Tomo

Indeed I dread facing his sides, wasn't happy atall when he went to WBA knowing we were going there on the second last game, thankfully nothings riding on this.

Doubt that, Tony Pulis has a habit of taking scalps of the big boys and with us potentially playing 2-3 youngster's I have no doubt he will be smelling blood here aswell.

If were playing all those youth player's I can see us getting beat, Tony Pulis sides away from home are tough at the best of times and I have said before im so glad nothing is riding on this one. But in the grand scheme of thing's, losing this doesn't matter too much bar the disappointment of not getting to 90 point's.

Let's not exaggerate

I wonder if Mou is planning on giving Beeney a token 20 minutes like he did with Pigdely vs Charlton in 05?

Neither were perfect, both had areas that needed improving, but this time I can see the areas getting fixed properly. 2010 I thought at times in the season there was signs the squad needed refreshing some time soon but our storming last 3 games covered that up.

That was such a roller coaster season, I think every time we gained an 3 or more point advantage we dropped point's the next week to let United back in it, so frustrating.

Im guessing you are all happy with Dicks work so far?

I agree to an extent but I also maintain that in no way Rafa should have slid down the table like he did. We had the same problem in 10/11.

Fair enough but I think of it in another way.Barca he took over a group of really good individuals but as a team were a bit of a mess, to transform them into arguably the best team of all time was for me a brilliant achievement. At Bayern he has underachieved in Europe without a doubt, but I think he has actually done well to maintain their domestic dominance, taking over a treble winning team may sound easy on paper but it's not, he had to go in there and try to motivate a bunch of well fed player's who have just won the lot to not only go again but buy into new ideas, look at Rafa at Inter, it ain't as easy as it sounds. I can't stand the guy, but for me he is defiantly top bracket.

I so so hope United go down the galatico route. If they do then they will have the same problems Madrid have had all these years and that mixed with Jose as our manager for me would more than make up for any financial disadvantage we have compared to them in FFP era.

This season sums Carlo as a manager in one, when thing's are going great everything is really really great, stick him in a crisis or a sticky situation however and he is clueless.Look at the tactical tweak Jose made when losing to Leicester, Ancelotti would have done nothing and hoped it worked itself out (which was the story of our season in 10/11). Im going to be controversial and say Ancelotti is on a similar level to Rafa, average league record but partial to pulling the rabbit out of the hat in cups, both are light years behind Jose, Pep, Fergie and all the other great manager's before them.

I seem to be alone in the fact I think Azpi is better defensively as a left back, and I think his lack of forward play is more instructions than him being incapable, whenhe has gone forward he has contributed to some goals, prime example Diego Costas winner at Anfield.I just think the biggest clue is that we seem to be linked with right backs and not left backs (Cresswell aside but he will clearly be nothing beyond cover if we get him) like Clyne and Stones (who can play RB) is a clear indication that Cesar has left back on lock down unless he has a catastrophic dip in form.

Don't think he can now so ill play Tibo vs Liverpool and Cech in the last two.Maybe he will come back in his twilight years and try to get the number he needs.

Fair enough but either way RDMs sacking whenever it came was always going to lead to the media clichés like "how can you sack a CL winning manager" with no context to how the full time job is almost a completely different task to what he faced in his interim spell.

We have nothing to play for so should be able to do what we want and in the last three games field whatever team we like within reason. We have done our job not our fault other's ain't done their's.

Everton will at the least want the Lukaku money back I would imagine.

Anyone putting Azpi back to the right save it, he isn't getting moved from LB anytime soon.

Roman has never been one to care about outside perception, he does what he believes is best for the club. Infact, my perspective on RDM getting the full time gig was Roman was thinking of the emotional side especially for us the fans, if he ran us purely like a business I reckon he would have made that controversial RDM-Rafa change a matter of days after Munich. That alone showed Roman cared about our thoughts, imagine being on such a high after Munich only for Rafa to be appointed days later? Would have completely destroyed our 'summer in the sun'.

He hasn't all season tho, the first half of the season he was complete rubbish and if he wins their POTS it says more about Liverpools season than it does his. One of the most overrated player's I have seen, he is a flashy one in five player that makes Joe Cole look like the model of consistency.

Just to add further on what Muzchap said, I don't think any Chelsea fan doesn't rate the work he did in his interim spell, to rally a broken squad together and pull off two cup's (one of them being the one we have been desperately trying to get for almost a decade) was absolutely incredible work and I still to this day defend him against the people who say he just sat there and let the player's take charge.However the full time job was a completely different kettle off fish and in my opinion was a bit too much for him, which is a shame because if you go back to my post's in the summer of 2012 there was no one who wanted it to work more than me. However his legendary status at this football club will never ever be in question, his work in bringing big ears to Stamford Bridge puts him up there with Zola for me.

There's a general consensus he will go next to Matic and Cesc will go further up. Now that may be true for the big games but against the lesser sides I can see Cesc still dictating from deep and Pogba playing further up.

Im not sure I agree, while this Barca are a lot more exciting the sheer amount of control on games the 2011 side had was borderline illegal. In midfield is where the game will be won, 2011 Busquets, Xavi and 2011 Iniesta >>>>> current Busquets, Rakitic and current Iniesta.

Anyone feel a bit sorry for Ash? He comes in just as our first dominant spell ends and leaves just as we look very likely begin a new one. We were a successful cup team with Cole here which isn't bad by any stretch of the imagination but there must be a part of him that wishes he was here when we were indisputably the best team in 2005 and again now because let's be honest a prime Ashley Cole would walk into this team and that one.

I looked at the table in 04-05 then 05-06 and we got 95 then 91 points, didn't realise it at the time but the only difference between the two sides point's wise was the results after we lifted the title. We were on 91 point's both times we had the party at The Bridge but in 2005 we picked up four point's in the games after compared to none in 2006. Which in a way kind of strengthens the argument to try and get 9 point's in the next 3 games, if this team want to be compared to those two in years to come, they will probably atleast have to hit the late 80s.