Potter stands by decision to take off Aubameyang

Graham Potter stood by his decision to take Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang off against Manchester City, having brought the Chelsea striker on earlier in the game.

The Blues lost 1-0 at Stamford Bridge, where Aubameyang replaced the injured Raheem Sterling in the opening minutes.

He was ineffective up front and boss Potter substituted him midway through the second half – a decision the player was clearly unhappy about.

But Potter said: “He came on after one minute, hadn’t played for a while, and he put in an absolute shift.

“I thought he did everything he could for the team and he was fatiguing a little bit.

“That was the decision; we needed a little bit of energy so I thought we could use Omari [Hutchinson], Conor [Gallagher], and Lewis [Hall].

“Of course players want to stay on the pitch and influence the game. It’s a normal reaction. You understand that footballers want to play and help the team. But it’s a decision we have to make.”

Chelsea, already without the likes of N’Golo Kante, Reece James, Ben Chilwell and Wesley Fofana, also lost Mason Mount to injury when he picked up a knock on the eve of the game.

And their injury worries worsened when Sterling and Christian Pulisic both went off during the first half.

Potter said it was “too soon” to know the extent of the pair’s injuries and that he has “never experienced anything” like Chelsea’s current injury problems.