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we won several games without him eheh

BREAKING; Cole Palmer has a strained groin and will be out for weeks, with November as the likeliest return. (@kierangill_DM)

Chelsea https://thedailybriefing.io/i/175592890/Chelsea Chelsea are preparing a January transfer window move to sign Barcelona midfielder Marc Casado, who could cost around €35m, but who is also wanted by other Premier League clubs. (Mark Brus, the Daily Briefing) Chelsea do not currently plan to sign a new goalkeeper or centre-back as they are happy with their options in those positions. (Kaveh Solhekol, Sky Sports) Tyrique George is seen as likely to leave Chelsea in January as he’s attracting options from Championship clubs. The Blues also want to find new clubs for Raheem Sterling and Axel Disasi. (Kaveh Solhekol, Sky Sports)

Jamie Gittens has had an underwhelming start at Chelsea. Florent Malouda has some advice https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6696228/2025/10/08/jamie-gittens-Chelsea-florent-malouda-interview/ Florent Malouda understands better than most what Jamie Gittens is going through at Chelsea. Gittens joined Chelsea for £48.5million from Borussia Dortmund in July, but has not made the start to his career at Stamford Bridge he would have wanted. The left winger has been in the first XI just three times and is the latest member of the social media trolls’ ‘007’ club, the term used to describe a player who has not registered a goal or an assist in their first seven games. When Malouda moved to Chelsea from Lyon for £13.5m in 2007, there was a lot more expectation on his shoulders. He had won Ligue 1 with Lyon four seasons in a row and was in the France side which lost the World Cup final against Italy a year before. At 27, Malouda was also a more finished article. Gittens turned 21 two months ago. Malouda, who also predominantly operated on the left flank, contributed just two goals and one assist during his first season in the Premier League. He was on the receiving end of moans and groans from the crowd, just like Gittens. “You should not be affected by this,” Malouda tells The Athletic. “They are your fans and have the right to express their feelings. Malouda had tough moments in his first season at ChelseaPhil Cole/Getty Images “If you play in a club like Chelsea, it could (be like this) home and away and you have to be able to handle that pressure, to understand they want your best. They do not do it for you to perform less, they do it to deliver a message to you, and you need to get the message. “How did I win them over? It was a strong relationship based on commitment. I was committed to the club. Every transfer window there were rumours but I was still fighting for the cause, the club, to earn the trust of the fans. The fans gave it back to me because they saw I truly loved the club, saw that I was defending the club with everything I had. I had the opportunity on great European nights and also the Premier League, the FA Cups. They felt I was a reliable player. It was a successful story in the end.” Malouda became an important player for Chelsea. As an individual, he registered an impressive 45 goals and 39 assists in 229 appearances. In terms of trophies, he won five with them, including the double of the Premier League and FA Cup in 2010, plus the Champions League two years later. He was watching from the stands last weekend as Gittens perhaps enjoyed his best experience so far courtesy of a late cameo from the bench. Gittens came on against Liverpool with 15 minutes to go and showed better attacking intent, and brought a good save out of Giorgi Mamardashvili. Chelsea went on to win 2-1 in stoppage time. “It’s a learning process,” Malouda, who is part of a Chelsea Legends squad playing against Liverpool Legends at Stamford Bridge on Saturday to raise funds for Chelsea FC Foundation and the Chelsea Players’ Trust, says. “When you are so young and join a club like Chelsea, you have to build your confidence. It is part of the journey. The talent is there (with Gittens), it is how you are able to perform at this level. When you are young, you have to be fearless, that is the only way. “The club believes in him, it is just how he is able to prove to the people at the club who put their trust in him that he belongs to this club. The beauty of football is that with one goal, one assist, a sparkle from Jamie, you can turn things around. You should also believe that you can do it and deliver on a regular basis. He can light the stadium on fire with one goal, and then it starts.” Gittens was born and developed in England at Reading, Chelsea and Manchester City’s academies. But like Malouda, his only taste of senior football before Chelsea was abroad. He joined Borussia Dortmund at the age of 16. Malouda believes it should be taken into account, but is also aware that Gittens cannot take too long to settle. He explains: “It takes time to adjust to the Premier League, but at the same time, you do not have time. Every transfer window is an opportunity for the club to reshape the team. “Everybody wants results. When you invest in a new player, the goal is to improve the squad. In England, there is maybe less patience with the players signed in the last window. Everyone wants to be excited about the new players. “In other leagues, clubs have to take time to see their signings develop. In England (due to the money available), they have an opportunity in the next window to correct things. That puts more pressure on any player at the club, not just the ones who have just joined. You have to learn very quickly just how competitive playing in England is.” When Malouda moved to Chelsea, he walked into a dressing room full of established winners like John Terry, Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba and Petr Cech. They had helped the club win the Premier League in 2005 and 2006, plus three domestic cups. This Chelsea squad are the youngest in the Premier League. While they won the Club World Cup and Conference League last season, Malouda admits Gittens has it a lot tougher than he had because so many of his teammates are also at an early stage in their careers. “This is part of the strategy of the new owners,” he says. “When they came in, they were investing in young players on long contracts. When I joined, it was different. There were more experienced players, ones who had either won at Chelsea, in the leagues they had come from, or were already representing their national team. The squad was way more experienced, had way more character, based on their pedigree. “This project is about developing young players here who need to win things together. It’s a different project and that is why there is more pressure on these young players. When you see the amount of money the club has spent and their price tags, I think there is more expectation and weight on their shoulders.” Gittens has also been hindered by not having a proper pre-season. Unlike early summer buys Joao Pedro and Liam Delap, he could not play for Chelsea at the Club World Cup because of a 13-minute substitute appearance for Borussia Dortmund in the group phase. Due to reaching and winning the final on July 13, Chelsea only reported back for training on August 4, under two weeks before their opening Premier League game. “Short term that makes a difference,” Malouda insists. “But it is not about proving yourself over two to three months. You have to look at the bigger picture. If a player belongs to Chelsea, plays on this stage, it does not matter about the pre-season. It is about how you adjust and build your confidence when it is challenging. It is not about being young or more experienced; when you get a chance to play, you need to deliver. “Cole Palmer is having some injury issues. Every player should see this as an opportunity and be ready for it. It does not matter where the opportunity comes. Every chance you get to wear this jersey is one to show your talent against the opponent. You always have to be ready. “Pre-season is the past; you should not use that as an excuse.” Gittens and Chelsea had a limited pre-seasonJack Thomas/Getty Images Another factor in Gittens’ lack of starts is the arrival of Alejandro Garnacho from Manchester United. Despite joining at the end of August for £40m, the Argentina international has adapted much quicker, starting three of the last four games. Malouda believes Gittens must not see Garnacho’s signing as a negative. He concludes: “You need competition to be at your best. The sooner you accept it, the more you are able to deliver. It is not a problem. “This is a context that you choose when you come to a club like Chelsea. When I was there, I remember every year Chelsea would sign a new striker. They had Didier Drogba, Hernan Crespo, Andriy Shevchenko and so on. This is what you want because then the squad becomes competitive and then you have to upgrade your game. “As a young player, you sometimes don’t see it because you are maybe looking for personal attention. But on the biggest stage, you need a strong squad. You look at Liverpool and Manchester City in recent years, this is why they have been able to compete in every competition. Chelsea want to get there, to be in a position when they start a season that they can win every competition possible. You need quality players.” Malouda clearly feels that if Gittens can get over some teething problems, he has what it takes to be one of them. Just like he did.

https://thedailybriefing.io/p/arsenal-liverpool-title-race Could Arsenal finally get their hands on the Premier League title through sheer consistency alone? Some interesting data caught my eye this morning which perhaps points towards Arsenal finally being given a clear pathway towards what would be a first title victory in 22 years. See below as Opta Analyst show the difference in points this season versus the same stage in the 2024/25 campaign. What immediately stands out is the pretty big drop from both Liverpool and Manchester City. Arsenal, despite some far-from-kind opening fixtures, are just one point worse off. So far, after what is admittedly a relatively small sample size, we can see that that shift is enough to put the Gunners in front of their two main title rivals. Despite the electrifying form of Erling Haaland at the start of this season, it is interesting to note that City as a whole have not really improved. Their drop-off since that Rodri injury last season is only continuing, with Pep Guardiola seemingly unable to rebuild the side to what it was when the Spaniard was at the peak of his powers. It is, of course, too early to draw major conclusions, but we do know that Arsenal under Mikel Arteta are the most consistent team in the Premier League. No one has more points than the north Londoners over the last three seasons… Perhaps Arsenal won’t be able to keep that kind of consistency going, but, if anything, they look like they should be in a better state to do so than what proved to be a hugely challenging season last term. A strong summer transfer window has massively improved Arsenal’s squad depth, and Swedish goal machine Viktor Gyokeres hasn’t even got going yet, even if his mere presence up front is already causing opposition defences problems and freeing up more space for the likes of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Eberechi Eze. Meanwhile, even during their winning start, Liverpool didn’t look as convincing as they did for so much of last season, with Arne Slot even admitting that teams had perhaps worked out how to play against them after initially taking him lightly when he first came in to replace Jurgen Klopp. 🚨 NEW contract for Arsenal star, Man Utd eyeing £70m attacker, Chelsea plot Barca raid, Newcastle star discusses shock exit, & more Slot worked miracles in first season at Anfield, but we don’t yet know how he’ll respond to his first real crisis after three defeats in a row, and without Trent Alexander-Arnold, and with an ageing Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk. The early signs are hugely positive for Arsenal. Do you think this will finally be their year, or are you backing someone else? Let me hear your thoughts in the comments!

He has played like shit almost every time I have watch a full Juve game over the past several years

@GraemeBailey says Vlahovic targets Chelsea move: 🗣 "Once again his people are touching base with potential landing spots – Chelsea and Tottenham have been spoken to by intermediaries. Much will depend on whether he wants a ‘pay day’ – he won’t get that in England."

Lamps seems to have finally found his mojo - skyblues unbeaten. He was too soon at SB managing

Player asset evolution: Chelsea ahead of PSG https://football-observatory.com/WeeklyPost516 The 516th CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post highlights the clubs whose estimated transfer value of players owned has changed the most, positively or negatively, over the past year. We present both the change in absolute terms (‘gross’ evolution) and the change considering the financial balance of transfer operations (with sell-ons, not including add-ons) completed during the last two transfer windows (‘net’ evolution). In terms of net evolution, Chelsea tops the list (+€364 million) with player valuations up €372m and a balanced net spending for the last two transfer windows: -€8m. The reigning world champions are ahead of the European ones, Paris St-Germain (+€303 million). German side Eintracht Francfort (+€294m) rounds up the podium. Manchester United (-€377 million) and Manchester City (-€315m) are at the opposite end of the table. The Post also presents the estimated transfer value of all players owned by clubs (not including any sell-on related sums). In this case, the top three are Chelsea (€1.81 billion spread across 50 players), Real Madrid (€1.68 billion, 32 players) and Manchester City (€1.47 billion,46 players). Five other clubs have a total estimated value in excess of one billion: Arsenal, Paris St-Germain, Liverpool, Barcelona and Tottenham. >>> Top valued players per club in this tool >>> More information on the CIES Football Observatory's statistical model for estimating transfer values in this scientific article

Sooner than that if he continues the way he is -they can fuck the fuck off

And as well Contract expires: Jun 30, 2033. If he has not signed a new contract by 2029 we can sell in 2030 that's a nice 5 years of use of him plus potential value we will get in 5 years time.

Or ever...

What happens if Strousburg make it to the CL? Right now they are in that spot granted it's early in the season.... They also play PSG on Friday October 17.

Its too soon for that. Maybe in 3 or 4 years but not now

He is amazing. Real Madrid will come knocking...

Reece James has finally sustained a run of Chelsea games without being injured, something we have all been…View the full article

Israeli oligarchs buying CBS and Tik Tok They're wasting their money. Everyone sees them for what they are. And as for Kushner and Blair - a relationship made in hell

https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11668/13446603/Chelsea-transfer-news-no-plans-to-sign-goalkeeper-in-next-two-windows-with-centre-back-january-signing-ruled-out

⚫️Chelsea have NO plans to sign a centre back in January and they will not be signing a goalkeeper in January or next summer. Sanchez, Jorgensen and Penders are regarded as being good enough. unbeliaveble

My top 20 (listed valuation-wise) CBs who will be even remotely avaiable in the summer Alessandro Bastoni Murillo Alessandro Buongiorno Jarrad Branthwaite Bremer Marc Guéhi Ousmane Diomande Gonçalo Inácio Castello Lukeba Giorgio Scalvini Ronald Araujo Tomás Araújo Yann Bisseck Jan Paul van Hecke Mario Gila Joel Ordóñez Pietro Comuzzo Konstantinos Koulierakis Mohamed Simakan Ryan Flamingo

Bournemouth supposedly want £100m for Semenyo https://thedailybriefing.io/p/liverpool-contacted-over-antoine-semenyo

⚫️Chelsea have NO plans to sign a centre back in January and they will not be signing a goalkeeper in January or next summer. Sanchez, Jorgensen and Penders are regarded as being good enough. ⚪️Filip Jorgensen is regarded highly and was a target for some of England’s biggest clubs In the summer. 🔴Chelsea looked at a centre back in the summer but the only high quality one available was Huijsen, who chose to join Real Madrid. (@SkyKaveh) 🔵Chelsea staff are very optimistic about what the future holds for Shim Mheuka! 🟤Sources say he is “one of, if not the most regular” academy players to join in with Enzo Maresca with 1st team training, participating in their sessions even more consistently than Maresca’s favourite youngster, Reggie Walsh. (@MrDomSmith) 🟢Chelsea are working to find clubs for Raheem Sterling and Axel Disasi in January. The players are keeping fit and it is also up to them to agree to any deal which may materialise. 🟡Tyrique George is likely to leave Chelsea in January! 🟣Marc Guiu will be staying at Chelsea for the ‘whole season’. (@SkySports)

What comes first, the shirt sponsor or the stadium? 😅

We will not have a new stadium until the early mid 2030s (2033 or 2034 or so) at the earliest. Maybe longer, I fear.

Uefa gives ‘reluctant’ approval for domestic games to be played abroad this season Governing body says go-ahead shouldn’t set precedent Barcelona poised to play in US, and Milan in Australiahttps://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/oct/06/uefa-approval-domestic-games-to-be-played-abroad