Vesper

here is your complete double CB AND CF answer (by summer for sure if not all in January, which maybe a bit tough, especially the WC CB part but also the CF part if we go for Werner over Håland)

AC sale basically covers Ake buy or pretty close Zouma sale funds around of an actual WC CB buy so only £40-50m total for a massive upgrade at 2 CB's that sorts it for year Ake alone doesn't cut it and we have an absolute shit tonne of money bult up (and more incoming as we sell off the loanee dregs and the other dregs on the main team) IF we play it smart and grab either Håland (£17m release clause) or Werner (£25m RC) at CF we have sorted 3 massive positions (CF and 2 new CB's) for only around £20m to £40m total net spend (for all THREE, the 2 new CB's and the CF) after we dump Giroud (£5m or in January and maybe a wee bit more, maybe 10m, as like 10 clubs want him) and then Bats in the summer unless we grab the CF in January (Håland far more likely then) which makes it SO easy to sell Bats NOW as well as so many teams will kill for him mid season that is smart football management and leaves an absolute TONNE of cash to address LB, RW and DMF (DMF probably waiting until 2021)

zero issues, in fact I am completely in favour of this BUT we simply must sell both Zouma and AC by end of summer and grab an actual WC CB to go with Ake as well, with Ake as the AC replacement, and the WC CB the Zouma replacement Zouma is never going to be actual starting Chels level (on an actual great Chels team) zero chance, we have seen YEARS of him, and he just doesn't have it, and he is bloody 25 now, in his true peak years, he is so not a youngster anymore, Zouma is good for the rest of the year, but then bye-bye baby

as for purely not good enough right now meaning they should simply not be on the pitch it isn't that long a list AC (he is so so so weak, soft as bread, such a massive disappointment ever since that Barca CL game he is a shell, which is just bizarre) Alonso (unless the only LB option is Azpi as Azpi is somehow even worse at LB than Alonso is overall, which shows how poor a LB Azpi is now that he has declined as a player) Barkley (maybe, maybe, as he blows so hot and cold, but lately 90% cold, he is also mentally fucked in his pea brain, but he is not at the level where I go bonkers if I see him coming on) Pedro (we still MIGHT have a goal or two in him, so it is not a complete disaster if he comes in and IS actually on his game, but overall he is so DONE) Bats and Giroud (we have no other options and this is killing us as we have no choice but to play them if no Tammy) Giroud had his big chance to back up his big mouth and proceeded to play the worst game of his entire Chels career, he was 2019-Azpi-at-LB-level bad, actually worse. Bats is just plain old shit, he can do nothing but score the occasional lucky goal (he does fuckall else, other than social media) all those DO need to be sold this summer BTW (or January if possible and we have replacements, which is doubtful for most) Zouma absolutely needs to be sold in the summer when we can upgrade on him (and NO not Ake, Ake is the upgrade on AC, we need an actual WC CB to replace Zouma) but in no way should we not play Zouma now, he is still somewhat useful, even if he is far from what we actually need, so we just have to roll with him for now

we cannot get him in January, I am 98% certain unless we somehow conned them into doing an Emerson or Alonso (zero chance on him unfortunately, he could NEVER play in their speedburn football) player plus cash deal (and they might demand another player too, looking at their team they need another winger badly, so it would have to be Willian as we only have Pedro who can also play there and they would never want him now and ZERO chance we give up Pulisic or CHO) If they did demand that, we would then SO have to bang on grab Sancho or some other RW THIS January, which is a nightmare) I can so see them demanding £50m+ for just the cash part even if we did get them to take Emerson and Willian (which puts the total valuation we would have paid for Chilwell at near or over £100m, which is MADNESS for a left back, even Robertson)

that was one of the best post games shows ever superb long conversation with Rafa he is a football genius only manager in history to win the UEFA Europa League, UEFA Super Cup, UEFA Champions League, and the FIFA Club World Cup 15 topflight trophies in a 15 year run at 6 of the top 20 clubs in the world (4 of them in the top 10) 3 time European coach of the year he did piss me off on two of the 3 biggest losses (he had nothing to do with Moscow 2008) for me as a Chels girl that 2005 CL semifinal when he beat our best team ever (which would have rendered 75% of this post game moot, lolol) and then he failed to win the ONLY major trophy (that still exists in one form or another) we do not have, when we lost 1 nil to fucking Corinthians in the 2012 FIFA Club World Cup Final

if you look at these two teams (granted the ageing on Milan played some role) it is MAD that Victimpool won the CL in 2005 (it should have been US in that fucking game!!) look at the names on Milan

whoaaaaaaa Rafa said he would be open to taking the Everton job wowow

Rafa breaking that Pepe goal DOWN he is so so right, their LB played him (so stupidly) like Pepe was a RIGHT FOOTED winger, completely inverse body position from what he should have been that is why I so so want a left footed RW, as Willian would offer zero goal threat from position (as would Pulisic and CHO too)

that Wolves draw was the ONLY good news, for fucks sake (and even then they still gained on us, grrr)

the only other teams with 3 out of 4 losses besides us are Burnley (but those 3 losses were all to top half teams and 2 of them were to shitty and spuds) Everton (we lost to them for their only win ) West Ham (we lost to them for their only win) Bournemouth (who are only team to lose all 4 and now 5 in a row and who we play next) Watford (bottom of the table and they did draw last game to a top half team)

4 games ago now

this completes the worst weekend I can recall every single competitor for top 7 won (except shitty, who played another (Manure) and are still above us and then Wolves who only drew but still gained on us) and we lost to a team that was in the relegation zone 8 teams (counting us) below the top 3 who are now within 7 points or less of 4th place with 42% of the season complete

the walking corpse is sacked tomorrow I predict

1 3 game over Aubameyang complete collapse by West Ham INSANE we lost to these asshats

all said though Declan Rice is having a monster game again its just the rest of the team so far this half has been pure shit he has been everywhere

his first goal for Arse from open play, all comps

grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr 1 2 Pepe

fuckkkk 1 1 Martinelli completely against the run of play

and Kepa, grrrrrrrr (I so hate that I am being forced to blast him, as I was close to his biggest booster all last year, but he is having his De Gea period (which has now ended for DG so hopefull Kepa snaps the hell out of his funk too)

yes, I am taking zero for granted atm, lolol

CRAZY stat It has been over EIGHT YEARS since Arse has won an EPL game in which they trailed at halftime

although, grrrrr Real and Atletico Madrid will could replace shitty and victimpool????? so still potentially a six out of 7 chance of drawing a monster if we finish 2nd??? edit I replied to right person, wrong post

I did not know that I guess that could be called the RM/Barca rule, lololol (or more like the Messi/CR7 rule)

all world DO IT MOU!!!!!!