Graham Potter insists the success of Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola proves a manager needs time

Graham Potter insists the success of Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola proves that top Premier League bosses need time.

Both endured slow starts at Liverpool and Manchester City respectively, with Klopp finishing eighth in his first season in charge while Guardiola guided City to an underwhelming third-place finish.

Chelsea head coach Potter had enjoyed a positive start to life at the club after being appointed in September but was dealt a significant setback last weekend when he watched his side get thumped 4-1 at his former club Brighton.

Graham Potter (pictured) insists Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola needed time to bring success

But Potter, whose side host high-flying Arsenal on Sunday, insists both of his Premier League winning rival bosses have shown that it takes time to build a successful team.

‘If you look at Pep’s first year, if you look at how long it took Jurgen. These guys are top, top people but even they don’t just walk in, click their fingers, and everything’s perfect,’ Potter said.

‘You guys (the media), it’s your job to create the pressure, it’s your job to create the noise, to create the story, and sometimes we don’t do well enough so it’s justified.

Klopp is one of Liverpool’s greatest ever managers but finished ninth in his firsts season 

‘People think that it’s just going to happen for you, it’s incredible. At what level does that happen?

‘It’s quite a dangerous message to tell people but it is what it is. Alex Ferguson took his time I think if I remember rightly, and he did quite well.

‘Pep’s a genius and he didn’t just walk in and ‘everything is fine’. Jurgen took some time.

‘The evidence is there. If people want to use another narrative then that’s fine, I can’t control that.

Potter called Guardiola – who has masterminded four Premier League titles – ‘a genius’ 

‘The team that I left at Brighton wasn’t the team I started with at Brighton. It grew and it developed.

‘Sometimes you fall on your face and you have to pick yourself up and take the criticism because everybody is wise after the event, all these people who are experts afterwards.’

Potter enjoyed a strong start to life at Chelsea before a thumping by former club Brighton

Chelsea have been known to swap managers frequently in recent years and, despite an ownership change earlier this year, chose to part ways with Thomas Tuchel following a disappointing start to the season.

And Potter acknowledged that there must be positive results in the short-term if long-term success is to be achieved.

‘It’s a process of a period of pain and suffering, but clearly you need results along the way because they help you convince people you’re on the right path,’ Potter explained.

‘As I’ve said before, as a coach you have to understand the short-term, medium-term and long-term. If you just focus on the medium and long and ignore the short-term, then you’re in trouble.

‘You want to try and build something, but you also need to acknowledge the fact that supporters need to see performances, need to see results, need to see wins.’

Mikel Arteta thinks his Arsenal side are due a title-winning season to end a 19-year wait

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, meanwhile, has admitted Arsenal are long overdue a title-winning campaign.

Arsenal have not won the Premier League since Arsene Wenger’s Invincibles went the 2003-04 season unbeaten, but they have amassed 31 points from their opening 12 games ahead of the trip to Stamford Bridge.

No Arsenal side has amassed more at this stage in the Premier League era. ‘It is about time,’ said Arteta. ‘It’s been so long. We have to earn the time to be there. We have done that so far but there is still a long, long season ahead of us.’