King Kante

No CR7. 100% Utd are looking to do us on the counter. Rudi is going to have to help Alonso out, especially with no Kante.

Not sure this is a wise idea as Utd love to play on the counter. Kante is actually a big miss for this game owing to the balls he cuts out. In my opinion, this game requires dominating the ball and systematically breaking them down. If we get to 2-0+ up, that would be when you can go for the jugular. Personally, I can see them, especially with AT as ref, sh*thousing us and hitting us on the counter.

I am currently in the @OhForAGreavsie boat. RLC has improved this year and looks like he is stepping up and reaching his potential. I will need to see him do this for a substantial amount of time before I can completely get on board as he has had a purple patch before and injuries never seem far away for him. Hopefully he can keep the consistency. However, one thing his performances (along with Trev's) have proven again is that we really shouldn't be looking outside of the club for squad option roles as the young boys' are capable of filling these holes.

Just don't start Lukaku.

The thing is who is going to come in and accept being a LWB2 who is better than Alonso? I get that everyone wants an upgrade to him, and him being 30+ means we will need to do so at some point, however I cannot see anyone going for it as they know Chilwell will be fit again (potentially soon.) In regard to TH @Vesper how capable is he at playing LCB? Is he actually someone we can use there, then shift over in case of injury/lack of form from Chilwell? I ask as I can only see us getting someone like him if he knows he is going to start on a regular basis/I cannot see the club dropping serious dollar (€60m+) on someone who is going to act as back up LWB/LCB. In my opinion, the way the club will go is to monitor Matsen and see how things play out for the rest of the season with Alonso. Obviously if Chilwell is out for the rest of the season with a ACL (and all the risks to future performance that may entail) then a top LWB may be required. However, unless Chilwell has to have surgery and it looks like he won't be the same then I just cannot see us doing anything crazy.

Bad news he has a form of a ACL, good news that it is not that bad. From what TT said, it may be that he is back in 6-8 weeks, if that is the case no real need to buy another LWB or recall someone. Let's pray it all goes well and he is back in Jan/Feb.

Not great news. However, Alonso isn't as bad as some are making out. Will he get roasted at times against really fast players? Yes, he will. However, is he still a good option against 80% of teams? Yes, he is. In my opinion, let's just get on and roll with Alonso and Saul until Jan and then look to whether we need Matasen back as cover. No way do we need to go out and blow €70m on a LWB; unless of course Chilwell's ACL is so bad he may not play again.

Thing is he has Rashford and Martial to play with at Utd and that didn't work either. As @Jase says, it isn't even just his technical limitations and off the ball work but also his pressing that is a big issue. As for writing him off, I personally did that as soon as we were linked as the player I saw in Italy was the same player that Utd couldn't wait to get rid of.

Apprantly the xG average with him in the side is 1.5 whereas, without him it is 2.5. Of course the quality of opposition has gone down a bit but that is not a good look at all. What is pleasing is that we know TT looks and values this stat a lot.

True. As I have said, I am a one of the biggest supporters of Alonso on here, so it is not as if I use him as a whipping boy. At this moment in time, when viewing the Utd match, the way I am looking at it is that they only win by hitting us on the counter and we know that if Alonso plays they'll target his flank. Hence, it probably depends on how attack minded you are. I normally prefer it when we play things a bit tight so that is why I was suggesting Dave to start and Alonso to come on a bit later once the game slows down a bit and hopefully we have some control.

Thinking about it, I actually wouldn't be surprised to see Saul at LWB on the weekend. Risky considering how he has played since arriving but I can actually see TT pulling that.

The kid played something like 124+ appearances in two seasons prior to this and just had his wisdom teeth taken out. Looks more of a rest to me at the moment.

As you probably know, I am one of Alonso's biggest supporters on here. However, there is not a situation where I see him starting against Sancho/Rashford and it coming out well defensively. In my opinion, start Dave get control of the game and look to bring him on after 60+ mins depending on what is required. Seriously, Utd have been crap but it would just like them to put in a sh*thouse performance against us (especially with Taylor as ref) and bang us on the counter.

I think so, game is a complete dead rubber for Zenit as they're in the Ropey now. They'll probably put out a weakened side as they're battling for the Russian title. Only reason for them to go for it is if they want they €2.2m prize money for the win. Today was a prime example of why we shouldn't even think about playing him against the big boys'/very good CB's. All so predictable he wouldn't bring much to the table for us. Games just finished 😅

Malmo beating Zenit. Not a great result as that means Zenit may turn up against us to make sure they don't drop out of Europe all together. Obviously, they'll know Juve will 99% beat Malmo but they won't be able to take the risk.

So chuffed for Trev. He should really be our posterboy for the academy. Stay humble, work hard, be patient.

Yes, what people need to keep in mind is as follows; 1) H2H results. If we win by 2 goals we lead, if we win by 1 goal then it will go to point 2. Away goals no longer count at this point. 2) Goal difference. At the moment Juve are +2 on us. A one goal win means we're equal so if that happens we need to outscore them in our Zenit game vs. theirs against Malmo next week. 3) Goals scored 4) Away goals scored in all group matches 5) No. of wins 6) Disciplinary points. Essentially we need to win by two goals or more tonight and beat Zenit or otherwise we're finishing second barring a Juve feck up against Malmo.

Ouch. Big blow for Naples.

Just out of interest, can Florence pull out of this if all conditions aren't met? Or is this that Juve can only pull the plug if they don't meet one of the clauses and then choose not to buy? I mean, if Florence can get him back due to Juve missing one of the objectives, then they would be mental not to trigger the option and start a bidding war.

This is true. My feeling with him is that he is one of the few players we have that is capable of doing this (playing in a full bloodied fashion) as well as what I mentioned before and he is actually a big miss when injured. Personally, I think he is likely to be injury prone for his entire career (this I think is more to do with his genetics; although play style doesn't help.) Hence, if that is the case I think a super sub role would work for him and the club. Furthermore, he is also someone who picks the pace of the game up pretty quickly (this is actually not that common) and if you combine that with his play style, you may actually exacerbate his effectiveness as he'll have a full tank of energy to burn through in 30 mins against tired legs. To some extent, this is why I also think Kante may be here for quite a few years still with the emergence of Gallagher. If Gallagher can continue developing and step up to the demands of playing for Chelsea, then I can see a situation in the next 18-24 months where Gallagher starts and Kante mops up in the latter part of the game. That way, you can kind of have full energy versions of Gallagher/Kante for the full 90 mins.

I just want to know how we have had him 3 times in 13 games.

Wtf

I was kind of thinking of a OGS version of Hazard but I guess Kalou will also do! Would he pick up the injuries with less minutes? For me, he is in that position where if he plays 90 mins or 60+ mins x1 or x2 a week, he breaks down with injury. Part of the reason for my suggestion is that as he picks up so many muscular injuries, it may be he could handle 30-45 mins x1 or x2 a week.

Just checked what the qualification rules are with UEFA for the group stage this season. Turns out we probably need to win this by two goals to qualify top as teams are now separated initially by h2h record (no away goal rule), then goal difference. A 1-0 or 2-1 to us would put us equal on points and GD, however Juve have Malmo next whilst we're away in Russia. Really going to have to take the game to them.

Have been thinking a lot about Puli over the international break and his injuries/style of play and something occurred to me. Is he a type of player who should be designated as a super sub? For me, his injury record tells us he is always going to struggle with 90 mins × 50 games a season. However, what about 30 mins x 50 games + 90 mins when others are injured, a season? Personally, I think this may be something to think about as when he comes on as a sub he is someone who seems to pick the speed of the game up quickly and it also allows him to use his best qualities: off the ball movement, take ons and pressing, to tired legs.