Graham Potter remained coy when asked whether he had spoken to Manchester United as he made his return to the limelight this evening, 17 months on from his sacking at Chelsea.
The 49-year-old was dismissed just seven months into his tenure at Stamford Bridge and has since been out of a job, instead opting to keep a low profile over the last year-and-a-half.
However, Potter’s future has been the subject of intense speculation in recent months, with the former Brighton head coach heavily linked with a string of high-profile positions, including Manchester United and England.
Potter’s name was high up on United’s shortlist of managerial candidates at the start of the summer, before Old Trafford bosses decided to keep faith with an under-pressure Erik ten Hag.
The likes of Gareth Southgate, Zinedine Zidane, Mauricio Pochettino and Thomas Tuchel had also been under consideration after Ten Hag led the Red Devils to their worst ever finish in the Premier League last season.
It’s understood United’s new sporting director Dan Ashworth held talks with Potter before he had even been appointed, with the pair remaining close after working together at Brighton.
The topic was raised as Potter joined David Jones and Jamie Carragher in the Sky Sports studio on Monday Night Football for Bournemouth’s clash with Southampton – and Potter decided to keep his cards close to his chest with his response.
Asked whether he had spoken with United, Potter replied: ‘I think what I’ve read so far in the media, a lot of it is untrue and false.
‘I think I’m the only coach in world football that has been linked with Stoke City and Napoli in the same week!
‘So I take what the media say with a pinch of salt.
‘I’ve had lots of conversations with lots of people and I think for the respects of everybody, it’s best that I keep those private.’
Potter has some sympathy for Ten Hag, though believes the pressure the Dutchman faces is a ‘just the reality of life’ for elite-level managers the English top flight.
Asked whether he felt managing United was the ‘impossible job’, Potter replied: ‘I don’t think anything is impossible but obviously jobs are difficult, that’s just the reality of life in the Premier League.
‘If you’re a big club like Manchester United and you’re not in the top six then there’s always going to be scrutiny.
‘Sometimes you have to look past the results and performances, they’ve missed a lot of chances, maybe they haven’t quite got the points they think they could have got.
‘Sometimes teams go through that. You think can perform your xG but you don’t and then you get a bad day like they did yesterday and all of a sudden the clouds come over pretty quickly and that’s what they have to face.’
Potter is confident United’s new sporting director Ashworth has the perfect experience and character traits to help steer the club back to their former glory.
‘Absolutely. I think Dan is part of a team there as well. I think he will want to support, he will want to help. That’s my experience with Dan,’ he added.
‘I don’t know anything about the context with Manchester United but my experience of Dan from working with him at Brighton was he was very supportive, he would challenge at the right time but help and be there for you.
‘I think football clubs have to create conditions for coaches to be successful as well and that’s what he will try to do as best as he can.’
Potter has not been surprised by the ’emotional’ reaction to United’s heavy 3-0 defeat to Tottenham at the weekend.
‘The challenge is to try have have some perspective, try to rationalise what has happened and speak logically,’ he continued.
‘After a game everybody is emotional, of course, because football is about emotions, it’s about feelings. Fans are hurting, they want answers, they want to blame somebody.
‘Sometimes it is the manager and sometimes, of course, we make mistakes and we’re not perfect.
‘But it’s part of the job and part of what we sign up for and I’m sure Erik would say the same. It’s what he expects at Manchester United if you don’t win or you don’t play well or you lose. People are going to be critical.
‘I think it was one of those games, whoever lost that game felt they were going to be under pressure. It wasn’t so long back that people were talking about Ange [Postecoglou] having no tactics or no plan B.
‘All of a sudden he’s won four on the trot and now all of a sudden everything is great for him and it’s flipped the other way.
‘You can’t win unless you win. That’s the thing. You need to get enough results to keep you guys [the media] at bay and then you’ve got to work with your players and stick to what you’re doing and take the club forward as best you can.’
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