GodZola

- A very welcome and unexpected result as I couldn't see us winning there with Drogba & co starting let alone the team RDM selected so hats off to him - I bow to his superior knowledge & eat some humble pie. RDM did admit it was a risk & fortune favours the brave so fair play to him for showing some balls. - I've given Mikel a hard time on here but have always said that I will give him credit when its due, thought he had his best game for us last night for sometime so voted for him, I hope he can follow it up now & show some consistency. Recently its been Torres or Luiz as our best players both were good again, Luiz in particular, who i thought was immense - seems like another player that needed time to settle & now we are reaping the rewards. - Great result but still a lot to do - just remember Liverpool away a few seasons back 3 - 1 up after the first leg before finally going through after a see-saw game that was really nerve racking, a little calm for now as I expect a tougher encounter at home - that away goal was so crucial though.

Couldn't agree more, a definite gamble but fingers crossed..........

Going to watch it at my local whilst enjoying a pint or several, hope Drogs can turn out another one his special Euro performances but i really worry about our Midfield. Benfica have proved a very tough nut to crack at home so an away goal will be a bonus. Oh, try and keep your spirits up a little after the game (if we lose) - the post match chat after the Spurs game even made me feel depressed and we drew the game, fuck knows what it would of been like if we had lost the game! Enjoy your evening people, lets hope the lads can put a smile on our faces later, COME ON YOU BLUESSSSSSSSSSSS.

You maybe right but I havn't been convinced by Cech's performances this season & Courtois is better than Hilario & Turnbull so would make sense to bring him back, especially if there is an injury to Cech. I was 16 /17 at the time & making my way up in the game, Lee was a Striker & useful player too. I didn't know Sam or his brother I think his name was Joe? The family were from my area not sure they still are as I havn't seen Lee for atleast 20 years, whoops showing my age now!!!

Not saying that we should attack for 90 minutes, I just thought we would stand more chance of a result by playing 4-3-3 or 4-4-2 to start with (with Sturridge!) then reverting to a 4-5-1 late in the game when hopefully the damage had been done with Drogba the lone striker, you could see they were nervous & their crowd would of got on to them if we went for the jugular, as I said I just felt it was the best time to play them with our renewed confidence & their poor form. As for Sturridge, he just needs to get his head up - that's all, I like players that are selfish it shows their confidence but he just needs to make the decisions of when to go it alone as opposed to laying off to a player in a better position & that comes with experience. Are you really female? You're knowledge of football is outstanding & I mean that question in the nicest possible way! What I would give to have a girlfriend who liked football let alone Chelsea!!! The arguments I've had..........

How do you know he would be on the bench? If he is good enough to play weekin-weekout in la liga, why would he not be good enough to play in the PL? Oh by the way I believe you posted something about Sam Tillen (think he plays for your team in Iceland?) a few months back? Well its a small world cus believe it or not I played with & against his dad Lee many years back!

For me this decision sums up what has/is wrong with our club, a less than average keeper being given a contract extension when we have a brilliant keeper in Courtois who should be brought back next season to start getting familiar with the PL & who knows he could even oust Cech, also as LDN has quite rightly pointed out that we have 2 young lads who should be given experience ahead of Hilario. Nothing against Hilario - like the fella, same as Ferreira but its about time our the board started using a tiny bit of common sense by finally utilizing our youth system in favour of over paid, over aged players who are just blocking a path for young talent. Surely with FFP just around the corner it would make sense to bring in more youngsters for business reasons alone, that's not too mention the huge outlay the board have spent trying to introduce a successful youth set up!

I wholeheartedly agree with you about Sturridge - a major blunder, but what baffled me even more was that he wasn't brought on when Ramires was having a shocker?! I felt a little for Ramires as he looked lost pushed out wide. The reason why things weren't working was pretty obvious in that we had a midfield that bar a reasonable'ish performance by Mikel were rubbish, they just kept giving the ball away & I couldn't for the life of me understand why he went with 1 up front & chose Torres? Not that Torres didn't deserve a place its just Drogba is a target man & if you are going to play 1 up top it has to be Drogba - without question & if our midfield wasn't bad enough RDM brings on Essien who carried on were the other midfielders left off by constantly giving away possession, you just can't do that at this level & especially against City. For me RDM went there with the sole intention of getting a point which backfired - why not go at them with an attacking lineup? As I said their confidence was at a seasons low, ours was the opposite, they were without their best defender in Kompany so common sense tells you that this would of been the best time to play them & more pertinently we needed '3 POINTS' too! That was even more evident with Arse winning, if we don't beat Spurs on Saturday then a top 4 finish is going to be very very unlikely now & just backs up my point about going at City. We got what we deserved in the end but I thought Luiz was magnificent & imho had his best game for us, he read the game so well last night - a major positive & one that bodes well for the rest of the season.

Don't agree, the reason we lost the game was because of the negative tactics of parking the bus for most of the game but we just sat on our box as soon as we scored & that just invited trouble, we beat them at the Bridge by attacking them so didn't really understand RDM's team selection or tactics - City have been on a poor run of form & were suffering with a lack of confidence so for me were there for the taking. I do concur with you on subs & especially Sturridge not starting though.

You generally defend Kalou by having a little dig at Torres & you have been fighting Kalou's corner for sometime. Maybe a few go over the top but most are just stating what they saw from him last night & most performances with an honest opinion. The difference between the 2 players is that Torres was arguably the best in the world in his position once upon a time & Kalou is/has been average at best, Kalou only really gets stick from his own, Torres has the world & his brother on his back. Funny thing is I actually think Kalou has talent but doesn't produce it on a consistent basis - if he did then I think he could be considered for a place in the side & I've always said I would of bought Sniejder or Aguero to the club & not Torres so just to put in the picture that I'm not a blinkered Torres fan - he has so much work to do before he gets anywhere near his best, most of which are in his head. To win the league you also have to get service to your strikers which is why Drogba & Torres have a pitiful return this season.

You have been responsible for some great posts & threads on here but your love for Kalou is clearly your weakness. Now I don't rate Kalou, Mikel, Bosingwa or Maloulda but if they have a good game which ain't very often I will give them the credit they deserve & its no different with Torres - why can't fans praise him when he has put in a shift? I think you are being a tad hypocritical as you are quick to make your point about the hard done by Kalou instead of giving Torres some credit, isn't this double standards also?

Top post, the guts, fight, effort, passion and endless energy the players showed to win that game gives current fans something to take away for the rest of our life's and we will gain many more young admirers in the process. I've even had Utd and Liverpool fans say to me today that they were hooked last night, one Liverpool fan said he was cheering us like he had been a supporter for life and even said his wife got into it and she hates football - truly amazing. You jammy git FB! but well done you for being there, it was mentioned on the TV and the radio that the atmosphere was electric, infact the commentator on talksport, think they call him 'the moose' said nobody was going home and everyone was bouncing to one step beyond - fantastic evening, great result but boy am i pissed off for not being there to enjoy it.

Simply awesome, nights like this just make your hair on your neck stand up! My only regret is not being there tonight. We haven't had much to smile about this season but this performance has to get even the most negative fan to show some Chelsea looooovvvvvveeeeee!

I'm never one to start threads but I am immensely proud of our players, RDM & the fans tonight, cracking night of football & one that will live long in the memory. We probably won't win the competition but let's all enjoy the moment.......

You weren't far off fella, this formation (changed with capitals & would have Sturridge on his favoured left side) I put this up a few weeks back on a thread in the MH section so I'm not trying to look clever because Athletico Madrid play this way, its purely & simply down to the fact that we play so many defensive minded teams that we don't need 4 defenders & a holding midfielder marking 2 or less opposition. This formation will get more of our players in advanced positions that will inevitably create more opportunitys for our strikers. I would then tweak the formation against attacking teams. I quite agree we don't have the personnel that can play expansive football at this stage so we have to make do with what we have so putting the most technically gifted player at the club in Luiz as an attacking wing back instead of a position that doesn't suit his attacking instincts has got to be a win-win & with Mata being played in the hole it gives us so many more options. I have to say I much prefer this formation & I applaud Bilbao & Bielsa for their brave approach, fans that pay to watch games would get their moneys worth watching this type of football, however I can't see any manager brave enough to implement it, even though it would provide a lot of answers for them.

Whether he cost 3m or 50m its makes no difference whatsoever when you are fed scraps, I cannot disagree that he hasn't been anywhere near the player he was 2/3 seasons ago but there are fundamental reasons why he is not scoring for us, his performances haven't been half as bad as you lot suggest - heck I hope he plays shit throughout every game from now on & starts scoring with a deflection here & there, but then he would get grief for doing nothing else but score! He can't win either way! How many goals has Drogba scored this season? Hardly any, yet I don't see too many posts putting his head on the chopping block? Anelka's goal ratio was piss poor too, they can't all be bad players overnight?! Yes he has had some chances but they are very few & too far in-between, I'm pretty sure if Torres was playing for Spurs, Arsenal, Utd & perhaps City then he would be scoring maybe not at the rate he was for Liverpool but certainly more than he is scoring for us. Maybe Shearer is right he may need to move before he recaptures his best form.

Most of our games Tomo? How many of those appearances are from the bench were Torres gets 10 or 15 minutes or less, in others he gets taken off when there are other players who are having a mare? I'm up with the very best on being critical of our players performances so have no reason to cut him some slack, however when are other CF's aren't scoring either & haven't for the best part of 2 seasons then you have to look deeper than just our out form 50m striker & there lies the problem as the media & fans are too quick to judge without looking at the bigger picture. I will reiterate what I've said many times on here in that we should change the formation to an all out attacking one as most of the teams we play sit with 10 men behind the ball & hit us on the counter or a set piece, West Brom were the latest to achieve a result like this. We need to get rid of the DM role & 4 or 5 poxy defenders sat with him & play 3 centre backs with 2 wing backs flying up & down, 2 hard working midfielders in the middle & Mata infront of them orchastrating things & then 2 of our Strikers will get lots of service as we are committing more players in advanced positions. The way that Bilbao played last night is exactly how we should play against the sitting teams, my point is the likes Drogba & Torres would start to get more chances created for them instead of feeding of scraps game in game out.

Wouldn't worry about shezSHITme, he's bound to let one SLIP, a right ole RIPPER & sure to DROP ONE when we play them at the Arsemirates!

A lot don't notice though, hence my comments - just look at his performance last night as example, good movement, should of had 3 assists, worked hard, nothing spectacular but done well all the same yet he still gets the detractors with the knives out. I'm under no illusion that he is nowhere near the player he was & I maybe wrong but it looks like he has lost a yard or 2 of pace which clearly doesn't help his cause. I concur about the psychological thing but again that comes down to a lack of confidence & an extreme lack of service which is the root to most of those issues, Drogba rarely scores either, Anelka the same before he left, these are quality players albeit getting older but the same outcome - not scoring regularly. Mata & Sturridge are chipping in because they are getting the space provided for them by Drogba & Torres whilst coming from deep & wide positions, it is transparently clear that our CF problems are down to poor service, wrong formation (imo) & a distinct lack of quality. Nonetheless I wouldn't be adverse to Lakuku getting game time & more pertinently Sturridge getting his chance there, you are quite right in that if it ain't working you have to change it, maybe now with DM at the helm things may change for the better in an attacking sense & he finds a way to get them scoring again. Yeah great cross by Torres v Utd, but I thought his cross to Sturridge last night was even better, believe me that is far harder to execute keeping the ball low & away from the keeper & oncoming defenders, he had to hit with pace & put it right on Danny's toe - quality.

Apologies to those that do see his work off the ball & his contribution other than scoring - I was pointing a finger at the post on the match thread & to the many on here that persist on the negative side because he is not scoring. He needs a quality pass like the ones he supplied for Sturridge & Mata to get him scoring again. A tap in or lucky deflection will do, sometimes all it needs. I was at the Bridge in the home game against Birmingham & his movement was superb, I lost count the amount times he could of been played in but the likes of Meireles & Mikel just didn't see it & just played safe, Alonso was the man for Torres, he needs a quality player behind who can see that pass. The jury is still out off course but a confident Torres could just make some people eat a very large slice!

I'm glad someone else noticed, it seems I'm watching a totally different game to most on here most of the time. He could of had 3 assists with the chance Mata had in the opening few minutes. His confidence is still shot though but this performance will go a long way in restoring it.

1 - The special one with Gianfranco given a coaching role. 2. David Moyes & ditto franco above. Guardiola won't come, Rafa could of been given it now but hasn't so thankfully he is out & there is no other manager apart from the above 2 that I would want. ROMAN BRING BACK JOSE AND LET HIM BUILD A DYNASTY THAT HE THREATENED TO DO BEFORE WITH TOTAL CONTROL OVER FOOTBALLING MATTERS - FROM TOP TO BOTTOM WITH ABSOLUTELY NO INTERFERENCE. Yep my monies on a Jose return. Oh best wishes to AVB, thanks for bringing on Sturridge & the quality signings of Romeu & Mata, wish you every success at your new job at Inter Milan.

^^^ Ramires coming back from injury, prob needs the game, good point about Mata but we need some quality on the pitch & this is our only chance of silverware in all honesty, which is why I'm a little bemused in the team selection.

When I saw this team selection I thought it was April the 1st!!! The only thing I can think of is DM is picking this side is because he is resting the so called big game players to keep them fresh for the league (finish in top 4) & prob more pertinently the upcoming fixture against Napoli. Our midfield has been poor all season, Meireles & Mikel doesn't make sense to me? Glad Bertrand is in though & will be interested in how Torres gets fed tonight.

Tick tock..............