EskWeston

As much as i think Aguero is the perfect signing for us, i am resigned now to it not happening. I think the days of us making big name signings are over, we are now in the business of creating them.

Exactly the reason why it never should happen, and probably won't happen also... I still feel now that any signings we make will be in the mould of Matic and Sturridge, young cheap and massive potential.

There will be ways around it for sure, but what they are doing is to keep the established elite at the top!! It looks like the Premiership are set to follow suit so this will be the last time we will see anyone truly have a go at taking on the top 4.

Was always going to happen, i don't think anyone will be going to Real Madrid this summer and certainly not Ashley Cole and Essien...

Lol, that cup is Massive!!!! Sam Walker is looking to be a real talent between the sticks. With him and Delac on board we have 2 very good young keepers

Yes that would generally be the case, although i am not sure if the youth friendly games will be open to the public....

The final whistle has blown on Chelsea match action for the season with even more silverware won. A team of young Blues were victorious in the Copa Amsterdam Under 19 tournament played over three days in Holland and with international call-ups and injuries cutting significantly the number of players available, it was a sign of strength-in-depth in the junior ranks. Major clubs from Europe and South and Central America were represented and in the first group game, a Chelsea side that was predominantly a youth team beat Chivas Guadalajara 2-0 with goals from Ben Gordon and Daniel Philliskirk. Botafogo of Brazil were then defeated in the last minute by a goal from guest player Aleksander Trajkovski, guaranteeing a place in the semi-final. The squad was rotated for the third group game which was lost 1-0 to AZ Alkmaar of Holland. The semi-final presented the tough challenge of playing Ajax in Amsterdam. The tournament was held in the city's Olympisch Stadion which is that club's former home. Chelsea won 1-0 thanks to a Billy Clifford goal and Sevilla knocked out another Dutch team, AZ, in the other semi. Following a final against the Spaniards that ended goalless, the first 13 takers in the penalty shoot-out kept their nerve, but then Sam Walker (pictured) saved to give Chelsea victory 7-6 on penalties. Walker, the keeper for the recent FA Youth Cup triumph, won best goalkeeper of the tournament and Chelsea centre-back Rohan Ince won player of the tournament. 'It has rounded off a fantastic season for the club at all levels,' reports reserve team manager Steve Holland. 'It is a tournament we look back on with a great deal of satisfaction because it doesn't just highlight the fact we have talented young players at the club, we knew that anyway by the lads that made their first-team debuts this year and the success of the youth team, it also shows what depth we have. 'We were without 13 players who could have been available to us and to enter a tournament of this standing without players like Fabio Borini, Gael Kakuta, Jacob Mellis, Josh McEachran, Conor Clifford, Jacop Sala, Jeffrey Bruma and Danny Mills Pappoe and still win is great testament to the strength that we have. 'Billy Clifford did very well,' Holland adds. 'He played mainly at full-back for the youth team in the Youth Cup but with Conor Clifford, McEachran and Sala away on international duty, Billy moved into midfield and scored the vital winner in the semi. 'The cup we won is huge. It takes two people to lift it an inch off the ground!' Source: Chelsea FC

A programme of pre-season fixtures for players below the first-team squad has been arranged, including reserve team games at Crawley, Wycombe and Woking. Steve Holland will be taking his squad of reserve team players to those clubs on the following dates: Saturday 24 July Crawley Town Kick-off 3.00 pm Broadfield Stadium Thursday 29 July Wycombe Wanderers Kick-off 7.45 pm Adams Park Wednesday 4 August Woking Kick-off 7.30 pm Kingfield Stadium The youth team also have matches arranged. The Under 18s' pre-season schedule is as follows: Saturday 17 July Plymouth Argyle Kick-off 2.00pm Cobham Saturday 24 July Brentford Kick-off 11.00 am Cobham Friday 30 July Arsenal Kick-off TBC Away Saturday 7 August Wycombe Wanderers Kick-off 11.00 am Cobham Saturday 14 August Wolverhampton Wanderers Kick-off 12.00 noon Cobham The Under 18 Premier Academy League season starts on Saturday 21 August. Source: Chelsea FC

Jack Cork put in some brilliant performances for Burnley, Premiership football is definately not a step too much for him. Would rather both players got the chance to push through than sign someone like Benayoun, we might as well keep Ballack, Belletti and Deco if that is the route we are going down.

Nemanja Matic? Jack Cork? Benayoun's wages wouldn't be that cheap, and it is another 30 year old tied intoa contract.

Now this would be a very decent signing. With David Villa joining Barca there is every chance he could look to move on and see us as a good chance of regular football.

We certainly shouldn't be looking to sign players who are around 30, and doubly so for squad players. I see no sense in this transfer at all.....

A video i have put together of Connor Clifford:

Chelsea will reportedly attempt to sign Barcelona youngster Bojan this summer. Carlo Ancelotti is looking to spend big in order to bring some more young talent to Stamford Bridge and has earmarked a move for the Spanish international.Pepe Guardiola has attempted to inject more youth into his Nou Camp side but whereas the likes of Pedro and Sergio Busquets have been handed more first team football this season 19 year old Bojan has found his time in the starting eleven limited. With the arrival of David Villa and emergence of Pedro, the teenager may well feel the time is right to leave the Catalan giants even though he is much loved by the clubs fans he could well see a move to the Premier League as the best way to ensure his career progression is not stuttered warming the bench. Giovani dos Santos felt the need to make a similar move two years ago, and whilst his time in the Premier League was problematic, Bojan is a cut above the Mexican and could be ready to jump straight into the Chelsea first team if he did indeed make such a move. Given that Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka are both over 30 years of age and with Daniel Sturridge still very rough around the edges a move for the young striker may well make a great deal of sense. Source: Caughtoffside.com

Chelsea and Arsenal are weighing up a summer bid for Barcelona's exciting teenage playmaker Gai Assulin.The Israeli is struggling for first team opportunities with the Catalan giants, and is available on a free transfer. The attacking midfielder has been likened in some quarters to a young Lionel Messi, and the Spanish newspaper Sport are reporting he could me making a move to England. Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has signed players from the Barcelona youth team before, including Fran Merida and Cesc Fabregas. Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti is expected to bring in a host of young players into the first team squad next season. Even though the Blues won the Premier League and FA Cup, it is believed they will need to strengthen their squad in order to win the Champions League. Source: Daily Mail

Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun has caused a combination of outrage and shock on Merseyside by an apparent public declaration that he wants to quit Anfield for Stamford Bridge. Benayoun is quoted in the Daily Mail as saying: "Ancelotti wants me for next season and now everything depends on Liverpool. Chelsea will have to pay some £6 million but I believe that in the end I'll be moving there." That has sparked a combustible reaction in the Red half of Merseyside, with Liverpool fans confused whether the comment is factual or not and totally surprised by it. Soccernet last week broke the news that Chelsea were considering a move for the Israeli captain. That, too, provoked disbelief. But a source close to the 30-year-old midfielder told Soccernet at the time: "Nobody has spoken to me about interest from Chelsea, but it wouldn't surprise me. "As for whether Yossi would want to go, he is the type of player who wants to play every game. When he is left out of the team, he wants to go, when he is in the team, he wants to stay. He keeps changing his mind as he has been in and out of the team all season." Much of the surprise from Liverpool fans is due to the fact Carlo Ancelotti has expressed the desire to lower the average age of his Chelsea side and bring through younger players. Yet Benayoun is 30, which flies in the face of that declared policy and gives credence to the suspicion that it cannot be true. But there is continued uncertainty about the future of Joe Cole who is out of contract and available on a free transfer, as his contract talks have stalled. Javier Mascherano is also on Chelsea's radar as Michael Ballack is nearing the end of his Stamford Bridge career, and Ancelotti is in need of an experienced midfield anchor man. The big catch at Anfield, though, is Fernando Torres, and it is now widely accepted that the Spanish striker is top of Roman Abramovich's wanted list, and an initial £50 million plus player exchange offer is not far away. There could be some fascinating exchanges of players between Anfield and the Bridge this summer, and the middle men are working away feverishly to see if it can happen. Source: ESPN

Not the sort of player i expect us to sign, and milan.cech is spot on, we would be bonkers to sign another African midfielder.....

Scored some cracking goals, but was definitely time to move on, for him and us. It's squad players like Belletti that should be making way for youngsters to get more chances.

To be honest i don't believe this was ever offered to him! Load of old cobblers if you ask me.... Besides isn't Arnesson director of football now?

Nathaniel Chalobah has been a name mentioned for a while now, mainly due to England duties where he has been up a couple of levels for some time. For Chelsea he has only made a handful of youth team appearances. Expect to see a lot more of him come next season though. From what i have seen he is technically very gifted and clearly advanced for his age..

It's going to happen 100% Gourlay is just trying to get the best deal possible at the moment. Not going to like it because the bridge is the bridge, but might as well accept it because it WILL happen and soon and there is nothing we can do about it. And it won't drop ticket prices either. This is being done to generate additional income so we can still compete at the top and live within the new UEFA financial rules....

Didier is actually very good with the younger lads and definately acts as a mentor to them more than most of the players do the young players look up to him and he treats them well rather than seeing himself above them, Lamps and JT are similar in this respect.

Either on the wing or behind the forward: ...............................................Cech..................................................... Ivanovic...................Alex........................Terry...........................A.Cole ...............................Essien..................Lampard................................... ...............................................Kakuta.................................................. Stoch......................................Drogba.....................................Malouda or Either on the wing or behind the forward: ...............................................Cech..................................................... Ivanovic...................Alex........................Terry...........................A.Cole ...............................Essien..................Malouda................................... ...............................................Lampard............................................... Stoch......................................Drogba.......................................Kakuta