SeB

He can play on the two wings and sometimes behind the striker, exactly as Pastore

I'm not very impressed by him, he plays always the same way, he crosses quite badly and he hasn't stamina... I think the best thing would have been to take him when he was at Boro, after the U21 EC... Now it's too late, City would ask an outrageous price for him. I have never seen him perform really well against top 7 teams, he was always transparent. He is quick, technically good but I often complain when I see this kind of player who, I think, cannot use their skills wisely for the team. He is left footed and his right foot is terribly bad, making his play very predictable He is going to be 24, I don't see him crossing a level again, for me he peaked. He would have been a good substitute if we had take him 3 years ago, now he is too expensive for the what he could really bring to us. I cant help thinking he is a kind of headless chicken...

Before seeing what Torres made individually, I noticed that he had, by his numerical presence, help the team a lot in the second half of the season allowing to change the shape. He calls constently the ball even if he is not served every time After that, his seasons at Liverpool has formated him to a certain type of game, purely on the pitch where he was a lone striker, he made a lot of long runs and often on the wings, a lot of his goals came from long balls and long runs. One consequence in spite of himself of his status of THE only striker of his team changed also considerably his game for the last season and a half, I noticed he became more static and less present in the game because he hadn't enough fitness to play as before and cover the entire width of the pitch with his movements. He was fed up to carry all the weight of the success of Liverpool on his shoulders alone so that's why he decided to join a club where he wouldn't be the only striker in an average team but one of the strikers of a team which has one of the best European XI. He has to adapt to a completely different style of play, he isn't the only striker upfront anymore and he has to found complementarity with another partner (Anelka was the best), he doesn't receive the same kind of balls from his midfield. Above all he arrived in such an horrible physical form, it's impossible to regain by miracle a decent rythm of play in only 6 months, it's not as much a question of 17 games or not... 17 games are a consequence, not a real piece of evidence that he is over He took real holidays, he needed also to do a good preparation (so Chelsea brough him in a phisical preparator early July). He is going to find a decent rythm as the season comes, but allow him tim, he can't become the Torres 2008 again in only 3 weeks...

The rumour doesn't seem to be really based, but the player would be interesting. He isn't just a defensive midfielder, he has a lot of qualities, he can regain the ball and harass the adverse player but he is also able to go forward and organize, build the play, accelerate the rythm of the match with his vertical passes. He has good skills, he can dribble in the midfield and he is a very important player in his team because he helps either defensively and offensively. He has also a good mentality, although he said one day he would have finish in jail if Football didn't took such a big part of his life, he is very mature on the pitch and contrary to other players he didn't take him for he is not. He has confirmed his very good 2009/2010 this season, he is constant although he has a low period due to a lack of fitness in the end of the season (he has played nearly 100 games with his club and Selection for 2 years) He is a kind of Essien without the same enormous physical strength and ability to drill even if he is good in this two domains. Both are able to do everything on the midfield, both are modern midfielders

Fortunatly Malouda blocked his free kick against Malaysian, I will not date to see the slow motion where the ball would have ended !

But he has only 6 good months, his second part of the season was catastrophic. And on the pitch we do not need that kind of player, he isn't either a winger or a central playmaker, he wasn't exceptional in midfield... I don't know where you would play him, in what shape, whar role... ?

Without Torres we couldn't have change the shape of the team from 4-3-3 to 4-4-2 because Ancelotti didn't trust in Sturridge. With 2 strikers and a support striker converted in a winger for 3 years at least, a young striker with potential but no confidence from his manager we wouldn't went far during the second part of the season. Who knows if we would have clinch at least the 4th spot for the CL without him ? It's a global problem with Torres, his lack of form, fitness and confidence amplified by the deleterious climate at Loserpool didn't help him ; that's what he was prevented from making the difference on 2 or 3 yards... His overall moving without the ball was good. I can't think that the Torres vs ManU in February or at Copenhagen is over, give him time, it's illogical to judge on only 6 months for such a big signing...

He is not very quick and his stamina isn't as good as a true wing player's but he can play occasionally on the wing

Don't forget, footballers are taxed a big part of their heritage in France. that's why Monaco manage to get players with good reputation because in Monaco it's tax-free Even if PSG offers him a colossal amount of money, the imposition would then equal Chelsea's wages if our proposition is less consequent. Dont worry, they wont sign Berbatov, Pastore or Neymar because even if they have money, there are fucking restrictions in France ; the National Monitoring Directorate Management (DNCG) which don't allow any deficit to the clubs

Yes, his set pieces were impressive in pre-season. Nothing amazing, he has always been a great crosser. At least we won't have Anelka or Malouda taking set pieces anymore this season, even Lampard didn't kick great ones...

Now they deicided to drop Taarabt, everything is possible. I dont think Pastore would be interested, Ligue 1 is a low level compare to Premier League and Serie A ; and he would be taxed a big part of his wages. Paris has ambitions and money now, but they can't buy some general level and attractivity to the whole championship ! I think it's one again a strategy to grow the price up because now PSG has money...

A guy said that he saw Parker in a Starbucks at Cobham on Twitter, I think I cannot find a less based rumour but I continue to hope

It was simply to say that the most credible possibility was nor inspiring nor really established, the market is not full of really interesting right backs anyway

He can have one if Chelsea manage to convince the authorities that he would be useful. I dont know if you have read the article from TheChels: http://thechels.net/2011/07/what-to-make-of-rajkovic/ I think Clifford can be regarded as a midfielder, he as much quality there as we saw at Porsmouth. I'm not convinced by Van der Wiel, we would pay the same price as Bosingwa for a player without good tactical approach to the game so we would rather keep Bosingwa. There are 2 solutions to Bosingwa's problems: carry in front of him a player who could give support, as Ramires by example ; and extend his contract in order to bring him confidence. If he proves in spite of him that he hasn't the level anymore next season, we could envisage to let him go, and the advantage of having extended his contract is to get money next summer if we want to sell him. Everyone has something to win in the process of extending his contract, Bosingwa would feel supported, his performance would be better on the pitch and in case he isn't good anymore we can sell him

You are convinced by Nasri ?

He has to have more rigor to keep his wing, I personally it would be better for him to be loaned somewhere where he could play every week and coming back next season. For me he isn't ready yet

He wanted to change too much things from the start, maybe if he was given time he could have achieved more things. He had the pressure of the result and in the same time he wanted to change quite radically the way of playing from the team. He wanted to have control on Lollichon's work with Cech... He is not the only guilty part, I think we have to consider that he wanted one more striker. He could also have kept Sheva or Pizarro... Drogba had injury issues, sometimes he could not play at 100%, Scolari says that he was right not playing Drogba... It's all the more difficult to know who is right than Scolari is certainly frustrated and he can be quick to criticize . Scolari didn't speak English, he didn't manage to find the rythm and pace of English Football on an entire season, he hadn't a very big squad... He was Kenyon's choice, not necessarly Roman's But we all know how complex is the intern management of the club, there is a lot of lobbying, it's political. Scolari wanted to go against the current, he wasn't very diplomatical in his way of acting and that's why the club chose Ancelotti after him. Ancelotti and Scolari had the same issues: a ridiculous squad in number in particular the attacking compartiment, injuries etc... Carlo had success and luck on his first season, and during his second season even if he isn't without reproaches with his immobilism and his untouchables ; he kept his place because he did not make waves (but for me he should have done ones) contrary to Scolari.

Hilario made as much saves today as during the entire last season !

I add that Bosingwa was awful before January because he didn't have direct support from his right winger in front of him (he was frequently in front of the adverse winger and the left back), because of his knee surgery he lost his stamina and his defensive marks. After January and this game at Bolton where the team played in a 4-4-2 shape in second half, Bosingwa was a bit better because Ramires could help him on the flank, he could block the wing and come back defending. One of the two solutions to regain Bosingwa at his real level is to allow him a partner who would be a real winger as Zhirkov or Malouda 1 year ago, someone to combine with offensively and someone who could help him back defending. The other solution is for me to extend his contract ; because of it's expiration in 12 months I felt like he wanted to do the maximum to regain confidence from the club. By acting as it he made several mistakes. So I think if we extend his contract, he would feel more confident

The departure of Bryan English is a good thing, in France there was an interview of Pierre Hamon the French surgeon who operated Essien ; he said Bryan English didn't respect the time needed after an operation. Usually this magazine is crap, they want to be a french tabloïd... It's the first instructive thing I found on it http://www.le10sport.com/Football/Foot-Anglais/La-verite-sur-le-cas-Essien-220749692.html

He did also suffer from injuries of players around him, Lampard injured himself and Carlo put him in the middle, Malouda was one of the untouchables of Ancelotti so he has never played on the wing... He has always been a replacement solution, never yet the first choice. He is the true left winger whom Malouda isn't anymore so he deserves his chance I think the best thing to make would be signing him a new contract before November, he could only be better with confidence from the club ; thing he probably didn't have wth Ancelotti (contrary with Ramires by example)

Ramires is an atypical player because of his propensity to go forward and his physical impact characteristic of DMs... But he hasn't the tactic luggage of a holding midfielder, his game is based on energy expenditure and on his work rate, he can be everywhere during a match, his game is so. Thinking he is or he can be DM comes from his atypical mix of qualities, the what he shows on the field can't make us ask ourselves anymore I entirely rely on Mikel's ability to hold the midfield and keep the balance of the team. Ramires would be as Essien, he wouldn't help going forward and that would create space

They definitively change their mind as often as Zamparini ?!

Adam Johnson is a very overrated player, he can only perform well against low 7th place teams... Every important game he seemed to be absent. His stamina is shockingly bad, he can play 60mn maximum. He is one footed so his game is predictable, he crosses as bad as Walcott. We would rather have take him after the U21 European Championship. Now City would ask an enormous price He is a cool guy, always smiling and always laughing but we shouldn't talk about him because we have Zhirkov in our team. The Russian has so much qualities, he seems so settled in left back/CM/LW, he plays with no difficulties at 3 different places on the pitch as he had always play there. I think he has one of the best ball driving of the world, the rare moments when he could play without pain, we have seen how difficult it is to stop him when he has the ball. Zhirkov is more intelligent than Bastos, tactically Zhirkov is better, he crosses better... Usually Zhirkov isn't a player who is subject to injuries, he has a problem with his knee since he plays in England, the kind of problem which is never completely over. I'm a big fan of Zhirkov, I trust on him and his abilities. I think it would be nearly shamefull to replace him with Bastos who is a very stereorypical player, good when he accelerates on 10 yards but he is not as talented as Zhirkov. His season is not very good at Lyon... I think it's gonna be Zhirkov's season He would be the perfect signing although he signed a long term contract at Villa and he seems to love his club... He is an intelligent player which don't refuses to defend For me a perfect right winger would be a Zhirkov or Malouda (2010) right footed. For me only Valencia and Sanchez responds to this criteria... We have to find someone who can spread the game of the team, we have enough wing players playing through the centre of the field as Malouda or Anelka

Eventually I think the best would be this one, from long range it's the one who seems the best. I shouldnt have chosen the first one...