Potter’s side reversed a 1-0 deficit from the first leg to seal a stunning Champions League fightback.
Chelsea made their entry into the quarterfinals of the Champions League with a 2-0 win over Dortmund at Stamford Bridge last night. Graham Potter saved his job for this season with this win.
The Chelsea head admired Marc Cucurella after the decision to restore him to Chelsea’s defence was vindicated by a brilliant individual display against Borussia Dortmund.
The West London club reversed a 1-0 deficit from the first leg in Germany to seal a stunning Champions League fightback.
“I think Marc was man of the match,” said Potter, with UEFA in agreement as the Spaniard took the official award.
“If the result hadn’t had gone our way, I’m not sure of the consequences. I’m delighted for him.
“When you’re having a bad time like we’ve had, you accept the criticism and Marc has dealt with it well. We’ve tried to shield him a little bit and at the same time pick the moment (to bring him back).
“We thought the crowd would get behind us tonight, because it’s the Champions League. With Benoit not available, I thought he gave us some left-footed balance in the back three. Thankfully he delivered a top performance.”
“It was an important game, it was a special atmosphere,” said Potter. “It was a passionate evening.
“Stamford Bridge was rocking, I thought it would be. Our performance helped that. We pressed high, we tried to win some tackles. We tried to attack them and play some decent stuff, against a top team.
“It’s not just this evening. We’ve had a tough period. We had to respond against Leeds. We played a good game against Dortmund away (in the first leg) and we lost. In the moment that we’re in, no one wants to hear that we played well, had some chances and should have scored.
“We had a poor first half (losing) against Southampton and it could have spiralled into an unpleasant situation. Everybody had to stick together and suffer together and find a way through.”
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