John Terry has written off Chelsea’s title hopes for this season but has praised Graham Potter and feels he has stamped his mark on the team in a similar way to Jose Mourinho back in 2004.
The new Blues manager secured the first win of his reign in the win over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday, with the result seeing the team move up to fifth place in the Premier League table.
If they win their outstanding game, Chelsea would be just five points adrift of leaders Arsenal but Terry does not believe the Premier League title is a realistic goal this campaign.
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Speaking on beIN Sports, the former Blues captain said: ‘It’s been five years since we won the Premier League. Is that going to change this year? No.
‘So you’re looking at the FA Cup, Carabao Cup, European Cup… it’s going to be tough.
‘So then all of your eggs are going to be in two baskets domestically, and actually you need to keep players fit so do you rest and rotate players to make sure they get in the top four? What’s the priority? Only Potter will know that.’
Despite not fancying Chelsea’s chances of competing for honours this campaign, Terry is happy with the appointment of Potter and feels he has won over a star-studded and sometimes difficult dressing room – just as Mourinho did two decades ago.
Asked if the Chelsea job is too big for Potter, Terry said: ‘I honestly don’t think it is. I think what he did at Brighton was incredible and their position in the league speaks for itself.
‘When you speak to anyone within the training ground or around the place, what he’s done on the field has spoken for itself: the way he plays, the formation.
‘But also the way he is with the players, and I think in this day and age if you’re a young manager you need to understand the players. And I think these young managers like him understand the players better than anybody and can relate to them.’
He added: ‘I think you get them onside by, day one, everyone is going to be watching. That first meeting, the first training session: how does he conduct himself? How does he hold himself? Can he handle this big dressing room?
‘And if he’s come in and put his marker down from day one, players, go “Ooh hello”. Pretty much like we did when Mourinho came in.
‘No-one had really heard of him and then he comes in and goes “I’m in charge”. If [Potter] has done a similar thing, both on the pitch and off the pitch, the players will respect that.
‘But also they’ll be looking at his sessions and tactically how he sets them up for games and that side of it. So you’ve got a two or three day window where you can go and impress the players and by all accounts he’s gone and done that – and, listen, I hope he does well!’
