Two Chelsea players 'like' Instagram post announcing Graham Potter’s sacking

Two members of the Chelsea squad 'liked' an Instagram post announcing the departure of Graham Potter on Sunday evening.

Just a day after their bitterly disappointing 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa in the league, Chelsea decided to sack Potter from his role as first-team coach after just 31 games in charge.

The 47-year-old former Brighton boss replaced Thomas Tuchel at the helm in early September and penned a five-year deal at Stamford Bridge.

He was also responsible for the arrivals of several big money signings, including Enzo Fernandez, Mykhailo Mudryk, Benoit Badiashile and Noni Madueke, to name just a few.

But with the club sat in 11th in the Premier League ladder after a slump in form, his time was officially up on Sunday as Chelsea confirmed that Bruno Saltor would take the job on an interim basis.

Players were 'stunned' after finding out the news through Chelsea's official club statement, according to The Telegraph.

But some eagle eyed fans spotted a couple of players 'liking' Instagram posts announcing his sacking.

Denis Zakaria, a midfielder who struggled for game time under Potter, liked a caption from the account 433 that read: "BREAKING: Graham Potter has been sacked by Chelsea."

And as you can see from the below screenshot, Blues forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is also said to have 'liked' an Instagram post confirming his departure.

Denis Zakaria liked this on Instagram 😂😭 pic.twitter.com/ABKbiyneXZ

— CFC_Jamie431 (@CFC_Jamie431) April 2, 2023

It comes just weeks after reports emerged suggesting Chelsea's players were still happy with Potter as their boss.

Journalist Simon Phillips said in February: "So, I'm told there's no unrest as such. In the sense that there's nothing untoward going on, the players predominantly are still backing Potter. And I do know that the sources of the ones that I've spoken to are enjoying working with him."

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• Paul Merson believes Graham Potter did NOT want Mykhailo Mudryk at Chelsea

In the club statement confirming Potter's departure, co-controlling owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali said they were "disappointed with this outcome".

"On behalf of everyone at the club, we want to thank Graham sincerely for his contribution to Chelsea," they said.

"We have the highest degree of respect for Graham as a coach and as a person. He has always conducted himself with professionalism and integrity and we are all disappointed in this outcome.

"Along with our incredible fans, we will all be getting behind Bruno and the team as we focus on the rest of the season.

"We have 10 Premier League games remaining and a Champions League quarter final ahead. We will put every effort and commitment into every one of those games so that we can end the season on a high."