BlueLion.

Inconsistent or not, he has scored some vital goals for this football team and whilst not necessarilly an integral part, we have to recognise him as our number one striker in Drogba and Kalou's absence.

4 goals in seven matches is a decent run of form for someone who has been short on confidence. And there is no way the club would be stupid enough to sell him this January, unless they plan of signing three strikers in January.

Chelsea boss Avram Grant is looking to pair Michael Ballack with Frank Lampard in the Blues' midfield when the England star returns from injury. The duo failed to gel when playing together last season before the German was sidelined with an ankle problem. Ballack will enjoy an extended run in the side as Lampard continues his rehabilitation from the thigh injury suffered against Aston Villa on Boxing Day. When Lampard returns, Grant must decide how best to use the duo in tandem as the Chelsea boss is determined to successfully use both players in the same midfield. "I like intelligent footballers. Football has become more tactical and physical," he said. "You need intelligent players because of that. Michael is an intelligent player and I like him. He is important for us. Captain "He can't be at his best over three games in such a short time back after being out for eight months. "Ballack is one of our leaders - all his life he has been a captain, including of the national team. "I want him to play when everyone is fit, not just when guys are injured. "Michael can do many things on the pitch - score and provide assists. He's a hard worker and this is important for us." Sky Sports

Don't be so surprised It was obvious with City's home record.

All of your points are on an Excel document, and they are all spot on.

Well Newcastle want TBH, if we could hold out for £4/5 million for him, it would be a net profit.

We have plenty of people who can operate on the wing. SWP, Malouda, Joe Cole, even Belletti, Ferreira and Bridge can operate there.

The difference between this point now and this point 12 months ago is that teams outside the top four are very much capable of beating Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United. Now there are teams like Everton, Man City and Villa who are all capable of causing upset, and of course West Ham are United's bogey club.

Rijkaard plays the type of football that means Ballack and Lampard can play together. The only thing that would bug me about his appointment would be the incident in 2005.

I like you as a person because you are sensible, remain on-topic and I agree with your username. But yes, back to the game. The second half we completely blitzed them, although that is the story fo Fulham's season it seems. The goal really knocked the stuffing out of them and it was only a matter of time until we got a second. Must say Alex impressed me defensively. He is big and strong but can sometimes leave much to be desired when his positioning lets him down. Great assist by him, nevertheless. Ballack showed how to take a penalty. But then again, he is German

Rest in Peace

A proven EPL striker, a decent central defender and a fullback is imperative, a second striker and further defensive cover may be required. I would like to see Anelka and McCarthy at Stamford Bridge as cover up front. Defensively I would like Daniel Alves but there is little chance of that occurring, so I think Lyon's Anthony Reveillere may be a good buy. He has fallen out of favour to Francois Clerc since getting injured earlier in the season and we may be able to purchase him on the cheap. And a centre half in the form of Micah Richards would be brilliant as well. But I would like to see Dave Kitson in from Reading.

Cech Alves Terry Carvalho Ashley Cole Ronaldinho Lampard Essien Ballack Joe Cole Drogba

I was thinking the same.

I think Grant got out his laptop and came on here looking for ideas Every sub I suggested happened

Well we don't, we're just assuming. However, it is the role of an assistant manager to be involved in the tactics and substitutions, etc.

Arsenal don't lose Adebayor as Togo didn't qualify, but they'll be leaking goals left, right and centre when Toure goes.

Made a good few decisions today regarding substitutions. The team on a whole were crap in the first 45.

2-1 Full time

He has taken off Wright-Phillips and brought on Claudio Pizarro. Not quite the change I would have made but Grant obviously is trying to keep Fulham penned in under pressure. Attack is the best form of defence - if we put them under pressure and defend well, we can wrap this up and maybe press on to get a third. I think Paulo will come on in stoppage time to wind the clock down and just make sure there are no lapses of concentration in the defence.

Anyone else feel Mikel has been the difference? He has been powerful going forward and his defensive skill has added some strength to our midfield. A good substitution by Granty.

Yeah, thats what I am saying. If we go to five at the back, we can have Belletti moved forward as a wing back who can support the forward play whilst Ferreira covers. I think Ferreira is the better defender of the two and should be brought on to add some steele to the play. Belletti has been great going forward but he has given away a couple of clumsy freekicks in dangerous positions and I don't need to remind you how weak Hilario is when it comes to crosses.

Fulham have brought on Healy. They are getting desperate, time to bring on Ferreira and Pizarro I feel. I think we should revert to a 5-3-2, with Wright-Phillips and Joe Cole coming off. We should make the midfield as compact as possible with Essien, Mikel and Ballack, with Pizarro playing deep to link up the midfield to Kalou. Would work a treat as it is a defensive formation which can easily be sprung into attack with Belletti and Bridge playing as full-backs.

If anything, I would take off Wright-Phillips and bring on Paulo Ferreira to slot in as a third centre-half. This is a lead we MUST defend if we really want to apply pressure on United and Arsenal. I know they are playing teams in midtable but if we put pressure on them by cutting the lead, they might find an urgent need to attack thus leaving themselves open at the back.

2-1 Michael Ballack