I've been thinking - is Essien now surplus to requirements? He has been a faithful servant and remains a great player, but he certainly has become inconsistent and he is also developing a nasty habit of becoming injury prone. I firmly believe that the younger duo of Ramires and Mikel play his role far better, and also Ramires offers a greater attacking thrust and more invention with his effervescence. Plus I believe Essien really does affect the team's dynamism. Essien plays his best football when he has licence to roam forward, but he is limited when Lampard plays. If we sign an attacking midfielder, you would imagine Essien would have been the man to miss out on a starting berth anyway. He has been struggling to recapture his best form for the club, and though he has the odd excellent game, I think we ought to cut our losses. Selling an injured player is moreorless going to be impossible, especially a cruciate ligament. But I'm afraid with a dodgy knee, he won't ever return to the form he enjoyed in 2006-2008. Thoughts?