Football: Big-spending Chelsea ‘can attack the second half of the season’ says Potter
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World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez (left) and Ukraine’s Mykhailo Mudryk are among eight new signings for Chelsea.
PHOTOS: EPA-EFE
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LONDON – Manager Graham Potter believes Chelsea “can attack the second half of the season” following a January transfer window spending spree and the return of key players from injury.
The Blues splashed £323.3 million (S$520.4 million) on eight players, including new British record signing Enzo Fernandez, who arrived from Benfica for £106.8 million.
The fee eclipses the £100 million Manchester City paid for Jack Grealish in 2021.
Chelsea’s other mid-season signings are centre-back Benoit Badiashile, right-back Malo Gusto, wingers Noni Madueke and Mykhailo Mudryk, midfielder Andrey Santos and forwards David Datro Fofana and Joao Felix.
On 22-year-old midfielder Fernandez, the Best Young Player at Qatar 2022 where his Argentina side lifted the World Cup, and the other new arrivals, Potter said: “There is a youthful dynamic and you can see the direction we’ve gone down in terms of the type of player we’ve tried to sign.
“We’re trying to build something for the now and the future and it’s always about how they help the players that are here and how we lift performance.
“We’ve had a pretty unprecedented injury situation to deal with here, and so lots of things have happened.
“We hope we’ve learnt a lot in that period, gained a lot of strength from that period and... attack the second half of the season with positivity.”
With Chelsea mired in 10th place in the English Premier League and knocked out of both domestic Cups by Manchester City, Potter will hope that attack on the remainder of the season begins against Fulham on Friday.
He has some good news on the injury front, saying: “Ben Chilwell, Reece James, Raheem Sterling and Ruben (Loftus-Cheek) are back in the squad, not ready for 90 minutes but in the squad.
“Wesley (Fofana) has been training partly with the team and he will be stepping it up next week.”
Potter, however, admits there will be some awkward conversations as he tries to piece together a costly jigsaw puzzle and turn the club’s massive spending spree into success.
The former Brighton & Hove Albion boss is certainly not complaining about the influx of talent, but knows finding the right blend between them and the existing squad will be a challenge.
“If you spend money, the external noise goes up,” said the 47-year-old Englishman.
“Resources are one thing, but you need to align them, make the right decisions, create an environment.
“It’s exciting, and a test for me and the staff. We have a lot of good players, we need healthy competition but there will be frustration at times.
“There will be a few awkward questions and conversations because only 11 can play...
“It’s about being honest and open and transparent and respecting the fact people want to play.”
Manager Graham Potter admits there will be some awkward conversations as he attempts to piece together a costly jigsaw puzzle and turn Chelsea’s massive spending spree into success.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Potter’s opposite number Marco Silva will mark his 400th game in management on Friday.
On reaching that milestone, he said: “I am a much better manager now than I was. It is a demand I set myself and my staff. I want to always be better.”
That has been borne out by the fact that pre-season relegation candidates Fulham are seventh, three places above the Blues.
And they have added midfielder Sasa Lukic and right-back Cedric Soares, both of whom Silva said are available for selection.
Said Fulham’s former Blues forward Willian: “Hopefully we can go there and get at least one point, but the main thing is to always – whether we’re at home or away – play to win the game.” REUTERS
