Graham Potter’s six-word Chelsea dig picked up by microphone after West Ham defeat

Graham Potter quietly made a remark about his time as Chelsea manager before his press conference on Monday evening.

The West Ham manager had a challenging return to Stamford Bridge, where he spent seven turbulent months in charge of the Blues. Potter was dismissed in April 2023 and spent almost two years out of management before being appointed at West Ham.

He nearly exacted revenge on his former club, with Jarrod Bowen giving West Ham a lead at halftime. However, Pedro Neto equalized in the 64th minute, and an own goal by Aaron Wan-Bissaka ultimately gave Chelsea the win.

As Potter sat down in the media room before addressing questions, he appeared to reflect on his difficult time at Chelsea, where he often faced scrutiny after disappointing results. Though he likely tried to mutter it quietly, microphones picked up his comment: “I don’t miss being in here.”

Since taking over at West Ham in January, Potter has won one, drawn one, and lost two of his first four games, replacing Julen Lopetegui. Despite the loss, he believed his team was unlucky not to get more from the game, especially with the controversy surrounding both of Chelsea’s goals.

“We felt unlucky with the first goal,” he said. “We thought it was a foul on Jarrod.”

There was also some debate about whether Chelsea forward Marc Guiu, who was offside, touched the ball, but the officials decided there was insufficient evidence to confirm any contact.

“I haven’t seen it back,” Potter said. “It took so long, so it must have been tight. The second one was a deflection. We have to focus on what we did well, the spirit, and the performance. Our supporters appreciated the effort. We needed a bit of luck. We felt unlucky with the lead-up to the first goal, but it wasn’t meant to be.”

West Ham are currently 15th in the Premier League, 10 points clear of the relegation zone, despite heavy summer spending. They didn’t make any permanent signings in the winter window, but they did add Evan Ferguson on loan from Brighton and recalled James Ward-Prowse from his loan at Nottingham Forest to aid Potter’s push for better league positioning.