CHOULO19

I don't think we need "one for the future", we have plenty of those in the CB department. CB is the only position where I felt we weakened over the summer. JT is not getting any younger, the new system makes it impossible for Cahill to have as good a season as last, and we sold David Luiz without getting a replacement (no, Zouma is Kalas' replacement in the squad, at least for this season). Hence, I think we need a CB who is a finished article and who will be ready to lead our defense (don't mean captain, but rather organize) in a year or two. I like Jones, but he'll need a lot of work to get his career back on track and is a bit of a gamble. Of course it would be great if we can get an established CB, but since not a lot of those are available on the market, I'd give a shout to Ranocchia. I've always admired him and I think he would be great value for money.

To be fair to the players, they did manage to calm things down between each other, it was the fans that messed things up. Fair play to Kolarov, as well.

Shirley is sick, but he should be fine for the weekend.

@iceboy, keep the politics for the politics thread, please. No need to provoke any of our Serbian members. Thanks.

Damn!

That's 5-4 on aggregate if I'm not mistaken.

Get it? Man, I can't even pronounce it!

Out sick for Germany's match tonight. Hope he recovers swiftly.

Nope. There's another one next month. It's the gift that keeps giving...

PSG are a different story. The owners are related or something. In effect, both are run by the Qatari government, so they practically have the same owner. I heard that one of the commentators said that the Arsenal game will be broadcasted live which would mean no Chelsea. Not 100% confirmed yet, though.

I know it would not end his international career, I was just hoping he would be dropped to the bench for next month's matches. The more the Spanish media are convinced that he is not the man to lead their attack, the better for us...

No you're right. They favor Arsenal because they have close ties to Wenger who works for them on a regular basis and City who like them are owned by Arabian gulf oil money. They're always trying to shove them down our throats even though neither team has any real fan base even close to Chels or utd.

Defensive discipline and work-rate are two of the most difficult mental attributes for football players. The fans may not recognize and appreciate that, but I am certain that managers do.

Worst part is, this will most likely be on TV here as BeIN are bound to broadcast the Arsenal match instead I swear, I've only watched a single Chelsea match live the past 2 months!

@Hamilton is not good enough to do that without kicking the boy

Disappointed he scored eventually. A couple more games without scoring and he could have been dropped for Spain and rested for Chelsea

They actually won, and Salah even scored, but the opening two losses mean that they are still very unlikely to go through.

As long as you didn't do the trick where you kick the ball boy

Luckily Egypt and Salah look like they won't make it as well.

Of course Petr has much better understanding with our defense than Thibaut. But hopefully that will come with time for Courtois as well.

Worst part is that Liverpool fans are calling Chelsea chockers now On the bright side, Arsenal still typically finish 4th!

Why in the world does "Turkish Airlines" look or sound worse than "Samsung"? At least it's in English. Samsung is a Korean family name ffs! And if you don't want to buy it because there is something other than "Samsung" written on it then you kinda are right now buying it for Samsung and not the color and badge. I totally get it if the kit comes and out and you don't want to buy it because you think it looks bad. But to take a stance against Turkish Airlines on principle alone before even seeing the kit is ridiculous. For me, it's very simple. People are scared of change and hence come up with all sorts of silly reasons to appose it. I don't want to see Samsung changed either, I feel it belongs on our shirts. But I realize that I will eventually get used to Turkish Airlines just like I got used to Samsung. And I'll keep buying the shirts for Chelsea.

:D

Today, an exciting and dramatic final day of the FA Women's Super League was a great advert for women football, but it held heart-ache for Chelsea Ladies FC who finished second behind Liverpool on goal difference after a painful shock 2-1 defeat to Manchester City. The Blue ladies went into the match on top of the table and with the knowledge that a win would give them their first ever title. Manchester City, on the other hand, sat just second from bottom. But a poor first half saw the Chelsea ladies go into the break down by two goals. In the second half, Gilly Flaherty clawed one back for the Blues, but the girls could not find the all important equalizer despite great pressure late on in the match. The result left the following disappointing look to the final table: Though it maybe little consolation now, anyone in the team would have considered a second place finish a huge success at the start of the season. Emma Hayes, the only female manger in the league, has insisted throughout the season that a top four finish is her season objective (in Mourinho-esque style I might add!). Hayes' side has overachieved throughout this season. The team that has only been in the top flight for four seasons, had finished second to bottom last season. Aside from the leap from seventh place, the second place finish also means that the girls qualify to next season's Women Champions League. Overall, Chelsea Ladies FC's season has been very exciting and promising and an important step in the right direction. So, chins up ladies, you've done the millions of Blues around the world very proud. Click here to view article.

Phew! But the cunt who started this needs to be sued. This is no laughing matter!