Graham Potter is a dead man walking at West Ham - only one thing can save his career

Aidan Magee discusses the latest sport headlines August 20 2025
Callum Vurley

By Callum Vurley


Published: 22/08/2025

- 21:17

Updated: 22/08/2025

- 22:09

West Ham were crushed 5-1 by Chelsea at home on Friday night, Graham Potter might be fighting to save his job already

Five goals conceded at home. Three from corners. Defence hapless. Midfield nowhere to be seen. Jarrod Bowen fighting for his life up front.

Following a 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Chelsea at the London Stadium, the signs are not good at West Ham and it has already led to many believing they are heading for relegation.


West Ham have been here before some years ago and the result is always the same - the manager gets the sack.

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Graham Potter

Graham Potter is on thin ice at West Ham - he could be sacked very soon

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Reuters

For Graham Potter, he is already looking like a man resigned to such a fate and there would not be many who would argue against it right now.

That might be a shocking position to take considering this is still just the second match of the season.

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But the problem for Potter is that he never had that goodwill from the fans to start with, after a terrible end to the season last campaign.

In fact, his entire West Ham career has been dogged by poor results.

This was his 21st match in charge of the Hammers; during that time, they have won five times, drawn five - and lost 11.

Considering the former Brighton and Chelsea boss arrived with the promise of attacking, progressive football, the complete opposite has been become true.

West Ham fans who hounded David Moyes for his style of football might be eating their words now, going from a perennial European outfit to relegation candidates in no time at all.

One of the biggest issues Potter faces is the fact that his side are so easy to play against.

Despite scoring five times and being in complete control, Chelsea were hardly at their best - and even looked a little sheepish as they made it 5-1.

West Ham gifted them the result, with three goals coming from corners and two open play efforts that were down to incomprehensibly bad defending.

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And this is where Potter can save his career - that backline should never see the light of day again.

It will be costly, this defence consisting of Max Kilman, Jean-Clair Todibo and Nayef Aguerd is, frankly, gut-wrenchingly absymal - and arrived for a total fee of just north of £100million. Let that sink in.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka appeared to be lamenting his Manchester United career as Chelsea players jogged past him, including Pedro Neto for the visitors' second.

El Hadji Malick Diouf, to his credit, looked half-decent and able to manage the physicality of the Premier League - but that is a grand total of one okay defender out of five - not including the shoddy goalkeeper.

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West Ham looked dismal at the back and could be in for a very long season

West Ham looked dismal at the back and could be in for a very long season

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Reuters

Potter needs to be brutal. Axe them all, bring in new defenders, work on how to close space, track runners, basic defending drills but ones that his current backline appear to have forgot.

Kyle Walker-Peters arrived in the summer, albeit off the back of a relegation with Southampton, but is a decent full-back.

Freddie Potts came on at half-time for Todibo, an academy product of West Ham's and knows the club inside out, something the Hammers should nurture considering that their best players came from within.

The owner will not like it - but he is going to have to splash out some big money in the coming days to boost that backline. West Ham have already spent a lot on that defence, but on shoddy signings, and they face a long, long season if they do not.