Graham Potter ready to take Chelsea 'risk' after signing five-year contract to lead 'exciting' new era

Graham Potter accepted a five-year contract at Chelsea and is looking forward to an 'exciting' future that requires taking 'risks'.

The 47-year-old was announced as the new head coach last week following the sacking of Thomas Tuchel.

After a 1-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League the new ownership team, led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, confirmed the departure of the German.

Potter was nabbed from fellow Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion just six games in to the season.

The south-coast side had got off to a fantastic start, winning four of their first six games.

This saw him emerge as the leading candidate for the Chelsea job, and he was favoured over former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino.

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Graham Potter was appointed on a five-year deal to replace Thomas Tuchel as head coach. (Chelsea FC)

The Blues wanted to hire the Englishman as soon as possible as they believed he may not be available to hire for much longer.

He has been one of the names thrown in the hat to potentially take the England job should Gareth Southgate leave the role after the 2022 World Cup.

The west London side snapped him up and on Friday he took charge of his first training session with the Blues after he had introduced himself to all the players and staff.

Following his arrival, Potter spoke to Chelsea's in-house media about the future ahead of him at Stamford Bridge.

He said: "It's the start of a really exciting period. I was really excited and impressed by (the new ownership, firstly as people and then the vision for the club and what they wanted to do.

"The history of the club speaks for itself, but it's about trying to create that again, in our own way."

He continued: "It's an amazing history, fantastic tradition, a historic football club.

"You only have to walk around the place here and you see pictures, trophies, names. It's incredible and it's a huge honour for me to be a part of that now."

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Graham Potter was recently named as the new Chelsea boss. (Alamy)

Potter also touched upon the importance of taking risks and going outside his comfort zone.

He shared: "In order to get better you have to take a little step outside of what's comfortable and our job as coaches is to provide the players the opportunity to do that. Everybody wants to improve, to compete, to be part of something.

"Life is about taking risks, it's about doing something that's a bit outside of what you're comfortable with because then it allows you to grow and develop."

Potter's first game in charge was set to be on Saturday against Fulham, but all matches were postponed as a mark of respect to Queen Elizabeth II.

His first test as Chelsea boss will instead come in the Champions League against Red Bull Salzburg on Wednesday night.