LDN Blue

Well he'd be a "free agent" in the sense, he no longer has a contract with Atletico Madrid. His contract with Mendes probably goes longer. Also it's quite funny now, because wasn't he the "catalyst" who "convinced" Luis & Costa to sign with us?

Kalou wants a PL come back as well. Malouda, Kalou and Drogba back in the PL

£16m?! You've got to be kidding.. What a bargain!

This light blue training kit still bothers me.. Its not our shade of blue ffs!

Lmao, Omid Djalili is an ITK all of a sudden?

Still, still can't quite believe Fabregas is a Chelsea player lmao. Seriously, until I see him play a competitive game for us, I won't believe it. Hope he'll play the pre-season game v Sociedad when I'm there!

Gerrard retires from England.. Prepare for the mass outcry of support & the funeral. I'm sure the PM will be saying a few words in remembrance..

at least he's not as monotonous on commentary

it depends. the PL is now open now, it's not just a Manchester-London tug of war anymore. Liverpool make ground, Tottenham are always potential upsetters. Even the race for 4th is more intriguing now.. so in that sense, yeah it's strong. However you can also look at accessibility for fans, in the Bundesliga they play quality football and tickets are kept affordable so it continues to rise as a league. Though I'm sure eventually the dominance of Bayern will begin to bore the neutral. La Liga could be going through a paradigm shift. Finally someone has broken the Real-Barca stronghold and now that Valencia have come into money anything could happen.

Some good words there from the young Croatian. Mourinho and Emenalo's assurances of the club keeping track of him will be great incentive and motivation to do well.. Who remembers when Emenalo was Satan's lovechild put on earth to cause chaos and destruction to Chelsea Football Club?

this is a strange comment. 'enough with good/potential signings'? we've already signed Luis, Fabregas and Costa. They definitely slot into the starting XI along with what we already have. If Zouma and MVG are backups then why is this an issue? Why get Cavani when we've spent big on Costa and have Torres, Lukaku and potentially Drogba? Why Pogba when we've got Matic, Ramires, Mikel, Ake(maybe) and Fabregas? That's short term mentality. we've got a good mix of players in late 20s and early 20s, the process of Mourinho creating his second dynasty is already progressing.

Lmao yeah this is what I was going to say. Mourinho is the master of such ploys, saying we're done and then pulling a couple of signings out the hat. We'll need players for depth, I think he's satisfied with the first XI, now he'll just fill in the blanks. I'm of the opinion we need, assuming Drogba is coming, a centre mid for cover if Matic picks up a suspension/injury. On the other hand we could see some youth appearances. Ake is proving versatile across the back 4, Steve Holland was talking up Marko Van Ginkle the other day & there's still Romeu's contract extension.

Agreed, that's probably what made him a Villas-Boas type of player. It's the sort of fluidity AVB went for and he built his tactics around that sort of play.. it's what made Mata so important. Mourinho is going for a more hardworking team, defending and attacking as a team. which is why Hazard is consistently fouled more than anyone else. Where Mata looked for the pass before he received the ball, Hazard looks to run at the opposition when he receives the ball. ergo, working harder for the attacking play. With the signings of Cesc and Costa especially, Mourinho isn't looking the to build a team around an individual. The consequences of doing the latter is highlighted by Tottenham-Bale and soon Liverpool-Suarez. Yes, you need individual brilliance to fit around those tactics but the biggest plus is if said individual leaves they can be replaced. As Mourinho has/will demonstrate.

it will be bittersweet the day we do bring through a talent from the academy. they will be under a microscope by everyone else as they will be the first.. it will be a lot of pressure.

Yeah! When he said he doesn't care what others think, that's when I felt proud that he's our Captain!

He was asked whether it's weird for him without Ash and Frank and obviously he said it's strange for him. But then he talked about his concentration this season, "I've got a big contract and I have to work hard to make sure I get a new one", so he's not resting on his laurels. He knows his seasons are numbered but you can tell he's working harder and harder to continue trying to prolong his Chelsea career.

Anyone catch John Terry interview post-match? Man we're lucky this guy's our captain..

Imagine Drogba as our number 9.. I'd buy that shirt

yeah but at the same time, I don't feel he'll get 100% of the choice involved. it's a commercial decision of the club too, players with 1-11 will generally generate more sales. Of course exceptions exist like 25 and 26 for Zola and Terry respectively.

Like his Insta shows, if he leaves here it will be as a Champions League final winner and starter and with the respect of fans alike.

Interesting quote. does that give insight into where he will play for us? Ozil occupies the n10 for Arsenal..

no disrespect to Everton, but if that's the club that will acquire his signature from us.. well that says a lot. both in terms of who actually rates him on a pedestal and how good HE believes he is..

I do doubt that. probably, as someone said before, someone else has laid claim to that.. though if we don't reassign 8 I would be more inclined to agree. -- I find it interesting now that the Club are announcing fee agreements prior to official signings. we've been craving for better information from the club, it's a good new trend, let's hope it won't backfire one day.

I think Pep made him do a Scholes tbh

Really?! Thought he would've fancied Euro 2016 at least