OneMoSalah

Wrong place for him to be. He needs to get shot of his wife as an agent at the very least. People have complicated relationships all over not just footballers but making his wife being his agent, as well as all the things before and all the things that have followed that have ultimately led to all the top clubs in the world avoiding him in my view. The whole Maxi Lopez-Wanda thing is unsavoury and not very nice but this sort of shit happens all over, marriages break down due to cheating or other circumstances, in the public eye and not in the public eye. Not saying that its right though and for a young boy (the age he was at the time) to have disrespected someone who again, made a lot of effort with him to help him fit in etc, is disgusting. . The guy has fucked his career though. Had huge potential, was captain of Inter, their talisman and now say 2 years later they've signed an excellent coach (who took Tevez after all the shit he pulled at Man City may I add) and he has backed the clubs stance without even regarding how good he could be for his team (think on his best form, he'd be a shoe in for many top teams in Europe), signed Lukkaku and stripped Icardi of the number 9 shirt. If his career continues to deteriorate so to speak, I bet that Wanda will be off like a shot as well. He will have made his fair bit of coin yes but a football career is short and he will look back on it and realise something had to give. He was talked about being a potential Barca/Real signing say 3 years ago.... now theres the talk hes maybe going to Monaco (not a bad place to live perhaps and a good club nonetheless) but its a waste of potential. Juventus and Napoli links for me are odd, both likely won't touch him with a barge pole despite the obvious lure of his ability and potential purely based on who they'd have to deal with before even getting him in the door. I mean people think Raiola is a fucking nightmare but some of the things that his wife seems to have pulled makes him look like a saint. Imagine somebody, who is also your team mate/captains wife having the fucking audacity to claim Inter don't support him etc? After making him their captain?

Have to agree. Plus it was zonal marking v someone on the move, so they automatically will always have the advantage so its not a mistake as such more a issue with setting up zonally to defend corners. Perhaps but a free man with a run on anybody yet alone someone two or three inches smaller with not as great a leap, is always going to have the advantage. Zonal marking is terrible. Fair enough its so common these days practically all the big teams do it but you can get the mix right, some zonal markers and then man to man following the bigger threats. As Cole stated in the interview regarding the body shape, yeah, hes right to an extent but if it was man to man and he had a chance to run and attack the ball like Ndidi did he'd of been a lot lot closer. Still think his performances have dipped a lot but you also have to consider that under Sarri and also with Frank so far, the teams really exposed and this has given United and Leicester huge chances to counter attack which has led to chances, corners, goals etc. Its maybe as many have alluded to, the shape and getting caught on the ball when we are further up field, not just individual errors (although Azpi hasn't been great for a lot of the goals this season when Frank has said about 4 mistakes v United I think he was wrong to just say that, the gaps between midfield and defence were the reason why these players got into these spaces to have these opportunities). His pace has never been outstanding and while I am excited to see Reece get a chance, I don't think Reece James will come in and fair a lot lot better as many predict as he will need time to get upto speed with the level and higher standard. Its going to take a lot of work to prevent being in positions where the teams very open and players can isolate Azpi or Emerson or Zouma or whoever. You give a player such as Martial or Rashford, who are so quick and good at dribbling all the space in the world or basically a free hit to run at players, they will beat them more often than not. If we stop conceding these counter attack scenarios we will eliminate half the issue. His concentration worries me more than his actual ability to defend, you can be the best defender in the world but if you switch off at the wrong moment... it doesn't matter how good you are.

Must admit, despite Cascarino talking nonsense some of the time, this is a more valid comparison than saying Pulisic is like Hazard. I can see his acceleration and directness being a huge tool for us this next however many years. His final ball hasn't been as bad as I thought it would of been too so thats also a plus. He showed v Liverpool he can also affect the game in the final third setting up Giroud and scoring a great goal that got ruled out for offside. Wouldnt go as far as saying I was expecting a great first season but the early signs are indicate there are good things to come from this guy.

I dont think there is a better GK except maybe Ederson in terms of distribution in the PL. Long pass, short pass, left foot, right foot... he is very good. Shot stopping is also very good, obviously. Does anybody else think hes maybe put a bit more muscle mass on this season. Or am I blind.

But it was the same in pre-season and really the defensive structure of the whole team hasnt drastically changed bar the Liverpool performance. Yes we are only say 10 games (including pre-season) into Lampard's tenure so this could come as premature but I am a bit concerned with how we concede so many chances and look so bad defending set plays. For me, it is similar to how Andre Villas Boas' team got on defensively. Couldnt stop conceding chances from open play, unorganised at set plays and eventually goals started going in and it was a matter of could Chelsea get back into the game. Without an improvement defensively as a team (although I think AC-Zouma both played decent today as a pairing but I mean as a whole from front to back) and seeing as we lack a top striker to bail us out, we could potentially end up dropping points. As for the attacking play, yeah it is good and exciting at times as well as the high press but there were also elements again in some of our games very similar to how we played under Sarri at times, very congested in middle. We also arent as composed in some phases of the game as we could be and that is also resulting in us turning the ball over and getting done on transitions far too often. Again with time, like the defensive structure, I really hope it improves. I have seen a lot of positives so far with Frank, the high press when it works is really good (example first 15 mins today), as well as the more direct attacking play (although still gets congested at times) and obviously trying to integrate the academy kids. I was apprehensive about his appointment and still think theres been alarms like I said similar to Villas-Boas' team defensively and for me, most good teams are built on a good defensive structure and shape. Liverpool, Spurs and City without the ball, press from the front. Theyve all bought into it and the distances are good, then if they dont win it they drop back in and are organised. We used to be very organised under Jose and Conte, being able to grind out results. Man United with Fergie as well could grind games out if they werent playing great. Basically if you cant keep goals out from set plays or concede too many big chances (think of Brendans Liverpool team that finished 2nd), your going to have to end up scoring 3 or 4 goals every game. Teams that have to score 3 or 4 goals a game because they cant keep a clean sheet dont traditionally win leagues or cups. Its probably easier to keep clean sheets than need to score 3 or 4 goals a game.

Not as easy as that. In all realism we should of walked all over Leicester (as far behind the other teams going for top 4 we are better than them still in my eyes) in all probability but didnt do it. We could have an off day or they play a blinder. They can threaten teams, Newcastle spent big money on a few good players and Norwich played them off the park playing good attacking football. Fair enough we aren't Newcastle but the circumstances can change if we play very poorly or dont match their work rate etc. Stranger things have happened. Pukki is interesting though, never did much at Celtic up in Scotland yet hes scored say however many goals in the last 2 years as well as 4 goals in 2 games in the PL. Their full backs are young talented boys as well who can affect the game in the final third.

Teemu Pukki and their attacking fullbacks will be an issue. Will be an interesting game and plenty of goals.

He needs to do a lot of work. He has got pace, height and has shown he can score goals in the Championship but for someone who scored 30 goals last season, to have not made easy movements in the box/being caught on his heels in the last 3 games when the balls been put there, is just ridiculous and in my eyes also quite lazy. That is purely instinct, all the top strikers which is what he has to aspire to be as we are a huge club, make those runs without fail, even if the ball doesn't come to them. That's probably where you see the likes of Aguero scoring the majority of his goals from, between the 6 yard box and penalty spot. How often is Aguero caught on his heels when a ball is played in the box?

I get the feeling he will be like Sarri and Conte with his system too. Like for like swaps. Rigid with his system. To be fair we started very well. Took the initiative, hassled them high up, had some bright moments, good tempo. Personally I think the 120 minutes during the week hasn't helped but Frank would of been aware not everyone was as fresh as they could of been but still he has got options. Willian if hes fit enough to come on when he did surely was fit enough to start. Tammy or Michy could have started although Giroud did alright first half. Tomori could have played. Alonso could have played. He didn't have to go mental and make 10 changes but he has enough in some areas to make 2 or 3. I felt that Mount should of been subbed out for Ross in the 2nd half, he faded out of the game a bit and looked very tired.

Might be the shot in the arm we need, we've been meh so far this second half, just like towards the end of the first half after a blistering start. Need to go back to hunting the ball back higher up the pitch. Zonal marking is shite, man to man marking and Zouma would have a run and definitely make that header.

Really impressed with Emerson today. First few games hes been very good. Jorginho also very good.

Agree with all of this. Michy is far too limited to be our number 1, sure hes got a poachers instinct and will probably score 1 in 3 chances if they are on a plate across the box but he offers nothing exceptional in the build up or even as an outlet. His link up play is very much average and coming short off the defenders he doesnt do it enough, he just stands still and looks like a spare prick half the time. Every modern day top CF offers more than just goals, they offer the ability to come deep and play or act as an outlet. Its absolutely essential, for instance I am a huge huge fan of Firmino, if Liverpool didnt have him there attack wouldnt be as effective because he drops in midfield to link the play, he can interchange with the wingers, he isnt strong but he is clever enough to offer an outlet when Liverpool are under the cosh. I am surprised Real/Barca havent come in with huge money for him yet. Poachers are slowly dying out of the game at top clubs

Well I think weve already seen more from players like Barkley and Kovacic in 2 games than what we seen in the last 6 months under Sarri. Both were undoutedly beyond average last year so who knows how Willian will do, hopefully better than last year too. There is real emphasis on playing more direct and quickly, using transitions more as opposed to constantly probing with possession for the majority of the game so I am intrigued to see how Willian does. Not expecting him to score 20 goals but I think there will be an improvement if he buys into what Frank's trying to do, there is a real emphasis on getting the ball forward as quickly as possible as well as winning it back high up and I think he will suit that. Hes not as gifted as a lot of players weve had over the years but he is definitely capable of more than 5 goals a season.

Actually quite excited to see how Willian does in this team. He has a chance to be our key player in the final third. Never ever thought I would say this 😂

Coutinho in an ideal scenario, will be good at Bayern. Muller, Coman, Gnabry etc all running off the ball for him and Lewandowski in and around the box. Be interesting how he does. Big signing for Kovac. They signed a young midfielder from Mochengladbach too and have Perisic who is tried and tested, from Inter.

Last 15 games last season Jorginho was good and was playing well defensively too, which was a concern for many due to his physique and lack of athleticism. Sarri didnt not get the best out of him in my eyes, he didnt get the best out of the team. Jorginho did play well at the start too like the team but had a sticky spell in the middle but so did the whole team. Sarri slightly altered his football too not having as many forward runners off the ball like Cesc aluded to in an interview but that was to give the team more defensive structure without the ball or if we lost it. It made us struggle in the final third and obviously the over reliance on Eden didnt help. Jorginho has started well and also Kovacic who in the 2 games and pre season has arguably been the most consistent player under Lamps. Its a good pairing and obviously Kante was exceptional in Istanbul too. I would of still thought 433 is our best bet but 4231 is Lamps formation, its not a huge difference, the 2 gives more protection infront of the back four but in possession its basically still 433 as one of the deeper two supports the play while the other holds his position.

Again, a bit OTT regarding him I would say. He wasnt too bad but he didnt step up. He still has plenty to give though. Reece James haa got a lot of praise last season and rightfully so but we seen with Tammy, with Mason and with other youngsters in the past that people expect so much from them. Reece isnt going to come in and be Cafu or Maicon instantly , there will be teething issues like with all young players and inconsistent periods with his performances as games are played at a very high level in the PL/European matches. Theres already too much expectation on Reece James on this forum in my eyes. Yes hes a very good prospect, I dont doubt it, hes ready to be a back up or member of the squad, very much so, but an undisputed starter each week, I dont think so. Needs to be bled in and see how he does. Like Mount and Tammy, they wont start every week, theyll be started some weeks then maybe be subs in other games. You have to gradually keep using them and getting them comfortable to play at this higher level. For me once they've got some game time and understand the level, the expectations, the physical and mental demands and are able to effect games and deliver big performances, yeah start them 4 or 5 games in a row or whatever the numbers. These guys still have to learn at the same time. Ruben for example, Sarri didnt use him a lot start of the season but he came in, performed, understood the level, the system, the demands of playing at Chelsea as opposed to Palace and ended up stsrting. CHO the same, I think he will be the youngster with the most minutes for us this season. Plus a lot of tonight Azpi reigned it in a bit and Emerson bombed on more, it was obviously a tactical tweak after the United game. Very much reminds me of how Sir Alex and Jose used to use their full backs in big games. One more reserved and one allowed to push further up. We didnt actually suffer too much on the right offensively due to Kante, playing in that same position Sarri used him in, and Pedro combining very well and when we did lack options Azpi did come up higher at times.

Couldnt agree more. Frank aluded to it and so has Sarri in the past. He really is the most vocal player on the pitch for us I would say. Really looks up for it, makes sure people know when hes not happy or is free to take the ball or whatever. Hes also very involved when theres been fouls contesting the refs call (although you have to toe the line with that at times), he was at the ref a few times tonight (thought she did a good job actually, she refereed at the womens world cup and compared to the refereeing standards I seen when that was on, she had a very good game). He really looks at home and carrying on after the end of last season. Top player. Plus the penalties? How calm did he look in both occasions. Balls of steel (after missing v City in February too IIRC?).

Played very well in the first 2 games and in terms of using the ball, taking risks with it, not getting caught on it and carrying the ball under pressure, hes been good. We all knew that with his skillset he has huge potential to be a really good player. If he can just fine tune his positioning yet without the ball and maybe like I said get goals and assists, think the 40m is going to be seen as a good deal.

True again, maybe ahead of Emerson but would of expected Jorginho, Barkley, Mount, Tammy to be ahead of Azpi in the first 5 due to them having been regular penalty takers/very good from a dead ball.

Considering one is a CF, who scored 25 goals last season including penalties and the other is a fullback, I dont see the issue with him putting Tammy up there at all before the captain. If he put Azpi up and he missed then he would get crucified. Fullbacks traditionally arent very good at penalties. Or ahead of strikers in penalty shoot out line ups, although he went with Emerson ahead of him but I would of been intrigued to see who would have taken the 6th.

Unlucky to lose on pens. But a finals a final, you can play shit and win or play good and lose. Tammys pen was shite but hey ho thats penalties. He did ok when he came in but missed a huge chance in normal or extra time (cant remember) which any top level striker would definitely put away. Strikers scoring goals will be a problem if Giroud, Tammy and Batshuayi need 4 or 5 good chances to score per game. Lots of positives though. Unfortunate to get 2 goals disallowed although both definitely offside. Tomori looked settled too.

Perhaps hes nowhere near ready though? Hes only on the bench due to injuries I think despite still not being 100% fit. If Reece James was fit he'd be on the bench instead. I don't think Frank is gonna risk Rudiger.

Tomori is faster than Christensen, I'd imagine he wants us to be higher up the pitch and also with extra time looking hugely likely, a defensive change maybe not the worst idea.

Just me or does anyone else think 433 just suits us a lot better? I don't think its any surprise we have looked more compact and the gaps aren't anywhere near as big.