Graham Potter could be Chelsea manager by THIS WEEKEND

Brighton manager Graham Potter is the man Chelsea’s American owners want to replace the sacked Thomas Tuchel.

The Stamford Bridge club have been granted permission by Brighton to formally discuss the vacancy with Potter.

Sportsmail has been told that Potter is Chelsea’s No 1 target to replace Tuchel, who was sacked this morning.

Should Chelsea’s talks with Potter go according to plan, the expectancy is that the current Seagulls boss will be offered the job as new Chelsea head coach.

Sources have indicated that Potter is fully open to taking over at Stamford Bridge and that reaching an agreement for him to join Chelsea will be straightforward.

Indeed, unless there is a breakdown, Potter could be in position by the weekend when Chelsea take on Fulham.

Brighton have given Chelsea permission to discuss their newly vacant managerial position with Graham Potter

Former PSG and Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino is another favourite for the job

Potter is understood to have a release clause – of at least £12million – in his contract meaning Brighton are powerless to prevent their manager from leaving.

Sportsmail understands the clause includes the release of the majority of Potter’s staff at the Amex.

Potter is settled at Brighton, who have started the season excellently.

However, sources have indicated to Sportsmail that Potter would give serious consideration to leaving the Seagulls for a club competing in the Champions League.

If Chelsea’s move for Potter fails to materialise then Mauricio Pochettino is also viewed as a strong candidate.

Chelsea owner Todd Boehly (right) sensationally sacked Thomas Tuchel on Wednesday

Thomas Tuchel was sacked this morning just hours after his side’s defeat against Dinamo Zagreb.

Pochettino is a free agent after leaving Paris Saint-Germain earlier this summer meaning he is available for nothing.

It is understood Pochettino is aware of Chelsea’s interest, but Potter’s emergence as the club’s preferred option leaves the Argentine playing a waiting game.

Zinedine Zidane would also be of interest to Chelsea bosses – but he wants to take over from Didier Deschamps as France manager after the World Cup.

Tuchel cut a disconsolate figure as Chelsea were beaten 1-0 by Dinamo Zagreb on Tuesday

Chelsea are sixth in the Premier League and have made a miserable start to their Champions League campaign, with Tuchel disposed of hours after their humbling 1-0 loss to Dinamo Zagreb, his 100th match in charge.

The club said they would move ‘swiftly’ to appoint a new manager and Tuchel’s coaching staff will continue to take charge of the team in the interim.

Sportsmail has revealed that Chelsea sacking Tuchel will cost the club £15m – with £13m going to the German and £2m to his coaching staff.

It is understood that the German was one of the Premier League’s top earners, on a salary in the region of £13m a year.

The German is set to receive a pay-out of around £13million after he was sacked by Chelsea

And with his backroom staff set to follow him out of the door, the total cost to Chelsea’s new American owners is likely to be closer to the £15m mark.

‘On behalf of everyone at Chelsea FC, the club would like to place on record its gratitude to Thomas and his staff for all their efforts during their time with the club,’ Chelsea said in their statement on Tuchel’s sacking.

‘Thomas will rightly have a place in Chelsea’s history after winning the Champions League, the Super Cup and Club World Cup in his time here.

‘As the new ownership group reaches 100 days since taking over the club, and as it continues its hard work to take the club forward, the new owners believe it is the right time to make this transition.’

Zinedine Zidane is one of the other names on the potential shortlist for the Chelsea job

The sacking of Tuchel has caught some by surprise given he publicly claimed that negotiations were ongoing for a contract extension just last month.

‘There are talks,’ he said.

‘But I think given the situation where we come from, and where we are in the middle of the transfer period, I think it is the very best if I focus on my team and on sports and on being competitive.

‘My people talk to the owners and take care of everything else. You know how glad I am to be here and how much I like it. So it’s a good thing.’

The new manager at Stamford Bridge will inherit a squad that has been bolstered to the tune of more than £260million in the summer, a record spend in one window for a Premier League club at more than £260million.

Chelsea had decided to sack Tuchel before his side’s humbling 1-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb

Tuchel is the latest high-profile figure to be given the axe following Boehly’s £4.25billion take over in May.

He follows former sporting director Marina Granovskaia, CEO Guy Laurence and technical and performance advisor Petr Cech in departing the club.

Tuchel leaves having guided Chelsea to UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup glory.

Tuchel arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2021 to replace Frank Lampard and hit the ground running by winning the Champions League in six months.

Last season Chelsea reached the Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals, only to lose to Liverpool on both occasions. They also finished third in the Premier League.

In his first 50 games they only conceded 24 goals and Tuchel was heralded for the impact he made.

But Chelsea have made a stuttering start ahead of Saturday’s match against Fulham having already lost three times this season, all away from home at Southampton, Leeds and on Tuesday in Zagreb.

THOMAS TUCHEL’S FINAL INTERVIEW AS CHELSEA BOSS

‘I’m angry with myself and I’m angry with our performance. I’m angry with myself because I did not see it coming.

‘Obviously I was in the wrong movie.

‘I thought that the last game helped us. I thought we showed a reaction in a very difficult moment against West Ham, got the reaction, got the result in the moments when you need a bit of luck in the situation we were in.

‘We had good training sessions, I thought the team was prepared, I thought we know what this is all about. I didn’t see it coming, that’s why I’m angry with myself.

‘There is too much to analyse – I’m a part of it. We’re clearly not there where we need to be and where we can be, so it’s on me it’s on us.

‘At the moment everything is missing.

‘This is a huge underperformance from all of us. It’s not precise enough, not clinical enough, not aggressive enough.

‘It’s not determined enough and not enough as a team and that’s why we lost.

‘It’s for me to find the solution and find the reason why.

‘Obviously [players] are underperforming individually and I don’t really know where this performance comes from.

‘A lack of determination, a lack of hunger and a lack of intensity to do the things we need at the highest level.

‘We are clearly not where we want to be. We expected what we got. It was the same story of the last few games – we start OK for 15-20 minutes but then lacked determination, precision and maybe even lacked the smell of blood.

‘We need to be much better. We are not finished, we are not happy with our results, we are not happy with the way we play in general, but I thought we were on a good way. I’m surprised by this performance.’