Pizy

Fuck sake...

Think this has super boring low scoring game written all over it. Stoke will set up like they did against City by just trying to frustrate us and knock it long over and over to Crouch. Hopefully the potential doubts Conte spoke about aren't Hazard or either of our CB's because they'll be the most important players this game. An early goal for us would be perfect so Stoke actually have to open up and play which would work in our favor. Both Spuds and City have very difficult matches this weekend. Spuds without Kane against a good Southampton and City have a desperate Liverpool. A win for us and both of them dropping points would wrap up the title for good in my eyes.

I personally think Moses can be trusted more in big games than Alonso. As we've seen numerous times this season, Alonso is rendered useless when the other team has a pacey, athletic winger. He so slow defending and is awkward on the ball going forward. Valencia almost completely negated him going forward the other day. Moses at least has blistering pace and dribbling that will always cause problems.

Have you seen a single one of his press conferences or pre/post match interviews this season? He's an arrogant twat. He seems personally insulted when asked questions a lot of the time as if he's Einstein speaking to a child.

Glad City went out because I can't stand the arrogant Guardiola but I'd rather them have gone just a bit further so they're distracted in the PL and have major fixture congestion. Now they'll be in the same situation we are and can focus almost entirely on the league. They have an extremely tough schedule coming up starting with Liverpool this weekend. If Liverpool beat them and we beat Stoke I think we can rule them out completely as a threat to us. Stoke away may be one of our toughest tests of the season, though.

With the supposed massive war chest we'll have this summer we should seriously throw a bunch of it at Monaco. They're a selling club and need to comply with spending rules apparently. Bernardo Silva, Mendy, Fabinho, Bakayoko, and Mbappe would all really improve us. Mbappe will be one of the best players in the world when he reaches his potential. Every top club in Europe will be after him so going and offering Monaco a huge sum this summer is a must for whoever wants him.

We have to sign him. Unfinished business and all that. You know he'll play his heart out for the club as he's a genuine Chelsea fan. Offers all the goals Costa does without any of the baggage or angling for moves away. Only 23-24 years old and can only get better. Can end up giving the club 10 years or more and has the potential to eclipse Lampard as our leading goal scorer. We have a world class coach who can make him world class. Biggest worry is that Rooney will most certainly be off in the summer and Zlatan may be lured away to MLS mega dollars. Would not surprise me at all if Mou targeted both Griezmann and Lukaku. They'll be our biggest competition I think. Would be absolutely awful if he goes to one of our title rivals as I think he'll be even more lethal surrounded by top players. This report that he won't sign a contract coming from so many reputable sources at the same time screams leak directly from Lukaku's camp or even the club themselves. Surely a big, big club has been in Rom/Raiola's ear and told him not to sign anything as they'll be in for him in the summer. Hope it's us.

If Hazard approached every single match the way he did that one I wouldn't swap him for anyone but Messi. That's the next step in his development. To have an assassin's mentality. Currently, he'll have a match like that where he's unplayable but then follow it up with a performance where he'll play very passively. Really, really hope the club offer him yet another improved contract this summer to keep him happy and keep his head in London. The only attacking player we have that is irreplaceable. We need at least one more CL season out of him.

Just think he needs to focus 100% on himself and himself only. Just play football! It seemed as though he had decided from minute 1 last night that he would fight with Rojo all game long and proceeded to do just that. Constantly asking for fouls, diving around, cursing at the refs. He let his personal battles effect his play. The Diego Costa we saw early in the season is world class. When he's trying to prove his doubters wrong. The Diego Costa of last night and that we've seen a lot of since the January fiasco is a detriment more than a help. The league isn't over so we really need him to sharpen up.

José has already given his 3 reasons why we'll win the title: 1) We're set up as a defensive team 2) We play counter attacking football 3) We have no European football He gives absolutely zero credit to Conte or the players simply being great. He's been sniping at us all season long and tried to basically create this narrative that our potential title will be illegitimate. He confirmed as much the other day when he compared us to Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool that almost won the league with Suarez. I was his biggest fan but he has totally destroyed any good will he had with me. I'll be cheering against him in every remaining match in hopes that he misses out on CL football again and will have another season in the Europa League so he can be the cranky old man he has been this season.

Love him to death but can't shake the feeling that we'd be even better next season with a more technically gifted, top class footballing striker up top instead. Diego is brilliant off the ball and is a world class, deadly finisher but his technical ability is just frankly poor. So many attacking moves are killed at his feet. Not sure who that player would be, though.

Great to be through and overall we dominated them even when they had 11 on the pitch. Have to say, though, we played the majority of the second half in the wrong way I feel. When the other team has 10 men you should up the tempo and go for the kill since they can't deal with the extra man. Instead, we played so slowly, passing it around their box and settling for long shots. I know Kante scored from one but the others were comfortable for a keeper of De Gea's quality. Must also be said that Diego was absolutely shocking today, both with his football and antics. His touch was woeful, his dribbling school boy, and he holds on to the ball so fucking long before releasing it. He should've come off way earlier.

You know that dirty shithouse Ander Herrera will be under instruction to kick our players to shreds like he often does whilst also feigning injury and trying to get opponents sent off as he frequently does. Think Matic absolutely had to start this. The athleticism of their midfield with Pogba, Herrera, and Mkhitaryan would have completely passed Cesc by. We all know they'll be trying to get the ball wide to Rashford at every opportunity so hopefully we've prepared for that.

Reminds me a lot of Sterling and Willian. Lightning in open space, great at taking on defenders 1 on 1, but not much end product. I'd love someone of his talent here and think he'll become a fantastic player but that's silly money.

It would indeed be pretty bad. I mean, they still have great players like Pogba, Mkhitaryan, Mata, etc that'll play but if we lose to a side at home in a huge cup tie that may have Fellaini or Jesse Lingard up top it would be shameful. I'm the well known pessimist around these parts but even I'm very confident about this one. Our boys will be so up for it and the whole football world will be watching this.

2-1 ain't really smashing them, is it mate? I'm hoping for another 4-0!

Imagine how embarrassing it would now be if we lose to them AT home, with a Wembley trip on the line, missing several of their best players, and against Mourinho. Fuck, we better not lose this! Planets all aligned for him to look like a hero. Thrash the cunts, please!

Yeah, I just saw a tweet saying none of Rashford, Rooney, or Martial were spotted on the team bus. Not reading much into it myself. They'll probably travel separately for some reason.

He just can't take it, can he? A "defensive" team who have scored just 1 fewer goal than the most balls-to-the-wall attacking side in Europe in Liverpool. Makes sense, José.

No Zlatan to target our lack of height on the right side of defense but it may actually work in their favor as José can now have his team press high against us which Zlatan isn't really going to do. He'll most certainly try to emulate what Spuds & Liverpool have done to us and try to bully us with the press.

I really dislike both PSG and Barca so I didn't care who went through. I don't want to see another English side win the Cal if it ain't us, so I guess it's better if Barca went through since I don't think City would beat them if they matched up later in the competition whereas PSG are huge bottlers where City would have a chance. If they even advance, that is.

They actually showed some balls and not only banned the poster boy of the FA's darling club, but also banned him for their own Cup. Wouldn't have been shocked at all if they found some way of excusing him of that elbow saying it was "accidental."

I was just coming in to say that it's nice to see everyone in the media praising him and giving him his due credit. Great that his work is being recognized just like it was last season. Even seeing many rightly tipping him for player of the year. He simply doesn't have truly poor games. He may have an off day where he isn't dominant (like against Spurs and Liverpool where we get pressed constantly for 90 minutes) but he's a steady 8/10 player week in and week out with some 9 or 10/10's sprinkled in. So lucky to have him and to think he can improve further...oh my!

Those three are all stunning. The grey away kit, especially. Please be real!

We're probably going to have to get used to our football getting more pragmatic and machine-like as the season draws closer to the end. We'll be playing several sides that will be fighting desperately to stay in the PL and several other sides who will be fighting for a European place and will be treating their matches against us like finals.