Graham Potter has explained what he believes is behind Moises Caicedo’s transformation for Chelsea this season into a crucial part of Enzo Maresca’s side.

There was substantial pressure on Caicedo to make an immediate impact when the club signed him in the summer of 2023 for a British record fee of £115m. But in his debut season at Stamford Bridge he scored one goal and provided four assists in 48 games, while the club finished sixth in the league.

Liverpool had been in the hunt for the then-Seagull midfielder, offering £111m, and as he started to establish himself in the Chelsea side under Mauricio Pochettino, he and them improved in the second half of last season.

“I’ve known Moises since he first arrived in England to play for me at Brighton, and his story is an interesting one,” Graham Potter said in his column on BBC Sport.

“The way it began for him with us at Brighton was similar to what happened when he first joined Chelsea, in that it felt like he has had to suffer and dig in before coming out the other side and showing everyone his true quality.

“He has established himself now at Chelsea, which is credit to him because that status has not come easy - for lots of reasons.”

Caicedo was only 19 years old when he was signed by Potter at Brighton in 2021 and was almost immediately loaned out to Belgium.

“Moises deserves great credit for the way he has come through all of those things, at Brighton and now at Chelsea, to be playing at the level he is currently at,” Potter added.

The fact that he has captained Chelsea already this season, in the Europa Conference League against Servette, says a lot about his mentality and tells you what people within the building think of him as a person.

That side of things does not surprise me at all, because I know what he is like and how he plays his football.”