05 January 2023 , 22:29
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Chris Sutton has torn into Chelsea in the wake of their 1-0 defeat against Manchester City on Thursday night, insisting that is "difficult to see" where the Blues are going under Graham Potter.
Chelsea have produced a number of underwhelming performances since the World Cup and Potter had come in for criticism ahead into the match against the reigning Premier League champions. Although Chelsea impressed in the first-half, the gulf between the two sides eventually told and City ended up taking all three points courtesy of Riyad Mahrez's second-half strike.
Despite an improved performance, Sutton has questioned Potter after another poor result. The former Brighton chief enjoyed a fine start to his Stamford Bridge career, going nine games unbeaten, but progress has stalled and the Blues have won just once in their last eight league games.
And Sutton, who is alarmed by how far expectations have fallen at the club, believes that new Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly could decide that the job is "too big" for Potter if Manchester City come out on top again at the weekend when the two meet in the FA Cup.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, Sutton said: "Did Chelsea play well? I thought they did in the first half but in the second half they were overrun.
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"Is this the Chelsea that the fans want to see where they are applauding them for their effort? Chelsea, over the past 20 years, have been a team who have won big trophies and they look miles off it.
"The question is how much can Todd Boehly tolerate? Chelsea go to City at the weekend in the FA Cup - if they go out there, I just wonder whether they will view this as a job too big for Graham Potter.
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Chris Sutton has torn into Chelsea and Graham Potter following their defeat against Manchester City (Robin Jones/Getty)"It was a difficult pre-season for Chelsea - there were noises coming out of it that Thomas Tuchel wasn't happy. He ended up leaving, and it's been difficult for Potter coming but this is a Chelsea team that simply aren't doing well enough."
Chelsea have been tipped to invest heavily in the January transfer window and have been linked with a whole host of high-profile targets, including Benfica's World Cup-winning midfielder Enzo Fernandez and Arsenal target Mykhaylo Mudryk.
But Sutton pointed out the Blues have already spent fortunes since Boehly and Clearlake Capital took charge - and they are no better off for it.
He added: "They've spent a fortune and you feel for Potter in terms of key players being out tonight - Mount, Chilwell, James, Sterling having to come off early on. But it isn't good enough - I don't think anybody expected Chelsea to win this game tonight, they are not the team they once were, and how long will Todd Boehly give Potter? It's so difficult to see where this is going."