OhForAGreavsie

I tried to buy Estupinan in my fantasy league but was outbid by another manager. I then made that manager three separate offers to buy the Brighton man. He turned them all down but now he'll be scrambling to dump him back to the computer for whatever he can get. Tee-hee.

¡¡

Thanks for not typing 'revert back'. Seems these days a lot of people don't know what revert means. I know it shouldn't bug me but it feels like watching Spurs every time I hear, or read, 'revert back'. That phrase, along with 'very unique' are horrible English, irritate the heck out of me, and yet have become ubiquitous.

✅ (Free transfer with no further salary contribution by Chelsea also works. Perhaps works better in some ways.)

Wirtz reminds me of Hazard. If he performs like Eden it would be a disaster for non Liverpool fans, so I really hope that you are right not to be enamoured.

Longish for a YouTube video but interesting.

Does the World Cup prove that Cole plays better, and the team is better, when there are three authentic midfielders in the team with him? Does it suggest that our best line up currently would feature three midfielders with Cole, João Pedro and one other up top?

After the low of Trump on Sunday, the high of Henderson a few days later. Talk about a rapid rise in the world. Onwards and upwards Cole. (I don't actually know anything about Henderson but it is surely big odds on that he is a better human being than Dopey?)

If I were the capo di tuti Chelsea sporting directors here's an idea I would explore... Encourage Real to make an offer, send some of their money to Villa in exchange for Rogers, and have him replace the departed Fernandez in our squad. Hear me out, I did say 'explore'... I haven't seen Rogers playing that role so I can't confirm it would suit him, but I do feel very strongly that it would. I think he can match Enzo's contribution in those areas of the pitch, plus bring a higher level of technical proficiency. I know many people here, whose opinions I respect, think very highly of Enzo but I can't quite get there, and I wonder if they would agree that technique is not his best attribute? If I wasn't too lazy to make the effort to understand those spider web charts the data analysts love, I'm sure that the Rodgers chart would give me a clue as to whether my idea is a possibility. Of course if I was the head of recruitment I would already know how the read them. I'd know what basic shape I'd be looking for. As it is though I'm stuck with the old fashioned ways.

60 million quid richer no doubt. Good luck to him.

Rodgers is my preferred option among the supposedly realistic attacking targets being reported. (It seems Rodrygo's wage expectations make him a non-starter.)

We have to admit that this shootout was a gift for people who like to sneer at women's football. Unless she's playing for somebody other than Chelsea or England, I never want to see Lauren James take another penalty. There's a lot to like about her play but there is also a consistent weakness in my opinion. She's over committed to the notion that she is the languid superstar who can operate at her own pace. This is frequently effective but LJ does sometimes fail to recognise when a different mode is the right answer. She brings this attitude to penalty taking;; strolls to the ball, doesn't really disguise her aiming point, and doesn't hit the corners.

Assuming this is true then it means more than it used to a few years ago. These days it seems that buying clubs only contact the selling Club if they already have an agreement with the player. Could be therefore that this is happening.

We need three strikers. Just like last season, we are going to need to rotate heavily on European nights. Unlike last year however the squad team is sometimes going to have to be on duty for the Premier League game not the European one. One striker resting on the bench, one playing, and one as backup. Unless Enso thinks that Guiu is ready to handle significant minutes in important fixtures then he can't be the third man. In any case, third man is not what his career plan should call for now. If Jackson is sold we'll need to buy a replacement.

As a left back he could be interesting but otherwise not for me.

Sounds like the kind of investment signing that fits our transfer 'model'.

He was blatantly and pointlessly shoving people around at a corner against PSG. Ref chose to let it go but another one might very easily not have done. Maybe Delap had been asked to put himself about a bit but you have to understand when you and how to do that.

Does seem he's earmarked to play CB in the upcoming season.

And long may it stay so. I can't sell Pope in my fantasy league except at a big loss. 😞

The ex-City ones?

Enrique doesn't manage Chelsea so I will be quite surprised if there are any ramifications for his behaviour last night.

The long and the short of it is that, other than Lavia, Maresca prefers Reece to any of the alternatives. Whether this is because of their technical attributes, a lack of experience, or a combination of both, I can't say. It is undeniable though so I doubt he'll be changing his mind anytime soon. A fit Lavia makes a huge difference to our squad depth so fingers crossed.

There were bodyguards as they walked onto the pitch, though behind the party, not around them. Incidentally, this made me wonder if it was a trump body double. I don't think it was, but the thought did come to mind.

#This city is blue# #This city is blue# #Just like New York# #This city is blue#

Trip to Specsavers required. Todd was there, was given screen time while watching the game, was on the podium next to Dopey Donnie while the medals were being dolled out, then hugged players and coach after they had collected their momentos. 🙂 He is a Republican, looked far too chummy with Dopey for my liking, and is about to buy The Telegraph. Almost certainly joining the long list of wealthy people who buy media outlets to push a right wing agenda rather than to disseminate news and factually accurate information.