Last Five Chelsea Managers Assessed

Chelsea are on the hunt for another full-time manager after Graham Potter was relieved from his duties following a 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa earlier in the month.

Whist Frank Lampard has taken the reins on an interim basis, the Blues will be searching for a fifth boss in four years in the summer as Todd Boehly and co. look for some much-needed domestic improvement.

We analyse the previous five managers to take charge at Stamford Bridge.

Check out the latest Premier League manager odds at William Hill

Graham Potter – September 2022 to April 2023

Graham Potter was swiftly appointed as Blues boss following Todd Boehly’s controversial decision to sack Thomas Tuchel seven games into the season. Potter’s diplomatic and open approach was seen as a massive bonus to the ownership, as well as his tactical flexibility and track record of slowly building clubs up from the ground.

Things originally started brightly for Potter with five wins in his opening six games across both the Premier League and Champions League, which included a 5-0 aggregate victory over Italian champions AC Milan. However, Chelsea’s form began to decline amidst a damaging period of injuries, notably the likes of Reece James and N’Golo Kante – the latter never even started a game for Potter.

Potter was sacked in early April with the Blues in mid-table after a 2-0 loss at home to Aston Villa, with fans never warming to his soft-centred approach and lack of authority in press conferences.

Thomas Tuchel – January 2021 to September 2022

Thomas Tuchel’s appointment was initially met with fury from Blues fans after Roman Abramovich brutally sacked club legend Frank Lampard halfway through the 2020/21 season. However, the German quickly won over his doubters and quickly got Chelsea playing some of the most fluid and tactically astute football ever witnessed at Stamford Bridge.

The Blues seemed invincible under Tuchel at one point as they marched to both the FA Cup and Champions League finals, whilst sealing fourth place in the Premier League, having been ninth when the German took over. Despite surprisingly losing the FA Cup to Leicester City at Wembley, the Blues outclassed Manchester City in May’s Champions League final in Porto, lifting the trophy having conceded the fewest amount of goals out of any other previous winner (4).

Chelsea began the following season as one of the title favourites, but things began to fall apart in November following more long-term injuries to key players and sanctions imposed on the club. Whilst the Blues reached two domestic cup finals and finished third, new owner Todd Boehly decided to part ways with Tuchel after citing a lack of communication and moodiness from the infamously grumpy German, much to the despair of the Stamford Bridge faithful.

Frank Lampard – July 2019 to January 2021

Having being disillusioned by previous manager Maurizio Sarri’s style of football, Chelsea fans were delighted by the club’s decision to appoint all-time top goalscorer Frank Lampard as the new Blues boss, with the former England midfielder having enjoyed a successful opening season in management with Derby County.

With Chelsea having to contend with a transfer ban in the summer, Lampard transformed the west Londoners’ approach by blending youth to the squad, giving the likes of Mason Mount, Fikayo Tomori, Tammy Abraham and Reece James the exposure to senior football that undoubtedly turned them into the players they are today. The Blues secured Champions League football for the following campaign on the final day of the season and reached the FA Cup final in Lampard’s first year in charge.

Despite a huge influx of signings in summer, including Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Thiago Silva and Ben Chilwell, Chelsea’s domestic form failed to improve at the pace Roman Abramovich would have wanted. A dismal run of results and performances saw the Blues part way with the club legend in January, swiftly appointing Thomas Tuchel in the following days.

Maurizio Sarri – July 2018 to June 2019

Maurizio Sarri’s appointment symbolised a change in tune for the Chelsea ownership, supposedly prioritizing a positive style of football over proven success. Sarri’s attacking approach that worked so well at Napoli initially paid dividends for the Blues, with Eden Hazard in particular operating at the very top of his game. Chelsea found themselves second in the league after 11 games, racking up 27 goals in the process.

The following winter period became quite stale for the club on the pitch. Sarri’s football phased away from attacking and defined to slow and tedious, and results began to really deter. Having been touted as potential title challengers earlier in the season, Liverpool and Manchester City pulled away from the pack and Chelsea were slowly dragged into another top four race.

Fans become increasingly disillusioned with the Italian’s tactics and substitutions, and despite a brilliant performance in the Europa League Final to beat Arsenal 4-1 in Baku, many felt Sarri’s time at Chelsea was finished. The Italian technically wasn’t dismissed by Roman Abramovich – instead taking up Juventus’ managerial offer to return to Serie A, but supporters were nonetheless happy to see the back of the former Napoli boss.

Antonio Conte – July 2016 to July 2018

Many Chelsea fans thought they had struck gold when the charismatic Antonio Conte was announced as Chelsea’s new manager in the summer of 2016. After a slow domestic start that featured a 3-0 loss to Arsenal, where the Italian famously switched to a 3 at-the-back system, Chelsea equalled the record for the most Premier League victories in a row by winning 13 games between October and January, conceding just three goals in the process.

From that point on, Chelsea were relentless. The Blues wrapped up a fifth Premier League title with two games to spare by beating West Bromwich Albion 1-0 and went onto amass 93 points for the season – at the time the second highest in Premier League history. Things were only looking up for the Stamford Bridge faithful and they went into the following season as the favourites for another title.

However, a bizarre summer transfer window that included the likes of Danny Drinkwater, Davide Zappacosta, Alvaro Morata and Tiémoué Bakayoko somewhat stifled the Blues’ development, and it quickly transpired that Chelsea were not up to the task of defending their Premier League crown. What followed was some of the most painful football Stamford Bridge had witnessed in recent memory, and Conte’s approach become more passive and uninterested when details of his strained relationship with the board were revealed. The Italian won the FA Cup in his final game in charge by beating Manchester United at Wembley, but was dismissed soon after.

Check out all the latest football betting offers at William Hill