‘I will play again’ – Defiant Kalidou Koulibaly vows to prove to Graham Potter why he deserves place in Chelsea team
CHELSEA defender Kalidou Koulibaly has insisted he will show new boss Graham Potter that he deserves to play at Stamford Bridge.
The 31-year-old Senegalese centre-back was brought in by Thomas Tuchel for £34million in the summer.
But after less than two months of the season, the German coach was sacked by new owner Todd Boehly.
Brighton coach Potter swiftly replaced Tuchel and opted to leave Koulibaly and fellow new signing Wesley Fofana out of his first line-up in a 1-1 draw with RB Salzburg.
But Koulibaly remains confident in his own ability, insisting he will do his utmost to prove to Potter he is worthy of a starting place.
Speaking to Le Quotidien, he said: “The new coach came with some good ideas. He’s a real coach.
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“He did some good things with Brighton. Now he is a Chelsea manager.
“He has guidelines, expectations. It’s up to me to be patient, it’s up to me to show that I deserve to play, to show in training that the coach can trust me.
“Compared to this, there will be no problem. We are also in the first weeks, it is normal for the coach to rely on players who are used to the emblem of Chelsea and who have been there for a very long time.
“When I will be at 100 per cent, there will be no problem, I will play again.”
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The former Napoli man has endured a mixed start to life in west London.
He scored on his home debut in a 2-2 draw with Tottenham, but was then sent off the following weekend in a 3-0 defeat to Leeds.
Koulibaly was then suspended for the win over Leicester, before he returned for the loss to Southampton and win over West Ham.
Chelsea have a lot of competition at centre-back, with Koulibaly and Fofana adding to Thiago Silva, Trevoh Chalobah and Cesar Azpilicueta.
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Marc Cucurella is also an option at the left of a back three.
Chelsea’s first game after the international break is a trip to Crystal Palace on October 1, four days before they host AC Milan in the Champions League.