DYC.

Wonderful striker but he's not the type of striker we need for the type of football we want to play. It's like when we signed Torres (counter-attacking striker) to replace Drogba (targetman). It's possible for him to adapt but the club better be very sure he will be able to adapt for this kind of money, if he actually does sign that is.

Doesn't look like this is happening. Good.

Oscar has so much composure, it's unreal. His ball control isn't even all that impressive (yet), neither does he posses great agility but he could have a army surrounding him and he'd still find a way to escape with the ball remaining in his possession. And he and Neymar are football 'soul mates'. Their connection is simply amazing and they don't even play for the same club. Romelu is also a player to look out for, great talent. This is exactly how I would like to see us play, though in my dream world we sign De Rossi. Though Hazard would need to be instructed to stick on the wing for the most part of matches otherwise we seriously lack width. And a wide role suits him best at the moment. He obviously prefers to play in the middle but he's not ready for that role yet.

Are people actually blaming the formation? I missed the game but I could've told you that a midfield three consisting of Lamps, Meireles and Essien can only go wrong. So could my 12-year-old nephew's hamster.

I applaud you for that.

15 goals for Barca, 2 were for Spain. Considering his price and the high expectations, I can see how one would say he was poor.. Fabregas poor is not the same as Keita poor for example. Okay not poor but not good enough. But this isn't the right place to discuss that.

Adding a RB (Azpilicueta) and De Rossi to the team would be a dream come true for me.

According to which source? ESPN has him on 11 assists and they're always extremely accurate. 8 assists in the league, 0 in the cup and 3 in the CL. Same with Whoscored who have him on 8 in the league and 0 in the Copa del Rey.

11 assists. Fabregas had a great start but then became pretty inconsistent, also went through quite a dry spell. I'd say he was decent overall, definitely didn't bring what was expected and he struggled in midfield. Modric would've been perfect but he seems set on moving to Real. Don't like the idea of giving Totnum anything close to 40 mil pounds anyway.

Good piece. Though to call his 11/12 season a succesful one is simply not true. He was very frustrating to watch last season. The thing that annoys me the most about Malouda currently is that he has the all the ability but he's simply not performing. Players decline as they pass their 30s but talent doesn't disappear. So it's very confusing why Florent can't at least put in solid performances for us. I'm still hoping he goes out with a bang because even half the player he was in 2009-2011 would be crucial in our coming campaign.

Lazy is the last thing I'd call him. We're talking about a player who's constantly on the move. And he does a lot more of defensive work than your average number 10. You can't expect all players to defend actively, it's not his job.

So.. many.. Oscar.. avatars..

That video never gets old. The Little Giant is simply the best player we've ever had.

His second assist alone showed that it's high up the pitch where you want him. Such awareness, vision, quickness of thought and composure under pressure is exactly what you need from your attacking midfielders.

Hmm 25 mil was the most talked about price. Guess we'll never really know.

I thought it was £25 mil?

Brilliant play. Love this guy so much haha.

Haha why am I not surprised by such thoughts. Many actually think a buying a few talented young players means we magically turn into a top team. Whether you like it or not, it will take time to become a strong team. We deservedly finished sixth in the league last season.

Don't like it all, looks like it was designed by a 9-year-old.

Fat Ronaldo is so disrespectful.

It brought me to tears haha. The way he said it.

Yes plenty. Don't think Benayoun is going anywhere and that's a good thing as he makes a fine squad player imo. So those 5 players you mentioned plus Benayoun, Malouda and Kakuta if he stays (Sturridge in case of emergencies as well) means we have plenty of options. No need to get greedy. Not even Real have a huge amount of players for the 3 behind the striker. While we can also easily switch to a 4-3-3 formation, even 4-4-2.

You're only confirming what I said. He's not been playing well, talent doesn't disappear. Brazil isn't better than Italy, Holland were awful at the Euros but they still beat Brazil at the World Cup. England isn't part of the elite.

Loaning him out is what's best for him though. He needs the experience of playing at a high level. And we have plenty of options for the the 'three' behind the striker so Malouda won't have to feature much if he doesn't improve his form of last season even if he stays.

He's the 10 of the Olympic team. And if it wasn't for the form and fitness issues Ganso has been going through, he probably wouldn't have been a starter. And it's not like Brazil are part of the elite anymore, we're not '02 anymore. That wasn't even my point though. These starting line-ups people are throwing around with Oscar in it.. they're expecting too much of the guy. Fans shouldn't cry if he doesn't immediately make an impact.