Superblue

Wow, the reaction on here is mind blowing. If we could buy in the summer, I could understand the reaction but we can't replace him at present. I'm someone who is a massive advocate of giving young players chances but it must be done in the right way. Christensen was a prime example of that last season - he had a very good, solid season up until the Barca home game and then his form fell apart. The club were lucky to be able to call upon Cahill during this time, not because he is Baresi but because he was a solid, experienced option who could fill in and Christensen could be taken out of the firing line. It's far too risky for say Tomori to just be chucked straight in. I'd have no problem him being in the squad next season and gaining experience but he shouldn't be coming in directly as first choice. On top of that, Rudiger may not be fit by the start of the season (and you don't know how well initially he'll come back from the injury, he may need easing in), Christensen is still struggling to fulfil his potential and Zouma may not be deemed suitable for Sarri (or he may want to go to Everton permanently if he's a guaranteed starter there). There are too many question marks across our back line at present to afford to just let Luiz go. David Luiz will never be the greatest 'defender' and will always play with an element of risk but he also brings a unique skill set as a ball playing centre back that none of the rest of our players have. Hopefully Jorginho continues to improve and kick on next season like he has in recent games, and Luiz's ball playing becomes less needed in time but until that happens he's still pretty important to the whole way Sarri wants to play. Also I don't think it should be underestimated how important he likely is off the pitch. Even the old guard are glowing in their praise of how upbeat and great Luiz is for the dressing room and whether people like to admit it or not, he is one of the few leaders we have still at the club at present. I'd love Reece James to break through next season and RLC to become a mainstay in midfield and potentially one of them could be captain material but that's one day, not now and if Luiz were to leave at present without the ability to bring in new players we would be leaving a dressing room already short of leaders, nearly devoid of any at all. A 2 year deal isn't ideal but the club doesn't have a choice if they want to keep him, he has all the negotiating power due to the ban. There isn't anything stopping us next summer buying a new centre back and Luiz may then decide it's time to leave after one year and we either release him early or let him leave for a nominal fee. I cannot see the club suddenly changing their whole structure and offering all sorts of over 30's long term contracts as with the exception of Giroud, who we have an option on anyway, no one else has a contract expiring this year. If their contract expires in 2020 that is quite frankly irrelevant because we can buy again by then and it reverts back to us holding the negotiating power.

I've said a number of times that I think there will be an initial struggle losing Hazard, but I do think in the longer term outlook the club can recover and be potentially better off. At the moment we are so reliant on Hazard it's embarrassing and having such a reliance on one top player is not healthy. Sarri's Napoli was a team without any real stars (Hamsik and Higuain were the biggest and I don't think neither were considered near an elite level), and the team worked as one. I think Sarri has struggled this season having to adopt his tactics which require the team to operate together as a well oiled machine to players such as Hazard and Willian who are more 'individuals'. Hazard is given a free reign in the team and not expected to track back much which doesn't help with the defensive phase of the team as a unit, resulting in some of the bigger matches him being shoehorned centrally so we can ensure we're more solid defensively. The pace of play and "pass and move" cycles that Napoli showed under Sarri haven't developed here currently. I do think in recent weeks our playing out the back has shown signs of improvement, and that has also coincided with an upturn in Jorginho's form and the continued development of RLC who seems to be a willing runner in the midfield alongside Kante. However the whole thing dies further up the field. It's hard to knock Hazard, when he has produced so many moments of magic and is such a huge source of goals and assists for us but there is no doubt that him and Willian at times slow down the play or will hold on to the ball longer than I think Sarri would prefer. The biggest problem next season with the ban in my opinion is not replacing Hazard on the wing, but not being able to buy a top striker to lead the line.

I was happy with the effort shown last night. The attack was very poor last night - Hazard, Willian, Giroud just couldn't get anything going which was extremely disappointing. But with the exception of the Frankfurt goal which was a piece of abysmal defending from Luiz I think the desire and application was there to see. Tackles and blocks were being made, a couple cleared off the line when we really had our back to the wall with what finished as a makeshift back line and without our best defensive minded midfielder. And to come from behind to win in a penalty shoot out too shows a lot of bottle. The quality needs a huge step up, especially against Arsenal but I don't think the effort and desire could be faulted last night. Based on some of our poorer performances earlier in the season we would have lost last night.

It's more about getting injuries that I worry about when we already have a few and have clearly been feeling the effects of a long hard season in recent weeks.

I thought Jorginho was superb tonight and has been in recent games. Misplaced a couple of passes midway through the first half but pushed the team on when we were struggling and has become far more aggressive in his defending. I think it's an example of someone who will improve and be better next season for us.

Is that end of season game in America before the Europa? If I was Sarri I'd take the youth over there. Its piss poor planning from the club knowing we could have got to this final and we're becoming threadbare as it is.

Do away goals still count in extra time?

That's pathetic even for Luiz's standards.

Hopefully someone with better knowledge can confirm or deny, but my understanding is the appeal can take months but in the meantime they can decide to freeze the ban until the appeal has been heard which would give us the summer window in theory to trade.

I wouldn't want permanent transfers for Higuain and Kovacic but I don't mind their loans being extended another season if the ban remains in place.

I was thinking this too myself. If he can stay fit he has a huge chance of locking down that midfield spot for years to come and a dominating and driving presence in that midfield that he has the potential to be, has future captain written all over it for me. Being those couple of years older and more mature too, I also think he'll be someone the academy players coming through like CHO, James, Mount, etc can look up to in the same way that John Terry was.

If we have a window for me I would look at concentrating on 4 players and get the best possible player we can get for each of those (but also that are going to enhance us under how Sarri wants to play): Centre Back Left Back Winger Striker The left back is an obvious one. We need someone athletic and mobile to provide width and defensively solid. I would prefer Reece James be promoted and compete with Azpi next season for the right back spot, hence why that isn't on my list. We need a top centre back to go alongside Rudiger in my opinion. I had high hopes of Christensen but I'm not sure if he'll ever be better than the spot he's in now to be honest. No matter how attacking and expansive we play there will always be tight games where a single goal will nick it - Liverpool and City have these games at times. In order to be in that position to grind out a 1-0 at times, we need to be far more solid at the back and have a leader in there to dominate the defence. I would love a goalscoring winger, someone in a similar mould to Mane with bags of pace and great movement and desire to get into the box and scoring positions. If a wide player can be recruited who can cover the vast majority of Hazard's goals, then a new striker coming in and potentially getting 20 goals a season suddenly makes our attack look far more potent. A striker for me is the most pressing need. We need to find someone who can get 18-20 goals a season in the league. A new central midfielder and second choice striker would also be nice, but the above is far more necessary. I wouldn't be against a couple of 'projects' being signed for these two spots who wouldn't come in under immediate pressure to perform but can be coached and moulded over time to become useful options. With regards to outgoings, I would sell Hazard if he wants to leave and also Willian. I do not believe that either is suited to how Sarri wants to play to be honest. Both want to get on the ball and dribble with the ball, slow play down, etc. I think Pedro is more suited to Sarri than Willian is which is why he would stay another season, and Willian would still likely command a reasonable transfer fee. Obviously some of the squad players should be moved on if there are buyers - Zappa, Drinkwater, Bakayoko, Morata. Unless Sarri is confident of Tammy being second choice striker, I'd probably retain Giroud for another season. If we brought a top centre back, I'd be inclined to let Luiz leave and keep Christensen and possibly Zouma. If a new left back came in, I'd also probably sell Emerson over Alonso. For me in recent weeks Emerson just hasn't impressed enough. Alonso has some major flaws to his game but at the very least he chips in with a few goals a season and his height is an added bonus for set pieces at both ends of the pitch. That for me, puts him as a more effective option to retain than Emerson. As a few have said, getting rid of a few players with potentially decent sale values, Hazard with a large one and likely two years worth of transfer budgets rolled into one, spending on 4 high quality players in one window I don't see as unrealistic.

I see that Reece James and Chalobah have returned to Chelsea to train with the first team for the last couple of weeks of the season now their loans have finished. Our season ends late regardless of the Europa League final or not because of the anti-semitism game we're playing in America at the end of the season. It makes sense to get some of these players back in for Sarri to have a look at over the next couple of weeks and maybe get some game time in the States. If the ban doesn't get deferred or overturned then the importance of retaining the right players from their loan spells becomes that much more vital and any extra time and opportunity Sarri gets to assess these boys is for the better. These two in particular actually could well fill problem positions in the squad (James the need for a new right back to compete with Azpi, and Chalobah the need for a backup for Jorginho).

And still in that spell we've won a league title and an FA cup and could potentially add a Europa League to that also.

The biggest question mark is where the goals are going to come from.

This sort of comment with regards to Hazard really annoys me. Yes the club have signed some poor players, particularly over the last couple of seasons but we've also brought some extremely good players, and even in their twilight years Hazard also got to work with the likes of Lampard, Terry, Cole, Drogba, Ivanovic whilst he was still young and developing as a player and a man. I love Hazard and I really appreciate what he has done for this football club. But this is Chelsea FC not Eden Hazard FC. He has been our main source of creativity and inspiration over the years but without tactics and personnel playing behind him (certainly under the likes of Benitez, Mourinho and Conte) to make us solid defensively, he wouldn't have been afforded the freedom he has been provided with for large parts of his Chelsea career to provide us with that. The same goes for the likes of Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar, etc. All the success and adulation isn't possible without the backdrop of 10 other players in support of that. I think only City have won as many trophies as us in England since Hazard has been here, so whilst he has given us potentially his best years as a footballer, he's hardly left looking back thinking "what if?" when he looks at his trophy collection.

If the ban remains despite the CAS appeal, I'm interested to know how the loans of Higuain and Kovacic are affected. I've read from a few sources that this may be a bit of a loophole and that extensions to their loans could be allowed as they already have registrations at the club. There's obviously a lot of debate surrounding the usefulness of both but considering the situation, if the opportunity arises that both can be extended I would say this is a matter of necessity.

His comments at today's press conference suggest he has his eyes on '2 or 3' players out on loan to come back in next season. Intrigued to know which players he has in mind and what roles in the squad he has them potentially ear-marked for. I'd be amazed if Baka and Morata are amongst those in his thoughts as he had some chance to work with both and bombed them both out when the first opportunity arose.

The club has confirmed during Sarri's press conference that we'll be appealing the ban with CAS.

I think it could well also strengthen Sarri's future here too. If we have all this to do this summer, the last thing the club needs too is managerial upheaval. If it's going to be two years with no movement apart from potential academy players breaking through, we're going to have to back Sarri with players that will suit him and what he is wanting to do.

Even then though its far from ideal this late in the season. I don't know how long these CAS appeals take, or how quick they can impose a freeze on the sanctions, etc. We are already closing in on the end of the season and the transfer window is short again this summer. Its impossible for us to commit to clubs and players with regards to buying at present. I just see it being a big problem to try and operate essentially all our transfer business for the next 2 seasons this summer if this appeal drags on longer than the next couple of weeks. We need as much time as possible to get this right, otherwise we might as well go into next season with what we've got (refresh the squad with some loan players coming back) and rebuild the following season.

Allison turned us down for Liverpool according to reports. Kepa was the alternative.

I don't think it will keep him because he is already showing signs of becoming that very good player, but I think it will likely restrict the number of games he can play. There has been some moaning recently about Sarri taking him off or starting him as a sub but with his history of back problems he's going to have to be managed correctly. I'm sure Sarri would like the luxury at present to play him in every game but it's simply not possible. This will be no different to next season when we're back in the Champions League too. It will be a case of prioritising games for him. It will need someone like Barkley to step up himself next season. He's someone who I feel tries too hard to not do things wrong that its leading to him not doing things right because he should be doing the same things that Loftus-Cheek is doing, i.e. driving and pushing the team up the pitch, able to carry the ball through the middle and getting into the box as an extra goal scoring option. His confidence disappeared mid-season when we started struggling and it never recovered and he's yet another player that needs to come back with a point to prove next season.

Although the last couple of week's 'indiscretions' will put question marks over his attitude, this loan has been overall a big positive in rebuilding his reputation. I don't think he is anywhere near technically good enough to play under Sarri, and many Chelsea fans are still having nightmares now of his performances last season but with a bit of luck there will be interested parties this summer prepared to buy him and we can recoup the vast majority of our original outlay on him.

Agree with Cole's penalties they were always the same and predictable. However his pen in Munich was pretty much un-saveable, couldn't have been placed any better considering Neuer went the right way on it too.