JDY

1. Well early signs would suggest you are incorrect (allbeit vs. Wigan & Reading). We'll see how we shape up today against a better side in Newcastle. And again, no one is implying that Mikel is or will be useless. I said with the new additions to the squad (mostly attacking), we are likely to be more adventurous in our play as we now have the players to hurt the opposition. Thus leaving more space at the back to exploit. 2. I was talking about the team playing more open, not a complete shift in styles. Naturally with the players we have bought we will be more open. And I was also talking about down the line when the new players have bedded into the team. Although your rant about styles is correct, that was not what I was getting on to.

I like Mikel but it will only get harder for him the more open we play. Showing his stats of late last season is all well and good, but how did we play at that time? The midfield was compact and opposition teams were forced to go around the outside to get at the back four. Mikel thrived in that because there was no space in the middle for teams to exploit. We all know Mikel isn't the most mobile of players, so I don't know why some can't see that he might struggle the more open we play. Especially alongside Lampard who's natural instinct is to go forward, it often (and has against Wigan and Reading) left Mikel on his own. I've seen people bring up stats highlighting his distribution, why? Although generally his distribution is great, for a player in his position anything above average is a bonus. It's the job of the player next to Mikel to create from deep, whilst also be competent defensively. The way we are looking to play and with the new players we have in attack, a player who can cover ground and hassle opposition players is needed more than one who can sit and break up play. A perfect example would be Vidal, or even Essien if he still had his legs. I'm not 'slating' Mikel, I think he's a very good player. I just don't think he's suited to how we're trying to play, especially with Lampard doing him no favours in a defensive sense.

I'm pretty certain it's next summer. http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/en/daniel-sturridge/profil/spieler_47082.html

Will only happen if Sturridge leaves imo.

Is it selfishness or poor decision making? Most of the time he just seems to get a rush of blood and ends up shooting.

£20m? We'd be looking at £8-12m for him with only a year left on his contract. We'd be lucky to get £15m.

I don't know if that was intentional but I found the complete contrast of views rather amusing. Did anyone see when Eva Carneiro ran on the pitch when Terry (I think) got injured? Celery chants broke out and even her name was chanted as she walked off.

Got back from the game about an hour ago, and what a good game it was. First and foremost, credit to Reading, they were fantastic for the majority of the game and really caused us some problems at the back. If they play like that for the rest of the season they'll stay up no doubt. As for Chelsea, there's only one place you can start and that's the performance of Eden Hazard. He was outstanding, even better than last weekend at Wigan. Every time he got the ball we were on our feet, haven't had much of that since the Duff and Robben days. The whole team performance wasn't great but the win was the most important thing. At the back we still look a little shaky, Reading often exploited our lack of mobility in the middle of the park. I didn't think we were fluid as an attacking threat until Sturridge came on. He did have that one moment where the fans went absolutely crazy at him when he decided to shoot rather than pass, but other than that he was good. It still begs the question if Ramires long term future lies on the wings or if he will be shifted to another position. Overall, delighted with the win and with Hazard's performance. All the talk was about him on the way out. We've been missing a player like him for years and I'm so glad we got him (thanks Didier). We will need to improve for Newcastle at the weekend however.

Only seems to be a handful of people on here who think the same! When he moves to a bigger club and people see him playing every week I guess he will get noticed more. Agreed, his end product isn't the best. That's probably why Jol moved him deeper in the midfield. Rarely do you see him lose the ball, even in the tightest of situations. The burst of acceleration to beat opponents aswell, he makes it look so easy.

Lols.

João Ruela ‏@joao_ruela Again: Porto will not sell Hulk to Chelsea unless someone buys the 10% of Hulk's rights that belongs to Rentistas. There's no flight booked. Make what you will.

Yeah £10m. He has a year left on his contract and despite saying he is happy to stay, he still hasn't signed a new deal. I agree with everything else you said, one of the most underrated players in the league and a joy to watch. When Spurs sell Modric I think they'll go for him.

They might do, but if any club meets the valuation they've set I doubt they will stand in his way. If he goes to Spurs or United I might cry

I have a sneaky feeling Spurs will get him when they sell Modric. Shame we are not after him, would be excellent in the double pivot, especially for £10m.

He's hardly 'gushing' about them. He asked a question which no one can come up with an answer to - because he is right. I don't see what Arsenal's trophy count has got to do with the argument that they might have the best central midfield.

So much facepalm in this thread. 'Average Arteta' and 'Crap Carrick'. They were both brilliant last season. Wonder what people are watching sometimes.

Excellent performance from him today. Fergie was in the stands watching on. Presumably for United's match vs Fulham next week, maybe an eye on Dembele also.

I stated my team name on the previous page but was still removed. Interesting.. Team name: Spurs 1-5 Chelsea

They are in a difficult position. All the power is in Dembele's hands. He says he wants to be there but still hasn't signed a new contract. If a big club comes calling I would expect him to leave. Would be surprised if its over £10m.

I think there will be more pleased Spurs fans than upset. If Chelsea had Modric and he wanted to leave, would you rather sell him to Madrid for £24m, or to one of your closest rivals (let's use United for example), which will improve their team greatly, for £40m? Madrid for me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KL0rrEu1bFs&feature=plcp Some decent clips of him last season as a box to box midfielder. Excellent close control and dribbling, looks like if Madrid don't get Modric and sell Kaka, they will be after Witsel and Dembele.

Just joined. Team name: Spurs 1-5 Chelsea

^ Not sure if trolling. Seems to be the 'go to' response for some on here. Maybe you could give Fifa a rest for a bit.

I don't get why some people always refer to FM/FIFA when someone is just presenting an idea which is different from the most commonly used way or method. I didn't say we should use it, it would be interesting to see though.

It is indeed. I stated that at the top of the post and gave the source near the end.