Graham Potter's decision to start Hakim Ziyech against Spurs set 'alarm bells ringing' among Chelsea hierarchy

Graham Potter's decision to start wantaway forward Hakim Ziyech against Spurs caused 'concerns' among Chelsea's hierarchy according to reports.

Chelsea announced that they had parted ways with the Englishman in a statement published on Sunday evening, after a 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa on Saturday saw the side slip to 11th place in the Premier League standings.

Whilst the home defeat to Villa - Potter's 11th in just 31 games in charge of the club - proved to be the final nail in his Chelsea coffin, co-owners Todd Bohley and Behdad Eghbali are believed to have been left concerned by a number of decisions made by the 47-year-old during his time at the club.

One of those decisions took place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in February, as Potter opted to start Moroccan forward Ziyech for their crunch clash with Spurs, despite the fact the 30-year-old had sought a move away from the club in the January transfer window.

Ziyech had been set for a move to Ligue 1 outfit Paris Saint Germain, only for the deal to fall through at the 11th hour due to paperwork issues, leading many to believe he would have a limited role to play in the final stages of the season.

However. Potter opted to include Ziyech in his starting lineup for the trip to Spurs - while leaving £88.5m January acquisition Mykhailo Mudryk on the bench - a decision which raised eyebrows among the Chelsea hierarchy, as per the Daily Mail.

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The decision didn't prove to be fruitful, as Chelsea fell to a 2-0 defeat to Spurs, with Ziyech hooked in the 62nd minute after failing to have any significant impact on proceedings.

Ziyech hasn't appeared for Chelsea since and, with Potter on the lookout for a new job, it doesn't look likely that the Moroccan will be back in the starting lineup anytime soon.

Former Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann - who was recently replaced at the Allianz Arena by ex-Chelsea gaffer Thomas Tuchel - has emerged as the bookmakers' favourite to succeed Potter at the helm at Stamford Bridge.

Meanwhile, Potter is rumoured to have snubbed the advances of Leicester City after the Foxes made an approach in the wake of Brendan Rodgers' own dismissal from the King Power Stadium on Sunday.