Potter faces job competition from TWO former Premier League rivals

Robin Bairner

• 18 May 2023 09:00 BST
• 3 min read

Graham Potter has been on the lookout for a new job since being sacked by Chelsea in March, with the former Brighton boss linked with a possible move to Ligue 1 side Nice.

The French club, which lies in the middle of the standings, is searching for a new coach after a disappointing season that has seen them slip out of the race for European football next term after reaching the last 16 of the UEFA Conference League this time around.

Funded by Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS company – the same that hopes to land Manchester United – Nice are in the market for a replacement for interim head coach Didier Digard, who proved little more than a stopgap option on the Mediterranean coast.

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Potter is one of their leading targets, according to FootMercato.

If the 47-year-old Englishman wants to get back into football, though, he faces some stiff competition, with Nice linked with several well-known faces.

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Potter's Nice competition - including De Zerbi and Vieira

Aside from Potter, undoubtedly the most prominent name associated with the club is Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi, although the prospect of Nice landing the Italian appears to be extremely slim given how high his stock is in England at present. De Zerbi is even a candidate to succeed Potter at Chelsea.

Thiago Motta, who has impressed with Bologna in Serie A and knows Ligue 1 football intimately thanks to his long association as a player with PSG, is another to be linked with the side.

Another name in the frame with Premier League experience, though, is Patrick Vieira, who was recently jettisoned by Crystal Palace. L’Equipe believes he is nonetheless competition for Potter.

Such a move would be surprising, though, given that Vieira previously had a spell in charge of Nice from 2018-2020 that was at best modestly successful.

Ratcliffe and INEOS want an English speaker in the dugout, though, and Vieira would tick this box.

Potter, however, seems like the better option, with the former Chelsea manager set to get a quick opportunity to restore his name at a club with far more potential than it has shown this season.