Chelsea Legend 11

I'm hoping this is just him saying fuck the national team I need to rest up for the season.

FUCK!

Damn, Sterling is the best teenager in the world? Well let me see if I can come up with an equation to figure out what his value must be... hmmm. Luke Shaw, the best LB u-20 is being paid 100k and was sold for 30m. One would have to think Sterling, the best young attacker in the world must be at least twice that value, fuck it, if James Rodriguez is 86m then the best 19 yr old in the world is at least close to that when you also take into account the English tax!!! Surely!!

And what price do you place on these players who are supposedly better than we have?

LOL! He's a freaking Dutch international you melt!

If you really think the 12M spent on Zouma is gonna keep an English young up and comer from getting into a squad that needs HG talent then I don't know what else to say to you... If it doesn't work out its a nominal investment for a young promising talent, he'll be sold on! Zouma likely will get into our first team before the English youth you've cited, not because of the 12M we paid, but because he's better! Period end of story....

But its not a queue now is it? You sound like you're straight out of the stone ages... This is football, the best will play! No one is given preference! You have to fight hard to get into a top 5 side in the world! Lukaku was purchased for something like 18m and found this out too! Nothing is promised to you because of you birth paper or your transfer fee.

Yes a highly rated foreign youth who wasn't expected to break into the side for a few years! Pepe, Ramos and Carvalho(long in the tooth) were still in his plans at the time of the purchase. The fact that Jose went against the popular decision and played Varane and endured LOADS of criticism because of it PROVES he plays who he thinks is best for the team! Just because you keep saying it doesn't make it truthful, in no way is Van Ginkel blocking anyone... If they are good enough they will play, Van Ginkel is just potential not a definite! Same with Baker and Chalobah... Jose will show preference to English talent because we need them for the quota but aside from that its whoever is best for the team. He didn't go for Shaw yes because his wage demands weren't in line with his skill level on the pitch. Shaw has potential but it needs to be realized! Why is that so hard for you to grasp? Go back and do you homework, son. Jose completely rebuilt Inter's youth set up... Not even worth debating, the owner said it with his own mouth.

Hear, hear! And this is precisely why we need to cultivate our own english players in the philosophy the club are developing. It will happen, perhaps not this year(though Baker and looks like he's in the squad) or next year(though if Chalobah has a good loan you never know) or the year after that, but Chelsea FC will produce another academy youth into the first team who is English. What's a few years in the life of a club? Be patient.

Arsenal have a better relationship with Southampton than Chelsea do. I don't think the Board have made any poor decisions with regards to the youth policy. We are challenging the youth to play at an extremely high level, if they get in they will be exceptional. If they fail to get in they have studied at one of the best academies in the country and will go play for a lesser side, it still helps England in the end.

I don't play video games but this looks cool!

I think he can benefit from being around and training with the first team. We'll see how much action he gets but this definitely silences the homegrown brigade who say Chelsea aren't trying to get HG talent into the first team... Its up to Baker to get more appearances now, he's there.

Well done Jason!

four pages of good discussion gone? wow.

Yet he played there for the manager in the world cup? Anyway Shaw was purchased for the future, I doubt with the pressure mounting at OT, that Van Gaal will go with the guy who he deemed unfit over a guy he trusted to get his side to the semis of the World Cup. Perhaps long term Blind is the DM (he's not good there either) but in the immediate future, before things settle down I'm willing to wager its Blind.

I bet he gets around 10 to 15 games

So there you have it, Jose ALREADY implementing homegrown youth into the first team.... Put it to bed people.

http://www.chelseafc.com/news/latest-news/2014/09/academy-graduates-in-first-team-squad.html

point is the transfer fee means little, its who is best suited for Van Gaal's system. Blind, in my opinion, will start there because he already knows what Van Gaal wants from that position. Shaw will have to work his way into the side.

Juan Mata says hello.

You do realize Blind played LWB for Van Gaal in the biggest tournament in football right? Its perhaps the reason why he was acquired.

You mean the guy Van Gaal ordered to go train on his own because he's out of shape? Ya... Not so sure about that one. He's injured now but before that he couldn't even train with the main group. He has potential, nothing more.

Couldn't be further from the truth. Those clubs are huge because they win and have been winning for a long time! Has nothing to do with the homegrown quota. Barcelona for instance have an incredibly rich DUTCH tradition! They also have a rich BRAZILIAN tradition, that's not HG that's global. Real Madrid? Perhaps in the 30's and 40's but today they are getting killed for not having a lot of HG talent which is why they paid an arm and a leg to get Isco and Illaramendi two years ago. What people who spew this tradition tripe fail to realize is the game is GLOBAL now and its grown beyond the borders of the borough or city or country it originated from. In order to grow the club further we need to continue to win and buy talent. In a sense it IS like Football Manager in that the winning and players you acquire make you a bigger club. No different here. If Chelsea put a team out like this: Hart, Cahill, Johnson, Baines, Azpilicueta, Barkley, Matic, Lallana, OX, Willian, Sturridge they would be popular amongst the local supporters but definitely NOT a Global brand capable of grabbing the attention of a kid who loves football in Sweden. This is what football is about now, beyond the border marketing and growth. Its why they do preseason tours at every corner of the globe.

He'd have to be acquired on a free. If Lallana was 27m and Shaw 30m, I don't even want to think what Barkley will cost...

Quoted for truth every word of it is 100% accurate. Makes absolutely no sense to overspend on English talent just so they can sit on the bench and so the supporters can say we have English talent on the team. Anyone who thinks otherwise is clearly not well in tune with the economics of the game we're playing these days. The way to graduate youth to the first team is with a stable management group who drill the kids with our philosophy from 14,15,16 and on. The ones that adapt to what we want to do as a team will get promoted, the ones that aren't quite there will be sold to a lesser side. The problem with the growth of our first team players is exactly the same with our youth, we can't keep changing philosophies every year or so and expect players to adapt and grow... When youth players experience a change at the top they usually have to wait a couple years before the new Manager can fully assess them and possibly integrate them. Its a slower process than people want to acknowledge, especially at a top side like Chelsea.