Chelsea: £50m star ‘going to struggle’ under Potter at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea defender Ben Chilwell is ‘going to struggle a little bit more’ than Reece James under Graham Potter, according to journalist Simon Phillips.

The 47-year-old tactician has replaced former manager Thomas Tuchel in the Stamford Bridge dugout, putting pen to paper on a five-year contract following an impressive spell with Brighton.

Tuchel was surprisingly dismissed following Chelsea’s midweek defeat to Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League with the club’s hierarchy wasting no time in appointing his successor.

However, the west London outfit’s style of play is unlikely to drastically change under Potter, who also likes to set his team up with a back five including two wing-backs and adopt a possession-orientated approach.

That means the likes of Chilwell, Marc Cucurella and Reece James are likely to be relied upon to provide the width and attacking impetus from the flanks once again.

But during his time in charge of Brighton, Potter often preferred to field natural wingers at wing-back, with Solly March and Leandro Trossard lining up out wide on numerous occasions.

Chilwell, on the other hand, is more comfortable at full-back, meaning he could possibly be tasked with carrying out a set of tactical instructions he is less familiar with.

In an interview with GiveMeSport, Phillips said: “The other main thing is the wing-backs.

“Whereas Tuchel prefers to use full-backs as his wing-backs, Potter much prefers to use wingers at wing-back, so it’s going to be interesting there to see how and where Reece James and Ben Chilwell will fit into the team.

“I think Reece James would be fine as an attacking winger or wing-back, but I think Ben Chilwell is going to struggle a little bit more.

“Marc Cucurella obviously came from