Tomo

Zouma can have his minutes in the FA Cup and build from there, until fitness, form or injury dictates otherwise we need to stick to the same team in the league.

Cesc in for Matic and that's it, we don't have another league match for 9 days, there is no need for needless rotation.

Drogba was supposedly never going to match up to Hasselbaink, Hasselbaink was supposedly never going to match up to Flo. How about we reserve judgement until Costa leaves?

We do have some fans who are overly passionate and while that is by no means a bad thing it can lead to them acting first and thinking logically later. Not just in this case, but with the "rats" and booing our own players after Jose left.

While it would be tough without him, we already have a seven point league with a manager who considers league football the bread and butter (so much so he prioritized a points record over a European final in his own stadium) im sorry but this notion that we are in serious danger of getting caught is laughable (Also lets not forget he won a title unbeaten with Vucinic, Quagliarella, Borriello, Matri and a over the hill Del Piero as his strike options). Yes it can happen and it's by no means over till mathematically certain, but ill put it another way, if we were 7 points behind an Antonio Conte team would you give us much chance of catching them? I certainly wouldn't.

Why wingback? his attacking qualities are nowhere near the required standard for that position. His best chance of making it in a 3-4-3 would be LCB.

http://forums.bluemoon-mcfc.co.uk/threads/the-obsession-with-other-teams-raising-their-game-against-us.326383/ That's funny because similar is said here

Wimmer and Alderweireld have a good partnership, so can't see him being a big miss sadly. If it was Alderweireld that was out on the other hand...............

Not bad? its daylight robbery and makes the Oscar deal look like a rip off.

So do i when i look at it from a paranoid fan POV, but i try to flip it and imagine us 7 points behind a team managed by Conte and thed be no way i could think of a way back. If City beat Spurs and we get a result at Anfield we have half a hand on it even this early in my opinion. We have got it good as far as that is concerned, it looks like its going to be a four way battle to avoid the drop, we have all four of them at home and three of them before April.

We have to win the league from here, we are on course beat our 2005 points record. Ofcourse im not expecting that to happen im just emphasising what a good position we are in. The only way it can sort of be passed off as anything other than bottling is if we get to late 80s and City, Liverpool or Spurs have a mad run now and get more. As for the coming fixtures in my opinion we should be looking at winning all bar Anfield right uptill the City game, won't be easy but with Antonios league mentality its certainly doable.

We may be 36 ahead but sending in that team against them would be taking the piss and I would 99.9% guarantee Hull would win if we rocked up with that team.

Hull have a cup semi occupying there minds and the smallest squad in PL history, if we blow this we deserve to be caught.

Under Jose he played DM when Maka was not playing, when he was Mikel played further forward. It was Scolari that turned Mikel into a full time DM.

Ofcourse stats arent everything but either way, how many players would be that high up in any positive stat despite playing through injury/mental exhaustion and the whole team bar one being bad? I don't think anyone else in the prem would that is for certain. Of course he does have genuine average games and you could argue he does more than his talent should but he also has many games that dont look great in live time, but actually are, then of course he has his games were he is touched by God which are very much obvious. As for the stat, it was posted on here about January time last year, I quoted it so will be on my history somewhere.

Funny thing is, Suarez was criticised for similar (pre 13/14). Hazard's 'bad' games he still offers a lot and that's what is the signs of a great player. Last season in January he was in the top seven for chances created, yeah that wasn't a typo, last season when he and the team were in the worst form of their lives also many times i have thought Hazard has had a bad game on the face of it then looked at the stats and it turned out he was actually the best player on the pitch in terms of key passes, key dribbles and chances created. Like i remember the days SWP and Lennon looked like they were having a good game because they skinned the full back a couple of times but in reality were having a shocker, it's the opposite with Hazard, he often looks like he is not playing well when actually, he is!!!!! Im sorry and i have never said this before, but what a weird and strange post, i swear we are the only set of fans in the world so relaxed about the prospect of losing our best players.

If we gave every manager full control from the off Drogba would have replaced by Adriano, just saying.

He was given a pecific task in a one off game playing cautious tactics, doesn't mean he will make a full time CM. Infact i have a feeling Zouma will be Conte's Mata, not sure he fits this system atall.

Id rather bring back Torres.

That team are on another level due to the support players, the actual spine of the sides is closer than people think. If we keep evolving in the windows we have the potential to match our 04-10 squads.

Anfield is the worrying one, we should have enough to do Arsenal at home and i fancy us to get a point at Old Trafford, City at home god knows. If we keep up the consistency vs the lesser sides 5 points should do us in these games.

Tonight in isolation though he was actually the better out of him and Kante who had an off night especially in possession but both were bullied by Dembele and Waynama. The long run i think we need to do better, hopefully Kessie is as good as made out. If only Cesc had athleticism........

We still have a bit of a soft centre in big games which we need to improve on in next two windows. Alonso has been the ultimate stop gap but going forward we need more quality in that area.

I don't think we will be rattled, we have recovered from so many adverse positions under Conte i can't see it having that bad an effect if they score early.

They have a top defense and a striker who scores almost a goal a game (atleast in Autumn and winter time) , you don't need to be particularly great to get points when you have those two things. Although i do agree that some go ott in fear of them.