BlueLion.

He's under severe threat of being completely over-shadowed by Cesc this season, and his mantle of being our main man is similarly being challenged with the arrival of Costa. Let's see how he likes the competition. I know they're totally different positions that those three play in, but they all thrive on being the man. That sort of attitude could help Eden improve his performances. There's this massive myth that he was fantastic last season - he wasn't. He did nothing before November, and even at his "best" he was usually only effectual for 10-15 minutes a game at most. Of course he had those matches every now and again where he was totally unplayable, but come on, even Torres had some brilliant individual performances last season, such as Spurs away (for me, his best game in a Chelsea shirt and possibly in English football, certainly that I've seen anyway). The disappointing thing last year was that Eden's cameos were still more than what most offered in the entirety of the season. We're going to need far, far more from him, because at the minute he hasn't shown the development I think a lot of people expected. Thankfully, there is a "trend" that players coming to the Premier League from Ligue Un usually explode in their third season - Drogba and Malouda being good Chelsea-related examples. Let's hope that's the case this season, because I expect more from Eden. He is a talented boy but he's ridiculously over-hyped on this forum. I hope he starts to show more consistency this season, because that is what separates him from even breaking the Bale-Reus-Neymar-Zlatan calibre of player, let alone the Messi-Ronaldo bracket.

I think the "hate" was superficial. It's like I "hated" Torres because I begrudged Liverpool for having such a quality striker. Now I hate him for real because of how shit he is :lol: Everyone knows I'm joking, deep down he's still one of my favourite players, doesn't change the fact he's been shite for us besides a dozen matches! Does anyone really "hate" Cesc? If they do, they won't as soon as they watch him tear shit up this season.

The Daily Star, a tabloid worse than The Sun, is making a huge deal out of the fact we haven't given him a squad number yet. Might be something to do the fact that he hasn't been asked to report for training just yet.

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Yeah, your point about City is a fair one though. Almost all the elite clubs have Nike or adidas, there are very, very few exceptions. I don't know if you'd include Arsenal - I know I certainly wouldn't. Dortmund are perhaps the best team out there that don't belong to either kit manufacturer, although their position as Germany's second-best team is severely under threat from Schalke and Leverkusen. All the biggest (and best) teams in world football - Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United, Juventus, AC Milan, PSG, Benfica etc. etc. - are all either Nike or adidas. The tick and the three-stripes are a sign of prestige. If we were to leave adidas, the only kit manufacturer I'd like to see us go for is Nike. Puma make a good kit once in every ten, Warrior are utterly horrendous, Umbro are usually placid, uninventive designs. People might be bored with adidas' constant employment of black away kits, but I'd rather have kits like this, this or this, than some Warrior-horror like this or this. adidas are consistent with 7/10 or 8/10 kits, and once every now and again you get a 9.5. Like I say, it's a prestige thing, and their kits are genuinely better than most manufacturers.

Nike don't own Umbro anymore.

Everyone debating over Cech or Courtois obviously doesn't know José that well.... he'll probably play Schwarzer against Burnley just to take the piss

More of a KP in fairness pal, I'm not a very patient batsman at all.

The home kit, as a full uniform, looks excellent. I just can't seem to love the shirt by itself. Maybe if we win something in it, I'll change my mind (I wasn't a massive fan of the 11/12 kit until Wembley/Munich), but right now I think it is the poorest home shirt we've had since 09/10.

Too busy playing cricket preparing stuff for my PGCE to become a Humanities teacher to watch pre-season friendlies, Ron!

And he did so much for us last season. Mourinho practically told him what he had to do to win his place back, and he couldn't do it. Oscar was magic until Christmas, as soon as Mata got arsey about being a deserved bench-warmer, Oscar became complacent and distracted by the World Cup, and his form dripped. But Mata hardly caused ructions at United. One or two good performances but nothing outstanding. As much as I enjoyed watching Juan, I think Cesc is an upgrade in terms of the role expected by José, who knows a bit more about football than I do.

Valar doeharis, I'm here to serve.

I keep him there in the hope he'll one day not be shit...

They are working fine for me...

Another case of the "the Kakutas", a player with great potential but a poor attitude. Maybe he'll get a decent run of games at Sunderland and show us what he's made of, but he's nowhere near good enough for our first team IMO.

Drogba knows he isn't going to be first-choice, but the people slagging this signing off clearly haven't seen much of Fernando Torres. Actually, most Chelsea fans haven't seen much of, or from, him. That's why the King has returned.

Patrick van Aanholt has today (Friday) departed Chelsea, just twenty-four hours after Brazilian youngster Lucas Piazon joined Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt on loan. Dutch defender van Aanholt departs on a permanent deal to Premier League rivals Sunderland, whilst Piazon will continue his development in Germany after a promising spell at Vitesse Arnhem. van Aanholt, who showed much promise under Carlo Ancelotti's tenure in the Stamford Bridge hotseat, scored once for the Blues in eight first-team appearances, whilst Piazon has registered two assists in just three senior games. The Dutchman impressed whilst on loan with Piazon in his native Holland with Vitesse, earning him a place in Louis van Gaal's provision 30-man squad, whilst Piazon has previously enjoyed Champions League experience with Malaga in 2013. Everyone at TalkChelsea would like to thank Patrick for his service and extend him our best wishes for the future. For Lucas, we hope to see him further blossom into a potential star for the club.

Chelsea have today (Friday) resigned Ivorian striker Didier Drogba on a one-year deal. The former Galatasaray man, whose last kick of a ball for Chelsea won the club the 2012 UEFA Champions League final, has returned on a short-term basis to offer both Premier League know-how and goalscoring prowess up front. An official correspondence from the club read: On signing his contract, Drogba said: ‘It was an easy decision - I couldn't turn down the opportunity to work with Jose again. Everyone knows the special relationship I have with this club and it has always felt like home to me. ‘My desire to win is still the same and I look forward to the opportunity to help this team. I am excited for this next chapter of my career.’ Jose Mourinho said: ‘He’s coming because he’s one of the best strikers in Europe. I know his personality very well and I know if he comes back he’s not protected by history or what he’s done for this club previously. He is coming with the mentality to make more history.’ His 34 goals in European competition remains a Chelsea record, as do his nine strikes in nine cup finals. During the Ivorian’s first eight years with the club, he won three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, two League Cups as well as the Champions League triumph. He has been named Chelsea's Player of the Year and Players' Player of the Year and has won the Premier League Golden Boot twice. Drogba enjoyed an emotional return to Stamford Bridge in March 2014 when his Galatasaray side were beaten by goals from Samuel Eto'o and Gary Cahill, with the feeling being that the Ivorian still had unfinished business with the London club. The return of the Ivorian, who netted 157 times in 341 games for the club in his first spell, helps temper the sadness surrounding yesterday's departure of Frank Lampard to MLS outfit New York FC.

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Absolutely love the third kit. It's different. It's unique.

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Chelsea's pre-season preparations were boosted by the return to fitness of Petr Cech - but José Mourinho's men were held to a draw by RZ Pellets WAC. Cech, who injured himself in the Blues' Champions League semi-final first leg against Atletico Madrid in April, made a full return to action to throw down the gauntlet to the presently holidaying Thibaut Courtois. But he was left dumbfounded when, in the 54th minute, Pellets' De Oliveira Silvio saw his shot deflected up onto the crossbar by the sprawling Czech goalkeeper and cleared to safety. Though the referee waved play on, the linesmen controversially judged that the ball had crossed the line, giving the hosts a barely deserved lead. With Pellets well ahead of the Blues in terms of physical fitness - indeed, the Austrian side have already started their league campaign, with a 4-1 win over Admira on the opening weekend - Chelsea found themselves under serious pressure once again, after being in a similarly precarious position against AFC Wimbledon on Saturday. On that occasion, the Blues were able to bounce back to claim the spoils, and though they left it late on Wednesday night, a fabulous solo strike from Jeremie Boga ensured Chelsea would maintain their undefeated start to pre-season - but only after Cech had performed more heroics at the other end. Cech was forced into tipping over a fierce Wernitznig Christopher drive and then, moments later, had to tip a Silvio header over the bar with the Brazilian looking to add to his contentious first-half strike. But where the hosts lacked composure in front of goal, Boga demonstrated enviable skill and determination to restore parity. Picking the ball up in Chelsea's right-back area, the young Frenchman showed blistering pace and impressive footwork to slalom beyond a number of challenges sixty yards upfield. Playing a one-two with Branislav Ivanovic - again employed as an emergency striker - the Frenchman showed admirable composure to hold off a defender and then accurately slot the ball home. It was a goal that belies his tender years, and like the impressive Izzy Brown in the demolition of Wycombe and Lewis Baker's staring role in that comeback win over Wimbledon, it was this time Boga who was the young starlet catching Mourinho's eye. Another happy note for the Portuguese is the début of Filipe Luis, who looked very comfortable slotting in alongside John Terry, and the continued good form of Oriol Romeu in central midfield will also come as a welcome boost. Chelsea move their attentions to Slovenian side Olimpija Ljubljana, who they face on Sunday at 16:15 BST.

I didn't see the game as I was on a coaching course. I know the score, but was it a decent match to watch? What were the performances like?

Cech has the edge for me. Why? Because Mourinho is sentimental, it's his one weak point as a manager.

I just don't see what the massive fuss is, TX. Light blue (admittedly not that shade, fair enough) is equally as traditional in the history of Chelsea Football Club. I agree it's a strange choice, but I think it's quite refreshing from the usual boring training kits we get. Easily the nicest set of training gear since 2007: