John1611

I have seen enough of him, to know he'd make a v good DLP.

Interesting...I think Mourinho will utilise him as a deep lying playmaker, and just use him like he used Alonso at Real Madrid. I know it's not his position, but he has the right qualities needed to excel there. Just imagine: ----------Rooney--------- Hazard---Mata------KDB -----Willian----Ramires

Essien/Mikel should have at least got 30 mins against Villa, for match fitness purposes. Giving Lamps 80 minutes and then sticking Van Ginkel on for the remaining 10 was not a good idea. Ten minutes is not enough for match fitness, and Van Ginkel is not going to start at OT anyway. Now we're stuck in a situation when we've got a tired Lamps as our only option for the second man in DM, unless we're willing to risk unproven Mikel/Essien in a game of such caliber.

Lol, doesn't that remind you of our last bid? £25 million + add-ons amounting to £30 million total. Got rejected. If United sell him, it won't be for less than £35/40 million. If not more seeing we're their direct rivals, Rooney is a huge marketing figure, and they don't need to sell.

Ramires, if his form continues should be a regular starter this season.

How about that for a first touch from him: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hg9W0rlbePA The talent is there. His first touch will come good. What he seems to be struggling with tbf, is when our midfielders fire the ball at his feet in tight spaces.

The fact that Kevin De Bruyne didn't play + our performance in this game definitely means he will start against United. Our midfield needs him. Badly.

We deserved to lose that. Our team looked out of sorts for certain periods in the game. At least KDB rested, and is ready for United. And Mata will be closer to match fitness. Lamps was awful. Demba Ba and his offsides....lol

Exceptional analysis, read the whole thing and thoroughly enjoyed it. Congrats on success: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXWbkbwDUr4

Strange thing, but United also seem to be in for him. Personally I don't see where he would fit in with their current set up, yet if they don't want to sell Rooney to us, we should definitely try not to let them snatch Eto'o from right in front of our noses.

Mata has to start. We definitely want him to be match fit for the United game. He tortured United in almost every fixture between them and us since he arrived. If we want him to start at Old Trafford, it's preferrable that he starts today.

We have very realistic chances of winning this tie. Jose will find a way for our formation and tactics to counteract their attacking style. I'm sure of that.

Most Villa fans seem to agree they're going to start with the 4-3-3. Will be interesting to see how Jose deals with their pace on the counter. Cahill should not be starting this game, unless he's learnt his lesson from the previous fixture between us and them.

A very good read, - great idea to get views from the opposition camp. That's why I go to other team's boards quite often.

Any links guys?

The saga looks to be over: http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/aug/13/wayne-rooney-not-for-sale-chelsea

Guys seriously calm down. The club cannot make a move for Eto'o until they are 100% percent sure that the Rooney move is a lost cause. Since they cannot know that for sure(yet), they will not be making any approaches any time soon. Jose clearly said he will take the Rooney battle to deadline day. All of the current Eto'o rumours are nothing more than speculation.

Steven Gerard in a pre match England interview, after having spoken to Wayne about his future: "It wouldn't be fair on Wayne for me to talk about that conversation, but of course I am close to him," said the midfielder. "But for me it is all about how Wayne is feeling for tomorrow's game, and I am sure he will sort the other stuff out." That doesn't sound like he's joining us at all + many other signs have been pointing to the fact that this tiring saga is over.

Mata is the best creative midfielder in the Premier League. Pretty much an irreplaceable asset to have, shame to see our own supporters underrate him.

Luiz is NOT going anywhere. I wouldn't sell him even if Barca put £60 million on the table. Yes, I'm serious. I find reading through some of the comments here, somewhat concerning. Luiz is by far the best CB we have. In my humble opinion, he's in the top 3 best(if not the best) defenders in professional football. If we're a club who want to compete at all fronts, we will keep him. More than that, he adds this something special to the team spirit, on and off the pitch. He loves it here, and puts a smile on everyone's face. It's not something you can buy.

I can't help but feel in a month's time United are going to get ripped to shreds at OT , regardless of whether we get Wazza or not. Our team oozes sheer quality. So much depth. Mata was amazing ever since he came on. I would have him over Xavi/Fabregas or even Iniesta any day of the week.

I posted the link on the 5th page.

What I heard sounded more like ''Surely''. Provides some nice options for journalism headlines.

Full match: http://livefootballvideo.com/fullmatch/world/international-champions-cup/ac-milan-vs-chelsea#.Uf9msNI3uSo

24 hours till the match. I would probably stay up to watch it if not for external circumstances.