MrExcalibur100

Just heard the news about his injury. Fucking disaster. Our season could unravel before our eyes if we don't have Eden for the first leg against Atleti and if he isn't fit for the Liverpool game.

But you never know with this stupid Barcelona board. They blew close to 87 million euros on an overrated Brazilian they didn't need and they let Xavi's heir apparent, Thiago Alcantara go to Bayern Munich. They are messing up with Cesc too. It's almost impossible. I know, but if I was Chelsea, I'll put in a bid like Man United did last year to give Fabregas something to think about. . I'm sure he wants to be relevant again on the world stage. It's not just happening for him at Barca.

He probably "hates" United too, but United fans will take him instantly. I think we need to stop with this infantile, tribalistic stuff when it comes to potential signings. We are the same club that chased that fat fuck Rooney all summer. Our board don't think like the fans, thank goodness. In Italy, you have guys like Pirlo who has played for Inter, AC and Juve. I remember even Mourinho complaining about this sort of mentality when he was told that "United won't sell to a rival". It's classic English football mentality that should have been discarded in the 90's. And are people seriously comparing us signing Fabregas to Gerrard moving to United? Fabregas might have irked we Chelsea fans in the past, but if a time comes that Fabregas makes himself available (of course sooner rather than later, not when he's 28/29. I won't even bring up his name if he was that age. The guy is still only 26. Perfect age for this Chelsea) , then our board should be looking to make a move for him. Arsenal captain or no Arsenal captain. Cunt or no cunt.

This was only a suggestion by the way. I know the guy was the former Arsenal captain, that he's had his problems with Frank and he's been a bit of a cunt in the past, but if he was offered to us/becomes available for a price range of 25-35 million pounds, I'll do it instantly. I prefer him to injury prone Gundogan and Toni Kroos. I also think he's a better player than both, but his game is being restricted at Barcelona. Imagine a midfield/attack of Matic - Fabregas Salah/Schurrle- Oscar/Willian - Hazard Costa That easily rivals anything Madrid or Bayern have got. It has everything in it. Balance, pace, passing ability, creativity, physicality. quick transitions, quality in tight spaces, counter-attacking potential and flexibility. That's Premier league domination.

Name 5 CM players among the names that get touted around here that are better than him. You talk of Fabregas as if he was not a great player.. Now you might think he's not, that's your prerogative, but most people will disagree. You first started with the "wouldn't fit into our system" hogwash, now you have no decent arguments to back up your case.

Who cares about that? Not every player that plays for Chelsea is a saint, you know? JT has made mistakes too. If we are going to hold stuff against quality players that will improve us tremendously, then we should forget about Diego Costa as well. He's done stuff just as bad as that. Are there any football related arguments? If Cesc was put on the market tomorrow, every top club in need of a CM will be after his signature.

I'm not really understanding what you're talking about. Fabregas is a complete midfielder. He certainly is more complete and proven in the PL than the names that get touted a lot on here. Cracking player. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jr1JALrpxBg

It's not about who likes who, it's about what is best for us and him. Eto'o made some disrespectful comments about the club in his Barca days but today he is our player. Two marquee signings like Costa and Fabregas will elevate us to Madrid and Bayern level squad quality and we will dominate the league for a decade. Both right now are doable.

I don't know too many people who think Fabregas is a "slow" player or not dynamic enough. He is one of the most dynamic midfield players in the world. Can pass it, shoot it, dictate the tempo of a game and retain possession. He's a complete midfielder and he is used to the premier league. And you criticize his speed when Lampard, a player even slower than him, has been our main midfield lynch-pin for a decade. Fabregas on the other hand was the main main in Arsenal's midfield at their free-flowing, fast-paced best. I'm sure most Chelsea fans will love to have him hear based on his tremendous talent alone. You don't make a convincing argument at all, bro.

And how exactly does he not fit our team? Can you elaborate on this?

Barca fans seem fed up with him as he has failed to fully integrate into their team. Whistles from the Camp Nou crowd are a regular occurrence and reading through some of their forums shows a similar sentiment. He's not valued. He's become a scape-goat. I won't mind if we put in a cheeky bid for him. It's almost impossible but it's not beyond the realms of possibility with this stupid Barca board in charge. Of course, it's up to Cesc to make the right noises. He was regarded as one of the best midfielders in the world when at Arsenal, now no one even talks about him anymore. At Chelsea, we have everything in place to get him back to his previous level. Imagine this guy playing next to the likes of Matic.

It's mostly about the pace and physical strength he can potentially offer in the away game Atletico. Eto'o will struggle with the intensity and physicality of the Atleti players at the Calderon while there are still questions about starting Ba in such a crucial game. Torres won't score, but he has shown to be useful in Europe as an outlet up front, especially when we play counter-attack. Eto'o isn't fast enough for the counter and neither is Ba. I won't start him at Anfield though. Their crazy fans will get into his head. No way. I might even go with Eto'o in that one. Liverpool are a smaller and less physical side and Eto'o might put a similar shift in like he did at the Etihad. I'm not really banking on any of out strikers to score in those two away games.

Because I want Eto'o to start against Atletico Madrid at home and Ba to start against Atleti away (though a case can be made for Torres starting that) and Liverpool away (Torres will be shit in this game and Eto'o can't score away from Stamford Bridge). Ba might have scored, but his movement and all round play against Swansea were disappointing and they generally are when he starts a game from the first minute. His physicality might be useful in away games, especially that Altetico one. Eto'o should start to gain match fitness in anticipation of the Atletico home game. I'm sure Jose has it figured out anyway.

Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Cole, Ramires, Matic; Salah, Oscar, Schurrle, Eto'o (1) Oscar was rested in the last game so should start. Willian should be rested. (2) We need Lampard and Luiz fully rested for Atletico, so I go with Ramires. I seriously don't want Ramires to start against Atletico. (3) Eto'o should start as we need to work him back to full fitness and he always plays well at home. We need a fit Eto'o for the second leg against Atletico. He delivers in big games. (4) Cole starting is a no-brainer. We need him match fit for Atletico because Ivanovic is suspended for that game. (5) If Eden is fit to play then he should come on for the last 20 mins for more match fitness.

Porto 2004. Manager : Mr Mourinho.

A surprisingly decent article from the Mail: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2597545/THE-NUMBERS-GAME-Why-Lukakus-NOT-right-striker-Chelsea.html

What many people don't realize is Eto'o and Ba have a higher minutes per goals ratio than Lukaku. So how good is he really? Good enough to be Diego Costa's understudy, but not good enough to be the main man. The main question is whether Romelu is happy with that.

Why am I not surprised. Ashton is a fucking disgrace to journalism. He damages the club's reputation publicly and there's nothing we do about it. That's the same idiot who hounded AVB out of Spurs.

It's about stability. You can't keep sacking managers the way we've done in the Abramovich era and expect to bring in youth players at the same time. It makes no sense because when the new guy comes in, he brings in his own ideas. Case in point McEachran. The boy had the world at his feet under Ancelotti and even looked a step above some of the senior players. What happens? We sack Ancelotti and bring in AVB. AVB has his own ideas and is under pressure to perform instantly. He brings in Romeu. Hopefully all the noises we've been hearing about stability from Jose are the same noises being communicated by Roman. We need stability at this football club, god dammit! And Jose is the guy to bring it, fingers crossed. :blue scalf:

Yeah I mistakenly omitted Christiansen. He is a majestic player.You know it's funny because there was this big article on him at the Daily Mail, criticizing the fact we pay him 20,000 pounds a week (crazy that). We got a lot of stick for that. What got me thinking was Oscar's wages. From what I know, Oscar earns something ridiculously low, in the 30,000-40,000 a week bracket. Oscar really deserves a new contract.

Now bring on Fulham! The youth cup stays in SW6.

Arsenal fans like to make a lot of noise about Zelalem but Loftus-Cheek ate him for dinner today. Bossed the midfield.

Solanke right now can be no worse than Torres

He's not really a holder like Matic but you are right. They share the same qualities. Him, Solanke and Colkett are top quality players. Solanke is a real prospect for us and England. Another player who looks special. Colkett has a glorious left foot. We've just gone to the Emirates and made Arsenal look like an average side. And add that to the quality in the U-21's. The quality we have now is unbelievable.

Watching him against Arsenal in the youth cup semi-final now. This kid is going to be a top, top player. He already has everything you want in a midfielder. No wonder Barcelona were sniffing after him.