Depending on where you look, Graham Potter is very much on a shortlist of the people “in-line” to be the next manager of Tottenham Hotspur.
Graham Potter is certainly on the shortlist to be Tottenham’s manager next season. He checks the box as someone with existing Premier League experience, who is relatively young for a coach (45), and he plays a progressive style of football many find attractive. For those reasons and more, Potter is the favorite for some.
Potter is fancied so much by some outlets, football.London simulated next season with Potter in charge, with Spurs finishing fourth. There are even rumors that Potter has support from some of the Tottenham players, which may or may not mean anything.
While Potter may have some advocates for his style of play and the opportunities it presents, there are some other reasons Graham Potter is likely not the right fit for Tottenham Hotspur. When it comes down to it, Potter is lacking both the success and production from a manager that they are looking for. Plus, Potter has one worrying trait that should scare Spurs fans.
No real success for Potter in the Premier League
Graham Potter has managed to keep Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League for the last two seasons, which is a big deal. However, Potter has never led a team in English to a finish above 10th, Swansea’s finish in his one season there. With Brighton finishing 15th last season and likely finishing 16th or 17th this season, those are not exactly astounding performances.
When Mauricio Pochettino came to Tottenham he had Southampton fighting for spots in Europe, which Brighton is quite far from. There is a big difference between fighting a relegation battle and fighting for Europe or even the Premier League crown.
Graham Potter has never been in the battles for Europe, never really been forced to fight on three fronts at once, nor has he had to manage the kind of personalities he will have at Tottenham. Is Harry Kane going to be satisfied with a Graham Potter hire as sufficiently ambitious enough?
Yes, Graham Potter and Brighton play pretty football but they do not consistently win. Eventually, if a team consistently underperforms against metrics like expected goals, maybe one starts to question the tactics, metrics, or both.
Potter has won one trophy in Sweden, which is more than Pochettino could say before his appointment but winning a cup in a non-top-five league country is no major feat. Yes, Potter seems personable and likes to attack but that lack of overall success is a red flag.
Potter struggles against the big six
In 26 matches against the traditional big six, Graham Potter averages just .80 points per match. With only six wins in 26 matches, his 23% win percentage against the big six does not instill a lot of confidence. Even worse, if you take Tottenham out, the win total goes down to just four in 22 matches.
Graham Potter has had some success against Arsenal winning three times over the Gunners against two defeats. However, in nine matches against the two Manchester clubs, Potter has never taken a single point, losing all nine matches. Brighton did beat Liverpool this season and has managed to draw with Chelsea twice since Potter took over but that is really it.
With a 6-3-17 record in 26 games, you will have to forgive me if I am not beating the drum for Potter to take over. Add in being winless in four matches against Wolverhampton (0-3-1) and winless in five matches against Leicester City (0-1-4) the records against the better competition are simply not there.
Maybe the most damning thing about the idea of Potter taking over for Tottenham is the trait his teams share with Tottenham.
Brighton like Tottenham has struggled to hold leads this season
The one Tottenham trait that Graham Potter’s team seems to already have and the one that should frankly scare the you-know-what out of any Tottenham fans is the tendency to blow leads. It has been well documented that Tottenham Hotspur has blown a lot of leads this season.
No team has lost more games this season – five – after taking the lead than have Brighton & Hove Albion. The Gulls have managed to take the lead 17 times this season, only to lose it back nine times, drawing four matches and losing five. At 23 points dropped from winning positions, Brighton and Graham Potter seem to have the same problem that exists at Tottenham.
Tottenham has managed to take the lead 25 times this season and have blown it nine of those times dropping 20 points. Clearly, Tottenham has a problem holding onto the lead and it is a problem that needs to be fixed. The question we need to be asking or hoping Steve Hitchen and Daniel Levy are asking are how can someone fix a problem if they have the same problem themselves?
Ultimately, Graham Potter may be a world-beater of a coach and maybe even as the coach of Tottenham Hotspur. However, if you look at his overall record in England, his poor performance against the top clubs, and the tendency to drop points from winning positions and it seems like a recipe for disaster for Tottenham Hotspur. What do you think?