LDN Blue

Honestly, when my Newcastle supporting friend told me Van Aanholt was good, I thought he was lying. But my god he's impressed me so much! I see so much of Ashley Cole in him, the way he attacks the opposition and his precision passes into the 18-yard box. The fact he's only 20, makes it even better. If the likes of.. Bruma, van Aanholt, Sturridge, McEachran, Kalou & Kakuta (who's undoubtedly yet to prove his potential) are the future of ChelseaFC, I'm a very proud fan! :chelsea2:

You never know.. Sturridge impressed everyone today, standing ovation from the Stamford Bridge faithful.

In a way, this was quite reminiscent to the Birmingham game. After going a goal down in the first half, we came back very strong in the 2nd. The major difference is we finished our chances tonight (most of them), if we keep this up our form will go back to usual in no time.

I'm biting my tongue for complaining about him coming on before the second half. Truly made a difference tonight.

Speaking of Ramires.. That beauty of a shot Loved the commentator "..that proves he's Brazilian then"

Got to say.. Van Aanholt & Sturridge were sublime today! Great performance from both of them. If PvA is our next 1st choice left back after Cole, then I'll be more than happy (unlucky not to score either). Took a while for Danny to get into the game, but when he did boy did he make a difference. He and Kalou menaced their defence and I'm glad he got a much deserved goal from it. McEachran had a good solid debut. Gave the ball away a bit, but he'll only learn to cut that down with more experience. Was glad to see a Mellis cameo for him though Anyway, now that we remember what if feels like to win, hopefully we can carry on this momentum at St. James' Park on Sunday. :chelsea2:

Kalou for Kakuta being rumoured. I really hope this is not true, I want Kakuta to have more time!!

Hmm.. Taking into account the strength of the side we've sent out today.. We could've done better early on to make chances from the off, but fair enough it took the kids a while to get into the game. Van Aanholt's doing really well down the left wing, making good penetrating runs and putting some good balls into the 18-yard box. He could do a bit better but he's growing into the game. Josh is having a good outing too. He's giving the ball away quite a few times now with some passes, but easy mistakes he'll make and as he goes on he'll only learn to improve them. It's taken both Sturridge and Kakuta to take a shine to the game, but they are coming alive. Sturridge had a screamer almost go in, brought out a good save tbh. They will only grow more confident as the game goes on. I just hope Carlo doesn't take them off at half time. The goal itself was a mixture of good Zilina football and poor closing down. Inexperience, I believe, was at fault for that goal. Also, Clifford on for Ferreira please?

I was thinking Gulf War III

Don't think so..

I like this squad a lot! Everyone who I wanted to start, is doing so

Well like I said, I hope it doesn't come to that :-)

Depends on who gets involved really. North Korea and China have been close allies over the last decade, we could see this get very out of hand in the far-east. Let's hope it does not get that far, but certainly if China get involved, nothing would stop the US doing the same..

Oh one more thing.. The Makelele role will never be re-dubbed the Mile role..

Great written piece there! Nice work

I've seen this coming for a while really. North Korea have been tempting South Korea over the last 2 years with their "random weapons testing" and "war games". There will be another Korean war within the next few years, I believe it unavoidable.

2012. José's 2nd reign will begin

3 words.. BLIP. IN. FORM. This will not be a permanent thing. I do love how everyone's writing us off already. How fickle the world of football is

He would not be stupid enough to let someone of Schweinsteiger's quality walk away on a free

Their defence isn't that great. We should be weary of their attack though, Carroll will cause problems, but if Alex will play he'll be no match for our Brazillian heavyweight. I hope Essien gives Barton a right run for his money :chelsea2:

Last night former Chelsea manager José Mourinho was entered into the League Managers Association's Hall of Fame, in London. He had this to say.. Sir Alex Ferguson, Sir Matt Busby, Bob Paisley, Arsene Wenger amongst others, are all members of the LMA Hall of Fame and tonight you will be formerly inducted into the LMA Hall of Fame alongside them; how does this feel? “I am very proud of this because I am not British and I spent just over 3 years in the Barclays Premier League which is not a significant time to create a big history that deserves so much from the League Managers Association. But the time I spent here, I have no problem to say, that it was the best time of my career so far and that’s despite winning the Champions League in Portugal and Italy. In the Barclays Premier League we did great things and created history for Chelsea with a great contribution to some great moments in this incredible football country so I am very proud to be here. It is special for me this evening, as I get to see people I like very much and respect. I still have a home here and me and my family are still in love and will always be in love with this country. So to be back is almost to be at home.” What is it that enthrals you about English football and the Barclays Premier League? “It is an incredible competition. I feel very fortunate as a coach and as a manager because I have now worked in four countries – Spain, Italy, England and Portugal. The good thing is to have the chance to compare the different emotions and the experiences of different competitions. We can always discuss the qualities of the football in the different countries but not about the emotions of the game or the atmosphere as in England. The atmosphere, the intensity and the emotion in England is something you cannot compare with other countries and for somebody that is really in love with the game, as I am, this is the place where you enjoy it the most.” There are many managers here this evening who will be receiving FA Cup medals and you won The FA Cup in 2007 – why do you think The FA Cup is so special? “I remember myself as a kid who was crazy about football and for me football was the Portuguese competitions and The FA Cup Final. This was the only match we got to see from abroad. So for me., The FA Cup is to go back to my dreams as a kid. When we won the cup in 2007 after the two Barclays Premier League titles, the emotion was incredible. For me a final is a final, a match is a match, Wembley is Wembley – it did not matter if it was the new or the old one – Wembley is Wembley and the stairs are the stairs.” The LMA encourages younger coaches who want to be managers to serve an apprenticeship and have a mentor. The inaugural LMA Hall of Fame Dinner was a tribute to Sir Bobby and you worked with him prior to your first managerial position. How valuable was this apprenticeship? “I was a lucky man because I have had some crucial moments in my career and one of the crucial moments was when I had the chance to work with Mr Robson. Not just because he was as a great manager but he was a great person. I think everybody that had the chance to meet him and had a few moments, or in my case a few years, felt privileged. I learned so much from my experiences with him. I always remember with a little smile that after I was upset after a defeat he said “don’t be sad because in the other dressing room someone is bouncing around with happiness.” So I always remember good moments with him and every moment was a good one.” You also worked with Louis van Gaal at Barcelona where again the approach would have been attacking football. When did you define your own philosophy towards how you wanted to play the game? “I think it is very important for every manager to have their own philosophy of everything. The way you want your team to play, the way you want to lead your team, the way you want to work every day – everything must be very specific. To have a mentor is one thing, to try and copy is another. With a mentor you can improve and have a base for evolution but when you try and copy, the copy is never the same as the original. So I think you have to learn from people with more experience who have had success, but always keep your own personal identity.” Sir Alex Ferguson said this week that he has no intention of retiring and he is nearly 70. For you at 47, that would be another 23 years in management. Do you have the motivation and intent to continue for 23 more years? “When I heard Sir Alex say this I was laughing because I was not surprised. He has an incredible humour but at the same time brightness and commonsense. For me he is amazing as he is the same person I met in 2004. I have more white hair and more wrinkles but he is exactly the same. I hope he continues for years and I get to face him a few more times. So when I am in my 50’s or 60’s, I also see myself still in football with the same ambitions and desires. So I understand why Sir Alex wants to continue. It was the same with Mr Robson and I see myself continuing for many years.” Managers have to manage expectations. The moment you became known as the Special One the expectations became higher and you still met them. Do you thrive on pressure and respond well to high expectations? “I’ve always had expectations in my career. In the beginning I had the pressure because I went into management after not being a top player, so I had a lot of things to prove. After Porto the pressure was the question “Can he achieve abroad?” Everything then went well in England. Italy is the home of tactics, so the question then was “Is he a good leader and a good tactician, can he compete in this world of football?” Yes I could. Now I go to Spain and everybody says “Real Madrid is an incredible club, a club different than any other club - can he cope with it?” So I am trying to prove that I can and step by step, stage by stage with this new challenge it motivates me more and more.” How do you get players from all over the World of different nationalities and cultures to buy into your vision? “First of all I have to respect their own identity and culture. I am there not to teach one person how to play football, but to teach a team to play as a team. Individuals are there to make a team and I am the boss of that team.” How do you personally as a manager respond to a defeat? “I always say a defeat must not be a start of a period it must be just the end of a great period. So when the defeat comes you cannot think this is the first of some but just the end of a period of victories and good moments” What are you expecting with the forthcoming El Classico? “It is a different game for me because when I played Barcelona in the Champions League with Chelsea and Inter, it was stay in the competition or go out. This is a league game, so yes it is against a rival and yes it is first against second but this game is one of 38 matches in the Spanish Championship.”

I was thinking we should put a section under the Matthew Harding Stand for "Management Database". For ex-managers like Jose and ex-assistant managers like Ray Wilkins?

CaughtOffside say we lead the race to sign him. Not sure how far we can trust it, knowing it's from CO. He's available on a free in June, apparently not looking to sign a new deal with Roma.

For people slagging of Emenalo still..

It will depend on how his knee feels before the game. A lot can happen [in training] between now and Saturday.