West Ham United manager Graham Potter certainly had a theme to his post-match press conference last night. Potter didn’t understand why there was a mandatory water break in each half of his side’s 2-1 preseason win over Everton at Soldier Field in Chicago.
He started off the presser by making a joke about it, and then employed a basic staple of all comedians- the call back. Potter kept calling back to his being mystified by the need for a hydration break.
Premier League Summer Series FYIs
West Ham United vs AFC Bournemouth
Kickoff: Sun Aug 3, 2pm EST, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA, USA
West Ham Preview Material: Starting Lineup Prediction Team News
Summer Series Standings, Form: West Ham United 3rd, 3 pts, 0 GD, LW AFC Bournemouth 2nd, 0 pts, 0 GD, WL
He referenced an air temperature of 74 degrees Fahrenheit (to be fair it was literally a 100+ the day before), and the fact that he was wearing a light jacket during the game.
As a local reporter who was there attending Potter’s press conference at Soldier Field, I can tell you first hand that Potter was dedicated to this bit, and it became the main takeaway, by far, of the entire session.
It really was “the water break media opportunity” as Graham Potter later made a joke about the press session itself “needing a water break.” Later on, he even made a remark about how the water breaks stalled the momentum and flow of the game, which is detrimental to idea of trying to grow the game stateside.
(Which I actually appreciated, as I’m as sick and tired of the “growing the game in the U.S.” soccer/football press conference cliche as anybody).
A lot of laughter ensued as Potter said he would understand if there were water breaks in New York and/or Atlanta, the latter of which is the site for this Premier League Summer Series finale.
Atlanta has a climate-controlled dome; actually.
Here is our projection of the first team that we think Potter will pick, once he gets inside, at a venue where the weather conditions are always idyllic.
West Ham Starting Lineup Prediction
Wes Foderingham; Kyle Walker-Peters, Max Kilman, Nayeuf Aguerd, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Aaron Wan-Bissaka; James Ward-Prowse, Tomas Soucek; Lucas Paqueta, Jarrod Bowen, Nicklas Fullkrug
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter