robsblubot

Regardless of the final result/outcome, this is really top shelf stuff!

heh I hate when commentators/announcers ask, "was that a corner?" immediately after someone heads the ball in from the said corner kick.

Pretty much the only player in the squad playing his best atm. What a player and why did we go for Lukaku again? I mean we already had Kai didn't we? crazy shit

they controlled the game from start to finish. Something is off with our team and I don't think it's a single section.... lack of aggression in all areas of the pitch. Yeah one can say it's the defense of middle, but it's all connected esp these days. Regarding Madrid, if Benzema keeps his form then yeah they can win it all -- guy is red hot atm. Also, don't think our bench is good enough compared to other top sides, esp in attack.

His body language is of an uncommitted player, which is the opposite of what he has been for us since his arrival; looks like the reports are right and he wants out. Too many passengers today -- we lost the second ball all game long. Loftus and Zyiech particularly poor without the ball. The defense made silly mistakes like all chasing the same player in counters. Tuchel needs to sort this out and if not possible, then allow players who want to leave to go. The owner, and the club's, situation might be playing a part as well.

ah yeah agreed. Pure hypocrisy of course! Like in the article I posted (from the guardian), the other owners aren't any better (some worse) than Abramovich. On the other hand, the war changed everything. Go a few pages back and I was warning that our sponsors would vanish. Whether Abramovich had Putin's ear or not is irrelevant -- the mere association would be enough now.

nobody hates the rich 🙂 people aspire to become rich. The obsenely wealthy on the other hand, like our very own Russian oligarch for example, are detrimental to free markets, democracy, and capitalism in general. However, this would demands its own thread.... For that reason, some people (yours included) just like democracy and actual free markets a bit better than feudalism. If the wealthy have no boundaries, then when do they stop?

no, there isn't. Laws and regulations are written by men.

There is no need for actual bribes

True, but it does not matter to me, nor does it surprise me. That's why I wrote that it's the literal definition of a Russian oligarch Not speaking about you, but in general, I feel folks don't really get the value of having "connections" -- family, government, "upbringing"

Roman Abramovich: New evidence highlights corrupt deals https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60736185 that's literally how the Russian oligarchs operated: using their government contacts to enrich.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/mar/11/roman-abramovich-vladimir-putin-Chelsea-kremlin-russia Well she's got one thing right for sure: people do seem to love an oligarch 😉 She's also fair by calling out the other absolute garbage owners of other clubs in the PL. I guess they've got to do their money laundering somewhere eh.

Well, that's why I said it was likely not the place. You are talking about specific things, while I think his mere existence should be illicit. Just to be abundantly clear, I think these people don't pay *nearly* the fair share to people who made, and make, their fortunes. Like I said, the power that comes with obscene wealth allows them to choose how and when they want to contribute to society. Folks look a their "donations" and "civic" investments and get all mushy, but if you look at percentages, it's really cheap change for them, and usually with strings attached (tax breaks at the very minimum). Going back to football, I too appreciate what he did for the club. It still does not change the fact that perception is reality when it comes to advertising. That's why I think it will become unsustainable for the club to have him as the owner.

Not really the place because it's not necessarily about this one version of the disease; but he is allowed to exist. He hoards money, resources, and uses his influence to hoard more resources. It's a vicious cycle of money begets power, which begets money, and then power again. Very few things can't be manipulated by such people. In my view oligarchs as well as the "the wealthy", as they are known in the west, shouldn't exist because their existence hinders democracy. Their "vote" is worth A LOT more than the people's. However, like I said, the more important thing from the club's perspective is that he's toxic and will remain so for years to come whether you like it or not.

Garbage human being IMO. He invested well into the club, and I'm sure their fans are happy about that. Very different things. Regardless of your opinion on oligarchs like Roaman, he will be toxic asset for years to come. It will make getting sponsors and deals very difficult for Chelsea. Club needs to move on and I hope he sells -- even if the new owner isn't as willing to invest.

I believe we both agree that that player exists. Our disagreement seems to be about whether Mount can become that player or not. You seem certain he ain't it, while I think that the risk of getting that wrong (with his replacement) and the difficulty of acquiring such player makes betting on Mount a very easy choice.

Think it's a bit premature.... understatement! He's 30 and I expect his performances to fluctuate a bit more, but let's not forget his back-to-back MotM performances in CL last season. Older players tend to take a bit longer to get going, but I expect him to still regain his best form this season. Unless he's on the, or looking to, move...

Heh I did not see enough of KDB at Chelsea (as in minutes played) to detect that, but you can find my comments on Salah here (perhaps they are gone after the big purge): I thought his ceiling was very high back then. That's a fair take, and I'm not entirely sure we disagree on Mount's potential; I don't see him improving a whole lot in certain aspects of the game where he lacks (creativity). I think our disagreement is more regarding what he already provides, which I think is more than enough, given as evidence our recent success against more expensive teams/stronger opposition. What I do expect Mount to improve on, and I think it's something many players naturally improve on with age, is decision making, which should also improve his finishing. So, in my view, he's not that far from being an excellent player and an important player for any top club, as well as England. I'd hate to see him in a Liverpool shirt for example, which is not something I could say about all players we've got.

Mason Mount is 23 and sure hope he's not the finished product and can still iron out his game, esp his finishing. I have fully confidence that he can. I think getting someone better is easier said than done. It'd be very easy to replace him with a creative player who would kill our competitiveness. Betting on players who are progressing is a sure way to beat the bigger clubs who can sign the top players (we can't and I suspect we won't for a while). Lukaku is the odd ball here. In my view, Chelsea is doing the exact right thing to compete at this level, and players like Mount, Kai, and even Werner are key here. Reece will make mistakes... will have bad patches and that's fine. He's progressing and needs to progress physically: fewer injuries please! This is a young squad that has overachieved and I think a lot of folks seem to be missing that. BTW, I think he got it just right in the CL final. 😉

Mount did everything wrong apparently 🙄, you know getting behind one of the best defense lines on earth with a perfectly timed run, then opting for an early shot (gasp!) that hit the inside of the post! He likely deserves a good lynching along with that other fella from the reds, some guy named Salah.

I wouldn't touch any player having a "monster" game. Mendy's confidence was sky high and that would likely more then make up for his lack of pk quality.

It was definitely offside by the current take on the offside rule, but that goes against the principle of the offside rule. It is now benefitting defenses in a away which goes against the idea that the "same line is onside." It's irrelevant that the "arm" was offside. Players started their runs from the same position. I think a very quick and easy improvement would be just consider torsos... no limbs. Otherwise a very even game with a few clear cut chances missed and incredible goalkeeping from both teams. I disagree with replacing Mendy tho -- he was having a monster game and his confidence was super high. It made no sense to me.

heh senile can mean a number of different things: Trump is just as senile, but a far more dangerous one. Biden is a president who listens to his advisors, esp military, as opposed to the other one who made fun of them.

Honestly, I think it's about the same chances that Iraq had with the the US "invasion" (was it not an invasion?) none whatsoever Wish people would correct me here, but I see no "play." USA can't do a thing especially with a sane president -- Biden's not great but he's sane -- who won't willingly destroy earth. Whatever could have been done wasn't done while trump (and Obama before) were presidents. So, this is more about Trump and even Obama than Biden.

Politicians in democracies are constrained by time (even if reelected). Dictators, autocrats, communist regimes are not. That gives them a (or perhaps several) distinct advantage(s) whether you like it or not. At a minimum, they can think and plan long term and not worry about reelection. Regarding Roman, whether he had Putin's ear or not is simply irrelevant. It was a "contract" in which some russian oligarchs were allowed to exist to maintain peace. I personally think all Russian oligarchy should be shunned out... so that their vast useless wealth can't buy a whole lot. Not sure any "extreme" hoarding of wealth is actually beneficial to society or humans in general, but that's a very different discussion.