Graham Potter has declined the opportunity to become Lyon's next manager. Although initially identified by French club as their preferred replacement for Laurent Blanc, Graham decided against accepting as he continues his review process.

He endured a difficult few months since being fired by Chelsea after only seven months as manager, replaced first by Frank Lampard and later by Mauricio Pochettino - yet the west London club have struggled this season and currently rank 12th in the Premier League table.

Potter had an illustrious tenure at Brighton and Hove Albion prior to taking over Stamford Bridge where he failed to prevent them from being relegated from the Premier League. While at Brighton & Hove Albion he improved their position significantly after joining in 2019, leading them to ninth-place in their 2021-2022 Premier League season and even making some significant strides forward before accepting a far more financially rewarding job at Chelsea.

Potter only spent a short while as Chelsea's fortunes rapidly declined despite spending heavily on transfers. The former Ostersunds manager struggled to control a vast squad while coming under increasing pressure from an increasingly disgruntled fanbase. He suffered 11 defeats out of 31 Premier League matches during this tenure as well.

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He had been expected to succeed Chelsea manager Antonio Conte at Lyon but instead has struggled since taking up the post, with only one point from four matches so far this season and being humiliated 4-0 by Paris Saint-Germain at the weekend. Lyon ultras were publicly outraged that their players had only earned one point from these four contests.

According to reports in France, Lyon board identified Potter as their ideal choice to lead their Groupama Stadium management vacancy at Groupama Stadium - even inviting him for an interview with owner John Textor - but ultimately decided against making such a dramatic life change at such an inexperienced club.

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Potter is likely to return to management if an ideal opportunity presents itself, though for now he is continuing to consider all his options. His decision not to take up the Lyon job has come as a blow to them as they seek a replacement for Blanc in an attempt to turn around their Ligue 1 season; currently they trail Paris Saint-Germain by five points after just four games and sit bottom. Paulo Fonseca from LOSC Lille and Wolves' Julen Lopetegui have both been linked as potential candidates.