OhForAGreavsie

Regardless of whether he's good or not in your opinion, Bieber sells music because he's popular. Regardless of whether or not he's popular with you, Jose wins trophies because he's good.

It certainly should be improving over the next four years. I'd like to see our mid-group sides start to demonstrate their growing strength by making a better showing in the Europa League. Sadly it will always be worth far more to them to simply avoid relegation than to win that competition, even when its golden ticket to the Champion's League is taken into account.

1. No. We are necessarily cautious. 2. I hope not. 3. I mind it very much but i) how many Barcelona players do we see standing about in front of the ball when they are out of possession and ii) take Pep back to Barca, give him the squad that Di Matteo took to the Nou Camp that night and see how he sets up. Mikel plays too slowly and crucially, his passes lack pace often forcing the receiver to stop to collect them, Oscar can't pass, Ramires can't pass, our full backs can't pass, Willam slows the game and misses almost every time he tries a decisive pass, Costa has heart but lacks the technique of a top quality striker. Only an idiot would send our full backs bombing forward knowing there is is high degree of certainty that, by the time they get there, the opposition will have the ball.

Get in the queue Cesc.

I can't speak for they but in my case it has nothing to do with which competition is more attainable. This is a view I've held since 1968 and for most of that period neither trophy was attainable. I can accept the argument that the CL is possibly the best competition but the biggest? How do you measure biggest? Perhaps your personal definition of biggest would be such that the CL comes out on top, but no doubt there are other definitions too. It's clear that the PL has declined and is punching well below its weight. For too long clubs, particularly our own, have allowed themselves to be mugged off paying the highest average fees and highest average wages, for players who are not, on average, of the highest quality. We need to turn that around but it is tough because the super clubs on the continent can compete with ours financially and also benefit form the cultural factors we are all aware of. We were indeed outplayed by PSG but don't forget that we were also outplayed by many sides domestically. Paris managaed to get the result they deserved because they converted from set pieces. Many of the teams that outperformed us domestically didn't get the same breaks. I don't see how you can claim that we've lost our ambition. It's clear that we have not pursued them very effectively but I see no justification for your claim. Who knows what factors were considered at board level over the summer and which resulted in the squad building policy that was applied? Certainly not you or me. My own guess is that the club forgot who our manager is and perhaps believed that our squad was better than in fact it is. In my opinion the slump we are suffering now is long overdue. Throughout Roman's time we have tended to recruit players with qualities rather than players of quality. It is why for almost all of that time our side has been clunky and has never established a reputation for high quality football. Until we fix that it won't matter who the manger is. Until we are cured of watching Suarez but deciding to buy Torres instead, of being offered Aguero but deciding to pass, of thinking it helps our club to extend Ramires's* contract we will be stuck with trying to win in the only way such a group can win. Even then but for Jose and Eden dragging this sub-standard group over the line, we would never have won the league last season. *Unless of course this was done to secure a transfer fee.

But that also makes it easier to win. A bad day at the office by one of the better sides and they're out, so clearing the path for other teams.

I've seen the question of whether Chelsea fans would prefer to win the Premier League or the Champions League many times on various forums and have also heard it discussed during radio phone ins. To my recollection, on every single occasion, a comfortable majority has voted for the Premier League. The domestic title is certainly my preference, and the gap is huge. If we'd won the league 5 times in a row, I'd still take a 6th win over another Champions League. Of course I'd prefer both but if it has to be just one then Premier League every time. I do agree with you though about the CL being a great competition and about the fact that no one has retained it being evidence of how tough it is to win. I sometimes hear people of my generation yearning for the good old days of the Champion's cup. In my opinion their memory is playing tricks on them. For me, the old 4-and-a-half round*, straight knock-out, Champions Cup, with its entry padded out by the cannon-fodder domestic champions of weaker nations, was a Mickey Mouse competition compared to the Champion's League. In fact those that would like to bring back the knock out version have forgotten that, back then, it was a commonly held view that the old UEFA Cup was a harder competition to win because of its greater strength in depth of top quality sides. The early rounds of the Champions Cup were a joke. Although people often forget now, the draw was seeded so the good teams often battered their opponents in the first two rounds and the competition didn't really get going till the quarter-finals (3rd round) in March. On only twice during their dominant spell did Liverpool draw good sides before Christmas. They went out on both occasions. * I say 4-and-a-half rounds because, on the luck of the draw, some of the better clubs would get a bye into the second round, as Liverpool did in one of the seasons when they won the competition.

Thanks Simon. I watched live coverage of every Belgian international while KDB was a Chelsea player, and then at the World Cup too, but I haven't since so I've lost track with what is happening regarding the Red Devils. Based only on the video, because it's all I've seen of him, I'd agree that Batshuayi looks more technically gifted than Belgium's three leading strikers. Some times, most times in fact, a you tube video only serves to make me feel a player is not of the quality we need but occasionally one makes me want to see more of the featured player. That's the case with Batshuayi so I will definitely watch Belgium's games over the next few days.

We know this already. So what are you saying?

When did Kennedy start a game at LB? It is an old trick of Jose's to use more forward minded players in defensive positions when chasing a game. No news there. Of course if you know that, under certain circumstances, you might want to do this during a game then it makes sense to practice it during training. No news there. Some people are so desperate to criticise our manager that they enthusiastically get stuck into him for stuff he hasn't in fact done. I even read a post stating that Jose "is actively and deliberately destroying the future of [our] club". I'm a big believer in respecting each other's points of view but sometimes it's hard. No news there either.

Lol. Finished 1-2. Second leg next week.

1-2 Could be the killer blow and it came well against the run of play. Shame.

Ji is having a really poor game. Her passes are under hit, over hit of just plain off beam. Bit like watching the first team.

1-1. Another own goal but we're level. Great headed finish actually looping over the keeper and under the bar. Goal cam against the run of play. The start of the second half has been just like the first. we can't keep the ball and we're well on the back foot.

Ji, who isn't playing well, has just struck our first effort on target with 42 minutes gone. We have to get Gemma involved more. 0-1 HT.

Gemma has had to switch wings to try to get involved. Shortly after she got he first real involvement of the game, cutting inside and firing a shot high and a little wide but it was our best moment of the match so far.

1 down 4 mins into the first leg of our Champions League last 16 tie with Wolsburg. OG following a corner. We haven't settled yet.

The post didn't say potential. I responded to what was written. Talent is no part of potential.It's the unchanging factor. Players will develop and learn to apply their talent in advantageous ways or they won't, but talent is talent, and it's fixed. Kennedy has strengths but it won't matter a jot how many hundreds of hours he spends practising, he is never going to be Lionel Messi. Achieving your potential is about polishing what you have and learning to apply it. We have some talented lads in the development squads and among the loan army, but, based on what I've seen, none of them is yet demanding first team minutes with their performances. For example, I love Kennedy's hustle but he lacks finesse, whereas Ruben's finesse is almost there but he lacks hustle. Combine the two and we have a player but as it stands that's not the case.

Because a critical mass of our squad members are not good enough and, unlike last season, our difference makers are not papering over the cracks.

Valid or invalid? Let me reply using the notion of correct or incorrect. Like everyone on the planet, whenever I have a firm opinion on a subject I belive that opinion to be correct for, if I didn't think it was correct, I'd stop thinking it and think something else instead. Whether you think my opinion is correct is another matter. I didn't say you can't see another way, I said I couldn't. And I can't.

I need that explained I'm afraid.

Try it again in the morning!

Interesting. That exposes the major problem with highlight vids. I really like his decision making as shown there. Definitely want to see more of this lad though.

Thanks Bethos. You've answered another question I had. Wenger remains an ardent watcher of French football and he needs a striker. If this lad was ready then it's not hard to imagine Arsenal would have made a move.

The comment to which I replied claimed that there is more talent in our U21 squad than in the majority of first teams everywhere. The players listed are not a part of our U21 squad. Everywhere is a big place, but if we limit it to high level football the statement still wouldn't be true even if those players were currently at Cobham. I say this as someone who is a big fan of our development squads, who watches more development games than most I suspect, and who is a long term defender of our Academy when it has come under attack.