Ossie the King

And yet not a single youth team player has made the breakthrough into the first team. There's larger issues for that but 'not done a bad job' is hardly a ringing endorsement for the man. I agree with most of this which is why I've said a root and branch review is needed, but I think Marina is just like Emenalo - one of Roman's entourage promoted beyond her capabilities. Again, to use City's example they looked to hire the best. We didn't and that startling lack of ambition is now manifesting itself on the pitch. I think just a director with an expanded remit is more than enough but I have no doubt that Emenalo would probably still be kept on by Roman, probably out of pity and a sense of duty to him.

Although we can all laugh at Real Madrid, I do envy the fact that they elect presidents to their position. I'm not too au fait with the way it works but at least there's some accountability there. If only we had something similar.

Odds on him coming back here next December when we sack Brendan Rodgers? If Mourinho isn't going to Madrid then there's really only one other job left for him, unless he plans to go in the summer.

I'm aware of his role. I don't think he has fulfilled the remit implied by the duties stated above (especially in this last summer window which has led to so much turmoil and upheaval) but I'd also like us to expand that role going forward with someone else at the helm. I think with the way the club is run, we need a buffer between coach and owner who will actually help build a footballing philosophy with both the coach and the academy director (Neil Bath's role at the club must be seriously looked at too). Emenalo recognised that he couldn't work with Mourinho and tendered his resignation, yet Roman kept him on for whatever reason. That was a flaw on Roman's part. Now I think is the time when we make sweeping changes throughout the club and assess every single person's role from top to bottom.

What's his missus said about that I wonder?

Everyone has always said that his workrate is exceptional, but that he needed to add assists and goals and he's done that tremendously. Fair play to him for stepping up when others have faltered and for becoming a better player in the last 12 months.

And this is where we fundamentally disagree. We've been successful mostly because of our spending power (although not as much as we should have been) and because of what was done before Emenalo came in. That's not a knock against him but our core of Cech, JT, Drogba, Lampard and Ashley were key to so much of what we have achieved and are what we will struggle to replicate. Now we're in a real shitstorm because we've failed to commit to certain best practices. I don't blame Emenalo for that exclusively, because he didn't hire himself. The problem lies with Roman. He should've hired people who were qualified and taken a step-back. But City are much better placed to achieve success over the next few years and will bring in a manager (Pep) who fits the style they're establishing perfectly. We don't even know who our next coach will be or what style we want to play. That is Emenalo's legacy at this club. I agree totally with the lack of a footballing philosophy though, which is why I'd establish a proper technical director who has the vision and tools to implement that from the academy right through to the first team. Your model may well be Fergie at United but that won't happen again. No manager will get 6 years without a trophy to establish something here. Again, I agree 100% that Roman should step back. The issue is that he's hired who he trusts for 13 years and he's got a clusterfuck. The only person who has imprinted their philosophy onto the club has been Mourinho and that can still be seen in the youth teams. Personally I'd hire Frank Lampard as technical director if experience doesn't matter. He's a Chelsea bloke and he's not only intelligent, but he's been there and done it. I think he'd have Roman's trust too. Ideally we'd appoint someone with more experience of the coaching side though. I don't think we need ex-pros in the box for the sake of it though. That final paragraph suggests you agree with me that there's something lacking when it comes to the philosophy of football at this club and if we accept that it's unlikely that a manager will be given time to build one, then we have to look at a constant above them - that has been Emenalo for the last five managers. His role should be expanded but he should also vacate and the rest of the board should be under review because we're going to keep making the same mistakes otherwise.

Above's what I wrote at the time. If I wrote that he faked it then I'll apologise. If I didn't, well.... I'd have his money, he can keep the reputation.

The interesting thing about Costa is that in the last few weeks under Jose he was reportedly putting in more work to get fit and was apparently lighter than when we signed him, and it seems to have paid dividends. His movement has improved markedly in recent weeks and he's back amongst the goals. This is another bloke whose professionalism has been called into question and who came back from summer having overindulged perhaps, and he's responded perfectly.

It's been discussed openly for years. Every time his 'slow starts' or summer weight or his ability to be the best in the world comes up there's discussion of his professionalism. Jose's always placed a lot of emphasis on players having fight, and there have been many who have talked about how much they love him. What this has even got to do with Jose I don't know but some seem to want to paint everything in that light. Maybe you're not aware of the chat about Hazard that's been going on for years and you've suddenly discovered it but it's really not got anything to do with Jose. Eden has apparently always had a fairly relaxed attitude to things like training. What conspiracy theories? I'm not aware that I've alluded to any conspiracies, theories yes. Conspiracy theories, think you've typed the wrong thing there lad. As for baseless accusations, wrong again.

Already corrected you on this once mate but it's been muttered about for quite a while amongst the supporters. Some just laugh off his 'slow starts' to the season but others take that one step further and ask why. Don't misrepresent people's criticism as them turning their backs on them - maybe those supporters don't deserve you criticising them.

Because it might be in the best interests of the club? Because his direct approach has seen us in disarray 12 years into his ownership? The guy has put a huge amount of money into the club but the inefficiencies he creates mean he's wasted a huge amount too. Our success has come from his money but in spite of his business practices in my opinion and if he put more qualified people in positions of power then we'd have a far more sustainable model than what we have now.

I'm basing the fact that he wasn't qualified on his complete lack of any track record. Let's not pretend we don't have previous in making poor hires in this position after the Avram Grant debacle, although even he was more qualified. I'm also saying he isn't qualified based on the current state of the club. Maybe his role is too limited and he should be given greater control over the footballing direction of this club. With it's high turnover of coaches it would be the sensible choice and it's what other clubs do. Man City are the model to follow in this regard. If we do go down this route then I'd argue that he definitely isn't qualified. If you're saying that his role is to acquire or identify players then this summer was an unmitigated disaster. We didn't improve the squad in the slightest and arguably regressed. If you want a case in point, Jose identified John Stones as a target and what did Emenalo (and the board who also need reviewing) provide? Papy. I do disagree with how the club hierarchy operates. I don't think there's anyone there to stand up to Roman because he's insulated himself with 'yes men' and as a Chelsea supporter that terrifies me. I think he should take a massive step back from involving himself directly and should hire proper football people with track records. You can point to the aberrations in business but standard practice is to hire people who have shown themselves to be qualified. You might not want us to act like a proper business who acknowledge a responsibility to their shareholders but I do and I doubt you'd want to work for or invest in a company who act so irresponsibly. You've changed the goalposts a few times. First you said he was good at uncovering talent like Mata (the World Cup has about a billion viewers and if just 1% of people knew of Mata than you're basically giving Emenalo credit for being in a select group of 10 million....damning with faint praise probably doesn't do that justice). But I'm glad you did because the issue does go beyond Emenalo. He doesn't work alone nor did he hire himself. Roman is ultimately to blame for over-promoting an unqualified ally and he's free to do that. Ultimately he's the owner and we're increasingly becoming the 'rich man's plaything' that rival fans said we were.....the only thing they didn't realise is the number of fans who would be ok with that.

You have your theories. Mine is that he was against strengthening a direct, reviled rival (for obvious reasons) but that he towed the party line, just like he would later on in the season when he didn't give the board the criticism they deserved for failing to deliver the reinforcements the squad needed. The guy even kept smiling when he was served up with Papy which is why I think Roman stuck with him longer than he might have otherwise. I think Jose actually bit his tongue. You think it's the right thing but I think that doing best by the fans and the best interests of this club is the right thing. Instead we strengthened Arsene Wenger's squad.

First, relax. We're just two Chelsea supporters having a discussion. No need to use words like 'retarded' or 'moronic' now is there. I know you'll be reading that back feeling a bit disappointed in yourself because Chelsea supporters bring their lads up to be good, polite boys so we'll just ignore this little outburst. Let's start with two statements though. He wasn't qualified for the job, which precludes the old 'judge him on his body of work' bit and secondly, he still isn't qualified for the job. That takes into account the job he's done. I believe both to be true. Increasingly we won't though with the way the football economy is going. I also disagree with the technical director finding players for the coach. What I think we need to do is establish a footballing philosophy find and coach players in that philosophy and also appoint a coach who fits that philosophy. By that measure, Emenalo has failed. AVB didn't play at a high level but that's besides the point. We are a club in crisis. Before the season started, we decided we weren't going to defend the trophy. Emenalo and the board (who also need reviewing, except the person reviewing would be the person who hired them) failed in their duties and undermined the coach. That again goes down as a failure. Again, the Champions League success was largely a fluke. We were the 6th best team in England that year and were mightily lucky in both the semi-final and final. We were a hair's breadth from winning it in 2008 but that wouldn't have meant Avram Grant was worthy of the Chelsea manager's job so I'm applying the same measure to Emenalo. Let's not forget that the manager we appointed had to be sacked because the personnel he had were incorrect for his system. Isn't our current predicament reason enough? You probably support this club because a parent did and I'm assuming you'll want your kids to support them too. Isn't it only right that we appoint the best people for the jobs to act as custodians of this great club? If Emenalo is truly the best we can attract then I actually think we're in bigger trouble than even he stated.

An eye for talent? He has an immense scouting network and a virtually unparalleled budget as well as phenomenal facilities to use to entice young players to the squad. Fact is that football scouting is a small world and people not only know each other, but the hot young talents coming along. Eden Hazard wasn't an unknown. Neither was Oscar. Neither was Salah or Schurrle. Let's not forget for all his hits, there have been misses too and there's been no progress in youth development in that time. Also don't underestimate the stupidity and cronyism in place at even the largest institutions. If you're going to attribute the Champions League success to him in some way (I wouldn't) would you also lay finishing 6th in the league at his feet (again, I wouldn't as it was probably too soon)? Of course you won't. Let's have a fair discussion. Also Mata was uncovered by Real Oviedo at the age of 11. We signed him at the age of 23 after he'd won the World Cup. He wasn't exactly an unknown and neither were any of your examples. Maybe you hadn't heard of them but it's very, very rare that a player is signed from nowhere. That's simply not how football works. Jose didn't one day go from being a translator to being Chelsea manager. Even after Barcelona he started as an assistant and then manager at Benfica. Then he went to Uniao de Leiria to earn is stripes, then he went to Porto AND WON THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE. Then we hired him. Again, let's just have a fair discussion without resorting to lies or misrepresentations.

What does being qualified for a job matter? Quite a bit. Considering the state of the club, the state of our summer and the lack of progression for almost any youth products I'd say he'd struggle to get a job at any other top club. People can say he signed young players but does he find them or does he rely on the expertise of our vast scouting network? Or does he just look at FM? If you're happy for a guy like that to be running the club you support then fine, but I think the supporters of this club who pay their hard-earned money each week deserve better. Just my view though. If you think he's the best Chelsea can attract then I'll respect your view.

Maybe add Steve Holland to the poll since Guus sorta hinted that he should be in the mix. Take out that useless twat Emenalo perhaps.

Guus has now won the same number of matches as Steve Holland. Stevie definitely has to be in the discussion so long as we get in a competent technical director

Is it strange? The criticism seems to be that he's completely unqualified for his position and that a top European club should be appointing the best people in roles such as his. What qualifications would you say he has beyond being Roman and Avram's mate?

Fair enough, but Pardew also said that losing Cabaye and Bolasie would be like Leicester losing Vardy and Mahrez. That's not too say we weren't good today but that it's one result. A good one no doubt but unless we build on it then it's meaningless. Guus made the right call with Mikel though. Absolutely superb and got the whole team ticking. I was just very surprised at how much space we had compared to when they played us earlier in the season or when Bournemouth or Leicester played us.

Wow, withholding 'likes' like that....Madame Whiplash has nothing on you.

I think, unless you were leading the 'Stevie Holland for coach' charge a few weeks ago and are just being consistent, that maybe it's worth taking a step back and not taking too much from one result. We played equally well against a poor Sunderland side so hopefully this isn't just a case of us turning over two poor sides. Palace normally wouldn't be considered a dodgy team, but this one today really weren't at the races and it's too early to say if that was because of our performance or not in my opinion.

I daresay if he played like that more often then he wouldn't have critics.

Great performance but that's the worst I've seen Palace in a long-time. No Cabaye and no Bolasie was unqestionably something that their fans would (and have) remarked on, but we played some brilliant football ourselves. Mikel was superb, the defence was solid and we looked better when Hazard went off in my opinion. I think Willian and Pedro compliment one another well with their workrate and that gives the guys in the middle a bit more time to operate. Plus Costa is back doing the basics that he wasn't doing earlier in the season. That to me makes a huge difference.