Chelsea: Potter slammed for substituting David Datro Fofana

Chelsea manager Graham Potter has been slammed for substituting David Datro Fofana at half-time against Southampton this afternoon.
The Lowdown: Disappointing defeat
The Blues’ poor Premier League form continued this afternoon, coming unstuck against bottom-of-the-table Southampton, in a 1-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge.
A first-half James Ward Prowse free-kick was the difference between the two sides, despite Chelsea dominating possession in the second half, and having more than double the amount of shots compared to their opponents throughout the match.
The Latest: Potter slammed
Taking to Twitter at the end of the opening 45 minutes, journalist Oliver Salt of The Daily Mail brought attention to Potter for his bemusing decision to substitute Fofana – coming after he was chosen to start at striker ahead of the more experienced Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who was left out of the squad.
The reporter said: “Fofana one of the only positives of that dire first half and he’s off at half time… Make it make sense”
The Verdict: Strange decision
The 20-year-old was a shining light in a poor team during the first half, recording one shot on target, while also completing two of the three dribbles that he attempted, the joint-highest amount of any Chelsea player.
Fofana also made two key passes over his limited 45 minutes and completed 100% of his passes (SofaScore), adding to the bizarre nature of Potter’s call.
As such, it was a very strange decision from Potter to withdraw him so early on in the game, with other members of the media lauding him as the ‘only positive’ in the team, also praising him for his ‘physical’ attributes.
The games do not get any easier for the Blues, with a trip to Tottenham Hotspur up next, and Fofana’s performance today means that he has surely put down a marker to start the next match, especially considering Aubameyang has just one goal in 11 league games this season.
