Chelsea manager Graham Potter has vowed to “keep working” following his team’s 2-1 loss against Fulham on Thursday night.
It was only the latest setback for Potter. The Blues have not won any of their first four games in 2023. In dire need of inspiration, Potter inserted loan signing Joao Felix into his starting XI against Fulham.
Willian, a former Blues midfielder, opened the goal, but Kalidou Koulibaly equalized early in the second half.
Felix was then disqualified for a late challenge on Kenny Tete, and Carlos Vinicius won the match against the 10 men. The result puts Potter’s men in 10th place, 10 points out of the Champions League places.
Potter told BT Sport: “I think we controlled the game early, won the ball back high, created some opportunities – maybe missed the last pass. We made a couple of mistakes for their goal.
“Second half, I think we responded well and then the red card changed the game. Makes it a little more difficult for us. I thought the application when we went down to 10 was really good.”