Manchester United 'turned down Graham Potter due to lack of CL experience'

The 47-year-old was confirmed as the Blues' new manager on Thursday afternoon following the sacking of Thomas Tuchel after 100 matches in charge.

Potter has enjoyed a remarkable rise through the managerial ranks to take charge of the West London club, joining Ostersunds, Swansea City and Brighton & Hove Albion after retiring as a player.

The Englishman has signed a five-year contract at Stamford Bridge, but Chelsea were not the only Big Six side to have been linked with his services in the past couple of years.

Manchester United were tipped to move for Potter as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's permanent successor, with Ralf Rangnick stepping down from his post at the end of the season.

However, the Daily Mail claims that the Red Devils ultimately decided against moving for Potter due to the fact that he had no prior Champions League experience on his CV.

The former Brighton coach did steer Ostersunds to the Europa League group stage in 2017-18, during which they progressed into the knockout rounds from a group with Zorya Luhansk, Hertha Berlin and Athletic Bilbao.

The Swedish outfit claimed a memorable 2-1 win over Arsenal at the Emirates in the second leg of their last-32 clash, but they were eliminated having already suffered a 3-0 home defeat.

The report adds that Potter was on the shortlist of candidates at Old Trafford, but Erik ten Hag was ultimately preferred due to his previous feats on the continental stage.

Ten Hag famously steered Ajax to the semi-finals of the 2018-19 Champions League - holding Bayern Munich to a pair of draws in the group stage before knocking out Juventus and Real Madrid.

In total, Ten Hag has posted a record of 17 wins, seven draws and eight defeats from 32 Champions League games as a manager, but his side kicked off their Europa League campaign with a 1-0 defeat to Real Sociedad on Thursday.

Upon being appointed Tuchel's successor at Chelsea, Potter told the club's official website: "I am incredibly proud and excited to represent Chelsea FC, this fantastic football club.

"I am very excited to partner with Chelsea's new ownership group and look forward to meeting and working with the exciting group of players and to develop a team and culture that our amazing fans can be proud of.

"I would also like to place my sincere thanks to Brighton & Hove Albion for allowing me this opportunity and in particular Tony Bloom and all the players, staff and supporters for their continued support during my time at the club."

Potter's first game in charge of Chelsea is likely to be Wednesday's Champions League clash with Red Bull Salzburg following the postponement of Premier League fixtures in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II's death.