CHOULO19

The signing of Shaw is key there, because it frees up a back up CB in Iva. If that happens, then I think we can sell David and be good to go with one of Zouma/Kalas/Omeruo staying with the first team. But then you have the rumors that PSG want Iva in the summer. Anyway, we should have a clear plan of what defenders we want to take into next season before we consider any offers.

He was our top scorer in Europe last season, I'm sorry, but that is a ridiculous statement to make. People get so caught up in their agendas and camps for and against players they sometimes forget the team. He helped the team with its success since he joined and he played a key role in our EL win last season. Taking that away just to make the point is very ungrateful.

We currently have 6 defenders for 4 positions. Before we even think about selling him, we need to get at least a couple of defenders in.

Good finish, considering the pass was played behind him.

Yes, KEVIN ASHBURNER, we are confident that it will.

Hahahahaha I literally laughed out loud reading that!

How's your jumping, though?

Always thought Schmeilchel was a bit overrated. Don't get me wrong, he's obviously an incredible keeper with a knack for the amazing, but I always thought he was a bit error prone. But he'd definitely be in my top 5. I think that depends on your jumping a lot, especially if you're playing in a physical league. But height definitely helps. I mean, how many world class keepers have been under 1.85?

I know everyone here doesn't want to see him, but I think Ramires is a nailed on starter for this one. We have to match Paulinho's energy in the middle. Plus, Rami always tends to do extremely well against Tottenham.

Always played as a keeper when I was small, I was actually good at it, but when I was around 12yo I decided to just stick to playing basketball. Neuer's got to be the best right now. But I'm very glad to see Buffon back to his best this season, he's been amazing. Add Cech to those two and you have a truly incredible top 3 keepers in the world at the moment. But who's your all-time best keeper? From the ones I've seen, Oliver Kahn is the best.

He's generally been underrated throughout his career. The credit for our clean sheets and number of goals conceded always goes to the back four but rarely to Petr himself. Even the incredible performances he put in the CL and FA cup run in 2012 barely get a mention by the media and neutrals even though at times he seemed to be playing alone against 11 men.

Dzagoev, we were linked to during the last Euros and we keep getting linked to every now and then because he is a Chelsea fan. On any account, he's hardly a pure striker. It sounds very unlikely that we'd get him, imo. Integrating youth is 'hip'

Welcome. Hope you're enjoying the forum

A blast from the past: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1ekzfb_chelsea-vs-tottenham-04-04-1970_sport

Windows XP? #OldSchool

No, Ben Gibson who got sent off for two yellows against Watford was back on the bench for their last game against Wednesday.

He got a two month injury about a month ago.

He's been mostly injured for a few weeks. He did play a game a few weeks ago, IIRC.

To be fair, Deja Vu was never given a real chance with the first team..

That cup win yesterday, especially the way they came back, will be a huge psychological boost for City.

The fact that Drogba turned out to be so good, does imply that Costa will too. You have to see the risk in it. My point is that the gain to risk ratio of signing him seems low to me. I'm pretty sure that we can afford to sign him after the business we did in Jan, but I'm talking about the club's transfer policy, not our financial ability. Fair point about the lack of alternatives. I think that is the biggest argument for the signing of Costa. Will his price still be 32m when there are a bunch of clubs fighting for him in the summer? On any account, 32m is not a bargain by any stretch of the imagination. Again, I know that we can pay that if we want to, but I'm asking, do we want to? I know that his style fits and I'm not against signing him, but I have two concerns: He's in incredible form this season, will that continue next season? Can he continue scoring with almost every chance he gets, especially after moving to different league and probably needing some time to adjust? My second concern is his attitude. Even if you disregard his diving, he's a player that kick players, elbows them, steps on their heels..etc Something that really isn't welcome in English football and his personality to me is not one that we should have in team. I wouldn't be overly disappointed by his signing either, but that's mainly due to the lack of other options. Obviously, I'd much prefer we go for Cavani if available.

So he's only played one season as a striker? Worse! Joking aside and his cuntish attitude aside as well, do we really want to splash out the cash for a player who's had one great season at the age of 26?! I mean do we really want to take a 20m+ risk on what could be a one season wonder? How many players have had incredible seasons and got hyped up beyond belief only disappear in the following season? Plus, the hype around him has reached astronomical levels. I'm not talking about his abilities, but his general reputation for scoring so many goals in a season Athletico are challenging the big boys. His price will be sky-high at the end of this season. I don't think we're that club anymore that pays out of the odds for the highest price during a players career to have him play 2-3 years at his best.

Jokes aside, I'd honestly consider taking Kalou over the trio of strikers we have now!

I've been really watching him because I wasn't sure if he would fit our system, so I was keeping a close eye on him in Athletico games to see his movement and passing...etc and here is what I deduced after that tactical analysis: