1 point off the top of the league.

How the times are changing! 😮

Edited April 1, 2023 by chrisb

[Holymoly]

Mount must be thanking his groin he isn't playing these days. Keeps his value up for the summer too. Silver linings 

[martin1905]

53 minutes ago, Backbiter said:

Pick the positives out of that

We've now beaten a team in the top half of the league.

[paulw66]

Did anyone look at the starting XI and not think that was inevitable? 

[My Blood Is Blue]

Potter damaging our club and the players, he has been for month, but the worst thing is that the new owners are enabling and allowing it to happen.

Maybe it’s the wine talking, but I feel like the new owners are in danger of alienating a lot of the fan base before they’ve even got going.

[JaneB]

14 minutes ago, chrisb said:

13 years ago (almost to the day) we beat them 7-1 with Super Frank getting a hat-trick, that result put us 1 point off the top of the league.

How the times are changing! 😮

Funny, that match came to mind Chris but I couldn’t bear thinking about it and how far we’ve fallen.

Sorry about the repetition but if Boehly keeps GP on and Mount is sold in the process I will never EVER  forgive him (as if he cares).

[Holymoly]

I've been in the "give the guy time" camp from day one. Until now. We have to remember that back in the summer we were uncertain we would even have a club to support. We knew that  recovery would take time but the vast sums paid for players made us forget that perhaps. The trouble is that Potter isn't integrating the players, nor is he improving them in any way. If you look at the videos from Cobham the players just look like it's a holiday camp . There's no authority, no control, no direction. If he is replaced the next manager will probably antagonise the players by being firm with them and he will get driven out too. We're in a right pickle. The owners made a mistake by appointing Graeme Potter and are making an even bigger mistake by not sacking him.