KEIR RADNEDGE REPORTING —- The axe fell, within hours, on two of the Premier League and British football’s most highly-rated managers as Leicester sacked Brendan Rodgers and Chelsea dismissed Graham Potter.

Their departures were cloaked in diplomatic language but the reality was clear and as consequences of Saturday’s dire results for both clubs: Leicester had slithered further into the relegation dogfight after a 2-1 defeat at Crystal Palace and Chelsea had dropped into the lower half of the table after a 2-0 home upset against Aston Villa.

Already a record 12 top-fight managers have been sacked.

Potter’s fall was the greater He had been prized away from Brighton only last September to replace Thomas Tuchel with a brief to knit into a winning combination the disparate and unbalanced clutch of stars assembled by apparently naive new owner Todd Boehly.

The problem for Potter was that Chelsea had too money to spend; the problem for Ulsterman Rodgers was than Leicester did not have enough.

Potter has been succeeded on a caretaker basis by Spanish assistant Bruno Saltor for Tuesday’s home league game against Liverpool with Wolves coming up next weekend and then holders Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals.

A club statement read: “Chelsea FC has announced that Graham Potter has departed the club. Graham has agreed to collaborate with the club to facilitate a smooth transition.

“In his time with the club, Graham has taken us to the quarter-final of the Champions League, where we will face Real Madrid. Chelsea would like to thank Graham for all his efforts and contribution and wish him well for the future.”

Transfer funding

Potter, who left Brighton for Chelsea in September, had repeatedly stated that despite the club’s struggles he felt he had the full support of the owners at Stamford Bridge.

Co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali, who spent £515m last summer, issued their own joint statement, saying: “On behalf of everyone at the club, we want to thank Graham sincerely for his contribution to Chelsea.

“We have the highest degree of respect for Graham as a coach and as a person. He has always conducted himself with professionalism and integrity and we are all disappointed in this outcome.

“Along with our incredible fans, we will all be getting behind Bruno and the team as we focus on the rest of the season.

“We have 10 Premier League games remaining and a Champions League quarter-final ahead. We will put every effort and commitment into every one of those games so that we can end the season on a high.”

Rodgers had been manager at Leicester for four years, led them to FA Cup success in 2021, but left with the under-funded squad 19th in the Premier League, one point from safety with 10 games to play.

Rafa Benitez and Michael Carrick are among the early front-runners to take over.

The 12 sackings so far . . .

Scott ParkerBournemouthAugust 30
Thomas TuchelChelseaSeptember 7
Bruno LageWolvesOctober 2
Steven GerrardAston VillaOctober 20
Ralph HasenhuttlSouthamptonNovember 7
Frank LampardEvertonJanuary 23
Jesse MarschLeedsFebruary 6
Nathan JonesSouthamptonFebruary 12
Patrick VieiraCrystal PalaceMarch 17
Antonio ConteTottenham HotspurMarch 26
Brendan RodgersLeicesterApril 2
Graham PotterChelseaApril 2

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