The Skipper

Pellegrini would be a very bad appointment IMO. He's too inflexible tactically. Too naive.

Emenalo's role according to TOCFCWS:

I know he's not, but I've defended him for a long time. Think he gets undeserved stick. When people were crooning over the work the board did last season, all the praise seemingly went to Jose, barely any to Mike. Now, after we've had a very poor summer, he's blamed for it which isn't fair because he isn't really the decision maker. His primary function is and always has been to assist the first team manager.

The technical director at this football club isn't your traditional one. He isn't the one that oversees the vision the club and decides what sort of dealings go on in the transfer market. It doesn't work like that at CFC IMO. Emenalo is there to assist the first team manager and to assist the youth academy structure. He doesn't decide anything.

I don't think their appointments are very comparable tbh. At all. Simply because this group of players actually worked with Didier last season and that he's actually a CFC legend. Bolo is not. Also, there was talk that Jose wanted him as a coach as well. I'm certain your reaction was different in that case.

I don't think people understand why we didn't go for a better defender last summer... It's clear the club has set their sights on trying with Stones/Marquinhos again, hence why they brought in a fringe player to cover just in case. Simple.

I think Kenedy has a huge future at LB. Been impressed with him in that position since he came on against Palace. Everyone in the Shed around me was massively impressed by his performance. He could actually become a great player there. I think he lacks the extra finesse to be a great winger, but he's got the determination to do well at LB.

Ith mad cos I think I have the best Emenalo avatar of all time. #FindMaradonaInHisPocket

Drogba is a natural leader and very well respected by the playing squad. Comparing him to Zenden is quite insulting. He's proper Chels.

Playing a 4-4-2 formation and possession football aren't mutually exclusive though. Leicester are not walking the league either. The type of football Leicester play isn't exclusive to the fact that they play 4-4-2. Irregardless of that, you can't use half a season to prove that 4-4-2 is now the best formation around. What sort of football do the best teams (Bayern, Barcelona, or even us last year when we were on fire for half a season) play? Weren't they possession based systems? Even before that, when City won the title... Again, possession based system. Your findings don't prove much at all. Leicester and Watford are just two good in-form teams, with good managers who know how to get the best of their players.

What proves this exactly? Possession based doesn't automatically mean tiki taka either.

I believe this too. We're only 11 points away I think? If we go on a good run we can do it.

So I see that you're back to slating Jose again now the Fabregas story doesn't add up? Great.

Looks like he's made that LB spot his own. Good stuff Nathan, keep progressing.

Just going on the fact that Steve is staying behind and not going with Jose, so I think that means he's obviously still reprising the same role he's already in.

Love that he's bringing in DD. Eddie Newton has moved up to AM as well now. So that'd be DD, Eddie and Steve as AMs. Excellent.

Again, I'm not talking about that post specifically. I'm saying in general. You were one the biggest Mourinho out critic on the board for ages, and a lot of the stuff you've been saying recently is just funny considering that.

I think if the players told you otherwise in your face you still wouldn't believe it either.

It's not news that Mourinho didn't really give his offensive players as much freedom as they really should've had. I'm not too surprised tbh.

I'm not talking about that post in particular, it's more general.

Sunderland are awful. This doesn't prove much at all. Any team naturally want to prove themselves when anything like this happens.

You used to be one of the biggest Mourinho out critics on the forum, most of the things you're saying right now are just very hypocritical.

Are people actually going to be fickle enough to believe this?

Disagree. The only two similar players who are good enough to start for us are Willian and Hazard. Oscar should be gone because he doesn't provide a set up for goals in the final third too often. Pedro is very different to all of these guys though - he's all about the movement in his game, and is actually a very decent finisher - but we haven't seen the best of him yet because we don't utilise Pedro in the right way.

Fabregas, who provided 23 assists last season which was a massive contribution to our league win, is now a worse signing than Torres? Blimey.