Madmax

5.30 in the morning isn't too bad but I can't be arsed getting up that early.

I mentioned Witsel because we're talking CM. Aranguiz really had no concrete links from reputable sources. Even the poster here from Chile said all the talk was coming from some English sources, which themselves were regurgitating the stuff from that Marseille account or whatever it was, which was picked up by the likes of Metro.

You need to ask yourself how much Bamford would play as third striker. I know Drogba got quite a few games but will we see another season of Costa and Remy being injured so much? I'm not sure if Palace is the right team for him since he does have a lot of competition there but presumably something's been worked out because the club it seems does see something in him. Had we signed a striker permanently I'd be concerned too but Falcao is here for the short term.

The only one of those three that was confirmed by anyone with any credibility is Baba. Mourinho himself denied Witsel and only some questionable Marseille site or account said anything about Aranguiz. Turan was denied categorically by his agent as well as Beasley.

British transfer record for a defender isn't miserly though, is it? It seems Mourinho genuinely thinks we don't need a CM, which is concerning.

Good seasons but where is the crux of my argument. We cannot make someone from the Championship our third choice striker. That leaves Pasalic who I said has a case and MvG + Salah who played in below top tier teams in a weak league.

Precisely, since Mourinho has come in there have been very few players who had an excellent season out on loan at a good level of competition who then were overlooked. I didn't really keep up with Thorgan's time in Gladbach so I don't have an opinion either way. Bamford, like I said, was good in the Championship but let's face it, he has things to prove which I hope he will at Palace. Chalobah was earmarked but Mourinho reneged. Pasalic is one that has a case but with RLC being promised a role it was always unlikely. Moses had a decent spell and he's apparently being retained. MvG was again plagued by injuries but grew into it at Milan. Edit - I forgot Salah, lol. I'd take him over Quedrado.

Duncan Castles says he rejected City and is close to signing for Barcelona. 80 million euros, 16/17. Also that Mourinho admires him but we never made an offer as he is 'beyond our reach'. Pretty much what Mourinho said the other day.

Relax now, we aren't Barca.

1. If you look back through the Courtois/ Cech thread from this time last season, you'd come across a lot of apprehension about what will happen, followed by relief when the decision was made. Clearly, it was not as cut and dried as it seems now. 2. In my books it was Lukaku who ran away from the chance to fight for a place. He made the squad and then bailed because Eto'o showed up .. but it's been repeatedly discussed to death already so no point going on about it. Another example you'd come up with is Sturridge (which is fair enough and one that still rankles). What has changed is that RDM won't manage us again and that Bamford is not a motormouth with an inflated opinion of himself. 3. Even so, silence on Traore who was specifically mentioned by Mourinho, while saying we tried for Pedro (yes he said that earlier) and laying out the names that would make way for him, all adds up afaic. But agree on the minutes part. I didn't expect MVG or Pasalic, no. Chalobah yes because that's what he said when he arrived here but then he had unsuccessful loans and fell away so there's that. I did hope Bamford would have an outside chance but over time I realise the current course of action is probably better.

Euro 2016 or heads will roll.

Don't mind me, I'm just frustrated.

Genuinely remembered it as 18 for some reason, but still the point stands. Not judging it on pre-season at all, more on - 1. The Vitesse manager saying we wanted to keep him and us confirming that by getting a WP sorted 2. Mourinho specifically mentioning him in our group of AM options 3. Beasley saying we'd part with either Moses or Cuadrado or both in case we wanted Pedro. Of course walking the talk will be what I'll look out for.

1. So was Cech, and yet he was benched. Not to mention the rapport he enjoyed with Mourinho. Maybe you should give the boss some credit. 2. I like Bamford like most but Championship POTY is really no big deal for a club the size of Chelsea. Not to mention, a year as Palace's main man (or thereabouts) will be better for him and us than him as our third choice. Plus Falcao's here only for a short while, making me think there's a correlation there. 3. It's actually the 4th spot, since Rob Beasley specifically mentioned us willing to part with one or both of Moses and Cuadrado in the unlikely event of being interested in Pedro. Minutes on the pitch we'll see about, I agree. But like I said, I'm hopeful. Stuff about Sturridge (while still hurtful) and Lukaku is in the past. Besides, which other players did have a consistently good season at a decent level last year or the year before that did not get a fair chance? Pasalic at Elche and that's about it unless I'm missing out on someone glaring.

Bogus is a strong word to use when our starting goalkeeper last season benched a club veteran and a 18 year old is being given serious consideration as one of our attacking midfield options over a guy that cost 26m only 6 months ago; both by a manager who has a reputation for doing things that are just the opposite. Things are looking up and I'm hopeful.

So another year of Ramires being unable to make 5 yard passes and Mikel only making 5 yard passes. Edit - Before the 'respect' brigade jumps in, a disclaimer - love them both for what they do offer and have in the past but think it is time to inject some freshness in there along with RLC.

One thing I hope he improves on is the management of our squad players. As we saw in the past two seasons some players are more equal than others and get played unless injured, not only tiring them out quicker but also demotivating the ones that don't feature too regularly. The way we keep losing these depth players like Luis, Schurrle, Mata, Ba, Salah just places extra strain on an already small squad that probably won't see more than 2 arrivals excluding the direct departures.

Nice, so Traore is staying no matter what.

And what about what Bertrand wants? He was fed up of being the ultimate bench warmer. As far as Berty goes, the writing was on the wall much before Luis arrived -- back midway through 13/14 when Mourinho chose to put Azpi at LB over him once Ashley Cole started struggling.

I don't think 32 is that far off in today's market. Young, proven goalscorer in this league, strong, good header, good technique. It's difficult to find decent strikers.

It's not ... neither Hazard nor Diego would go for "only" 32m if they didn't have those clauses.

Palace ... doubt how good Pardew would be for him, and they have a few strikers already (Gayle, Chamakh, Murray, Campbell). On the plus side he wouldn't lack service with people like Puncheon, Zaha, Bolasie and Cabaye to feed him.

Kalas at Liverpool and Bertrand in Munich should get looked at the same way. Youth players who played their limited roles and did a job in ultra defensive setups on two of the more memorable nights in our recent history. Nothing more or less.

Do you seriously believe Chelsea signed Falcao just because JT/Cahill told Mourinho to do so?

^ Both had release clauses.