It’s been a long, eagerly-awaited time but Graham Potter will finally get his first taste of Premier League action as Chelsea head coach. The 47-year-old took charge of the Blues at the beginning of September following the club’s sacking of Thomas Tuchel.
Due to Queen Elizabeth II passing and the international break, Potter’s first Premier League game for Chelsea comes this weekend against Crystal Palace.
Although, it wouldn’t be his first encounter as Blues mentor in the dugout, getting a sample of Champions League football for the first time in his managerial career, drawing 1-1 to RB Salzburg.
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Potter’s now had a little less than a month to instil his tactics and get a feel of his new surroundings. With that, comes the expectancy of mastering what was practised on the training ground and solving every unanswered question posed towards him.
The big talking point is how Potter can get the best out of his attacking quality he has at his disposal. Chelsea have scored just eight goals in the Premier League this term, which is the joint-lowest in the top half of the table.
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Raheem Sterling was meant to come into the squad and alleviate some of the pressure off the rest of the attacking players, but it seems he has taken the burden of scoring all on his own, being the club’s top goalscorer in the league with three goals to his name.
Sterling has become, as expected, a mainstay in the Chelsea attack and you could argue that the former Manchester City star is one of the first names on the Blues’ team sheet.
The fight for the remaining attacking spots is still up in the air and it remains to be seen how many of the options Potter decides to go with.
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In his opening game as Blues boss, Potter deployed Sterling in the left wing-back position to accommodate a striking partnership of Kai Havertz and Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang.
Havertz comes off the back of a stellar international break with Germany, where he most recently netted a brace against England, while Aubameyang won the Premier League Golden Boot award just a couple of seasons ago.
The wildcard in attack for the Blues could be 6’3” Albanian marksman, Armando Broja, who is regarded as one of Potter’s early favourites at the club, according to various reliable sources.
Broja came on off the bench in Potter’s first outing as Chelsea boss, and with Aubameyang potentially still not fully fit after suffering a broken jaw outside of football matters.
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The 21-year-old is yet to start for Chelsea at senior level, and considering his ability to press, link up with play and score goals, it's easy to see why Potter could be a huge admirer of Broja’s talent.
Both Havertz and Aubameyang thrive off playing around a strong, physical presence up front, giving them the freedom to drift into wide areas and deep into midfield to help start off the attack.
For this weekend, we just may see Broja and Havertz playing in a front two, although don’t rule out the possibility of Broja playing next to Sterling in a striking partnership.
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Topics: Chelsea, Graham Potter, Football
Chadley Nagel