DYC.

It's sad how much he craves adulation and praise. And he wonders why he isn't as loved as others. It's such a turn off for me personally. Great footballer (on his day) but that's where it stops. Didier will always be levels above him.

To be fair, I haven't seen a player worthy of such an accolade in the PL in a long time. Chelsea did win the CL but not one of those players was close to being the best player of the year 2012, let's be honest.

Is it really so hard to understand? If the Ballon d'Or was always like it is now, with the current criteria, Henry would have won it in the past. But it's not. It used to be different because even a great goal-scorer like Henry didn't win it.

The whole reason for my post was what if. There was an article posted about it. And I said that if that is true, ....

My point was choosing to leave now would be the easy way out. The effect of him leaving... Not my point but we'd have to see how that would affect the team. Would he have been worshipped as much if he left? Lazio worshipped him like crazy before he joined Juve. I don't think cult status is enough to make a player want to stay through whatever. Lewandowski and Gotze were cult heroes but they still made very sensitive moves. I think we're drifting away from the point here. I blame you, Choulo. You always do this.

Never said he was terrible. But it's not good either. Moments yeah but consistently, no. If so, he'd be a no-brainer for Spain. But he isn't because of his ability going forward. I think Azpilicueta also suffers in terms of rep because of his team mates. Cole played with Carvalho, prime Terry and prime Ivanovic/Ferreira. That helps. But then again, defensive fullbacks are out of style. More is demanded. The funny thing is a poor defender but strong attacker will receive far more praise than the opposite, which is silly but what can you do. But to question Azpiliceita's ability to defend is something I just don't understand. Bar Lahm, I don't see a better defender and vast majority doesn't even compare. He's Chelsea's best defender by far, I'd trust him at CB.

He doesn't owe Chelsea anything but I think staying to help fix the situation would be a move of character while leaving immediately as things go bad is the easy way out. He's star man and the team needs him. He's part of the problem this season so yeah, jumping ship would be a bitch move. Not an evil move but a bitch move. I never expected Hazard to stay for an extremely long time but he can't leave at a time like this. When I look at how Nedved stayed at Juventus, which wasn't even because of the players failing, I think of that as an act of great honour. Ibra left. He thinks of himself. That's fair but not honourable. I mention these two players because they're among my favourites. Edit: This makes it sound as if I believe the stories. I don't.

Very true. Ballon d'Or has been ruined anyway. It's turned into the Golden Shoe. Imagine the NBA MVP going to the one of the top two/three shooters every year. Messi and Ronaldo are without a doubt the top two players of the past eight years but have they always been the best and most valuable? Not for me. Henry has never won it and he would rule the goal-scoring charts in his best form.

If he did jump ship, that would be a true bitch move. I do think he has more character than that though. I don't believe any story. Good or bad. The media is far too opportunistic for me to get caught up in what they feed the masses on a daily basis. So it would actually have to transpire. It's funny because if he denies the stories, he's lying, but if he says nothing, he's off. This man has been linked with a move away even after just year at Chelsea.

Oh dear Henrique, you're reading what you want to read. You implied Azpilicueta is a decent defender and Cole being so much better. I disagreed and said he's a fantastic defender. I even said he's poor on the ball and in attack and now you're talking about what Cole offered going forward. Even talking about what fullback should offer. I said he's a fantastic defender. Not that he's brilliant all-round fullback. Yes, Cole did often beat Ronaldo. It's always mentioned. The thing about that is Cristiano was 18-22/23 in those days. And the left-winger Ronaldo is two, three times the player right-winger Ronaldo was. Even better. Dani Alves always beat him 1-on-1 in the Clasicos an Alves isn't even a top defender. And Cole beating Ronaldo doesn't change the fact that he would also get outmaneuvered by those I mentioned before. But before you misread things again, I realise Cole is better than Azpilicueta. Much better.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gi27uzCtfE Rom with the winner vs City. I'm feeling the Lukaku-mania.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Tds0vC_wXg I'm in love with Dybala. He's gonna be huge. Juve with their 8th straight win, incredible. Roma is cursed. It doesn't matter who's in front of that group. It doesn't matter who they buy. They will choke. Fiorentina might actually challenge with Juve, Napoli and Inter for the title. Great title race.

Such nonsense. I've seen Cole being ripped apart by the likes of Walcott, Lennon, Valencia etc. It happens to everyone. There's no such thing as a fullback who's never been embarrassed or hasn't gone through bad games or spells, even seasons. Azpilicueta is a fantastic defender. He wins the great majority of the battles he faces. His problem is on the ball (playing on his weaker foot doesn't help) and in offence.

I don't agree with that last point. What's the point of selling players like Aguero (unless they really want to leave)? Liverpool and Spurs fans were jumping for joy with all that money. We'll just re-invest! Only to be left with good/decent/mediocre players. No more exceptional quality. The only way after Aguero is down. City's too rich to sell anyway. Same with Chelsea and Hazard. 100m. Great. Who comes in? Reus, Bale, Neymar, Sanchez? Nope. They're in a much better situation. More Cuadrado's, Salah's, Moses'... just the thought of it. Another Willian. Took him a while to make a name for himself but a fine player now. Can he guide you titles? I don't think so. Money's only good if you can truly replace. Real Madrid sell Ozil, they buy Bale. They sell Di Maria, they buy James Rodriguez. Chelsea sold David Luiz, Mata, Lukaku, Schurrle for big money. Great! Now people are crying about the investments made with that money. Rinse and repeat if it happens with Hazard and maybe Courtois. They must be kept.

Imagine a scenario in which Chelsea call Everton (they ignore the first few phone calls of course) and Chelsea says: Stones, Barkley & Lukaku - £150m. I wonder if they would accept. It would send waves all over the transfer market.

It's a good thing Arsenal have no ambition. In the PL, they're the perfect club for him. Stable, money, similar football ideology, attractive to top players, talented squad only in need of tweaks. He could possibly take them to a new level. But they're interested in making money for the most part.

Exactly. Pique was brought in. a young defender who barely featured for Utd. Abidal did well but didn't set the world alight. He bought Dani Alves and that turned out to be one of their best buys in the modern era. Jury was still out on Touré. Not great, not bad. Xavi and Iniesta were talented - Xavi was already very seasoned - but they weren't the defining players they became under Guardiola. A midfield consisting of both Xavi and Iniesta, physically unimpressive midfielders, was so new at the time. And then they added Busquets, no physicality at all. Messi was the young supertalent. Eto'o was a house-hold name (left after a year though. Henry hadn't adapted yet. That season under Rijkaard was not good, with the experiment of the 'Fantastic Four' (Messi-Eto-Henry-Ronaldinho) simply not working. But he played so much better under Guardiola. Pedro replaced him eventually and suited the system even better. Rijkaard's Barca was on the wane since that CL win in 06, even finished behind Villarreal once (which was a huge deal), and they looked like they needed to rebuild. What did Guardiola did with Barca was a mega achievement. It was the start of a new era in football. Football changed after that Barca team won the treble. Tactics changed all over the Europe and the demands of footballers were modified. Think high pressing, ball retention, ball-playing defenders, the importance of technique in midfield (box-to-box really went out of style). Don't see Guardiola joining. His recent words said it all. Three years at a club is enough. He'd need years to create a team suited to his methods and he's not the type to stay at a club for years and years.

I want Courtois to play every FA Cup game. It increases the chances of winning. Sad for Begovic in a way but he's played so much football already, more than you'd expect him to play. I'd rather give him some more games in the league.

Yeah, there's sense in this move when you think about it. Young players receiving the time and care to develop here is a pipe dream so seeing the likes of Kenedy and Musonda in action is not happening. If Texeira joins, you have Hazard, Willian, Pedro, Oscar, Texeira. If he does well, he'll stay. If he doesn't do well, you can sell him after a year or two. Don't think Hazard or Willian will be going anywhere. If Oscar or Pedro isn't happy because of amount of game time, you sell one. In a fantasy world where big names will want to join Chelsea in the summer (I mean, come on), you can still purchase an attacking midfielder. Let's say Isco. The same rules will apply, survival of the fittest. The best play the most games. If you can't get in the team first XI and are unhappy, you can leave if good money is offered. A much better situation than the current 4 players for 3 roles situation, playing players out of position in cases of absentees and forced to play underperforming players. I personally would've prefered Sané but that's a fantasy purchase. Don't know Texeira well, videos didn't blow me away or anything but he could be really good.

Courtois Azpilicueta Zouma Cahill Baba Loftus-Cheek Matic Pedro Musonda Kenedy Remy Begovic; Djilo, Aina; Mikel, Oscar; Willian, Traore I'd love to see that team.

Ryan Mason. Never impressed me. They were never going anywhere with that Mason-Bentaleb midfield. Pochettino also finally saw the light concerning Dembele (I thought he'd make a clever Jan purchase, very useful player, but that's not happening anymore). Haha, just the thought of it. He never would've played at Chelsea. He would've received the infamous 'old bottle of wine' treatment. It's in your house and you rave about it. You even show it off to your friends/peers. But you never take it out. You just keep saving it for that special that never comes.

Exactly. You're thinking ahead but I think you should leave that ahead thinking in the basement with the door locked for now (I do the same all the time but not today). Today was fun but who knows what's in store in the next game. 15/16 is dead (bar FA Cup succes) but we've known about that for months.

What does Dele Alli think he's doing? First you join the Tottenham squad from MK Dons, you then fill in for an injured player and do a good job in centre midfield, you continue to do an even better job, then you actually become first choice. That's already quite impressive. But then you take it a notch further, you play higher up the pitch and you're level doesn't drop. What? You're arguably even better there and start producing great pieces of skill, scoring an ourageous goal against Everton. The nerve of that 19-year-old. Seriously though, shockingly good goal. The run, the control on the move, the finish under pressure. That was a real striker goal.

Just enjoy the win, Robguima. The past year was miserable. We needed this.

I'll always remember Ballack for this. Old Chelsea would surround refs all the time.