Former Chelsea head coach Graham Potter has reportedly rejected the chance to take charge of French giants Lyon.
Les Gones may soon be on the lookout for a new manager amid growing pressure on current incumbent Laurent Blanc, who only took over from Peter Bosz in October 2022.
Under Blanc's tutelage, Lyon have made a dismal start to the season, taking just one point from their opening four games against Strasbourg, Montpellier HSC, Nice and Paris Saint-Germain to sit bottom of the table.
Following an embarrassing 4-1 home loss at the hands of Montpellier, Blanc remarkably opened the door for Lyon to sack him, although he stressed that he was not actively looking to leave his post.
Lyon then put their first point on the board with a goalless draw away to Nice, before being brought crashing back down to earth with a 4-1 home beating at the hands of reigning champions PSG.
© Reuters
The situation at the Groupama Stadium became even more astonishing straight after that match, as the Lyon players were chastised by the club's ultras and warned not to "sully" the shirt while looking on with blank faces.
Blanc remains under contract with Les Gones until the end of the season, but according to The Athletic, the Lyon hierarchy are already scoping out possible replacements for the under-fire Frenchman.
Ex-Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion boss Potter was supposedly earmarked as owner John Textor's number one pick, and the 48-year-old was initially attracted to the opportunity.
However, Potter ultimately decided that the timing was not right for him, and he politely declined the chance to take charge of the seven-time French champions as he continues to weigh up his next career move.
After transforming Brighton into a force to be reckoned with in the Premier League, Potter was headhunted by Chelsea, who hired him to replace Champions League winner Thomas Tuchel in September 2022.
© Reuters
The Englishman made an excellent start to life at Stamford Bridge, as Chelsea went unbeaten during the first nine games of his tenure, but things turned incredibly sour thereafter.
In his subsequent 22 games in charge, Potter only claimed six victories and saw his side eliminated from the FA Cup and EFL Cup at the hands of Manchester City, although he did oversee a 2-1 aggregate win over Borussia Dortmund in the last 16 of the Champions League.
However, a 2-0 home defeat to Aston Villa in April proved to be the final straw, as co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali sacked Potter following months of relentless pressure from fans with the Blues sat 11th in the table.
Chelsea's fortunes did not improve following Frank Lampard's homecoming, though, as they finished in a lowly 12th place and have only won one of their opening four matches under Mauricio Pochettino this term, losing to West Ham United and Nottingham Forest.
Following his sacking, Potter apparently rejected an approach from Leicester City and was heavily linked with the Tottenham Hotspur job before the Lilywhites hired Ange Postecoglou from Celtic.
Ben Knapton
