Chelsea centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly has argued that Graham Potter's willingness to look past a player's price tag is what makes him a great manager.
Potter, who finds himself under immense pressure at Stamford Bridge after a run of just two wins in 15 games in all competitions, has a bloated squad from which to pick his preferred lineups and has often left some expensive names out of his teams.
January signing Mykahilo Mudryk has been dropped to the bench in recent weeks after an underwhelming start to life in London, while Marc Cucurella has been out of the squad and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, the last incoming from Thomas Tuchel's reign, has found minutes hard to come by as well.
But in the eyes of Koulibaly, making those kind of tough decisions is what helps makes Potter a top manager.
“Graham Potter is very good at communicating with everyone," he told The Sun. “And he doesn’t care if you cost £100m or £20m, he will treat you in the same way. That’s the mark of a great manager.”
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Koulibaly, who himself has struggled since his £34m move to Chelsea during the summer, acknowledged that he needs time to adjust to a new league before reaching his best level.
“It’s not a difficult season but I need time to adapt and I knew that," he stressed. "When I decided to come here I was well aware that it wouldn’t be easy.
“I have a three-year contract and I am calm. I have time to show everybody who I am.”
The 31-year-old will do battle with the fit again Wesley Fofana, Benoit Badiashile, Thiago Silva and Trevoh Chalobah for a place in Potter's central defence, while the versatile duo of Reece James and Cesar Azpilicueta can also slot into a back three should the former Brighton boss change system.
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On this edition of Son of Chelsea, part of the 90min podcast network, Daniel Childs discusses potential new stadium plans & interest remaining in RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol.
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Source : 90min