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TT didn't have a preseason and took over a struggling team halfway through the 2020-21 season. He had been on the job for four months when we reached FA Cup final and won the CL, all that without signing a single player. The following season after signing just Lukaku (granted, a big mistake) and having just as bad a list of injuries as this Potter's squad, Tuchel proceeded to win Super Cup, Club World Cup, reached two domestic cup finals and finished third in the league. All that despite Lukaku disaster, ridiculous list of injuries, the busiest schedule of any club across Europe and all the hell the team went though due to sanctions, forced ownership change etc.
Tuchel made his share of mistakes and there must have been serious reasons behind the scenes for sacking him, but I just wanted to demonstrate that if you have what it rakes to deliver at the highest level, you succeed at times even when the odds aren't in your favour. But when you're not cut out for this, you can have all the help in the world and you'll still fail and there'll be a ready made list of excuses to justify your failings.

He was challenging for #1 in the league around this time last year IIRC, (also featuring in basically all but one cup finals) and then the squad was hit by injuries and of course the whole Russian thingy with a new ownership that had jacksh*t of experience of Football and at least a plan to integrate experienced replacements for Marina and Petr that failed spectacularly - safe to say that the summer transfer window was always going to be hugely improvised. Sacking then a high level manager who at least showed before he could get Chelsea rolling (and just had his squad replacements finalised the day  before he was sacked) looks bad. Really bad. Bringing in half of Brighton looking even worse afterwards looks like the next big question mark.
 

Txiki Begiristain, I'd say the most crucial figure to hire, left for City late 2012. Pretty sure Barca's spening spree and downright ridiculous wage structure came afterwards. Roughly around the time PSG snatched Neymar from them. Who was also signed after Txiki left.

While true of course it is always something extremely difficult and without guarantees to succeed but I say they had a couple of unfortunate events that weren't really in their hands while at the same time losing the plot and starting to make nonsensical decisions. IMO the first real ultra unfortunate event was the illness and death of Tito. He was meant to be Peps successor but lasted about .. a year as a coach?
Into that timeframe (severe illness) fell also the "legendary" 2:8 against Bayern which was closer in reality as the result implies but made them lose their status as invulnerable (players of course knew at that time that their head coach was in dying in NYC which I think played its part). The remontada later on with heavy influence of the ref in favour of Paris (doesn't matter if you say they deserved it because of Ovebro) and of course PSG snatching Neymar right under their noses away. This was a crucial moment because a) Neymar was incredible important to them and could have easily their anchor while an aged Messi wouldn't be able to keep them on track on his own. b) The money they then received wasn't really helping them either because in their frenzy made grave mistakes and were also unlucky. Dembélé being injured most of the times and Coutinho, a world class player at that time, didn't work out at all. They never got back on track after that and the increasing financial instability just made it worse of course.  
 
Btw. at that time (after Enrique stepped back) I think they made a strategic mistake to not get Tuchel who went on the be successful at PSG. Valverde really was the nail into the coffin because he did keep them somewhat successful enough to stay a bit longer (ultimately failed) but they started to play extremely stale and pragmatic without developing any further.

Txiki Begiristain, I'd say the most crucial figure to hire, left for City late 2012. Pretty sure Barca's spening spree and downright ridiculous wage structure came afterwards. Roughly around the time PSG snatched Neymar from them. Who was also signed after Txiki left.

His ideas appear to be sh*t though.

Reading that, you would think we are team that had nothing going for them. It's like the previous 18 months never actually happened. I didn't see Chelsea win the Champions League, Super Cup, Club World Cup, reach two top 4 finishes and 3 cup finals. You would think this is a team that had just finished outside of the top 4 and was full of past their peak aging players. The rebuild started under Lampard 3 years ago, it should still be in it's infancy, especially with everything that has been happening with the club.
Also, all of this "Chelsea need patience" talk is doing my head in. What should we be patient about exactly? watching our team get dragged to mid table playing relegation football? for what purpose? Are people really so deluded that they think we can just finish mid table and everything will work itself out?
There is so much spin going on right now, it's eerily similar to everything that has been going on at United.

Impossible to say though if we'd look as lost as we do now. Tuchel got fired the second he got "his" squad finally assembled by Todd. And was he really incapable of working with hierarchies? His time alongside Marina and Petr give me a different impression.
"But he wasn't the right man for Boehly." That's the thing though: Boehly as a non-football related CEO should have never put a foot into daily football matters. Then Tuchel would have had a competent guy to report to / work together with -> they don't come along together at all? Fair paly to sack the manager, although the timing should be considered as well. But as it stands I can't imagine it being fun nor yielding positive results working out football related matters - like building an elite squad - with Todd while at the same time being under great pressure to deliver results on and off the pitch. I don't see any way to spin this into something that doesn't look foolish.
 
 

Impossible to say though if we'd look as lost as we do now. Tuchel got fired the second he got "his" squad finally assembled by Todd. And was he really incapable of working with hierarchies? His time alongside Marina and Petr give me a different impression.
"But he wasn't the right man for Boehly." That's the thing though: Boehly as a non-football related CEO should have never put a foot into daily football matters. Then Tuchel would have had a competent guy to report to / work together with -> they don't come along together at all? Fair paly to sack the manager, although the timing should be considered as well. But as it stands I can't imagine it being fun nor yielding positive results working out football related matters - like building an elite squad - with Todd while at the same time being under great pressure to deliver results on and off the pitch. I don't see any way to spin this into something that doesn't look foolish.
 
 

Crikey, don't get caught borrowing someone else's ticket to get in,  they'll probably chop your hand off.
I agree that football is for entertainment and not for political and moralistic grandstanding, but there must be limits. Fit and Proper shouldn't just be about having the money behind you, surely.

Good write up and that‘s exactly as I feel  about it too. I do assume though that Tuchel was well aware of his situation internally right after the sacking of Cech at least - as were most probable the players too which resulted in him becoming a lame duck immediately . Just my theory but I doubt anyone was really that surprised within the club . And that says a lot about still paying top dollar for new players till the very last minute. Very erratic and strangely disconnected behavior. Will be interesting to see where clearlake is heading.

Really disillusioned by Boehly at the moment. If I'm talking my honest truth I feel let down and betrayed. I've written a few things in here, but I never sent them. 
I think the main point for me rather than rambling on for ages is we had an elite coach, we had a recognisable style of play and we had a project. All the man wanted to do was coach, he made Boehly's job super simple get in the necessary people to work behind the scenes and leave Tuchel to focus on the actual football. 
People say Potter is just the yes man that Boehly wants and if we look at it detached it's the truth. Let's be completely honest for a second, if you as an owner come to your manager and say I can sign Cristiano Ronaldo and he says no, is that really a bad thing?
Is it not better to have someone who is honest with you, and tells you that's not a good footballing decision. Or is it better to have someone who says yeah boss that's a great idea (let's just blow up the squad dynamic to fit in with whatever is your latest whim).
Don't get me wrong Roman lusted over these kinds of players (elite in their prime usually forwards who were now approaching or already in their decline) and usually when we signed them they didn't really work out.
Tuchel wasn't perfect, but this was Tuchel's Chelsea. He was the equivalent to our Pep or our Klopp. Whilst I can get behind Potter and wish him the best, the truth is I don't think he's as good as Tuchel and I think a lot of people agree. Despite 9 games unbeaten (playing essentially Tuchel's system), I don't see anything to suggest changing coaches will have a big effect on the players. If anything without the stewardship of an elite coach I just think we got weaker. 
Time will tell and Boehly has an idea in his mind how this project should go, but to answer the question of this thread no it wasn't the right decision imo. It was just a classic case of the new owners looking to make their mark and show a change in direction. 
I don't like the way it was done, why after 6 or 7 games why not last summer. The most sensible cause of action would have been give Tuchel till January at the least or better yet the season. Whilst focusing on getting the necessary people in behind the scenes and then come summer reasses the situation.
With Tuchel if we're not in the title race, best believe we're a contender for the champions league. With Potter I have no idea how it will go, but I don't see him beating Pep, Klopp, Anceolotti, Conte or any of the other elite coaches once drawn against them. No disrespect intended, but these are elite tacticians who have won multiple league titles/champions leagues. For me it was a decision driven by ego and now for some of us we have to support a coach we didn't ask for.
In hindsight the way Marina and Cech were let go should have been a precursor for Tuchel. The old regime had to go and he was the last remnant aside from the players.
I'll back Potter, but no I don't think the decision was correct. I didn't at the time I don't after 10 games and only time will tell if my mind changes. I hope Potter proves all his doubters wrong it's a hell of a task he has ahead of him.

I think people are just taking out their frustration on a new manager for a lot of things that Potter and Co have nothing to do with. Last season the club was punished for political reasons, the ownership ordeal was completely unjustified and sacking TT was the last straw for many, it seems. Getting rid of Marina and Cech was probably expected once the sale became official but the timing was odd. The whole summer shopping tour by Boehly was a bit of a freakshow and distraction. Sacking of Tuchel a few weeks into a new season was a bit of a shock but once again, even if there were some legit reasons behind it that we didn't know at the time, the way it was handled and the timing of it was just disastrous.
I realize that Boehly is a newcomer and is bound to make mistakes but it;s just the way he goes about it is what rubs people the wrong way, I think. The club under Roman had identity. Yes, we were hated and regularly criticized for many things but we were respected too. I don't feel the same about the curent regime.
Perhaps when the new setup of technical director, sporting director, chief scout etc is firmly in place the feeling will change. Maybe it's due to the transition period  But it just doesn't feel like the same club anymore.

Ermm you have to be kidding me. 2 finals last season (better team in both) and comfortable top 4. All that with the club being sanctioned and in turmoil. It wasn't a disastrous start to this season either, but obviously clashed with the new clueless owner. I don't blame Potter for taking this opportunity at all and I'll support him. My issue is with the owners handling of Tuchel. 

Finished with football for a bit, so pissed off with the club i've loved and followed for well over 50yrs. To watch the sh*t football we play along with the couldn't give a f**k attitude from the players, i'm going to go and watch my local team Slough, funnily enough where one of our players who seems to give a toss comes from.
The players we've bought over the past few years have been a total f**king disaster. How the f**k we are where we are has been a miracle.
Totally f**ked off.

Our peak until Tuchel was probably about a year ago where we were on a great run leading up to the 4-0 against Juve, and playing some good football. Then Reece and Chilwell got injured and we never recovered. Our football quickly started to stagnate and Tuchel ultimately paid the price. Under Potter it has been a bit mixed so far. We have let fewer goals in of late, but a lot of credit there has to go to Kepa. Our attacking play still doesn't look fluent, although I do think Potter is more willing to make subs and seems to give some of the younger players more of a chance. Feels like not much will change in this busy run of fixtures leading up to the World cup. Based we can do is make sure we stay in contention for top 4 and get out of our Champs League group. Hopefully Potter will have more time to stamp his identity on the team by the time football restarts again after the World Cup.
 

When was this a thing in Tuchel's "honeymoon phase" that ended with us winning the CL?*  Let's talk again when Potter actually accomplished something major with this squad just to see them repeatedly slacking off afterwards. 
 
*edit: it ended much later in reality because I remember us playing some great football with good results and top league spot until injuries hit us hard.

When was this a thing in Tuchel's "honeymoon phase" that ended with us winning the CL?*  Let's talk again when Potter actually accomplished something major with this squad just to see them repeatedly slacking off afterwards. 
 
*edit: it ended much later in reality because I remember us playing some great football with good results and top league spot until injuries hit us hard.

Is that actually true though? I understand what Boehly is claiming, albeit with the perfection of hindsight, but he is free to give his opinion on what happened whereas Tuchel is not.
It is clear that Tuchel was heavily involved from the moment Granovskaia and Cech left:
https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2022/jun/22/todd-boehly-thomas-tuchel-guadiola-klopp-chelsea-granovskaia
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/chelsea-tuchel-abramovich-boehly-owner-27488253
It is also clear that Tuchel really, really didn't want to do anything other than coach the first team, especially having spent the last 6 month negotiating a divorce while being the club's ambassador on everything from private equity brokerage to geopolitics.
Interview from 2021: https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/thomas-tuchel-ive-kept-it-simple-with-chelsea-i-just-coach-2h5ldvmgs
Interview from 2022: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-11177251/Chelsea-head-international-scouting-Scott-McLachlan-departs-club-11-year-stint.html
Boehly is free to be revisionist and claim that Tuchel didn't share the same vision, but it's the verbal equivalent of "I know you are but what am I"? It is very clear that Tuchel, whether under Abramovich or Boehly/Clearlake, has never cared about back room dealings and wanted to entirely focus on coaching. That isn't a "wall that needs breaking down", just a different way of working. It sounds more and more like Boehly gets rid of anyone who doesn't agree with what he wants. It is a stark difference to Abramovich who was deserving of the opposite critcism, in that he really had little overarching vision for the club (until perhaps the final years) other than to win things.
"Taking into account" Tuchel's previous fallings out is adding 2 + 2 and contriving to get 5. None of those situations are remotely similar except Dortmund, where again there was an undercurrent of Tuchel being forced into being some sort of moral voice following the bombing incident. Tuchel wanted to take responsibility for nothing other than the things he is trained to do - ie. football. Tuchel did not want to involve himself in transfers, backroom staffing etc and be foisted responsbility for decisions he was forced to collaborate on. If it all went wrong, Tuchel knew he was always the most likely fall guy - as seen in his exit from PSG.
Boehly's cooperative model is nothing new, but we fans also need to understand that we are owned by a consortium. Boehly, Clearlake, Wyss, Goldstein, coaches, technical director, sporting director...at what point will too many cooks spoil the broth?
 
If we were to believe everything that comes out of the Boehly press machine, Todd Boehly alone re-invented football in May 2022 and Chelsea under Roman were a village basketcase with no business sense to speak of. We need to be very skeptical of Boehly's saviour complex and it should be challenged at every opportunity.
To say Emenalo was never effective in an era where Kevin de Bruyne and Mohammed Salah are among the best players in the EPL and Chelsea won a Champions League with academy players is illogical. We've had a drastic decline in our scouting/player recruitment since he left. The foundation of City's success is the trillion-dollar fund that backs them. They were successful before Guardiola and they will be after too, sporting director or not.

A shame it has come to an end.
The way he stuck with us when Carragher and his media friends was trying to push the narrative that he should jump ship and go to Man Utd.
Also, the way he called out Anthony Taylor and the corrupt referees won’t be forgotten, only him and Mourinho would have the guts and care enough to take them the task IMO.
Thanks for all the trophies Tommy, and making us the World Champions that we are now.

What can they say without pissing of the new owner and being transferred next window. I'm pretty sure the main team was behind Tuchel except for the forwards (what a coincidence that Zyiech, Pulisic, Harvertz, haven't posted any goodbyes). They all think they are better than they are. It's not on Tuchel even in the best of times they missed so much chances. And none of them proofed to be an elite premier league player. I don't think Potter will suddenly make them world class players. They are just not good enough. Same with Werner. They are not bad players but nothing for the Top 4 and ball-possession football. They need space to shine.

Its funny how the twitter pundits are suddenly coming out with "he lost the dressing room", "player were talking about his personal life", "he didn't want part of a bigger role at the club", etc etc. I'd say what the f**k. All of them are just f**king around for some clickbait. Very few inside the club knew what was going on and none of us knew either. The new owners have been banging on about a "fresh start and new approach". We would very much like Todd and the owners to come clean about the reasons for this. The owners isolating themselves from the fans like Utd is the last thing we need.

Having read and heard thousands of words uttered by the great and the good over TT's sacking (even those who know NOTHING whatsoever about Chelsea Football Club) I am now completely convinced that Boehly and the Board had the sacking planned or at the least, well discussed from the minute they took over the Club. They must have seen or heard something they did not like from TT and with the pressure to work round the clock to bring in much needed signings, simply did not have the time to also interview potential replacements. I am certain that whoever we are lining up as the Director of football, WILL have had an input in recruiting Graham Potter. The Brighton Board all spoke very highly of his intellect, work ethic and communication skills with everybody at the Amex from top to bottom and there was an interview with Tony Bloom on Talksport where he reiterated all of this. I think that he knew then that Chelsea were sniffing around, maybe had even asked what the release clause value was, so knew it was only a matter of time before we made an approach. The very poor start to this Season, refusal to accept Ronaldo and frequent whinging, has given Todd the reasons (he doesn't think he needs an excuse) to move on sacking TT. We will probably never know what it was Todd and Clearlake did not like about TT, but we have to trust their judgement and experience in dealing with similar situations across several huge sporting franchies.

on a personal level this sacking is a disgrace
if you take a detached look at the football from the last couple of months (except a couple of good games) it's understandable unfortunately