Thiago Silva’s wife has again sparked controversy by liking a tweet which described Graham Potter as a ‘deadbeat coach’ and encouraged Chelsea to appoint a new manager.
The Blues have won just two of their last 14 games in all competitions and lost 1-0 to bottom-of-the-table Southampton on Saturday.
Many Chelsea supporters had been supportive of Potter and the major issues he has had to deal with, with the club having spent over £500m since the new owners took over – including eight new additions in January.
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But the defeat to the Saints seemed to prompt a mood shift, with a loud chorus of boos greeting the full-time whistle after the game.
Potter is believed to retain the support of Chelsea’s hierarchy, but there are murmurs that the players are starting to question whether he is the right man to lead them.
That seems to be reflected in the social media activities of Thiago Silva’s wife, Belle Silva, who liked a tweet after Southampton loss which slammed Potter and encouraged the London side to find a new coach.
The message was directed to Belle and read: ‘Can you ask [Thiago] Silva to coach our club himself because we have a deadbeat, tactic-less coach who doesn’t know what he is doing.
‘He doesn’t even understand this is Chelsea football club. He thinks he is still at Brighton.’
It is not the first time Belle has criticized Chelsea this campaign and she previously aimed a swipe at the defender’s team-mates after they lost to Fulham last month.
After a 2-1 defeat at Craven Cottage, she wrote: ‘If [only] there was a Thiago Silva in attack and one in midfield, with what we already have in defence…’
And, Potter still believes he is the right man for the job, saying after Southampton loss: ‘I think we’ve had a tough period and I think we’ve had lots of challenges in terms of integrating young players into the Premier League. While results don’t go your way it can be tough, that is how it is.
‘I’m sure there will be people out there that think I’m the problem, absolutely. I don’t think they’re right but I’m not arrogant enough to say their opinion isn’t worth articulating.
‘My job is to help the team, keep working through a team period, we’ve had to make some changes today and the truth is we took a step back in our performance in the first half. The response in the second half was good, but it wasn’t good enough.’
