LDN Blue

I genuinely fear about people who understate Clinton's agenda, while being so anti-Trump also. I fear for the future of the Western world if either get into power

Haven't seen the game, what left you unimpressed?

Yeah it just fell on deaf ears in the end, unhelped by his constant other barages. His rants, to an extent, has valid points but the way he presented them was counteractive. Shame.

Amazing to think Barnes never faced any retrospective punishment, like Matic was meant to let his leg get broken

Liverpool did us a solid when Gerrard gifted Drogba that goal We can do the same to Leicester.

Yeah I mean it's not impossible. As we know, the infamous phrase, "money talks" and even with the payout they expect we'll still have Roman But if rumours are true about Radja then I don't think Kante will even be considered.

Wouldn't mind having Capello on standby as interim if Guus retires by then

Can forget about signing him before 2017 when we're, hopefully, back in the Champions League . Think a lot of these Leicester boys will stay for another season, their place in the CL team is confirmed and they might as well ride the wave until Jan/July '17. With the exception of Mahrez, who's more prolific and likely to go abroad, we should eye these guys up for a move in 2017 (you know, as long as the Traore ban doesn't come into force )

Yeah I can agree with that. It's like I just said in the Terry thread, it's about time Chelsea dismantled that 2012 winning squad.. They've taken their sweet time about it and when we had players capable of becoming the new long-term core (Lukaku, De Bruyne, etc), Mourinho came and had to have 'his' guys. I think if they were signed when he was in charge, he would have never doubted any of them. As for Conte (or whoever) having a blank canvas, yes and no. You've got to hope Roman's doing what Newcastle just did and take apart the outdated 'we sign players before you even arrive' policy and see if the manager's ideas match the recruitment. You'd have to hope the powers of Emenalo are curbed, especially when it comes to signing young players straight for the first team. It's all good him taking care of the academy - it's reaping rewards under Hiddink - but first team is beyond his capabilities and Pato/Falcao proves that.

He'll get a nice holiday in France. Del Bosque doesn't really use him, if I remember correctly? Should have a nice time having some banter on the bench

It's ironic, so heavily ironic, before RA was happy to keep 'Jose's spine' that infamously remained post-Mou 2006. Now he can't wait to dispose of them, when in reality a lot of this should have been done in-around 2012. except we slowly did and Mourinho came back to torment Roman again

Lol these stories.. Planted so obviously and clearly from baseless sources. It's open season at Chelsea, and first-team quality player will be 'rumoured' to be unhappy lmao. Courtois is tied for another year isn't he?

But that's what I mean yo. Ferguson had the ability to pick and choose his transfers, complete control. We have to also remember there will never be another Ferguson, so it's a moot comparison. But I still think it's a valid point that these guys simply don't fear the consequences of not turning up 100%. I don't know how that will change, attitudes set can only disappear through action.. Hiring an able coach and not living under a cloud of longevity for the sake of it would be a good fcking start.

I don't think anyone's over reacted lol. Maybe the 'fluke' comment went a bit far, no-one's above criticism. That being said, if anyone deserves some compassion for a bad-spell in current circumstances it is Azpilicueta

To be honest, how is any manager ever meant to avoid player power here? Drogba and co set a dangerous precedent under past managers that showed a clear Chelsea policy, first in first out. As in, first manager in first manager out. Even an ultimate authoritarian like Ferguson would struggle under this model. There is no fear in these guys to be 'sacked', they know who's head the axe falls on every 6-18 months.

Yeah but I think the overall point of his post is prevalent. The fact is, Courtois is stepping into enormous shoes right now and it's putting fans in an uneasy place. Especially when Pete is just local in a much better place in the table. De Gea came under scrutiny, rightly so, in his first season at Old Trafford and now fans adore him - even if he is endearing himself to Real Madrid. He's not a finished article yet and under strained times innocent mistakes can get blown out of proportion.

Now I understand why Lampa.. Respect is a reciprocated thing, the club needs to understand this.

Pointless to bring up such times as well. It can be sugarcoated as much as people try but Willian was pretty woeful prior to 2015 and it was true that Oscar was showing a lot more than Willian in an attacking threat. Let's not forget that alarming statistic that Willian would score per 1,000 minutes .. The lad always 'worked hard', but it's only of the last 12 months he's become who he is. Oscar, meanwhile, shows no signs of that. His off-the-ball work rate is as dire as is his work on it!

Mental the holiday PSG are on at the moment. This is what will cost them European dominance though, the fact they can afford to wrap the title up in early March means they're not going to be playing 'competitive' football domestically at all. So when they come across much sharper and direct teams like Real, Barca, Bayern etc they're going receive a shock. A vulnerable defense was exposed at SB, albeit their attack is sharp enough to score. They're going to struggle, I hope they get a big shark in the next CL round. Don't doubt the quality of their side, just if lack of competitive action will go against them.

It's such a moot point as well. Regardless of whether Lukaku did or didn't have his opportunities here is irrelevant now. The lad has gone on to improve his overall game and though he still needs a bit of work to continue - To doubt the ability he has is foolish. He joined that illustrious list of goals scoring 50 goals before his 23rd birthday (joining Rooney, Owen and Cristiano Ronaldo) and we saw how he took apart our defense in one sublime move. I'd have no problem with us re-signing Lukaku to be honest, he's young and has great potential still to be untapped - Could Conte do it? The problem is, of course, with our strained tensions with Everton of late they'll be like Spurs and want a region in the excess of £60m knowing them. There are strikers out there that are more worth spending that than on Lukaku, hopefully we were smart enough to insert some kind of transfer clause?

I had no problem in Mourinho's decision to get rid of Mata and keep Oscar. That decision was his alone and it's the decisions he's paid to make - Unfortunately it didn't work out, Oscar's continued to fail to reach up to his potential and has honestly been riding off that sublime match v Juventus, 4 years ago . If I give Arsenal fans shit for Wilshere having a one off game v Barcelona and riding that, then Oscar's no exception to the rule. I'm sure he'll thrive in a new environment, where he'll feel love and adored (by someone else who isn't his sister..).

Terrible game for him to make his 700th appearance for the club.

Stay: Any player under 22, Terry, Fabregas, Hazard, Courtois, Azpilicueta & Willian

Blimey Cahill, well done lad

Down to a lack of depth if anything, neither of any problems Pato solves. Because Hiddink has to play shit players, you want him to add another one? At the expense of a younger, sharper, talent?