OhForAGreavsie

Sounds like you're saying you would rather win than lose. Revolutionary. To be fair, I get what you're trying to say. It's just that you didn't quite say it.

I feel for you ZY. You just aren't getting any joy out of this at the moment and there are more disappointments heading your way in January.

I think the implication of this statement is completely wrong. Hazard obviously, and certainly Courtois too if he were fit, but how many other of our first choice players would be automatic selections for top six clubs? The answer you'd give might be higher than the number I would offer but it can't be that much higher I'm sure. We are getting the results our squad deserves, no more no less. Now, if you blame Jose for the shortcomings of the squad then that is at least arguable. (Personally, I don't blame the boss for this, at least not entirely, but it could be argued.)

You needn't worry about giving the wrong impression. You don't scare me and I think you are the very opposite of a cynic.

And there in lies Chelsea's dilemma. If Ramiers had Dembele's technique he would not be a Chelsea player. Both Barca and Real would have wanted the super player which that version of Rami would have been and he'd now be playing for one of those clubs. It is true however that our transfer policy over the years has not given as much preference to technical excellence as I'd have liked it to.

I think that's pretty reasonable of ZolaYes. Some people express opinions that they decided on well before before kick-off.

I agree to an extent but I'd say it is always better to have a striker with the qualities of Aguero than one with the qualities of Costa. A technically excellent striker is something we have needed desperately for years. We might have had Aguero himself but for Carlo deciding against him. Still, that ship has sailed so we must try to find another. I know some people see it differently but I can think of no situation whatsoever when I'd prefer Costa over Aguero.

A lot to like in his videos; good technique, nice body control, genuine finishing not just striking the ball toward goal, good passing in and around the box, plus more strength than I'd have guessed just by looking at him.

Only those who want to paint Jose's comments as lies thinks of them as such. I call it not showing your hand and attempting to maintain the self belief of the existing squad. That, for me, is what managers do so I'll have to agree to disagree with those who see it differently.

What, in the entire history of Chelsea transfer policy under Roman, should cause us to think that Jose means what he says? The transfer market game has to be played by all involved but that's no reason for Jose to show his hand or for us to take comments literally.

Wembley Stadium, 30th October 2016. Very Happy. We better not have a game that Day.

Discussion point: Is finishing third, and therefore dropping into the Europa League, our best hope of qualifying for next season's Champions League?

First I have to admit that I have not read the regulations so I'm basing this comment on my knowledge of NFL tiebreakers, which uefa's version is modelled on after all. Jason may therefore be absolutely right, and my point might be nonsense but... In the NFL, the three-team tiebreakers are applied only untill one team advances or is eliminated. The rankings of the two remaining clubs are then reconsidered using the two-team tiebreakers. In that method a draw at The Bridge and a home win in Kiev would eliminate us, as Blue Lion originally said, since the head to head between Porto and ourselves would favour them. Given that uefa introduced this method because they felt it was fairer, and that they borrowed it from the NFL, it must be at least possible, if not probable, that their Champions League regulations run along the same lines. Just to restate though, I'm being lazy and have not read the rules so Jay could very well be right.

The lack of a break thing has been well and truly exposed for what it always was. An excuse with no truth to it whatsoever.

I don't agree with this. He's as good, or as bad, as he ever was. All that's changed is that people's patience has run out. No longer is anyone, it seems, prepared to excuse his under performing as they had been doing for virtually the whole of Oscar's time here.

I think they'll rotate in midweek. Doubtless some starters will appear but I'd expect quite a few to be excused.

I'm guessing that Jose will guess they will use the same system as against West Ham so, subject to no further personnel changes being forced on them, he'd expect them to line up with; Loris, Walker, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose, Dier, Dembele, Son, Mason, Eriksen, Kane.

Your post was the springboard for what I wanted to say but absolutely not the target of it. Although I hope you'll see that if you read it again, I apologise for allowing the wrong impression to be formed.

Remembering of course Jose's explanation that Kennedy was selected precisely because of the expectation that Norwich would not attack down that flank. Clearly that was just a once in a lifetime lucky guess by a coach who knows nothing. Naturally I didn't realise that the multi trophy winner knew nothing until the experts who spare enough of their time to post in this thread enlightened me. Who knew this was the place to find all of the greatest living exponents of coaching theory? Bloody hell, sarcasm. I must be really tired. Still shouldn't let the inmates get to me though.

All the names you've mentioned frequently hit the first man. You've given a time frame of 2-3 years ago. If I take four years ago as definitely being outside that period and look at season 2011-2012, how much will you give me if I search the archives and find 100 mentions of this problem in that season alone? I'm confident that I would.

Not sure what it is that you're not buying Jay. I'd have thought the fact that you have given a list of players from our current squad blighted by this problem, that we could all name many similarly afflicted players from every Chelsea squad for as far back as our individual memories stretch and that fans of every club could carry out the same exercise, would all underline the accuracy of what I've written. Edit: Didn't take notice of the nice quip in your last line at the first time of reading. Clever.

Next year I will celebrate my 50th anniversary as a Chelsea fan so I've been watching this game for a long while. During that period I've heard, and read, similar comments thousands of times but people don't need to be as old as me to have come across it. I've a feeling that, even if you've been a football fan for just a couple of hours, there's a fair chance you'll have heard, or perhaps said, something very much like this. Often the point is made in the form of a question. For example, "How hard can it be just to beat the first man?" Well, the clue to the answer can be seen in how frequently this issue comes up. Because fans need to complain about this so regularly it must mean that the answer is, "Much harder than it seems." How else can we explain the fact that professional footballers, of all clubs and nationalities, so often fail to manage it?

Thank you for the smile. My favourite post for a long time. (Apart from all of mine of course!)

I didn't see him today but the quotes from City fans chime with what I felt I saw when I watched a lot of KDB in Bremen. There were numerous occasions when I thought he deserved to be dropped but, to my surprise, he never was. There are downsides to almost every player's game, but in Kevin's case these see him drop below the required standard quite frequently.

Did the commentator go on to explain, with carefully drawn diagrams, that 1 + 1 = 2? Perhaps he also promised that next time he will inform the world exactly which day comes immediately after Monday?