Potter has revealed he has received emails wishing death upon himself and his children as a part of a barrage of abuse directed towards him due to Chelsea's struggles in recent weeks.
The English manager has come under pressure from fans following a poor run of form that has seen his side win just once in 2023, and only twice in their last 14 games. But despite the pressure, the Blues remain committed to backing their manager.
A 1-0 defeat at home to 20th-placed Southampton was the most recent blow, with Chelsea sat in 10th in the Premier League, some 11 points off the top four.
With the poor run of form has come a completely unacceptable tide of abuse, which Potter opened up about in his pre-match press conference.
"It's a challenge," he admitted, adding: "If you go to work and somebody is swearing abuse at you, it’s not going to be pleasant – or if you’re referred to as the worst person in the history of the club. You can say, ‘oh I don’t care’ but you know I’m lying because everyone does care what people think because we are hard-wired to be socially connected.
“I want to succeed here. It's nonsense the notion I don’t care. People have a perception that I don’t care and my response is what is that based on? How do you know? I would ask you to ask my family how life has been for me and for them. It has not been pleasant at all.
“When you are in private, you show real emotion with your family. My job is to act how I think I should act in the best way for the team and the club, and act with the integrity that is right for me. I never want to be anybody else. I don’t want to be fake. I will be me and I will do my best. If my best isn’t good enough ok I accept that."
He continued, detailing the extent of the abuse and revealing he has been in discussions recently with David Moyes: "Nevertheless, when you ask me questions: ‘Is it hard? Is it tough? Is it nice to hear?', as much as I’ve had support, I’ve had some not particularly nice emails come through that want me to die, want my kids to die. Obviously, that's not pleasant to receive.
"If you’re asked about it for four months, are under pressure for four months, and are under pressure because you guys need to sell stuff, what do you expect in the end? If we don’t get the results then obviously that’s what happens. That’s football. That’s how it is."
Potter took charge of Chelsea last September to replace the sacked Thomas Tuchel and made a bright start in the hot seat at Stamford Bridge, but has since been tasked with trying to manage a number of injuries to key players, as well as integrating an influx of new faces following a wild January spending spree.
His side take on Tottenham on February 26.