Is it fair for Graham Potter to demand to be given the same time Mikel Arteta was at Arsenal?

Chelsea’s owners have cited Mikel Arteta and current Premier League leaders Arsenal as an example as they continue to back Graham Potter and the Stamford Bridge head coach has too. 

Sportsmail looked at some of the similarities and differences between the situations faced by both managers in their early days. 

Graham Potter (L) says his situation is similiar to the one that Mikel Arteta (R) faced at Arsenal

Results

Graham Potter has won nine games, lost 10 and drawn seven of his first 26 Chelsea games. Mikel Arteta recorded 14 wins in the same period, lost six and drew seven. Arteta’s start is clearly better making the highlighting of Chelsea’s current plight a comparison based not purely on early results but more how the Spaniard overcame difficult times later down the line to succeed. 

Unfortunately Potter is experiencing them now before having the cushion of goodwill to fall back on. There are also various factors contributing to the difference. There is no escaping some hugely disappointing results in Chelsea’s run however, among those factors, drawing Manchester City away in their first game of both cup competitions, for example, would not be ideal for any manager.

Player buy-in

Mikel Arteta focused on introducing a togetherness to the fractured club he took over, discipline via his ‘non negotiables’ and missing structure to how they played. He, sources say, had an aura which helped convince those who met him that he was a manager worth believing in and many of his players quickly did helped by much of what he wanted to introduce being previously absent.

Winning the FA Cup in 2020 emphasised what Arteta was trying to do as Arsenal boss

Nothing aids the buy-in process more than winning though and lifting the FA Cup and Community Shield so early in his reign underlined all he was trying to do. 

There have been concerns about whether some Chelsea’s players have bought into what Potter wants to do in the same way. 

He, though, is also well-liked as a person, his positivity and encouragement more than welcomed and a sense that he has something about him was quickly detected by some of Chelsea’s previously uncertain stars. Remaining popular with so many players to keep happy, though, is not a straightforward challenge. 

Hierarchy

Arsenal went all-in on Arteta, backed him in difficult times and are proud of the fact they kept the faith, which they are now being rewarded for. Their belief was tested on a few occasions including during the run of seven league games without a win which ended with Arsenal beating Chelsea 3-1 on Boxing Day 2020. A couple of Premier League clubs are understood to have tested the waters with Arteta when things were not going quite so well. 

Generally though Arsenal chiefs were always certain they had made the right choice especially sporting director Edu who witnessed Arteta’s work up close and predicted in December 2020 while Arsenal were in the middle of a sticky patch that he could see a ‘big, big, big beautiful future’ for Arsenal with Arteta. 

Edu was unwavering in his support of Arteta but will Todd Boehly do likewise for Potter?

Chelsea’s hierarchy wanted Potter for the long-term when appointing him and, as things stand, continue to see things the same way, with him central to all they are doing to rebuild the team and club. Results though are always the defining factor and, with an acceptance that things cannot just be allowed to carry on without improvement, bad ones in Chelsea’s next two games could be problematic. 

Fan reaction

Two early trophy wins earned Arteta breathing space as did the fact that much of his first 18 months was played behind closed doors due to the Covid pandemic sparing him and the club from feeling the full effect of any fan dissent during some his early tricky periods. 

Potter has not been so fortunate in that sense and been in charge while supporters have chanted for former manager Thomas Tuchel, launched online campaigns against him and crossed the line with sickening death threats. However, while fan opinion might influence the decision-making of some owners, it has not yet Chelsea’s. 

Mitigating factors

Arteta took over a split club and squad that required significant surgery. It arguably took two-and-a-half campaigns for him to build a squad he might consider to be his. In some ways Chelsea have been able to accelerate some of that process with their spending but that has also bought other problems for Potter – a group of players so big it is impacting training and forcing him to leave players out of squads who would expect to be involved. 

Potter faces a huge challenge trying to manage a large and disjointed Chelsea squad

That, their crippling injury crisis and all the upheaval since last year’s sanctions are factors that have hampered Chelsea though, even with all that, they would not have anticipated that things would be as bad as they have.