Following Graham Potter’s sacking from his position as manager of Chelsea on Sunday night, less than seven months into his tenure at Stamford Bridge, Bruno Saltor, his deputy has been appointed as the club’s interim boss for the remainder of the season. While many Chelsea fans will have been relieved to see Potter go, they will be worried about the inexperience of the new manager.
Chelsea are currently ranked 11th in the standings, 12 points below the top four, and any sort of European qualifying seems increasingly difficult until they win the Champions League this year. Bruno Saltor, Chelsea’s interim head coach, further added to the worries of the club fans as he admitted he has ‘never picked a team before’ ahead of Tuesday’s huge clash against Liverpool.
‘Tomorrow is going to be the first time’ – Saltor nervous ahead of picking first Chelsea starting XI
Brighton great Bruno received a position in Graham Potter’s backroom staff upon his retirement, with the Englishman taking over at the Amex Stadium in the summer of 2019. During three years, he served as senior player development coach, a position he was appointed to. The former defender then followed his master to west London as he took the job in September last year.
As one of Potter’s assistant coaches, Bruno later followed the Englishman to Stamford Bridge. Billy Reid, Potter’s deputy, also left the Blues, and Bruno was appointed as interim manager. But Saltor hasn’t followed Potter through the exit door at Chelsea, and is rested with the responsibility of churning best results in both the Premier League as well as the Champions League where they face Real Madrid in the quarterfinals.
The 42-year-old, however, acknowledged in his pre-game press conference on Monday that he will be selecting a starting XI for the first time in the game against Liverpool, further insisting that he is prepared to answer the call of duty. Bruno said:
“I have been coaching for four years and have been coaching under Graham. Obviously, he has been the manager and he always had the last word. It’s quite clear that it’s not been the case [Bruno picking a team]. Tomorrow is going to be the first time.
“I feel good. It is my duty. A duty and a responsibility. I am at a really important club and I want to try my best. If I am here right now, it’s because Graham and the club thought it was the right step and I’m here just trying to help the club, and trying to be the most professional I can.
“Obviously, it’s been a difficult 24 hours for all of us, for the staff, for the families, and now we just have to deal with the situation. It’s really important to focus just day by day, how much we can affect every day, what we can control. What we can control is how we train today, how we play tomorrow and after we see how it goes.”