BlueLion.

Absolutely fucking gutted I didn't get tickets to this one. People have to realise this is the biggest game in Shrewsbury's recent history - playing a group of 20 year olds is a recipe for disaster.

If he's fit for tomorrow, do we start him?

I thought he was shit? Some fans on here, you guys kill me! He's nearing full fitness again and he looks like a beast.

Fed up of your shit especially. Shut the door on the way out.

The referee was clearly United's 12th man.

Fuck me there are some absolute shitcunts on this forum, I need to log out before I ban someone.

350 games for the big man. Congratulations!

Gutted mate. Thanks for reading.

Also, well done to Didier for his 350th appearance and 159th goal. That's a record of a goal roughly every two games, or a goal per 1.76 starts.

Why is there no option to vote Dowd MOTM by the way?

There are some fickle cunts on here. If we weren't robbed by that shit-eating oxygen thief of a referee you'd all be singing Mourinho's praises for a tactical masterclass.

Robin van Persie scored a 94th-minute equaliser to deny Chelsea a deserved victory at Old Trafford. The Blues dominated for much of the match and took the lead through a magnificent Didier Drogba header - only to be undone completely by an utterly diabolical refereeing performance by Phil Dowd. Firstly the Blues were denied an absolute stonewall penalty when both John Terry and Gary Cahill were wrestled to the ground in the same incident, before Branislav Ivanovic was incredulously shown a second yellow card when Angel di Maria dived to win the late free-kick from which United levelled. That decision summed up the refereeing injustice felt by Chelsea who had five players booked in addition to Ivanovic's dismissal, though United players constantly went unpunished through sheer refereeing incompetence. And to add insult to injury, van Persie, already yellow-carded, wasn't shown a second yellow for removing his shirt during his celebration of a goal United, quite frankly, didn't deserve. Chelsea played with a measure of control throughout, very rarely looking vulnerable despite Thibaut Courtois being called into three point-blank saves from van Persie. The giant Belgian goalkeeper almost preserved his clean sheet right at the death when he denied compatriot Marouane Fellaini, but the depleted, disorganised Chelsea defence failed to clear di Maria's free-kick, allowing van Persie to smash the rebound home. Ultimately it is Chelsea's fault for again failing to kill off a "big" team, much like their bottle-job showing at Manchester City back in September, but the way they were robbed of their deserved rewards here makes this result as difficult a pill to swallow as Frank Lampard's late leveller on their last journey to Manchester. The point does at least increase Chelsea's lead over defending champions City to six points, and their lead over second-placed Southampton remains a healthy gap of four, but the two dropped here makes this feel more akin to a heavy defeat than anything else. United rarely threatened despite retaining possession of the ball well deep in Chelsea's half, and though their shot tally of 19 suggests they posed a constant menace to the outstanding Courtois, the Belgian was rarely forced to excel himself, as even van Persie's numerous attempts when one-on-one were poorly executed. The late goal would have been irrelevant had Dowd awarded the Blues the most blatant of penalties in the first half, with the referee instead choosing to ignore Marcos Rojo's shirt-pull on John Terry and Chris Smalling getting Ivanovic in a head-lock at the far post. Chelsea frustrated in the first half but came into their own after the interval, and moments after Eden Hazard had produced a fine save from David de Gea, the Spanish goalkeeper was picking the ball out of his own net after Drogba's beautifully directed front post header. United were kept in the game through a combination of Jose Mourinho's lack of desire to commit too many men to the attack and trigger-happy Dowd's careless card-waving, and van Persie's equaliser looked somewhat inevitable with every joke of a decision delivered by the official. Ivanovic's dismissal - brought about through di Maria's theatrics - added insult to injury as Dowd managed to spot a supposed trip from 40 yards away, but not the Blues' earlier penalty appeal when stood at the edge of the box. On a more positive note, the Blues remain unbeaten and top of the Premier League. The only regret is, again, just like last season, points have been thrown away from a winning position. Shrewsbury Town in the Capital One Cup represents Chelsea's next assignment, but they will only have one day to recover from this debacle ahead of that fixture.

You taking the piss out of my jawline? At least I have a defined face... your face looks like a piece of battered fish ffs. Anyway get back on topic you yampy twat.

Yeah, about that....

At least I can type a grammatically correct sentence, you peasant.

Why does Branna look like Borat in this?

Their performances. Since he was out with injury Messi has been a fantastic player but in my honest opinion well off his best. Ronaldo has just continued to grow. Ultimately the two of them are judged on the amount of special things they can do in a match, whether that is a piece of individual brilliance or putting the ball in the net. Ronaldo delivers more often. Messi is slowly finding his feet again but right now there's no comparison in my eyes, Ronaldo - right now - is the superior choice.

He's a weirdly good looking bloke but he needs to wear a scarf or something :lol:

You actually think that, right now, Messi is better than Ronaldo? We'll just end this discussion here.

Incredibly tempted to have this quote in my sig I look at this squad of ours and I consider who is really captaincy material? Besides Terry, there's only really Ivanovic and Cesc I'd give the armband too. Ramires and Azpi, IMO, are too meek in terms of their character to be captains - they aren't natural leaders. I don't think either of them would be effective captains. Ivan wears his heart on his sleeve and incredibly vocal, and Cesc is obviously a proven captain from his time at Arsenal. Elsewhere in the squad, who else is there? You can make arguments for Matic and Costa but they're either not established enough in the side or don't have the experience with the armband.

I see your point and it is well made, but we've only really played two "big" games this season so far, so let's see how well he does in games against the likes of United, Liverpool and Spurs in the coming weeks.

Fuck me, Courtois must be part giraffe. That fucking neck...

He might be down as "left winger" on your copy of FIFA but if you assess his heat maps and his average touch positions during his time at Madrid, he effectively operates as an inside forward - effectively as a second striker behind Benzema. Madrid have such dynamism in their attack that no-one has a fixed position. To say that the best footballer on the planet "can't" play as a central forward is just ridiculous. He hasn't been an out-and-out winger since he left United.

What an embarrassment of a topic. You'd get more sense and maturity in the 6 year olds I'll be coaching tomorrow morning. Pathetic.

Ronaldo Hazard - Fabregas - Bale Kroos - Khedira Azpilicueta - Terry - Varane - Ivanovic Courtois