Tomo

Your right about that one, i nearly chocked on my dinner when i saw someone say he makes a lot of mistakes these days.

While i agree with your sentiments, for aslong as both on our books, their is going to be debate on who is the long term number 1 we can't really get away from the fact that shortly we are going to have to decide on which world class keeper is playing for the immediate and long term future.

He's keeping out the fangirls favorite De Bruyne, what do you expect?

Don't get too overjoyed, their's another one in a few weeks.

That wasn't the case with Ross Turnbull, poor keepers will instinctively make the defense more cautious knowing their is an error in the keeper. Also keepers that are good behind poor defenses and usually not as good when they have a good defense, Shay Given the perfect example.

Thankfully.

Either or. The World Cup is a knockout competition, if your in it you have a chance.

You could have Maldini and Beckenbauer in their prime at centre back and if the keepers dodgy you will still concede. If the keeper isn't good then it will lead to the defense being nervous knowing their is an error in the keeper. Is it any coincidence that Leti have turned into a great defensive side since Courtois has turned up? because they weren't before that when Asenjo was in goal. Chelsea's defense with JT and Ricky in their prime is lauded the same way United with Rio and Vidic in their prime were, but they wouldn't have been half as good without the world class keeper's they had behind them. We set the record for least goals conceded in a top flight season with 15, then the next season we got the joint 3rd highest i think with only 22 shipped in 38, yet the season after when Cech was injured the previous solid defense turned to jelly when Hilario was behind them, coincidence? i think not. I agree that Cech is under-rated, even by our own fans, but to put Courtois record down solely to the defense is unfair, very unfair. To answer your question no he is not over-rated, i meet a decent number of Spaniard's when i went to central America (most of them Barca/Madrid fans) and each and every one of them couldn't stop waxing lyrical's when i asked them about how good Courtois is. Their is the phrase that keeper are only as good as their defense, that is just as applicable the other way round, if not more so. We have a tough decision next summer, and luckily we have the best manager in the world making it.

As painful as it was i think it was the right time, but this isn't the time or place to go into detail. He will be back as a club ambassador soon enough, that is for sure.

Every time he has entered the PL as a manager/coach his teams have been relegated, his punditry goes a long way to explaining why.

One moment i will never forget regarding Andy Gray is his obvious misery when Frank Lampard made it 2-0 at Anfield and the title was as good as heading back to Stamford Bridge.

Who has read his portrait of a hero book that was written by John McShane? That got me through some tough night's out in the sticks in Nicaragua living with a family that couldn't speak a word of English. He had a really, really tough childhood, which goes a long way to explaining his strong mentality and why he invested so much in that hospital in the Ivory Coast.

As their are member's from multiple countries, i would be interested in getting perspective from around the globe about this issue. I was having this debate with two of my mates during the England match (one of them a fellow Chelsea supporter) and one asked me Champions League with Chelsea or World Cup with England? and i without hesitation said the former, both looked at me with disgust, wondering how i can say that, and my answer was simple. Chelsea is the club i support, the club that 'choose me' so to speak, i spend the days/weeks before Chelsea game's mulling and fretting about the games, i didn't give England's do or die qualifayer that much of a thought, sort of a what will be will be. I follow England in the same way i do Exeter (the closest professional club to where i live), that i would follow the games and rather they win than lose, but won't lose much sleep either way. I enjoyed seeing Exeter flying high in league one and threatening promotion to the Championship, but im not losing any sleep on them being back in League Two. I never have, nor will get emotionally involved in either like i do Chelsea, ofcourse i would love England to win the World Cup or Exeter to get as high as possible, but Chelsea is the club i go through dodgy steam after dodgy stream to watch, save for months to go to SB, and mull for days on end when we lose. When England lose im a bit disappointed but within half an hour my full attention is back on Chelsea and their next game. That would never, ever happen the other way round. When i watch England or Exeter im like Rafa motionless and happy inside when they score but never really show it, when i watch Chelsea im a raving lunatic in the AVB mould. Supporting England feels like a job that im obliged to do, supporting Chelsea feels like a passion that i WANT to do. I just can't get even a flicker of the passion watching England than i do Chelsea, ive even tried but it just doesn't happen. What's every one else views on club vs country?

For people who watched him regularly at Levekusen? how did he do when he got games up front? If our forwards carry on not scoring, then could it be worth a try? will he play like a forward or a midfielder playing the false 9? if it's the latter then i don't want him to ever play up front. I know he played up strike at OT, but that's hardly a fair game to make any real judgement on.

De Bruyne needs to look at Andros Townsend and follow his example. Play well enough and you will be on the team sheet regardless of who you are competing with.

To quote a Swansea fan (who was one of the supporters who took over the club and saved them from financial meltdown) said "to run a successful football club you need to let your head rule your heart". Whatever decision is made next summer, it needs to be made for the right reason's, footballing reason's. If Mourinho see's Courtois as the man going forward, then he has my backing. The last big decision regarding goalkeepers at Chelsea didn't go to badly, did it?

Please............................ just don't.

He is wanted by Barcelona, he won't be going out on loan again.

Cardiff have sacked their head scout and replaced him with a 23 year old work experience student and we think we have it hard with manager changes?

There will be an Ivanovic vs Azpilicueta one next Followed by Eto'o vs Torres.

There often in with Mirallas, Piennar and sometimes Naismith, experienced players who have been around the block, especially the latter two. Unless Mata and Willian started every single match, he wouldn't get similar numbers here in terms of experience playing close to him I think Old Trafford was a good example when our front 4 were all 22, while all are talented to say they showed they still have a bit to learn was an understatement. I think Brazil will find it tough in the world cup, because their hopes are mainly on Oscar and Neymar, two incredibly young but talented shoulders, i would have fancied their chances more if they hosted it in 2006 when they had Dinho and Kaka in their pomp. I think the next WC is Argentina's personally,Messi will light up the world cup and truly put his name on the wall of greatness in Brazil, if their's ever something written in the stars, it's that.

Thankgod, i thought for a while i was the only one who thought Subotic was better.

Like @hjperdeath, said, i think the loan decision had a lot to do with the relative youth off our attacking mid's, an angle that no one has really covered. If we had our 09/10 squad now (at the age they were then too) Lukaku would have stayed, rotated/backed up Drogba and learned a lot, but what will he learn from players who are in the learning process as-well? Experience is a under rated term in football, i think it was one of the reason's Willian was brought, because before then we were a Mata injury away to relying on 22 year old's in our key position.

If Jose wants a high pressing game, then every single attacking player is going to have to play their part, as great a player as Mata unquestionably is, Jose is not going to scrap his plan to accommodate one player. Del Bosque doesn't do it so why should Jose? speaking of Del Bosque, maybe with more pressing to his game, Mata might actually play more games for Spain, as they play with high pressing like we are intending to do. If a few less goals and assist's for Mata coincide with the team as a whole improving and getting better results, then quite frankly that's fine. The club/team come before any one player.

There seems to be some sort of general fetish for the more flashy fullback, apart from running in a straight line Bosingwa was vastly inferior to Ivanovic in every single aspect, yet the forum i was on back in 2010, there was almost widespread calls for Bossy to get his place straight back. Azpilicueta is clearly head and shoulders above Bosingwa, which is probably why he has got all this hype because we suffered with Bosingwa for so long it almost felt a relieve seeing a competent RB as competition for Ivan.