Graham Potter dismisses accusations that Chelsea are not trying

Graham Potter has dismissed any suggestion that his Chelsea players are not trying after another dreadful showing.

Chelsea were demolished 4-0 in the FA Cup by Manchester City, and the performance was so lacklustre that it called into question the attitude of the players.

Potter, though, does not believe he has lost the dressing room already and says the quality of Man City made it look a lot worse than it actually is.

“This opponent is the worst opponent you can play when things aren’t going well because they can make it look like you aren’t trying,” Potter said after the Man City thumping.

“I’m working with the players and I don’t feel the sense of any players with a poor attitude.

“Everyone wants to try to do better but we’re going through a bad moment and in these moments, you need somebody to blame.

“The results in a small space of time aren’t positive. You can make excuses and look for reasons, or you can say that it isn’t good enough and both of those answers are correct.

“Clearly we’re suffering as a football and it’s not nice but it’s where we are at the moment.”

During the game there were some chants for former boss Thomas Tuchel, as well as former owner Roman Abramovich.

Potter, though, says Chelsea have to understand the Chelsea fans’ frustrations while trying tirelessly to change them.

“We can’t do anything but do our jobs better and work harder,” he said. “We understand the supporters’ frustration but our job is to do our job. There are always other opinions, criticism and negativity, but that’s part of the challenge.

“It’s always challenging in the Premier League and it’s always challenging here. I understand their frustration and I understand when you look at results and the team performance today that it is far away from Manchester City. That’s clear.

“We have to focus on the next day, the next match. We play on Thursday and it’s an important game for us. We need to stay together as group, support each other, and I’m sure we will get the support of the supporters when we see good performances and results.”