Graham Potter Fired by Chelsea; Was Hired in September to Replace Thomas Tuchel

Graham Potter didn't last a full season at Stamford Bridge.

The embattled Chelsea manager has "departed the club" and will "collaborate with the Club to facilitate a smooth transition," according to a press release from the Premier League side.

Chelsea's co-controlling owners, Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali, noted the following in the team's statement:

"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 [interim manager Bruno Saltor] 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."

The move doesn't come as a surprise.

The Blues lost to Aston Villa 2-0 on Saturday, dropping them to a shocking 11th on the Premier League table at 38 points, with 10 wins, 10 losses and eight draws on the season.

That has left them 12 points out of the final Champions League berth for next season behind fourth-place Manchester United and 11 points behind fifth-place Tottenham for the only guaranteed Europa League berth.

At this point, Chelsea will have to win the Champions League to guarantee its spot in Europe's premier competition next season.

Given the massive resources the club has spent on players in the past year, poor results were never going to be tolerated. Potter defenders, however, might point to the fact that the manager was brought on midseason to replace Thomas Tuchel in September and given a huge swath of new players to incorporate in January after the club went on a lucrative shopping spree, a difficult task given the talent and egos already on the roster.

His hiring will be seen as a poor investment by Chelsea's new ownership. He not only was given a five-year deal, but the Blues also paid the around £20 million ($24.6 million) buyout clause to Brighton to lure him to London.

As for his potential replacement, football reporter Fabrizio Romano noted that former Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann is the front-runner:

There would be some delicious irony to that appointment, given that Nagelsmann was shockingly replaced at Bayern Munich this season by Chelsea's former manager, Tuchel.

Whoever ends up receiving the post, one thing had become abundantly clear—change was needed. Potter wasn't up to this particular task.