Blue Armour

Yeah..already thoughts are on a Drogba-Torres front two, with Mata behind... But for now, I'll just take a result like this whereat least one of them,if not both, is on the scoresheet

il est magnifique!!!!

I think was clear from the first couple of match conferences this season that AVB doesn't give a shit about the press or their opinion...so I don't see why we should care about their opinion on him... Journalism has become disappointing of late. They're supposed to observe and report. Now they have their own opinions on everything and twist the minds of simpletons to see what they want to see...Bunch of c**nts..

Just goes to show that when the situation (being down to ten men) called for it, he turned it up a notch. If he can show that kind of defensive performance on a regular basis, he's certain to start every match

I think it includes PL fixtures as well

Finally got to see Lukaku in action for the whole 90 and another 30 minutes as well. Decent performance, with great commitment. However, what he does need to work is his technique (crossing mainly) and his jumping. For such a tall guy, its a wonder that he couldn't get his head onto some of the good crosses played into the area; In short, he needs to work on his fitness. (Remember the cramps as well?) But what amazed me today was his speed. He could indeed become a deadly weapon if honed properly.But to work in this Chelsea team he'll need to become a better all-round player, and a more complete center forward.

Lol...now we know for sure we're not like Arsenal... Their B-team would've crumbled with the OTHER side reduced to ten men!

WE ARE GOING TO WIN THE CARLING CUP!! NO DOUBT ABOUT IT....THE SIGNS ARE ALL THERE!!!

WE ARE GOING TO WIN THE CARLING CUP!!!! I JUST KNOW IT!!!! NO DOUBT ABOUT IT

LOL@ Kalou doing a Kalou

I hate to say this but: but its true ... PVA+Bertrand = Fully fit, young Ashley Cole Mikel+Ramires = Fully fit, young Michael Essien.. PVA has to improve in his defending, while Bertrand..he's ok, but doesn't have the pace of Ashley Cole or Bosingwa

LOL @ Sturridge doing a Nani... Hope he's fine though..didn't look bad on tv..must have been a precaution to sub him

Yeah..couldn't he get some kind of stupid ban from the FA if those comments go public?

Really? Thought he played ok when hugging the touchline against Bayern. Judging from Malouda's reaction after the game, it seemed as he was happy (from a sense of justice) that even Lampard and Terry would also lose their places to squad rotation. I think he always carried a slight grudge against certain players, Lampard especially, for retaining their starting 11 spot game after game even if the performance didn't really warrant it. Now he probably feels the coach is unbiased and rotates as when he feels like, so there is a chance we could see a decent, if not spectacular showing from Flo this season

We aren't making the most of our chances..that's a trend that we've picked up since last season actually...

Full-back...love defending and attacking...also love running up and down the pitch Ashley Cole-style .. Its such a shame that there are no good scouts in this country...sigh...

Anyone else noticed that his hairstyle was almost back the normal? Golden locks I mean

It might be blasphemy to even hint at it, but a few members were saying the way we went down to United last Sunday was reminiscent to the way Arsenal usually performs against us and of course United. Plenty of chances, free-flowing football but ultimately nothing to show for it. From the comments of Fergurson and Gary Neville, it seemed to me that despite applauding AVB for setting up the team for attack, they didn't seem particularly worried about the threat we posed before or even after the match. In fact they seemed relieved that their team didn't have to face a water-tight defence, and were in-fact mildly annoyed we enjoyed so many chances. There's all the question of whether we would have even got so many chances against a more experienced line up in Ferdinand and Vidic. I personally feel that this comparison is out of basis because: 1. Our defense (back four and Goalkeeper) actually has a reputation. 2. We can add more steel to out midfield when needed. 3. We have more experience in tactial situations. 4. Arsene Wenger's older teams have actually played well and got results, so its not impossible for another team to achieve similarly in the EPL 5. The most important: Our manager just doesn't care about the football, he cares about the result even more. From the post-match reaction it was clear he didn't enjoy this defeat at all, and it was clear he had definitely come for red blood at Old Trafford. Plus he isn't afraid to go out and get the player he wants from the transfer market, and shake-up the team lineup at any time during the game. Also, If Vidic returns to line-up I'm pretty sure an In-form Torres could run rings around him. And there's a nice blend of youth,quality and experience in the rest of our attacking lineup with Sturridge, Drogba, Anelka and Malouda At the same time I hope AVB never plays Mata in midfield without someone like Mikel in the back, as defending and winning the ball back isn't the Spaniard's forte. I also hope he can refrain from using a very high line of defense during the away games against the bigger sides. Sometimes the linesman can mistake with the offside trap, just like what happened in the case of Nani's goal. For now, I'll stick to this line of thought, at least until we face other sides like Man City, Liverpool, etc.

Very much agree on Cole getting rest...The amount of games he played last season was unbelievable... I've always felt that with his ankle problems, there should be a little bit of rotation at LB, with PVA or Bertrand coming on for the last few minutes, or maybe even starting the less important ones.

Excellent opportunity for the young 'uns in this match... Any chance Didier Drogba will be available for this? Could be a learning experience for the younger players, and will also be great to keep the big man warmed up and game-ready just in case...

Considering the double threat of Evra and Young I think Bosingwa did pretty well to be honest. Mata and Sturridge have to improve on their defensive work. Both full-backs were needlessly exposed. Agree on using a more versatile CB combo when playing teams like this. Probably AVB felt Luiz didn't have much match practise..Question is who do you drop JT? Ivanovic? And Valencia's a thug...As soon as he came on he was using his physique to bulldoze into our wingers on the left flank.

Pfft...come on...a lot of players do it one way or the other...

Not true..in fact there were some hilarious comments on The Sun forum after the match: Gunners fan: 'United getting away with the ref again. No surprises there. What can you do against 12 men?" United fan in response: "What the hell are these gooners doing on a thread thats about two title contenders" The majority of United fans (apart from the plastics) will tell you that we gave them a good game and are genuine contenders, even if they say that they deserved to win. Its the f***ing MEDIA that continues to be biased with everything including the Torres issue. Glad that citeh crumbled today, else it would have been even more revolting...

Like I said I hope to see a reaction in the next game... Its great to see the fans keeping their chin up, and also for the mancs and the genuine sports pundits (not the rabble in the media) acknowledging that we played well. But it'll all be in vain if the players react negatively. That's what led to Carlo's downfall.

I know the importance of the high line of defense and that it serves in the transition to attack as quickly as possible...but I hope AVB takes more caution in some of the bigger games. If one of our defenders doesn't make a mistake, I'm sure one of the linesmen or the referees are going to, just like that failed offside trap. To be fair, apart from that one incident there weren't too many scares related to that, as we kept the ball better in their half. But its not yet as good as how Barca do it, so we're always going to face a threat on the counter against these kinds of teams..I hope AVB would have learned from this