Luka Modric

[robsblubot 3,222]

Chelsea need sombody like Lampard? We already have Lampard and he is far from a natural deep lying playmaker. He has an instinct to score goals which means leaving his post and going forward leaving a great big hole in front of our back four. What we need is a player who is tenacious andd hungry to tackle and intercept. Somebody who simply loves to sit in front of the back four, screening them from attacks. Somebody who not only is natural ball winner but also a great contributor of the ball. Yes Lampard has top notch vision and class delivery but he is not a deep lying playmaker by any means.

At the moment we have Rami who can't pass to save his life, Mikel who has the ability but just wonders around playing his consistantly average game and Lampard who is playing out his last days at Chelsea anyways. You could mention Luiz but I don't think even he knows what position he is meant to be playing these days, he kind of plays Monkey rush CB.

Thought I should not have to mention that Lampard's contract is running out with no signs of renewal.

Also, I'm not saying or wrote that Lampard is or has been playing deep. And frankly I don't care who plays deep, this is something that can change from match to match, depending on strategy and opponent. What I am saying though is that all our midfielders are short aside from Mikel, Lampard, and Luiz (not even proper DM/CM), but now I'm just repeating myself.

[chrismada9 1,948]

Chelsea need sombody like Lampard? We already have Lampard and he is far from a natural deep lying playmaker. He has an instinct to score goals which means leaving his post and going forward leaving a great big hole in front of our back four. What we need is a player who is tenacious andd hungry to tackle and intercept. Somebody who simply loves to sit in front of the back four, screening them from attacks. Somebody who not only is natural ball winner but also a great contributor of the ball. Yes Lampard has top notch vision and class delivery but he is not a deep lying playmaker by any means.

In other words, we shouldn't have let Essien sod off to Madrid!

[Leif 6,006]

£20m + Essien & a steak pie would be a good deal IMO.

[Sheva. 5,373]

I didn't want him before, but i really do now because he will come for cheaper and we all know how good he can be.

I'm actually surprised at his lack of impact in Spain, but their loss lol.

[Leif 6,006]

Does he actually play well in a pivot? At Tottenham he played in a central midfield role I believe with much less defensive duties than he'd have here, and most of his games I've seen at Madrid have been behind the striker.

[manpe 10,855]

So the Modric saga is back on? Oh lord...

[DDA 9,570]

In other words, we shouldn't have let Essien sod off to Madrid!

I was really against that move. I literally couldn't believe it when I saw that we had let him go to Madrid. A lot of people were moaning that he isn't good enough to play here anymore and yes he isn't as good as he once but still a very decent player who knows the DM role like the back of his hand. Letting him go there and not bringing in a proven DM in his place has shown to be a big mistake.

[FabHazard 655]

bump! Yesterday he was awesome and i think we need to sign him up in summer.

[Special Juan 27,103]

He was brilliant last night, a real ball dictator and far too good to be sat on a bench.

[Strike 6,961]

He was brilliant last night, a real ball dictator and far too good to be sat on a bench.

ball dictator he maybe but his defensive abilities raise question marks. in a team with Mata Oscar Hazard shying away from defensive duties we need strong pivot imo

[bluesman2610 1,226]

ball dictator he maybe but his defensive abilities raise question marks. in a team with Mata Oscar Hazard shying away from defensive duties we need strong pivot imo

i dunno to me even though united were a man down he was working really hard to win the ball back and being a real nuisance(sp?)... i thought he did very well.. could def see him in out pivot and working really well with the likes of mata oscar hazard and de bruyne who seems to be the forgotten man

[Special Juan 27,103]

ball dictator he maybe but his defensive abilities raise question marks. in a team with Mata Oscar Hazard shying away from defensive duties we need strong pivot imo

i dunno to me even though united were a man down he was working really hard to win the ball back and being a real nuisance(sp?)... i thought he did very well.. could def see him in out pivot and working really well with the likes of mata oscar hazard and de bruyne who seems to be the forgotten man

This. He chased, harried and dictated brilliantly.

[Strike 6,961]

i dunno to me even though united were a man down he was working really hard to win the ball back and being a real nuisance(sp?)... i thought he did very well.. could def see him in out pivot and working really well with the likes of mata oscar hazard and de bruyne who seems to be the forgotten man

he can harry around but his ball winning ability isn't great. no doubt he'd walk into our pivot and improve it. just that if we can get someone who operated deeper, we'll get better defensive security

meanwhile de Bruyne has been dire with his defending at Werder this season.

[bluesman2610 1,226]

he can harry around but his ball winning ability isn't great. no doubt he'd walk into our pivot and improve it. just that if we can get someone who operated deeper, we'll get better defensive security

meanwhile de Bruyne has been dire with his defending at Werder this season.

most teams that play double pivot have one true ball winner and one distributor.. now the distributor does add additional benefits if he too can win back possession but that is not his main function.. in respect to luka he is pretty decent ball winner maybe not of the same mold as a moutinho or alonso but would be more than efficient as he has a great engine and can do a lot of pressing...

ppl seem to think that defending is a few players in the team but actually its a unit everyone has a part to play to be a successful defending side we need more two way players like in the mourinho era...

and on de bruyne maybe you misunderstood me i was placing him in the attacking 3 not in the pivot..i too agree with you his defending does need a lot of work if he will work in our pivot if we so choose to play that style.. i still believe we play our best football in a 4-3-3 a la newcastle game beginning of the season...

[Styles 9,790]

most teams that play double pivot have one true ball winner and one distributor.. now the distributor does add additional benefits if he too can win back possession but that is not his main function.. in respect to luka he is pretty decent ball winner maybe not of the same mold as a moutinho or alonso but would be more than efficient as he has a great engine and can do a lot of pressing...

ppl seem to think that defending is a few players in the team but actually its a unit everyone has a part to play to be a successful defending side we need more two way players like in the mourinho era...

and on de bruyne maybe you misunderstood me i was placing him in the attacking 3 not in the pivot..i too agree with you his defending does need a lot of work if he will work in our pivot if we so choose to play that style.. i still believe we play our best football in a 4-3-3 a la newcastle game beginning of the season...

It's why somebody like Mata is such a liability.

[Leif 6,006]

I said it as a half-joke a few months ago, but again and more serious now - why not sign Luka and Alex Song..? Alex Song is overrated for his season last year with Arsenal, but if you really look into his skill-set, I think if we were more flexible with our tactics, those 2 would create the best midfield pairing in the Premier League. I also feel that Mikel would flourish with either Song/Modric beside him, but heh, chances of this happening are slim, aren't they?

I still don't believe Modric was anything near the reported £40m Tottenham wanted from us for him, but if we were to get him now for £25m from Madrid I wouldn't complain.

[Rmpr 8,977]

I said it as a half-joke a few months ago, but again and more serious now - why not sign Luka and Alex Song..? Alex Song is overrated for his season last year with Arsenal, but if you really look into his skill-set, I think if we were more flexible with our tactics, those 2 would create the best midfield pairing in the Premier League. I also feel that Mikel would flourish with either Song/Modric beside him, but heh, chances of this happening are slim, aren't they?

I still don't believe Modric was anything near the reported £40m Tottenham wanted from us for him, but if we were to get him now for £25m from Madrid I wouldn't complain.

Why would Madrid sell Modric for 25m after paying 33m this season? Also, the day Barça sell us a player, the world will be close to ending.

In a dream world, I agree. Get them both....However, it will be much easier to just buy Gonalons/Capoue and Moutinho!

[bluesman2610 1,226]

It's why somebody like Mata is such a liability.

in a sense yes but look at some of the great teams to win champions league milan in particular with players like kaka and pirlo who do not defend but are/were pure class going forward... you can get away with one or two players who are focused on attack first but they too still have a part to play in team defending