Sparkie

But what is their maximum potential verus the cost of the money that we get that can be used to buy better players or improve the facilties? The club isn't all stupid as people believe and decisions made will have been in the best interests of the player, regardless of whether the fans agree or not. This means that if the player believes he can fulfil his potential at Hamburg and asks for a transfer, that's what happens. If the club believes that the player is not good enough to fulfil the standards set at a title-challenging club then they will look to sell in the best interest of the player reaching their potential, which unfortunately may not be at the level required.

The idea that if we had Messi, Ronaldo etc at Chelsea academy they would never have got games. Seriously, how is it fair to compare the opportunity that the two best players in the world would get compared to the opportunity players deemed only good enough to be sold to a team that came 8th in the German league (no guarantee they will start there). And the closest thing we have to a world class talent, Josh, got eleven appearances at the age of 17 - there's a thing called player burnout and over-saturation. Have patience. It's what Messi, Ronaldo et all had, and look where they are. Don't expect him to play 50 games next season, that's just plain stupid.

This would explain why Drogba returned so much more deadly when he got break while Torres got all the on-field attention.

Does anyone know the actual significance of the squares on shirt and training gear, or is it a passing Adidas fad?

Piece I've done on David Luiz's future http://bit.ly/kMmrnN, if anyone would like a read.

Ramires has improved.

Great article, can share the emotions talked about. Have faith.

Was the stand out Chelsea player for me - we all (myself included) got swept away with the Luiz hysteria. He'll be good, but needs an off season to learn the Chelsea way too, like Torres.

Confidence means so much in football - Torres just lacking it at the moment. Give him a full 90 next week, mix things up, see how he goes. Nothing to lose, really.

Half the people on here spent their time whinging that Mikel didn't start against United in the UCL 2nd leg. So what changed?

Mikel was my man of the match. Constant presence, and always probing with his passes. Great 200th appearance.

So there is a CFCnet fanzine already? Thanks for the feedback so far.

Walcott on form is incredibly talented. Arsenal vs Spurs last week, his direct running was a real handful and pace to burn. Had an absolute Arsenal-hater watching who said he or Lennon would be a good signing for Chelsea.

Bit of a laugh considering that our left side is so strong already, the fact that it is Tottenham and also because it's Gareth Bale, the EPL's saviour and future Pope.

As an Australian who lives and breathes Chelsea, it's hard to know what it's like on matchday at Stamford Bridge in London when you're on the other side of the world! But a bit of online surfing and Twittering has had me thinking about a gap in the CFC market - fan magazines. The Chelsea magazine is great and all but as an official publication it ignores some pressing issues and can't really tackle the big issues. That's what ex-publications like the Chelsea Chronicle and CFCnet Fanzine were available for, an outlet for fans with a view to the blues. Can I ask for a bit of feedback before perhaps gathering more steam about a future pipeline project? Taking the time to answer the two questions above would greatly help in the research. Any comments are much, much appreciated and wanted.

Sneijder could be quite handy as he can play on the wing too, if needed.

Bit of a natter about tactics for anyone who cares, http://bit.ly/fngnt4/?p=10395

Something similar to these kits would be fine. Particularly that white away - and we'll take the player too. Nike has got some classy stuff at the moment.

Just like to drop in that Australia gained some revenge for the World Cup 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Germany by beating them 2-1 on their own patch this morning! Admittedly, they had neither Klose, Oezil, Lahm playing, but we had no Cahill, and you take what you get! For the Aussie fans on here, Holger Oesick looks a real find, the way he's managed to get a winning formula so early.

Thanks for the feedback. I didn't know *officially* whether Chelsea were looking to bring 4-3-3 through the club in an Arsenal sort of style (how all are coached in the importance of first touch, etc). Ancelotti did alright with the diamond, it was just Ferguson meddling with Valencia that stuffed it.

Confirmed - Steve Clarke new first team coach at Liverpool. http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/steve-clarke-joins-liverpool You know something's wrong when you think, wow, that's their best signing in a long time.

Don't mean to hotlink, but I wrote an article on the failings of 4-3-3 which I thought some members here might appreciate. http://bit.ly/esVkt3

Normally optimistic, looking for positives, keeping faith, etc.. but tonight was just dismally poor. Only a handful of players looked like showing commitment. What just about summed it up was Ashley Cole taking about a minute to throw a ball, eventually pinged for "time wasting" and we concede possession. Only the sight of Malouda looking despondently desperate and upset over the performance kept me being sane.

And they're hosting the Asian Cup starting on Saturday, too.

The players are professional enough to focus, it was just unfortunate timing. We've held on in positions far more precarious than that - FA Cup final in 2007 comes to mind.