Blue Armour

You know what, I really hope we get to win this cup... Its after all what started it all for Jose, and the taste of silverware is going to the squad pumped up..After all the premier league opposition we've been made to face in this tournament this cup in NO WAY should be undermined.... In fact I'd say its turned into a domestic Champions League for us...

I think we're still a bit of that...We always looked like we would score from the set-pieces today....Our pressing game was poor today, and we didn't close down the spaces quickly enough when they attacked thus leaving the back four and Cech needlessly exposed

Meh...I wouldn't give it much thought... Yossi = In the past... Time to move on....

Don't think creativity was an issue today tbf...Lampard and Mata were having a field day...

The one bright spot in all this is that these so-called disastrous results have happened so early in the season so that AVB can actually do something about it. At the same time we are not yet out of contention in any of the 4 tournaments this year. Besides the squad is almost fully fit which gives him options to tweak his tactics..

Really agree with point number five...AVB should be more cautious against teams like that, so as to avoid any unnecessary complications...

No offense to Wilson who started this topic,but I hate threads like these created after a reaction to one match.. Todays result had nothing much to do with the weakness of the squad...Hell, man for man we had a better team than Arsenal on paper but that didn't stop them from clobbering us did it?

I hope AVB stays true to his word...He's often said that the result is more important than attacking football for a club like Chelsea, but in the big games played so far we haven't seen that philosophy put into practice...

Yep...it ain't over till the fat Ballotelli sings (who knows? Maybe he did sing after that Manchester derby...) J/k.....Keep the blue flag flying high, folks! :chelsea2:

I don't want to sit on a chair in front of a PC and teach AVB tactics, but he should know by now that we are NOT Barcelona...They can afford to have a high defensive line against tough opposition because for the majority of the match, the ball will be in the opposition's half... Attacking football is fine and everything (I love watching us attack this season), but you have teams like City scoring 5's and 6's without conceding too many goals....AVB has to make a secure defense one of the topmost priorities...I don't think that's too much to ask...

I don't think Terry will be dropped so he will be always be part of any pairing... While I do believe in Luiz and hope he gains more consistency to become our first choice, I have to ask: Is the Alex-Terry partnership really done and dusted? Why not pair them up a few more times this season and see if it gets us clean sheets?

Thank God for these midweek games...can you imagine waiting a whole week to get over the disappointment?

Also think Essien or Romeu would have done a better closing down job than Ramires or Mikel did today...the back 4 and Cech were needlessly exposed today...

If you ask me its actually a simple fix for AVB...Why? Because this season creating goal scoring opportunities doesn't seem to be a problem..Its the defense..How else can Chelsea lose at the bridge despite scoring three? .Keeping a clean sheet used to be one of this team's strengths and the personnel are all there to do it, so IMO its just a question of when AVB will sort this out..

Drogba starting this season = not so good Drogba as a sub = good chance for a goal... How I wish it was Didier who came on instead of Lukaku (although he did help with the 3'rd goal) today....the goonies and their fans would have pissed their pants...

Was about to agree with you, but then again after looking at our last two games I'm not sure what else would have happened if he had played. Still, I'm pinning my hopes on him to become our first choice defender in the future...

Not exactly...it worked well for the first half when the emphasis is on scoring that first goal... However it needs to be restricted against teams like Arsenal, who can easily tire out our defense...Untill AVB gets a younger Cole or younger Terry in his defense he should limit the use of the high line against good attacking opposition...

Another thing I wish to add: I hope every keeps their senses and their faith in the team and AVB... Yes the league standings don't look very cheerful atm, but the EPL isn't the only competition Chelsea is taking part this season..And a nine point gap from the leaders is nothing to be overly concerned about at this stage..

If anything can be learned from this, its that Ivanovic/Alex/Terry should never be paired up against a quick, aggressive team like Arsenal, using AVB's tactics... 2 goals, namely their first and the Walcott one happened because of this. They were too slow to react, the both of them....

First time I feel like criticizing AVB... Gave up one lead, lost it...got one again... Should have kept it tight in the second half against a team that was ripping through the butter like defense... And putting Malouda on when we needed to score again? Should have done that when we were in the lead...

If Drogba was available I would LOVE it if Vermaelen played... Now I hope Mertesacker/Djourou plays, so Torres can exploit them

Sticks, stones and all that? Even if in the remotest chance it was said, it would have been in error; how can anyone say it was with malicious intent? More than half of JT's team-mates are colored and I'm sure he has no ill-feelings towards them because of that...

Yeah, this trend (because of commercialization) is happening not only in football...I suppose the native fans are being driven away by the rising ticket prices and honestly I don't see the situation changing the way things stand.... I suppose a larger stadium and lesser prices might resolve that,... but again... the stadium isn't something I want to talk about at the risk of sounding like a hypocrite, because history and tradition is something I value as well......

That feeling I can understand. But don't you get a similar feeling for a certain group of players who are desperate to win a first ever champions league in blue colors? Now I'm not talking up our chances or anything, but I think that's also exciting in its own way... Some of my most emotional moments for the club have been during our defeats in this tournament, during which I have felt a greater sense of attachment towards the club and its squad. The club got into this tournament on its own merit,no doubt, but some of the our most memorable moments from the club's history in European competitions have been during Roman's era....

I don't get it...why should it matter to you? If you love the club so much, why should it change? Owners will keep coming and going, the administration will keep changing, the club may easily get relegated or just as easily become an object of attraction, but the spirit of the club lives on in the current and future generations of the fans... I take it you are afraid of the glory hunters coming in and ruining the atmosphere, but their presence will not and should not ruin the mood of the true fans. If it does happen, the true fans will have only themselves to blame for not protecting and spreading the spirit of the club to the next set of fans....