Jase

Luiz on Oscar... http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2289235/David-Luiz-praises-Chelseas-Oscar-ahead-Steaua-Bucharest-game.html

In the ideal world, we would want all of our players to be perfect and do the right thing in every situation. But that ain't gonna happen. Don't think there a lot of things Mata should have done better in certain situations but one criticism for him(and some others) is that when the opportunity is there to shoot, then shoot(!) rather than trying to overplay with the tiki-taka football and walk the ball into the net!

He did not said that specifically. That was just the silly media writing BS from what Gourlay actually said! http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/mar/06/rafael-benitez-chelsea

How is the flicks he execute got anything to do with being selfish?!!

No thanks. Hasn't exactly been consistently great for some time and I don't think having a troublesome player like him would be helpful if even Fergie can't be bothered with him any longer.

Wait what?! Selfish?!

We all live in hope that he'll be gone before the summer...

He deserves a statue for that.

That 5-0 scoreline was a freak result. Unlikely to happen again for ages. And the Madrid side this season isn't in the best of form like last season but that doesn't take away what Mourinho has built in the side. Kaka was already brought on in the 1st half for the injured Di Maria. He didn't really had much of an impact and when the sending off happened, Madrid needed another passer like Modric anyway in that midfield. Capable of playing short, run with the ball etc. It worked. Biased!

Are you talking about his tactics here or his playing style? If you're talking about the latter, then it just doesn't go with the former because they are two different things. Just to answer it anyway, not sure how can you doubt Mourinho's tactical ability. He might not be the best at it but he's definitely one of the best around. Since his days at Porto, his teams are always capable of playing in more than one different formation and capable of adapting accordingly. 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1, 4-4-2 diamond etc. Additionally, he has often been quick to enough to make changes when things are not working and is even prepared to take huge risks in games that not many other managers would be willing too. He also always set out his team to be defensively solid(maybe not with Madrid this season) and aggressive as a unit and be extremely potent when attacking. His time here and at Inter demonstrated that his teams are defensively stingy while his Madrid side are extremely menacing and devastating in attack. He has always been very methodical and pay close attention to those small little details that made his teams tick. The transition in attacks/counter attacks, defensive organization, closing down, pressing etc. He didn't achieve what he has achieved so far without being tactically capable and while he maybe a great man-manager and motivator, that alone won't be enough to make one successful. You need to have a balance of both and Mourinho possesses exactly that. And yes, I don't disagree that Fergie out-thought him yesterday but once that red card incident happened, he immediately responded by bringing on Modric to turn the tide in his favor. He seized the opportunity and didn't wait for it(unlike a certain Spanish manager) and what happened? United were suddenly pushed back and Modric scored after 6-7 minutes of coming on. Also, just because he was out-thought by Fergie yesterday, doesn't mean he's not tactically capable. No shame in getting out-thought by someone as experience as Fergie because it happens but the overall H2H record between two speaks for itself. In 16 encounters, Mourinho has won 7 of those while losing just 2. Drew the other 7.

Fun Fact: Chelsea and Steaua Bucharest are 2 of only 6 teams from a European capital city that have won the European Cup/Champions League. Red Star Belgrade, Ajax, Benfica and Real Madrid are the other 4.

After yesterday... 1. Jose Mourinho has faced Alex Ferguson 6 times in the Champions League & the record reads - W2 D3 L1. Overall record vs SAF is P16 W7 D7 L2. 2. Jose Mourinho's record against Manchester United at Old Trafford(with Porto, Chelsea, Inter & Real Madrid) - P7 W3 D2 L2.

Personally I'm not too bothered with the Europa League with our main priority lying elsewhere though going on a winning run would help to build momentum and confidence. That being said, we would have more than enough to beat Steaua Bucharest if our players are at their best, even without Mata.

That was his 1 and only game he didn't play in 27-28 games under Benitez. Team must learn to play without relying on Mata too much.

Mata. Hazard has been rotated far too often recently and he even had that 3-game break because of the ban. He has looked one of, if not the most freshest of our attacking players recently.

And Drogba's somewhat theatrical and slightly late expression/reaction didn't help matters then too.

Not gonna bother getting into this whole debate. Everyone have their opinions and views. For me, it just wasn't a red card. It might have been a dangerous challenge if one follow the law but not every challenge like that is a straight red card, with a little bit of proper thought behind it. And as said, the fact that there was hardly a protest from the players then said it all. One thing to add. It's easy for us to sit down here and say Nani should have been aware of his surroundings. When that ball was cleared by a United player and coming to him, his one and only intention was always to control the ball down and get at Madrid on the break as one of their attacks just broke down. The incident was made to look bad only because Arbeloa came flying in. It's not like he was just standing there and Nani raised his boots high up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxPqD2kOQI0

Not looking forward to facing a United side raging from this Madrid defeat on Sunday. Not. At. All. (even more so when Benitez is in charge)

Mourinho was right to say that the better team lost. On paper, Madrid may have the better players and team but Man United executed their game plan to perfection last night. They stayed tight and solid defensively as a team without the ball and were creating great chances when they had it. With a little bit of luck, they would have been leading 1-0 or 2-0 before Ramos scored that OG. Madrid were quite clueless then as they didn't have the means to break down United's defence. But that red card obviously changed the game and ruined it completely. Personally, I don't think the red card was a red card. Yes Nani's boot was rather high but he was watching the ball the whole time then and his intention was always to control the dropping ball. The contact happened only because Arbeloa came flying in and collided with Nani's boot, which was just an unfortunate collision. It's not like Nani knew Arbeloa was standing there and he raised his boot. Furthermore, there was even hardly a protest from the players when that incident happened. If anything, this was even worse and Drogba got a yellow card for it!

Playing a United side raging from this loss on Sunday. Oh dear.

Don't worry Fergie. We've been there before...

The quality of those new players will depend on where we finish in the league come May.

Here's another one: Steaua Bucharest's Home record in European competitions against English oppositions - P7 W4 D2 L1. Sole defeat came against Arsenal in the CL group stage 6 years ago. Van Persie scored the only goal then in a 1-0 win. Their overall record against English teams - P14 W4 D4 L6 (Away in Europe - P7 D2 L5).

Even then, you can't disregard the importance of his contribution.