Chelsea sack 'best thing that happened to me' - Potter - Voice of Asia

West Ham United manager Graham Potter has stated that being sacked by Chelsea was "possibly the best thing that's ever happened to me." He will lead West Ham back to his old club on Monday (20:00 GMT), marking his fourth Premier League game in charge since taking over in January.

The former Brighton boss was dismissed by Chelsea in April 2023, less than seven months after replacing the sacked Thomas Tuchel at Stamford Bridge in September 2022. However, Potter has said he holds no "bad feelings" towards Chelsea and hopes to learn from the experience.

"You know in a football career you have ups and downs," added the 49-year-old, who won 12 of his 31 games in all competitions as Chelsea manager. "I didn't want to lose my job. But at the same time, I look back now and maybe it was the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"Maybe in 10-20 years it will be great because I've had that experience. I just see it as a learning experience. I have no bad feelings towards Chelsea, I still have good relationships with people there. But I am just looking forward now to my new journey at West Ham, at this great club, connecting with the fans, working with the team and building something that we can be really excited and proud of."

Potter had previously described his ill-fated spell at Chelsea as a "perfect storm." He added: "I can only look back now, like everyone in life, you have things that might be good and things that might be bad. If you use them in the right way, they make you better, and I have, so I am grateful for the experience."

West Ham have taken four points from three games under Potter, and drew 1-1 with Aston Villa last Sunday. West Ham are 14th with 27 points after 23 games, while Chelsea are sixth.