Strike

It doesn't come under the British quota. nothin else

his shot stoppin is alright i guess but his decisions to chase every corner is maddening. add to that the fact that we can get someone better and someone British to sit on the bench - Stockdale, Gordon(although Scottish) or a keeper from the championship like loach or lewis. maybe someone on loan as well. can't risk it at the highest level

would work. he's very direct with his play. surely we can't inflate the midfield any more although most of the mids seem to be CDM's to me. Romeu, Meireles, Essien, Mikel fighting for the same position seems pointless. i would get rid of one of them before Benayoun or Malouda because we have lesser attacking mids

too early for this. there are problems to be sorted but the reaction to the game here is beyond nonsensical - RAWK-like as someone mentioned. di matteo knows the task at hand now and i think he will sort out a few decisions by the Milan game - eg - sell Benayoun etc, sign Moses(?) as back-up striker and Azpilicueta at RB. Also, i think he will change the system a bit. even he must have thought that we weren't creating consistent chances today

a dynamic double pivot at that. not just a defensive one and as for lampard, it can't be helped. he will get to play under di matteo. hopefully he is rotated like Scholes at ManU

http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/chelsea-increase-victor-moses-bid-7976107.html very bold article to state the price, the manner of payment and that we are close to an agreement

I really liked Cahill. An Australian who worked his way up English football. joined everton from milwall if i remember correctly and i think over the years he built up a reputation by scoring decisive goals. his heading is unbelievable for his size. faded away these last 2 seasons but still it doesn't take away what he achieved i eternally hate him for this though

no reason not to sell ross or hilario and get in a proper backup though. hilario or turnbull is close to suicidal. hilario's decision making in the seattle game was very poor tbh. we just cant risk that kind of thing in the prem-ship or in europe. is there a loan recall option on courtois' loan deal? even if there is, i don't think we'l recall him if cech is injured for 1 or 2 weeks. i think the loan recall option is for emergencies like cech injured for longer

Comparing all 20 backup keepers to Hilario/Turnbull Guzan, Stockdale, Doni/Jones, Pantilimon, Lindergaard, Harper, Cerny/Green, Begovic/Sorensen, Westwood, Myhill, Gomes(despite few blunders, his shot stopping is good) and Stephen Henderson (formerly of Portsmouth) are all definitely better than our pair while Mucha,declan rudd, McCarthy/Andersen, Gazzaniga(New signing), tremmell have not played much to be rated The only keepers that are (maybe) worse than hilariobull (that i can think of) - Fabianski and Pollit of Wigan. so yes, we do need a new keeper. We are the champions of europe and we have to sell turnbull or hilario or both and get a good backup. we can't leave it up to chance that cech will stay healthy

well it is actually. we need to scout for it though. a lindergaard or doni level keeper is enough. i think we had a few free agents back at the start of the summer - Jaaskelainen, Green, etc. well they may have got starting roles at Qpr and Wham, i think there are good keepers willing to be our backup keeper . Stoke have Sorensen and Begovic, United have de gea and Lindergaard (and ben amos), city have pantilimon, as you can see, the second choice keepers are mostly from other countries in the top teams as they try to get a good keeper in an inferior league

i think we needed this jolt to wake the squad up. now hopefuly rdm will change the system a bit and get more bodies supplementing marin, hazard and ramires. we are way too rigid with the system and thus attacks are faltering away with no penetration. tbf hazard, marin, mata, oscar, torres would improve us greatly but the limitations of this system will stop us from becoming a beast of a team i feel

i think the "over-reaction" is based on the slow tempo we played in the game. the same old mistakes kept cropping up. we should be having more passing sequences between Marin - Lampard - Lukaku rather than Ivanovic - Cahill - JT. At one moment, the ball went from Ramires on the right wing all the way back to Hilario. i think we need a rethink on the system we are playing

i refute my claim. our attacking won't improve by just adding faster players. we need a change in the system

i think this one's headed for penalties. Luiz, Meireles, Lampard, Hazard, ACole for me

has looked good when driving forward linking up the mids and attackers but other-wise, like the rest of the squad, he has been poor

i just wish that marin would go to the by-line and cutback once in a while

they have a point though. this is shit penetration. everyone expected chelsea to be an attacking god overnight. we can't even create consistent chances ffs

As is common practice in American sports, the All-Star game is an annual event where the best players in the American league are grouped together for one night. The new format, which began in 2005, sees an All-Star MLS XI take on a prestigious foreign opponent to showcase the best of American “soccer” and it cannot get any more prestigious than current European Champions Chelsea who are in the middle of a pre-season tour of the United States.<br /> <br /> Round 3 - Philadelphia<br /> <br /> Chelsea return to Philadelphia 8 years after losing 3-2 to Carlo Ancelotti’s AC Milan in front of about 40,000 people in Lincoln Financial Field. This time around, the game will be played in MLS side Philadelphia Union’s home stadium PPL Park which boasts waterfront views of the Delaware River 15 miles from downtown Philly although only 18,000 odd fans will cram into the stadium to watch the game this time around. <br /> <br /> MLS All-Stars<br /> <br /> Despite losing their last 2 exhibition games to Manchester United, MLS All-Stars is actually quite a good team with a healthy mix of talented individuals and experienced campaigners. Before the Manchester United fixtures, the MLS –All Stars had an impressive 5 1 0 (W D L) record in the All-Star games which included wins over Fulham, Celtic, West Ham and Chelsea.<br /> Landon Donovan, voted for a 12th straight time into the MLS All-Star team, is well-known in England for his impact in 2 loan spells at Everton and will be a man to watch out for. Chris Wondolowski of San Jose Earthquakes is another talented individual who is currently the top-scorer in the American League with 17 goals to his name. Dwayne deRosario, who scored in the 1-0 win over us in 2006, David Beckham and Thierry Henry all add years of experience to balance the squad while defender Jay DeMerit will bank on his 7 years in England (Watford) to negate the Chelsea attack.<br /> <br /> While Chelsea will be using this game to improve squad fitness, the All-Stars will have to work on chemistry developed over 72 hours or so. Having talented players is of little use without the right set-up to get the best out of them and coach Ben Olsen knows the task at hand for him as he prepares the squad for Major League Soccer’s annual global audition. <br /> <br /> MLS All-Star squad<br /> <br /> Goalkeepers: Dan Kennedy (Chivas USA), Jimmy Nielsen (Sporting Kansas City).<br /> <br /> Defenders: Steven Beitashour (San Jose Earthquakes), Aurelien Collin (Sporting Kansas City), Ramiro Corrales (San Jose Earthquakes), Jay DeMerit (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Heath Pearce (New York Red Bulls), Carlos Valdes (Philadelphia Union).<br /> <br /> Midfielders: Osvaldo Alonso (Seattle Sounders FC), David Beckham (LA Galaxy), Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Dwayne De Rosario (D.C. United), Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City).<br /> <br /> Forwards: Thierry Henry (New York Red Bulls), Eddie Johnson (Seattle Sounders FC), Chris Pontius (D.C. United), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes).<br /> <br /> Chelsea <br /> <br /> A see-saw win over Seattle and a shaky draw against PSG might not be the best of preparations for this game but given that the squad is still incomplete and the players are still inching back to match-fitness, Chelsea have made a good start to the summer’s pre-season tour. The youngsters who deputised for the absent seniors gave a good account of themselves while the seniors used the time to get their sharpness back ahead of another long and arduous season. Last time around against PSG, young Lucas Piazon saved Chelsea’s blushes with a neat finish from Ramires’ cross. The goal papered an abject Chelsea performance reminiscent of the AVB era.<br /> <br /> The composition of the first-team will take shape on Wednesday as di Matteo revealed that he will reduce the number of substitutions and give more playing time to the players on the pitch. He also mentioned a secondary formation that the team has been practicing, so I wont be surprised if we start with a 4-3-3 or even a 4-4-2. This may end up being our plan B for the coming season.<br /> <br /> Defending set-pieces has been Chelsea’s Achilles heel for a long time now. While it may have been better last season, there were times in the Ancelotti and Scolari reigns when we used to concede from free-kicks literally every game. To the team’s credit, they withstood a barrage of set-pieces from a certain German giant on May 19 2012 to win the European Cup but the nasty habit of conceding from set-pieces hasn’t fully been eradicated yet. The game against MLS All-Stars may prove to be the acid test for our defenders as they face David Beckham’s pin-point deliveries. So don’t be surprised if Henry heads in unmarked from a Beckham free-kick.<br /> <br /> Team News <br /> <br /> Fernando Torres has joined the squad and is likely to get some game time on Wednesday night while John Terry, Ashley Cole and Raul Meireles are in line for a starting eleven spot. Manager di Matteo has to decide between Lukaku and Torres for the striker role with Lucas Piazon also worth a shout.<br /> <br /> Manager di Matteo speaking about the All-Star Game<br /> <br /> <br /><br /> Frank Lampard praising the progress of MLS<br /> <br /> <br /><br /> <br /> Players to Watch<br /> <br /> MLS All-Stars – Landon Donovan – David Beckham and Thierry Henry maybe more iconic than Donovan but you can’t deny the talent this lad’s got. He is the all-time leader in goals and assists for the American soccer team and a 4-time US Soccer Athlete Of The Year.<br /> His reputation is not restricted to America as he also took the Premier League by storm in loan spells at Everton (2010 and 2012) He supplied 7 assists in 2012, the last of which was a pass to Denis Stracqualursi which condemned Chelsea to a 2-0 loss at Goodison Park.<br /> <br /> Chelsea – Marko Marin – While all the talk has been about Eden Hazard, another new signing Marko Marin has settled in quite well at the club with decent displays in both pre-season friendlies. He was one of the catalysts of Chelsea’s improved second half performance at Yankee Stadium. His speed and dribbling skills makes him a hard man to mark making him the perfect replacement to Malouda’s old left midfield slot.<br /> <br /> Foot-Notes<br /> <br /> A late request from Chelsea means each team will have 10 substitutions. Because he needed an extra player to make that many changes, All-Star coach Ben Olsen called up Philadelphia Union utility man Michael Farfan.<br /> <br /> Landon Donovan has been selected every year since his rookie season in 2001. This, his 12 All-Star nod, sets an MLS record, one more than Eddie Pope.<br /> <br /> Last time Chelsea were in Philadelphia the Blues succumbed to a 3-2 loss against AC Milan with Andriy Shevchencko scoring a 25-yard free kick late in the game to settle it in Milan's favor<br /> <br /> FT Score : Chelsea 2-3 AC Milan - 31 July 2004, Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia <br /> Eidur Gudjohnsen, Didier Drogba – Andriy Shevchencko x 2, Alessandro Costacurta<br /> <br /> This is the 7th time the MLS All-Stars are facing English opposition. They have won 3, lost 2 and drawn 1 over the years with one of their victims being Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea in 2006<br /> <br /> Paulo Fereira, John Terry, Michael Essien and Frank Lampard are the only survivors from the starting eleven the last time Chelsea faced the MLS All-Stars<br /> <br /> Click here to view the article

1:55 am in Britain. the only question is whether its +5:30 or +4:30 now.

probably but i think if we are to promote attackers from the academy, piazon is first in line

Can't risk shoddy time conversion anymore. What time is the game in IST? waiting for Capriccioso to respond

yep and i dint say he could. but i have to say he is on par with mata on passing. i watched few borussia dortmund games last season and he was threading through balls with his left foot, right foot, the out-side of his boot and what not. Mata has proven himself in the Premier League though and it will be interesting to see what Kagawa does this season

Hazard's better but i do envy Kagawa's passing. He can replace Scholes at ManU

2012 AT&T MLS All-Star Game As is common practice in American sports, the All-Star game is an annual event where the best players in the American league are grouped together for one night. The new format, which began in 2005, sees an All-Star MLS XI take on a prestigious foreign opponent to showcase the best of American “soccer” and it cannot get any more prestigious than current European Champions Chelsea who are in the middle of a pre-season tour of the United States. Round 3 - Philadelphia Chelsea return to Philadelphia 8 years after losing 3-2 to Carlo Ancelotti’s AC Milan in front of about 40,000 people in Lincoln Financial Field. This time around, the game will be played in MLS side Philadelphia Union’s home stadium PPL Park which boasts waterfront views of the Delaware River 15 miles from downtown Philly although only 18,000 odd fans will cram into the stadium to watch the game this time around. MLS All-Stars Despite losing their last 2 exhibition games to Manchester United, MLS All-Stars is actually quite a good team with a healthy mix of talented individuals and experienced campaigners. Before the Manchester United fixtures, the MLS –All Stars had an impressive 5 1 0 (W D L) record in the All-Star games which included wins over Fulham, Celtic, West Ham and Chelsea. Landon Donovan, voted for a 12th straight time into the MLS All-Star team, is well-known in England for his impact in 2 loan spells at Everton and will be a man to watch out for. Chris Wondolowski of San Jose Earthquakes is another talented individual who is currently the top-scorer in the American League with 17 goals to his name. Dwayne deRosario, who scored in the 1-0 win over us in 2006, David Beckham and Thierry Henry all add years of experience to balance the squad while defender Jay DeMerit will bank on his 7 years in England (Watford) to negate the Chelsea attack. While Chelsea will be using this game to improve squad fitness, the All-Stars will have to work on chemistry developed over 72 hours or so. Having talented players is of little use without the right set-up to get the best out of them and coach Ben Olsen knows the task at hand for him as he prepares the squad for Major League Soccer’s annual global audition. MLS All-Star squad Goalkeepers: Dan Kennedy (Chivas USA), Jimmy Nielsen (Sporting Kansas City). Defenders: Steven Beitashour (San Jose Earthquakes), Aurelien Collin (Sporting Kansas City), Ramiro Corrales (San Jose Earthquakes), Jay DeMerit (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Heath Pearce (New York Red Bulls), Carlos Valdes (Philadelphia Union). Midfielders: Osvaldo Alonso (Seattle Sounders FC), David Beckham (LA Galaxy), Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Dwayne De Rosario (D.C. United), Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City). Forwards: Thierry Henry (New York Red Bulls), Eddie Johnson (Seattle Sounders FC), Chris Pontius (D.C. United), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes). Chelsea A see-saw win over Seattle and a shaky draw against PSG might not be the best of preparations for this game but given that the squad is still incomplete and the players are still inching back to match-fitness, Chelsea have made a good start to the summer’s pre-season tour. The youngsters who deputised for the absent seniors gave a good account of themselves while the seniors used the time to get their sharpness back ahead of another long and arduous season. Last time around against PSG, young Lucas Piazon saved Chelsea’s blushes with a neat finish from Ramires’ cross. The goal papered an abject Chelsea performance reminiscent of the AVB era. The composition of the first-team will take shape on Wednesday as di Matteo revealed that he will reduce the number of substitutions and give more playing time to the players on the pitch. He also mentioned a secondary formation that the team has been practicing, so I wont be surprised if we start with a 4-3-3 or even a 4-4-2. This may end up being our plan B for the coming season. Defending set-pieces has been Chelsea’s Achilles heel for a long time now. While it may have been better last season, there were times in the Ancelotti and Scolari reigns when we used to concede from free-kicks literally every game. To the team’s credit, they withstood a barrage of set-pieces from a certain German giant on May 19 2012 to win the European Cup but the nasty habit of conceding from set-pieces hasn’t fully been eradicated yet. The game against MLS All-Stars may prove to be the acid test for our defenders as they face David Beckham’s pin-point deliveries. So don’t be surprised if Henry heads in unmarked from a Beckham free-kick. Team News Fernando Torres has joined the squad and is likely to get some game time on Wednesday night while John Terry, Ashley Cole and Raul Meireles are in line for a starting eleven spot. Manager di Matteo has to decide between Lukaku and Torres for the striker role with Lucas Piazon also worth a shout. Manager di Matteo speaking about the All-Star Game Frank Lampard praising the progress of MLS Players to Watch MLS All-Stars – Landon Donovan – David Beckham and Thierry Henry maybe more iconic than Donovan but you can’t deny the talent this lad’s got. He is the all-time leader in goals and assists for the American soccer team and a 4-time US Soccer Athlete Of The Year. His reputation is not restricted to America as he also took the Premier League by storm in loan spells at Everton (2010 and 2012) He supplied 7 assists in 2012, the last of which was a pass to Denis Stracqualursi which condemned Chelsea to a 2-0 loss at Goodison Park. Chelsea – Marko Marin – While all the talk has been about Eden Hazard, another new signing Marko Marin has settled in quite well at the club with decent displays in both pre-season friendlies. He was one of the catalysts of Chelsea’s improved second half performance at Yankee Stadium. His speed and dribbling skills makes him a hard man to mark making him the perfect replacement to Malouda’s old left midfield slot. Foot-Notes A late request from Chelsea means each team will have 10 substitutions. Because he needed an extra player to make that many changes, All-Star coach Ben Olsen called up Philadelphia Union utility man Michael Farfan. Landon Donovan has been selected every year since his rookie season in 2001. This, his 12 All-Star nod, sets an MLS record, one more than Eddie Pope. Last time Chelsea were in Philadelphia the Blues succumbed to a 3-2 loss against AC Milan with Andriy Shevchencko scoring a 25-yard free kick late in the game to settle it in Milan's favor FT Score : Chelsea 2-3 AC Milan - 31 July 2004, Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia Eidur Gudjohnsen, Didier Drogba – Andriy Shevchencko x 2, Alessandro Costacurta This is the 7th time the MLS All-Stars are facing English opposition. They have won 3, lost 2 and drawn 1 over the years with one of their victims being Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea in 2006 Paulo Fereira, John Terry, Michael Essien and Frank Lampard are the only survivors from the starting eleven the last time Chelsea faced the MLS All-Stars

is he a decent shot to be first team in the future? i don't think so. another one of those who rot in our academy. football is harsh