Graham Potter sacked by Chelsea after wild Premier League weekend

It was a pivotal Premier League weekend, one where all 10 games had direct impacts on key races across the table.

After failing to win his game against Aston Villa, coach Graham Potter of Chelsea was sacked Sunday night--leaving the London club without leadership with just 10 games remaining in the Premier League season.

Known as a clever, resourceful manager who could make a lot from a little, Potter's appointment at Chelsea always felt like an aberration. He joined last fall from Brighton thanks to a £21 million exit clause and managed just seven wins in his seven month tenure. A wild January transfer window featuring millions in signings seemed to rattle Potter more than rally him, and after £16 million Douglas Luiz ran circles around £106 million Enzo Fernandez on Saturday against Aston Villa, Chelsea finally made the call to send Potter packing.

"On behalf of everyone at the club, we want to thank Graham sincerely for his contributions at Chelsea," owner Todd Boehly said on Sunday. "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."

Despite his woeful Chelsea record Potter still has fans in the Premier League. His successes at Brighton and Swansea were no fluke and many clubs see him as a safe pair of hands and a tried-and-true English coach who was simply a boardroom victim in his brief stint with the Blues. Spurs may see him as the ideal backfill to recently departed Antonio Conte while Leicester may rate him up to replace Brendan Rodgers.

While Potter's future looks bright, Chelsea's looks considerably dimmer. They're languishing in eleventh place in the Premier League and will not qualify for European competition next season. They have made it to the quarterfinals of the Champions League, but they'll have to get past reigning victors Real Madrid to advance--a tall order even if Potter had stayed.

Bruno Saltor will take over as interim coach for the Madrid games and the remainder of the Premier League season. "We will all be getting behind Bruno and the team as we focus on the rest of the season," Boehly said. "We will put every effort and commitment into every one of those games so that we can end the season on a high."

Saltor's Chelsea will face Liverpool on Tuesday in the Premier League--a game they've failed to win in of 128 of 193 past meetings.