OneMoSalah

They were pretty stale to watch for a huge stretch aye but you could see (or I certainly felt from watching some of their games) that they at least had some patterns of play for building up and would say it was early doors but there was some sort of identity. I think their mentality also shifted though and they had to start gearing up towards doing the dirty parts of the game which Arsenal sides have never been particularly good at since the early 2000s. Although in comparison to now, they look a totally different team. Everything just looks right. As you’ve said he’s gotten rid of the older guys and gone with youngsters, which I think has helped but even off the pitch, I think they identified how badly they’d recruited over the years too and changed that. Even the Arsenal squad when Arteta first came in compared to now. Its been a radical shift of personnel. I think if they go on to win the league now next season will be even more interesting and a bigger challenge for him to go again. Barring City in the last however long, the defending champions have always gone and fucked it the next year.

I think at the time there was a lot of fallout from how awful they were starting to look under Emery and some of the signings he had made were busts. Not to mention I think its easy to forget that Wenger really had done a good job over the years without going crazy in the market whilst also losing his key players. Granted he maybe stayed too long but I think like the United position when Fergie left, it was always going to take maybe 2 or 3 different coaches or at least considerable time to get things right. No doubt Arsenals football wasn’t incredibly great in that first 12 or 18 months or so with Arteta too as a lot of it was death by possession but they had an identity of sorts. I think the development of certain young players have added a bit more spark and even from the amazon documentary you can see Arteta is clearly very demanding and set a lot of standards which I think as well with the likes of that, the pennies dropped with a lot of the players now plus the addition of guys like Zinchenko and Jesus who have won a lot will help. Even Xhaka seems a totally different player and everyone thought he was done there. What impressed me most about them in the game v United was that they still kept playing at a high level believing they would go on and win, where as in the past they would probably have crumbled and capitulated. They look pretty nailed on to go and become champions I would say.

I think Ziyech might be kept now to the summer at least. Granted he wasn’t brilliant but he had put a few good crosses in from open play and set plays. He really has a unique skillset despite not having blistering pace.

Jesus how many times are these players gonna fall over 😂 I think the game fizzled out after 25 minutes not done anything bar that Mudryk chance. Opportunity lost as Liverpool have been there for the taking.

Have to be honest, Badiashile looks very impressive. Still raw, likes going to try intercept in front of attackers when he shouldn’t but technically he looks excellent. Very cool on the ball. Left footer brings that balance to that position and makes our build up better.

There is a player in there but he should have gone on loan again I think. Has all the drive and athleticism but just not quite technically there yet for this level. I don’t know what sort of player he is, is he going to be a box to box player? A ball winner? A more offensive midfielder? Wow what a save by Alisson, bastard, but should be scoring that

Mount should have shot. Surprisingly Havertz also having a decent gsme so far, jesus christ, he must of been reading the forum 😂 Will Connor stop running the ball into people/crowded areas also?

Honestly he didn’t impress me in the CL or at the world cup one bit. Looked incredibly poor defensively. Just looks like a one way full back who would get torn apart in the PL. I mean if he’s going to cost £60-70m then I’d let them have him.

Actually I think he would suit Liverpool like a glove. Klopp’s high pressing footballing, he’d be a shoe in there. I get he’s struggled this season but he got 11 PL goals last season. Its a real shame he hasn’t kicked on and is struggling this season. Selling him would be a mistake.

Who knows with this mob? Wouldn’t be surprised at all. They seemed to have a hard on for defenders in the summer and wingers this window. Wouldn’t be surprised one bit if they went and signed a CB, further neglecting a CM and back up RB again.

If he cant carry the burden of scoring or assisting goal’s despite playing the majority of his career as an attacking midfielder/number 10/CF here and in Germany then is he really worth keeping? I don’t get it, I mean what’s the point in being an attacking player in this day and age if your not going to score goals or create them? I mean he’s supposed to be a once in a generation talent - the excuses he gets is ludicrous. Keep him for what? Maybe he should of been a holding midfielder or a centre back if the burden of scoring goals and assisting is too much for him 😂 “He’s a great guy to have as an option in the squad” Hmm, is he really? He is probably one of the most inconsistent footballers I have ever seen in a Chelsea shirt. I mean once every 3 months he will do something of note before going back to pretending he is an elite level footballer. Actually, tbf one thing I can think of that he has been consistent at is pressing opposition players into a position where they cannot really go anywhere before fouling them. “Hes a good big game player” When was the last big game he provided something? And when I say something I mean for us seen as the most recent one he did provide something but it was to give away a penalty to Man City. Unless we are classing Chelsea-Palace or Chelsea-Salzburg as big games this season. And even then if he didn't score in either you wouldn’t of noticed he was playing. I genuinely don’t see how he is any different to any of the other attackers we have/had, in particular Werner, Pulisic and Ziyech. He is clearly not cut out for this level which we aspire to reach. Sell whilst his value is high enough to recuperate some of the £72m we paid for him before its too late. If he cannot deal with the pressures of playing at a club of this level, he should play at a smaller club.

We will likely still be miles off in 3-4 years if we dont find good successors/upgrades for Jorginho and Kante and decent back up to James….. then the search for a good CF, plus I am doubtful that the likes of Wesley Fofana, Mudryk, etc are genuinely world beaters like the prices would indicate. Whats your hard on with the thinking Boehly throwing money purely at the wings is going to make any difference if he doesn’t sort key areas in the long run? I mean unless the intention is to play with a front 5 it would be moronic to just keep going for wingers/attacking midfielders.

To be champions again? I hope you mean get in the CL again. Because we aren’t going to be anywhere near the too 4 this season.

Lets hope the medical team and manager let him fully recover this time…. seeing as we seem no closer to acquiring a decent back up RB to continue overloading with attacking players.

But are they gone? Pulisic is out so can’t sit a medical anywhere so he isn’t going to be gone anytime soon. Probably be the summer. And supposedly, bar loan interest from Newcastle, has there ever been any real interest in Ziyech? Again, not so much by sounds of things. I mean if our transfer strategy is just overload the squad with attacking players, which we have plenty of (despite some of them being poor) and neglect key needed positions we have needed investment in for 2 seasons now, ie. a good back up RB and another good level CM, then so be it. But it will only end one way.

He’s not that good. Not even at Brighton but I think he did what a lot of these guys do and had a few good games against us so instantly people thought he was better than they were. He is so so middle of the road. I am actually surprised he hasn’t improved under Conte he seems like the sort of profile he would want in a MF player. If we were to pinch anyone from Spurs midfield it should be Bentancur. Who is pretty fucking good.

Signing the kid from PSV right now regardless of his injuries or how good he is just a dumb dumb move. Mainly because now we have to get rid if a few this window or its gonna be tough. If we agreed a deal for the summer then I could see the point but we cannot get rid of Pulisic as hes injured, will struggle to get rid of Hakim permanently this window, and then throw in the fact we have Mount, Havertz, Joao Felix who are capable of playing on the sides/as floaty attacking midfield players too. Plus Raheem who is out injured, Hudson-Odoi out on loan who will probabpy now not see a future at Chelsea at all regardless of if he was good enough or not. There really really really is no strategy at the club at all. Absolutely baffling. Its Just stockpiling players. Plus we are still in the race for Thuram apparently another fucking attacker. When we urgently need a RB and another CM. No faith at all that this new infrastructure is going to be any different from Boehly and co in the summer. Is there too many people involved?

He cant go on loan, he’s already played for 2 clubs this season. Molde & us. Or I thought that was the FIFA/UEFA ruled anyway.

Hopefully we can get a better look at Fofana upfront then. Would rather see us throw him in than use Kai atm.

So that means Colwill likely to be going out the door in the summer if we make this move happen? Granted he would still have to come here and get in the team but I think most are hopeful Colwill would be a part of the squad next season. These sort of deals where we go and buy 2 or 3 players under 23 of the same profile is going to block the pathway for some of our more promising academy kids. The irony is, for us its fine to criticise when other clubs breach it but now we could be in a situation where we do the exact same. Its intriguing to see what happens with no CL football because I have no doubts we will be finishing in and around 7–10th place this season. Theres too much to do to catch the other teams and the manager has hardly made a good impression to show that we can catch these teams.

I severely doubt it. Whats the source for this?

Fantastic upside? Really? Where are you seeing this? He has done next to fuck all for the last 2 years nearly and even then barring maybe a little spell with Tuchel, the majority of his time here is heavily questionable. When you consider the cost, the hype, he’s not convinced. At all. He is 23 and nobody here can be 100% sure if he is a CF or a number 10. Some may say that it makes him flexible, but for me, thats not always a good thing as he doesn’t particularly seem to excel at anything you would associate with those positions. There’s rumblings the club see him as a 10 long term but our past 2 managers, including the one who is supposedly here for the long term plan, have been using him as a CF. Thats a story in itself about him as much as any other attacking players we have too. What I don’t get is that people are quick to throw guys like Mount under the bus but still hold out hope for Kai despite the fact Mount has definitely done much much more in the same time Kai has been here.

Personally I think its more on Boehly trying to make a splash in the first window, I just have this feeling he seen City wanted him (similarly to Arsenal with Mudryk) and just felt he had to triumph them to stop them getting him first and foremost. Although we did need back up in the position with Chilwells injury. But mainly re City wanting him & Boehly wanting to make an impression and be competitive, I think this is why we had no issues to splurge the fee they wanted without hesitation where as City did. Or perhaps City had more reservations about the player? Whilst they also were/are statement buys - people probably thought not often Chelsea beat City & Pep to their top target in recent years or a team at the top of the league to theirs (Arsenal & Mudryk). So theres that element too. Without considering the players qualities as I don’t think any would of considered the pair of them elite players. I do think Tuchel liked the player though, but I am more convinced this is one of the lessons Boehly and the club have reportedly “already learned” from this summer. Or I’d hope so.

True but it depends on a lot, the manager, the formation we play, if we sign anyone else in defence etc. I mean aye if both develop well, then it means we are strong for that category/profile and gives us flexibility/options. Colwill has to come back, earn a place in the squad and perform here when called upon first though. I get that we’re seeing him do well at Brightom but doing it at Brighton isn’t necessarily going to translate as easily when playing for us. Just look at the difference in Cucurella and also look at Graham Potters struggles as our manager too. I’d imagine Caicedo if he were to come in this month may also have a similar adjustment period as well. Its a totally different environment so he will have to cross that bridge when he comes to it but really we should focus on the guys we have here at present before going and thinking for sure that Colwill will come back and need to be accommodated in the starting 11, so someone will have to play RCB or LCB or LB or RB or whatever to accommodate him now or then. I mean who knows, he might even stay at Brighton for another season (although I do doubt it)? I think he will be in the squad next season as long as we don’t go daft and chase the Croatian lad from Leipzig but lets see how much Colwill ends up playing when we get to next season. If we sign that Croatian lad he will be offski though. Can see this situation arising with some of the other younger lads in the future too, this Boehly 2030 project thing will have a few casualties. Lets just hope one isn’t Colwill as he can be a very good player for us in the future.

Last one we should sell? Really? Most of them not been up to it true but still, Kai’s basically been masquerading as a top level footballer for the last 18 months. I don’t see what he’s done barring a little spell under Tuchel to justify him staying here in the long run. If someone offered £50-60m tomorrow I’d hope the club would bite their hand off because he isn’t going to be worth anything like that at this rate. I mean is anybody here really any closer to knowing his best position? Is he best as a striker or a number 10? And to be honest, I don’t see him contributing much here as any of those 2 positions. Not due to his team mates being poor/average too but mainly due to the fact he just doesn’t look as if he can. I mean Felix and Nkunku are effectively similar types of players to Havertz in terms of they can play as forwards and as 10s/second strikers, who would be more a like for like swap for Havertz than a Mount, Ziyech, Pulisic etc.