OneMoSalah

Yes I get it. But again it's nothing new. Prior to Conte, prior to Hiddink, prior to Mourinho, prior to Benitez, prior to Do Matteo, prior to Villas-Boas.... we rarely used youth. Ancelotti tried it, freshening up the squad in his second season, to lower the average age but got sacked for finishing 2nd. The same Carlo Ancelotti who has won countless trophies in various leagues and is generally well respected across the whole footballing front. So what chance will Sarri have? If things don't go so well but he says oh I played 2 or 3 young guys regularly though. Everyone expects it but all managers here in the last 10 year's have barely done it despite successful youth teams. So to continually moan about it is pointless. Nothing's changing fast. It doesn't shape a managers fate here. Also regarding the other teams: Liverpool have 1 academy player in their first 11, Alexander-Arnold from their academy. City have 0. Spurs have Kane from their academy. United have Rashford or Lingard through their academy playing regularly. Their squads sure maybe fill of avademy players but at the same time we have Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Andreas Christensen, Callum Hudson Odoi, Marcin Bulka and Ethan Ampadu.... Sure they don't play a lot but again make up the squad. Like several others at those club's. I want to see more of Ethan and Callum but I'm not going to be daft enough to think Sarri will play then from the start every week in every cup game, thought Villas-Boas would do that but it turned out he was the same. Not saying they can't hold their own because they quite clearly have shown they can in limited game time.

Yes which is why I've said he still has something to offer (that role he is oue only backup) but Jorginho will be untouchable unless injured, if Cesc does go. Pinning the back up role which Cesc can do on a 18 year old too? Won't happen. Sure he's talented but again what good does serving as a back up at aged 18 do if you don't play regularly? We've seen Sarri barely rotates and we've seen how much he rates Jorginho so to say "yeah Cesc out and Sandro Tonali in to be back up to Jorginho" is all well and good but the guy will prefer to play every week, even if it's at Serie B level with Brescia rather than once in a blue moon with Chelsea. We can't even guarantee our own top youngsters minutes so what does that spell out to a 40m one who has never played higher than the Italian second division? I am 10000% not concinced hes anywhere near the level of Marco Verratti before going to PSG either (Verratti played 3 full seasons) so regardless of all the talk of huge talent and Italy call ups, he still has to prove himself and the best place to do that is Brescia for now.

£10m for a 30+ y/o with half a season on his contract? How is that a bad move when you also consider his wages that are over 150k a week too? Personally, still think Cesc has more than plenty to offer here but thats hardly a bad deal. It will be a bargain for AC if he goes there and hits the ground running which I would expect him to but again 10m for somebody who's on that much a year and plays 10 minutes a game except cup games? Is It that bad?

Celtic would of been a bold move. But after Musonda spell there maybe a bit of a put off. Also they signed Eduoard from PSG for 9m and he is very much their project. Holland would take his game up a level, technically he can still improve a lot.

Bit of an ironic comment seeing as how we are brilliant at promoting youth and playing them season after season..... I honestly don't get it, how people are still surprised about this, it fucking baffles me, people moan about youth here as if we were like Ajax or United under Fergie or somebody in that ilk but we aren't so let's fucking give it a rest talking in the manner as if it goes against the traditions of the club or whatever bla bla bla, it doesn't. We have issues yes but a couple of teenagers aren't necessarily going to fix them either (although I see CHO and Ampadu both as guys who are more than good enough to play for this club regularly and maybe they deserve a fair short), there's a lot bigger concerns than to why Sarri, a manager in his first season at a club renowned for short term goals and sacking managers (managers who have done a lot more than him in football) regularly, isn't playing two teenagers more. Andreas Christensen was the last young guy from the academy to play over 15-20 times for us and that was only last season. Before that who was the last? Maybe Chalobah the year before who was then told he'd be loaned out again because we signed the incredible flop that was Bakayoko? Then Ryan Bertrand, who was dumped by Mourinho, before him Josh McEachran maybe 7 years ago? If not Josh then probably John Terry after that. People are still surprised about our youth record but if you dig into it you'll see it's so poor and that we shouldn't expect anything to change in the short term.

Out of that list Insigne and Hamsik are the only two players who are better than what we have perhaps in our positions though, Pedro and Willian aren't inferior players to Callejon or Mertens by any means (although Mertens goal record was impressive for a winger who never really had half as productive a season or two in his whole career), you could argue with fine tuning Kovacic is better than Hamsik (other than goals and tactical experience from playing for so many years in so many different positions dont think Hamsik does much more or better than Kova) and Insigne wouldn't take Edens place but could defos play in our team the guys a top class player. It's not just about the individual qualities of these players though, Napoli played this system ten or twenty times better because they adjusted to it over a longer period, anyone expecting us to be like Napoli were in 20 games and 1 transfer window sorry but its not happening. Napoli took a full season really to evolve into the team that coaches, players and fans watched with interest. There was a huge difference in Napoli in season 1, season 2 and season 3 under Sarri, a big evolution from Benitez' pragmatic approach. Still need to sort some things and improve, the defence, pressing, 1 and 2 touch combinations in and around the box can be a lot better, scoring more goals etc... the style has been a nice change but it's only 30-40% of where we should be trying to get to perhaps. I think this season if we get top 4 (achievable 100%) then we really can push on next season, no world cup disrupting pre-season, hopefully another few players come in (maybe 1 or 2 come in January too?) the summer to shape Sarri's squad more in what he wants. Sarri needs time 100% yes but solutions though. Fast. Because results are the way this club runs the management and if the coach isn't getting them, well, he's no use regardless of style he wants to implenent because we know how the hierarchy operate. It's quite alarming that the last wee while we seem to not have progressed as much compared to Arsenal who initially struggled but have now come into a real rich vein of form in terms of results and despite playing poorly are able to grind out wins.

The guy Wan-Bissaka at full back for Palace looks a really really decent prospect. Athletic, strong in the tackle, raw pace... Watched some of that game and was terrible for United though, how they didn't score fuck knows lol.

Was alwags gonna have it tough at Real. Ex Atletico player, replaced a thorough fan favourite who had excellent games in CL runs (Navas) and when his signing was discussed last season apparently caused a Zidane-Perez fallout because he didn't want to replace an area of the field he already thought was pretty strong (even pulled plug on Real going after Kepa before he renewed his contract with Bilbao). Grass isn't always greener.

At least the club's looking at alternative plans opposed to fannying about regarding last minute replacements like we've seen in the past. If Hazard goes, like the other great players we've had, then the team will move on. Let's be realisitic. Like when there was talk of Lampard, Drogba etc going to Inter years ago when Jose went, it would of been a huge loss but we'd have worked something out. You can't afford to lose someone that good without some sort of planning, if we are aspiring to be PL champions and can't keep Hazard but can't find some solutions in terms of replacements if itz either directly or strengthening in various places on the field, we are fucked. Obviously I'd prefer to keep him here and strengthen still but if he goes, he goes, as long as we improve the team somehow, positions like CB, LB, CM, RW, CF. Personally I dont think he will end up at Real. Barca or Bayern would hugely benefit more and have more structure in the way their run. Also would maybe suit him much more because he'd be playing with guys like Messi, Suarez, Busquets, Dembele.. or at Bayern replacing Ribery who is ageing, playing with Thiago, Lewandowski, Muller etc (although can see the fee being a stumbling block for them).

Would rather a defender who enhances your team by being solid defensively at the very least. If your going to concede 2 or 3 big chances a match taking the game to the opposition at least have 2 CBs who arent going to be a liabality. Rudiger is fine for me, his passing is more than good enough. He needs a partner. This passing excuse has been mentioned how the last god knows however many years regarding Luiz. For instance regarding the passing through the lines etc excuse he gets, Fabregas can play passes between the lines from infront of the penalty box or from 40 yards up the pitch does that mean he should play as a CB in our team? Or Jorginho? No... Defenders get exposed unfortunately in modern day football but these guys in the big teams, Real, Barca, Bayern, Juve can all defend 1 v 1 or read the game very very well so they are there to cover. Luiz does none of them things very well. There's a reason his most productive spell prior to being sold off was as a CM/CDM next to a more disciplined player like Mikel or Matic and then afterwards in a system where he had 2 CBs each side of him and Kante/Matic infront.

So Kante the only midfielder with any sort of defensive instinct covering that whole area of that pitch himself and playing without any fullbacks at all? Great... might as well have AVBs 433 which was more or less 3 7 1 when we lost the ball 😂 Anyway Sarri still needs time, he said one year we will be able to compete. Has it been a year yet? We've had a good start but yet to see Sarriball in its full because he needs more time to fine tune the squad. Results have been good apart from that but look at the footage of the games its been comibg. Defence has been an issue whenever we've tried to play properly open offensive football for years. Sarri sorts that we have a solid platform at least to go off.

Let's be honest, against a top team this was going to happen. We've conceded too many big chances this season, probably the most of out the top 6 teams in the PL. Sarri said it would take a year and anyone who followed Napoli will know that it took him half a season to get something started. We've had some good results, good performances and some bad results and performances. Realistically we have the experience to compete for the title, the best PL player and a manager who has changed everything in comparison to his predecessor but top 4 was always the goal, even if Morata or Giroud scored 30 goals this season (we'd have to cross much more often for any chances of 15 yet alone 30 goals) we'd finish in the top 4 and not as winners still. Lack of fire power is an excuse that is mentioned a lot in comparision to the real problem which is the defence (or so I would say), David Luiz plays every game this season and we concede a huge amount of chances, is it any surprise? Conte tightened up a average back line with his system using Kante and Matic as shields as well while putting Azpi and Cahill to the right and left of Luiz (all 3 excelled in the first season particularly and impressed me with how they adapted to that change). Sarri has to find defensive solutions quick because we've a lot of matches coming up in the next 5 or 6 weeks and we've seen in the past winter time isn't always the best time for the team. This isn't new either, Jorginho for all he does when we have the ball has struggled off it at times too, which he's maybe due a grace period because the tempo in Italy is slower to it is here but still that can only last so long. We've conceded big chances in other games and been lucky, some point the run was due to come unstuck. Lots of positives still from Sarri's start dont get me wrong but teams with a solid defence always have a chance, we don't have one and I think Luiz and Alonso (although not anywhere near as big a Culprit as Luiz) find themselves struggling too much for my liking. Every team that we've won titles with has had one thing in common, a solid defence to build upon. You defend as a team and that sure but we've seen Christensen make huge individual errors last season and Luiz putting in poor pefromances this season. Nothing new either before anybody starts with passing out from the back bullshit please do me a favour and save it. Means fuck all if your a liability defensively.

Exactly. He's never been the most adventurous or offensive RB or even at LB when he played there. It seems some fans seem to have really short term memories though and think that transfers are as easy as on FIFA. Also playing in a back 3 for 2 seasons it was obvious he would need time to get going again. For me, the guys arguably been our most consistent player for 4 years or so. 99 games out of 100 he produces 7/10 without a doubt, you can count on one hand the amount of mistakes he's made and hes 100% deserving of his role and the vice captaincy based on his spell here. He played as a LB for 2 years and was making more tackles, blocks, interceptions per game than any other fullback, keeping Filipe Luis on the bench then as well in his unnatural position. The guy is top class and deserves a lot more respect than what hes gotten at times on social media this season and with continous talk of him struggling etc... don't know many teams who wouldn't take him. Also talk of his offensive play being poor, his crossing is dangerous, the last 3 seasons he's probably got more assists than anyone else in full back/defensive positions in the PL. A lot of talk of Hysaj, he's good yeah and knows Sarri but I doubt he would be playing every week here. Not immediately, Azpi has plenty more in the tank.

Also Dave struggling? Really? He's been average maybe but still hardly say hes struggling.

Rice a former Chelsea youth player too. Diop won't be there long, another season or two and he'll go onto bigger things.

Great... surely a fucking joke. Average player. Can be unplayable on his day fair enough but how often is that? Not very. Not even the best player at West Ham. Felipe Anderson and Dioup are better for me.

Disagree. Think he's shown poor form the last year and a half at Dortmund but there's definitely something there. Like Draxler at Wolfsburg few years back, think he's just stagnating and needs a change. Would definitely be worth signing if he can get back to how he was playing when he was just breaking through, really good 1 v 1 player, bit of work and he can be a special player at any club.

Exactly but we as fans are prone to having the Fifa/FM mentality where we think it's easy to offload a player and replace him like it's nothing. If anyone thinks a top class LB like Sandro is leaving Juventus, arguably in the top 3 contenders for the CL this season, for Chelsea right now, they are smoking some strong shit. We blew our chance 2 or 3 seasons ago.

Not sure it's necessarily the case. The season before he did his ACL yes he was talked about as a good player but nothing more than that, he also played as a wing back for Roma pretty sure they played 3 at the back that year. There were links with Juventus but apparently only to be a back up to Alex Sandro and you can see why. Maybe he needs more chances but he honestly hasnt shown me anything that he can truly be our first choice going forward. Both have defects in their games but Alonso is still better bet for me at least until we get someone else in. Emersons stats are decent for minimal games but again is he really the number 1 option we should have, you look at the opposition in some of those games too, is it entirely convincing? Alonso for me is still better, sure hes slower, his recovery runs are an issue (due to his lack of nautral pace and the the teams style) but in a team such as open as ours that would be expected to a degree. I think CB is still bigger issue than LB. I agree on the point where maybe Zappa and Emerson should get more minutes though, Azpi is a workhorse and plays every game more or less season on end but it will catch up to him or perhaps has done in moments this season, although still think he's a brilliant player.

Bayern not going to sign James in the summer. Should jump all over that, 10 goals and 10 assists per season minimum, excellent left foot, play numerous roles, in particular the most advanced position in a 433 or as a 10.

Honestly I doubt he was even one of the top 10 full backs in Seria A at the time. He's not a bad player fair enough but he isn't exactly brilliant either. Injuries maybe affected his career too but I am yet to see any sort of evidence that Emerson was one of the best full backs in Serie A when he's played. All he has that Alonso doesn't have is speed and better in 1v1s offensively.

City definitely have a better squad, Liverpool a better first 11? I'd say its fair to say that, their squad isn't actually that impressive either but they have got experience on the bench in Milner, Stirrings, Shaqiri etc. Man United or Spurs have better players in certain positions than us in their first 11s but again questionable if they are actually a better team. Squadwise City are top dogs in that department. Liverpool second. Don't think United or Spurs squad is better than ours in all fairness, we lack a top CB, top RW and a top CF, add those three in and we'd be favourites for the league as well. The experience is there in the squad. Id say even then without those 3 players, we still have the third best squad in the country.

Well when all these false dawns come true let me know. Until then cut the I am right because I posted 14000 words on it attitude bullshit because as far as I can see nothing you've said will happen has actually happened. Just clutching at straws getting wound up over hypothetical situations. Even the FIFA loan thing, okay it may happen but it still hasn't. "Phased in in 2 years". Also geopolitics? As somebody who lives in the UK, the last 8 letters of the word alone gives me the fear because their all about as much use as a chocolate ashtray. Romans under investigation but unless you have some sort of inside information (go on surprise us all with something) it's merely a investigation and I don't have to be into politics to tell you that the UK investigating Russian oil men isn't anything new. And any potential scenario means jack shit until they have something to nail him with, which I severely doubt happens. Still doesn't deter from the fact I find it pathetic that your comparing owners net worths as if it's 100% enivatble, confirmed, about to happen. Romans as big a Chelsea icon as many of our most influential players for me, think many would agree on here that he's been the driving force behind revolutionizing the club and also had a big part to play in how big the PL is now.

Bad move? Not really. Stripping somebody who was made captain a season ago at John Terrys recommendation (apparently) is an instant way of turning the dressing room against you. Gaz is obviously a well respected and well liked individual, throw in how long he's been here and what he's achieved, he would never have been made captain otherwise and it's as simple as that, end of story. He doesn't play a lot but it would send out a bad message. Also lack of match fitness has affected Christensen too in some games, Think your getting carried away and all doom and gloom, about renewing players, selling Hazard, CHO, Abramovich dilemma (what fucking dilemma, the situations blown out of proportion ten fold) and new owners net worths in other threads etc whatever else.... The 6 loan thing as well is just an idea as of right now, it will take years to become a formality or might not even happen. Just a lot of problems that aren't even problems yet. Also based on his performances in the last year I wouldn't be overly upset if Andreas Christensen was sold for 35-40m at least and replaced with somebody else, who even if they didn't start at first would be more patient and willing to work hard without spitting the dummy out after maybe 20 games where he's played in 6 or 7. I mean if he thinks he's that good, realistically he shouldnt struggle to find a top top club, but which top top European club (level we are aspiring to be) is going to buy him after the year of below average and poor games he's had? Barca, Bayern, Real, Atletico, Juventus??? No chance. Best place for him is here, learning what Sarri wants and then doing well if he gets a chance, you'd think he had played 10/10 every game and was being shut out for whatever reason... but he's been poor and rightfully had limited minutes. Fair enough match fitness also an issue bevause he's not playing regularly but Conte played him through a tough spell last year and it broke him more than anything. Look at how long Koulibaly took to change at Napoli from a raw, perhaps struggling CB to one of the best on the go.. who does he credit with that development? Maurizio Sarri, who is our manager. If he wants to go back to Gladbach and play at that lower level for a few years rather than push himself fair enough, he had a good foot in, we know he can play but if he's not.willing to prove it to a new boss then??

It's the same thing though, saying ther different positions is nonsense for me... different formations, playing styles, rotations and interchanges of position doesn't make a difference. A striker/centre forward is 100% the same. You get different types of strikers who do different things or have different characteristics but they are all strikers or centre forwards, same with wingers, central midfielders, centre backs etc.. unless football's gone mad and following the football manager script 😂 Also regarding the team trying to find Morata, yes but when the ball goes out wide and we create the possibility for crossing situations does it go into the box? He gets stick for missing one on ones and he could improve in thst but at Juve and Real he scored a lot from inside the box, from crosses and cutbacks. Do you think it will be a surprise if Giroud and Morata, two guys who score the majority of their goals in and around the 6 to 12 yard area of the penalty box dont score 10+ goals this season? I wouldn't. I hope both score more than that but if they ended up with 10 or something I wouldn't be surprised because there's a huge tendency when we create these possible chances we recycle the ball inside and try walk through teams. Also poor finishing too froknchances as well definitely a consideration but the more chances these guys get the better probability we have of them scoring more goals. Only complaint I have about how we've started with Sarri is the defensive issues (will be a long fix I think), width in our play (at times too narrow, no variation) and the unwillingness to utilize the chance to cross more often (amount of chances Giroud/Morata/Barkley/Pedro could profit from is potentially an addition 3 or 5 goals per player over the course of a season, which could turn draws into wins, or loses into draws). He's not a striker but he's more a pure striker than his teams striker? The phrase pure striker is weird for me because there's so many different types of strikers these days. There's not only one profile for strikers, Firmino is a very different sort of striker, similarly like Benzema for instance, hes very selfless, great at combining, interchanging but he's still a striker, that ball goes in the box and hes there sniffing about. Just because his team mates score more goals means nothing. Modern day football, wingers score more goals. But still wingers just considered as wide forwards. Again doesn't mean all Salah does is score goals either.