Pat Nevin has sent a warning to Chelsea before their match against Red Bull Salzburg by claiming it’s almost a “must-win” fixture.
Graham Potter, who was appointed Chelsea’s new head coach last week, will take charge of the Blues for the first time tomorrow evening.
His side will host Austrian club Salzburg at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night in the second round of fixtures in the Champions League group stages.
Chelsea kickstarted this year’s Champions League campaign with a 1-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb, which actually turned out to be Thomas Tuchel’s final game in charge. Meanwhile, group rivals Salzburg and AC Milan played out a 1-1 draw.
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Nevin has put pressure on new Chelsea boss Potter by saying this is “already” a match he needs to get three points in.
“There is the small matter of a Champions League football match tomorrow night and after slipping up in the first one in Zagreb, this is getting close to be a must-win already if we want to be sure to progress. Some things never change for the Chelsea boss, whoever he is, but Graham Potter will face up to this,” Nevin said.
Of course, Potter will want to get off to a winning start when he meets the Chelsea fans tonight.
As for Champions League qualification, it’s not completely off the cards if they fail to win tomorrow. It’s going to leave them with plenty of work to do in the remaining four games if that happens, though.
There’s a lot of sadness in the Chelsea fanbase given Tuchel’s surprise sacking, but a win in midweek should help get some disgruntled supporters back in a positive mood.
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For Potter, it’s been claimed that the Blues ownership are ready to give him plenty of time in the job to carry out long-term plans. However, the report also says a run in this year’s Champions League competition is a target.
Salzburg proved their quality with a draw against Milan last week, so it’s a steep challenge for Potter to walk straight into.
