Blue Armour

How has his injury record been since moving to Saudi?

Sigh, if he only had the same goal scoring form he had while at Palace. Because he's limited in other aspects to be a starting 11 player.

Anything new in particular, or just based on stuff we've seen so far?

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-12535507/Chelseas-injury-issues-uncovered-Trevoh-Chalobahs-personal-trainer-reason-leaked-messages-deleted.html Chelsea star Trevoh Chalobah's personal trainer reveals the 'absolute MESS' he says is causing their injury crisis with Mauricio Pochettino left to work with a threadbare squad

Tbh, these players are mostly kids. Of course they can't handle it well. Hopefully Poch will tell them to just get on with it.

Clueless, rushed transfer. Signed Madueke out of nowhere without really factoring what he would bring to the team The fact that he dribbles with his head down tells you all you need to know. No wonder he fails to pick a pass on time when in the final third. What's the point of having an explosive winger that can't make the right decision in the final third? We used to complain about Willian a few seasons ago, but I would easily take Willian over all our current wingers atm.

Should have got him in this past window itself.

Why did we buy Madueke?

Our best performance so far this season has come against the current league leaders. Would be ironic if we again turn up against a high flying team, but stranger things have happened.

There are a lot of football fans hurting after that decade of dominance by Chelsea & Man Utd. This is their time to gloat.

It's getting increasingly clear they followed the Dodgers strategy here. Outspend and stock up on all the nascent talent in the world. The difference is that in baseball, team chemistry, experience and on the pitch leaders are less of a concern when compared to football. They were able to bulldoze their way over there, but here it's far from the case.

Solid. If not spectacular.

Blaming Pochettino is so short sighted. Maybe he can do better. But in less than two years we have gone from a top 4 team to below midtable. That's not down to Poch.

That's my biggest worry if the season ends up being mediocre. The one positive is that all our top players James, Enzo are on long term contracts, so they will have less negotiating power to jump ship.

The pressure on a young player like Jackson, and others in the starting 11 is too much. Youngsters like Haaland or Mbappe are the exception, not the rule. They're all too soft, with good guy mentalities. Maybe a coach like Mourinho was what this young group needed, BUT that would have meant shitty football, even if results improved. This is all down to the brute force approach this management has taken in the past two years. Chelsea had a top 4 team. Instead of just revitalizing the squad, they opted for massive surgery and this is what we have. First they gave the squad to mediocre managers, and now they've given a very young squad to a decent manager.

The lack of leadership in the starting 11 is harming us big time at the moment. My only hope is James makes a return soon, and we can build a foundation at the back with him and Enzo, and power through the fixtures until Nkunku returns.

Yep, and they didn't even have to go through a period of transition. Poor Chelsea, having to start from scratch and build from the ground up after being recently promoted to the league.

Would have made far more sense and cost far less to allocate money for a stronger away game support than dump more millions into the another youth talent that might never play for the first team. Especially when Chelsea has had one of strongest away support in the country. Hopefully they'll come to their senses and reverse this decision.

Yep - I've had that feeling of numbness in the legs. Especially the first time. It feels like everyone's watching your every move - which to be fair, is exactly what happens when you're on the ball. I've often thought about how professional players manage it, but I'd go back to a quote from Michael Essien. He said that in the most games, they pretty much blank out the crowds and don't even feel they're there - such is their focus on the game. But players like Drogba & Essien are among the topmost of professionals. I think younger players would feel the weight of the crowds even more. Especially when they have a lot more to prove at this level. Talent means nothing, if you don't have the mentality to cope. IMO, that's probably what even affected a player like Mount. He was probably more confident at 21 than he is now. All those finals choking with missed penalties, can't have done him any favors. That's why I also sympathize with the current squad. Too young and too much responsibility. You can have the most talented squad but still get mentally destroyed in games.

Top scoring CB!! The days when we were always a threat from setpieces

If this ends up being another mediocre season, we will likely lose him if they come calling. And Enzo not too soon after. All these pie in the sky ideas of having a super young squad and allowing it to develop in 2 to 3 years without achieving anything on the way, is just pure fantasy. Top players in the squad won't stick around that long to waste the best years of their career in a 'project'.

It was a clickbait article that created the rumor Same article has a quote from Enzo saying how grateful he is to be part of Chelsea’s project. Sounds ironic, yes.

Is this striker also under 25 years of age?