GOAL
WHAT HAPPENED? The Todd Boehly era at Stamford Bridge appeared to start where previous owner Roman Abramovich had left off, when Champions League winning manager Thomas Tuchel was sacked after just seven games in charge of the new season. Chelsea were sixth in the Premier League at the time. Boehly and Co. acted quickly to find the German’s replacement, stealing Potter from Brighton in a matter of days.
THE BIGGER PICTURE: But that move wasn’t without its costs. To be precise, £21.5 million ($26.3m) in compensation which was paid to the Seagulls, as revealed by Standard Sport journalist Nizaar Kinsella. The exorbitant figure is a result of Potter being contracted at Brighton all the way through to 2025, and it is thought to be football’s world record compensation sum for a manager.
AND WHAT’S MORE: The fee left Brighton’s books well in the positive, posting record revenue of £174m ($213m). On the field, the Seagulls found a worthy successor in former Shakhtar Donetsk manager Roberto De Zerbi, who has built on the fine work by Potter to rally a serious charge for European football.
Meanwhile, the new Chelsea boss has struggled to implement his style of play amid a season of unprecedented change at the club, both in terms of ownership and transfer dealings. Potter hasn’t been helped with consistent injury problems to key players either, although the Blues will welcome back one individual after the international break.
