Tomo

We have class players (Luiz, Rami, Danny, Mata) who can lead us into a new era but the cannot do it all on their own. The fact is clear Dider, Lamps, Malouda and to an extreme lesser extent Terry and Cole are not what they were and need to be reduced to squad players. Yes i know JT has done well this season but we don't want to end up in a Carragher situation in a couple of years time. Next season we need to build around these players. Cech/Courtious Hutchinson/Ivanovic Luiz Bertrand Romeu Ramires Mata Sturridge Bring in players that suit our TEAM and can play with those players. Get rid of any player that isn't prepared to toe in line and i include Lamps and Didier in that (no player is bigger than this club).

Or maybe he just see's that their not ready. Even Fergie hesistated bringing his on against Blackburn and didn't do it until their was nothing less to lose (when they were losing 3-2).

Can you blame Roman for not thinking long term when 90% of Chelsea fans dont?

Im my personal opinion we should be going back to the type of signing's we made in the build up to the 3 succesful Jose Mourinho years. Young, hungry,players who are not YET worldclass but are more than likely to become that or have huge potential to be. Look at our starting XI in 2004/2005 ---------------------Cech---------------------- Ferreira----Carvalho---Terrry-----Gallas --------------------Makelele------------------ -------------Tiago------------Lampard------ Duff------------------------------------Robben --------------Drogba/Gudjohnsen----------- Back in 2004 none of them bar Makelele were renound world class players since then Drogba, Robben, Lampard, Terry, Ricky and Cech have turned into just that but the point was at the time they weren't. While people reconised we were a very good team going places, nobody gave us a prayer of stopping Arsenal who were ozzing with confidence off the back of a unbeaten run with Vieira, Pires and Henry at their peak and in the form of their lives. Also in the summer of 2004 we shown the door to the "ageing" players. Desailly, Hasselbaink, Stanic and Petit. Desailly and Jimmy were awesome for us but they were past their peak and neither cut up any treas in 03/04. Stanic was ok for us nothing more, nothing less and while Petit was a good players for Arsenal he was useless for us. We need to do what we did that summer ditch the sentiment and say goodbye to Malouda, Drogba (sorry but no players bigger than the club), Bosingwa, Kalou, maybe even Mikel and (if he isn't prepared to accept a lesser role) Lampard. Now Cech for me is the same position as Cudicini was in 03/04, no real competition for the first team place. Cudicini was fantastic the 2 season's previous and i think the fact that Ed De Geoy was good enough to step in if Carlo lost form helped that in 03/04 with no compeition after Ed left he dipped a bit. Ranieri responded by pre signing Petr Cech for 04/05 to challenge Cudicini and i know the plan for Courtious was to loan him out for 3 season's but i think next summer we need to bring him back to give Cech competition that Hilario and Turnbull cant. Im not saying Courtious should completely take over number 1 the same way Cech did 8 years ago but he needs a quality keeper breathing down his neck. Not just in goal we need 2 quality players in each position that will push the other one hard if their form drops. Too much complacency is this current squad. We had that in the Jose years and it showed. Now to the players we should be signing, no marquee signing's. Now you saw in the 04/05 team we had a mix of potential world class players with players (Robben, Carvalho) with players with good teamwork values (Duff, Paulo). Damien Duff for example never was world class but slotted into the team perfectly. Next season we need to base the side on the current young, potentially world class players and build around. Aswell as not world class but fit perfectly in our team (IE Duff). ----------------------------Courtious/Cech------------------ Ivanovic/Hutchinson------Luiz-------?????----Bertrand -----------------------------------Romeu--------------------- -------------------------Ramires---------?????------------- ????-----------------------------------------------------Mata -----------------------------Sturridge/????------------------ While i love JT and he will forever be a legend at this club we can't base the defence around him anymore, we need to sign a proven borderline world class CB to play alongside David Luiz. JT will still be a vital memeber of the squad but we really don't want to get ourself's into a Liverpool-Carragher situation here. We need to build around those current players IMO for next season, aswell as giving Josh and Chalaboh more and some games respectively.Maybe Josh will have a Wilshere style blinder at Bolton and come and slot in that vacant role alongside Ramires. But basically for next season we need to build a TEAM that will work together, we sign players (Duff like) that would fit into the system not Kaka like marquee signing's because they have bite us in the ass to many times. Without trying to sound like a Scouser if we build around those players mentioned with young, hungry talent and get rid of the ageing deadwood we could have a very strong season next time round if we get it right. Click here to view the article

Yup lets sack him and give Malouda, Bosingwa and co another chance infact lets take Anelka off the transfer list infact lets go the whole way BRING BACK SCOLARI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Should have come on instead of Bosingwa.

I can't really see AVB getting sacked any time soon. Before Scolari and Ancelotti got the chop their was rumours about them being on borrowed time long before they got sacked. Their was speculation about Jose's future for all of 06/07 and had we won the CL that year he would have probally resinged on the spot. Their has been no noises about Roman losing patience with AVB.

Maybe if Courtious is going on loan again, a expierenced PL keeper on a short contract? Sorenson, Jaskellinen, Harper maybe?

It's not about comparing them but if we choose Hiddink over AVB in the summer and was in the same position we are now it doesn't take a genius to work out that alot of fans would be berating the board for overlooking "young and hungry AVB".

All AVB has to do to be the Messiah round here again is get himself sacked while Hiddink comes in and still struggles with this squad.

Back in 2004 Carlo Cudicini was having a underwhelming season and Ranieri responded by pre signing Petr Cech has competition, well that was the plan but Cech ended up taking his place straight away. We have to bring Courtious back next summer to push Cech hard for the first team place.

Got it wrong the goal was much diferent than what i thought it was. Even so it wasn't THAT HUGE a mistake, the way that twat Gale went on you would think he was the first player in the history of football to lose a man its ridicolous.

Wasnt Luiz up against Agbonlahor and Petrov? If thats the case he stayed making Petrov then Agbonlahor would have scored himself no?

I wonder what would have happened had Hiddink came back and we were in the same position as we are now. I could just imagine the responses "Hiddink is the same as Carlo, too stubborn to change things" "overrated by four good months in the job before, we should have got the young, hungry AVB while we had the chance" and so on.

With Ancelotti when his teams click they are a joy to watch, Stoke 7-0 was the best ive ever seen us play. But last season he did let the grass grow under his feet a bit, and why did he name lineups in the press conference? straight away gave managers the upper hand. I did want him to get this season to turn it around but he didn;t get the chance and whether he would have and whether we would have done better this season then what we are right now well i guess were never know.

I find this funny. Last season over half this forum were slagging Carlo off saying he is past it and fluked the double and that AVB is the man we need to guide us into a new era. Now under AVB things are not going entirely to plan Carlo is now the messiah.

As much as i wanted him to have a chance to turn it around, to say Carlo had no blame for last season's calamity is like saying West Ham and Millwall like eachother.

I wouldn't go that far just yet.

Well said, we were in a similar position last season and that expierence of clawing it back the players have WILL help us. The "mental strength" side of sport is under-rated, Tottenham and Arsenal have fell with that hurdle many times and we have profited and overhauled them and i believe we will do again. Last season when we were 5th i said we were going to finish 2nd and im saying now we will finish 3rd.

Its obvious shonx forgot the not But he is right tho football discusions, debates, arguments whatever should never end up slagging each other off on a personal level. for example - i don't often agree with HD123 but i have never degraded him personally.

The squad he took over from Hughes were more than capableof a top 4 finish but he failed, they gave him time now look their top with a game in hand having played all the best teams (bar Arsenal) away and with them all to come at home.

Look at what happened with Porto when he had the right players. And before you start with it's only the Portuguese league bolax if going unbeaten is so easy why was that the first time Porto have ever done it? if breaking the points record was so easy why has no other manager (including Mourinho or Bobby Robson) do the same when they were managers in that league? Infact these were the records he smashed for Porto? Now im sorry but breaking all those records in one season (records Mourinho or Bobby Robson could not even touch) is no fluke. Robson saw something special in him but i suppose we know more than the great man do we? He had the right players at Porto and look what happened, whats to say when "his" right players come in he can't do the same with us? Imagine if we sacked him and he went to another club (who were more stable) and replicated his Porto success, while we are stuck giving Malouda and co another chance under yet another new manager? just picture that.

We again go into a match against Wolves on a bad run and needing a tonic and more so a statement from AVB with his lineup. Last time (against Wolves at SB) he did so, introducing Romeu, playing Luiz and dropping Lampard and Bosingwa he is going to need to make a similar statement again and drop as many of the current underperforming "superstars" as possible. So the team. Petr Cech - picks itself, he needs competition. Sam Hutchinson - Paulo is probally nakered now and we started going to pot as soon as Bossy came on, time for some blue blood on the right hand side. David Luiz - Best player today by a country mile, he MAYBE could/should whatever have done better for the second goal but was the only player showing a real sense of urgency and commitment. Gary Cahill - Terry was not great today at-all if we can get Cahill in tommorow i say play him at Molineaux and show JT that his place is far from safe. Ashley Cole - Normally i'd say Betrand but giving 2 young fullback their full PL debut at the same time is a big ask. Oriol Romeu - I would say Mikel if he wasn't injured as Oriol needs a rest, if only Conor Clifford wasn't out on loan. Ramires - picks itself Florent Malouda - He played well against Fulham and will be fresh after not playing today.Lamps and Meireles have been below par lately. Dan Sturridge and Juan Mata - Although they were awful today who can fill in? Krasic or even better Hazard is needed to compete with them sharpish. Fernando Torres - Drogba has been starting and living off that Valencia game for far too long, Torres looked lively when he came on time to give him a start. IMHO this HAS to be the team we go to Molineux with. thoughts?

Manchester United were in a similar position squad wise to us in 2001/2002 and were 9th at this stage. We can't blame AVB he is trying to do a rebuilding job that really should have been started the second we touched down from Moscow.

We sack AVB this will happen. Hiddink will come in temporarily again, then next season the new manager will want to "aceess" our deadwood and give them another chance. Great idea.