Graham Potter has spoken about the ‘very small margins’ in the Premier League amid the pressure Steven Gerrard finds himself in at Aston Villa ahead of the visit of Chelsea on Sunday, as he told his press conference.
The Chelsea boss shared how, if Aston Villa had beaten Nottingham Forest on Monday night, then they would have ‘gone above Liverpool’ in the Premier League table, as he shared ‘how quickly’ things can change.
Ever since Potter swapped the colours of Brighton for the much bigger lights of Stamford Bridge, the Englishman is yet to taste defeat.
And on Sunday, he will be looking to continue that when his team travel to Villa Park – the Midlands side are sitting 16th in the Premier League table and the London club fourth.
Villa might be unbeaten in four, but that just papers over the cracks of the quite abject football being played and the concerning results that are being picked up.
Potter was in the opposite dugout, for Brighton, when Gerrard took charge of his first game in Claret and Blue colours – a 2-0 win – and, at this rate, this might be his last in charge, as Chelsea’s new man spoke about the fine errors in the game.
“I think the margins of very small in the Premier League,” said Potter. “I am sure Steven (Gerrard) will want to improve the results and he will be looking to this game to try and do that.
“I think if they had beaten Nottingham Forest, they would have gone above Liverpool, so that tells you how quickly things can change. We need to make sure we are ready for that challenge.
“I think everybody knows that, in the Premier League, there is always somebody under pressure, at the moment, it’s Steven maybe. But he has the quality and experience to come through, I am pretty sure.
“We have to make sure we are good ourselves, and with the greatest of respects, concentrate on ourselves.”
TIME RUNNING OUT FOR GERRARD
It has been beyond abject viewing for Villa under Gerrard and, if things continue the way they are, then he will do well to see out the month.
After Chelsea, the Midlands side travel to the capital to take on Fulham next Thursday, before hosting Brentford on home soil.
Three defeats and it will be goodbye Gerrard, even if he fails to win those matches because, at this rate, the team is heading backwards, rather than forwards under a manager that should never have been given the job in the first place.
Gerrard’s past relationships at Liverpool with Villa CEO Christian Purslow, added to his legendary career, helped him get the nod when Dean Smith was sacked – nearly a year later and he’s not even on par with the now-Norwich City boss.
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