Graham Potter’s torture is over for now as Chelsea boss earns some precious breathing space with a 2-1 aggregate win over Dortmund. He is edging his way slowly into the elite

March 8, 2023

CHELSEA 2-0 BORUSSIA DORTMUND (agg 2-1) – OLIVER HOLT AT STAMFORD BRIDGE: The slow torture of a fine coach and a good man was finally called to a halt at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea defended superbly and bulldozed their way past a disappointing Borussia Dortmund team and into the quarter finals of the Champions League and as the supporters danced and yelled and bounced, the club’s besieged manager Graham Potter threw off the ropes that have bound him and leapt down from the rack. Potter, famously, had never even been to a Champions League game before this season and now he has become the first English manager to win a knock-out game for the club in the competition. He and his coaches went through agonies in the final few moments of time added on as Dortmund pressed for the goal that would take the tie into extra time, barely able to watch, holding their heads in their hands, frantically shouting instructions. When the final whistle eventually came, the roar from the stadium warmed the chill night air.