Graham Potter insists it’s all about winning and not how you are after going head-to-head in the Champions League with his friendly boss Carlo Ancelotti.
Hours after he outlined his desire to conquer Europe with a powerful statement, Chelsea and Potter met holders Real Madrid in next month’s quarter-finals. The two teams faced each other in the competition for the third time in a row.
Chelsea could then take on Manchester City in an all-English semi-final – and what would be a repeat of the 2021 final won by the Londoners in Porto – if Pep Guardiola’s current side can get past his former Bayern Munich in the last eight.
At a hospitality event for Chelsea members on Thursday night, Potter said on stage in a clip that went viral: “We’re going to try to beat Everton [in the Premier League today]take the draw and then we’ll try to win the damn champions league.
After yesterday’s draw in Nyon, Potter said with a smile: “I said we were going to try and win the Champions League! This applies to all seven clubs.
Graham Potter has insisted Chelsea will ‘try to win the damn Champions League’.
The Blues were drawn against reigning champions of the competition Real Madrid on Friday
“They will also say that they could lose in the quarter-finals because that is the nature of the Champions League. We will focus on Real Madrid when we get there. It’s Everton at the moment.’
The feeling is excitement but like I said I’d rather talk about Everton because that’s the right thing [next] The other stuff is far away.’
After his low-key approach was occasionally questioned and compared to more outspoken, feisty and occasionally provocative Chelsea managers of the past, Potter’s on-stage rallying cry was well-received by supporters.
But when asked about Ancelotti – a six-time European Cup/Champions League winner as a player and manager – and his calm, controlled demeanor, Potter said: “I don’t feel like talking about how people think you are should .’
He should be Carlo Ancelotti, he should be Pep Guardiola and he should be Jürgen and I should be me. I don’t care what you think is my answer to that.
“The simple thing is when you win you can be whoever you want to be and when you lose someone else wants someone else and that’s the reality.
“You just have to be yourself, be authentic. Otherwise, if you try to act, the situation will find you out. He has been himself throughout his career and has done very well.
“I don’t know him personally. I played against him when he was manager at Everton. He’s a gentleman.
“I can’t say anything about how much he has achieved in his career. It is wonderful. The time span between his first and last Champions League win – 20 years – is unbelievable.”
Potter was full of praise for Madrid manager and former Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti
Chelsea beat Madrid in the semi-finals en route to their 2021 triumph, but the Spaniards retaliated with a dramatic 5-4 aggregate win in the quarter-finals last season.
City and Bayern last met in the group stage in 2014/15. Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann said: “If you win the title in the end, nobody can blame you for being lucky with the draw.
“It was PSG [in the last-16], then it would be Manchester City, then maybe Real or Chelsea and then in the final either a Portuguese or an Italian team. It would be a triumph of great value, mentality and quality.”
AC Milan met Napoli in an all-Italian quarter-final and Inter Milan and Benfica met the winners of their respective encounters in the other semi-final in May.
