robsblubot

Recommend you check Alonso’s stats on passing. Not really going to discuss his passing, my choice. Regarding the rest, consider that you cannot possibly be right about all of it. Because if you were right, then Alonso wouldn’t be playing for a top club and a top national team. his positioning is fine. He’s caught out of place because he is an left midfield by role. Consider that he wouldn’t play if he were not following what the managers wanted would he? Quickest way to lose ones position. appealing to logic here, but I know it’s a lost cause. regarding Emerson, both conte and sarri are right: Alonso is twice the player.

Agreed. Just because these millionaire managers made it in a very competitive market, have the best assistants and coaches the money can buy, and spend all day watching these players in practice cannot possibly compare with the opinions of random folks in a forum. however, I do see how such a silly argument could become a deterrent for debates in a forum. With the false nine system, a more traditional LB like Emerson is useless. Who is he going to cross the ball to? One of our attacking midgets?

This was as easy as it gets in the PL because Watford is a loyal decent (mediocre) side and those will always struggle against us (or any big club). They do not play physical, did not kick or players, and therefore could not contain Hazard, who was just toying around today. CHO cannot play a competitive PL game: simply not ready for that and we will play with 10 men when he's on. On the black sheep, Alonso had a quality game and his passing was excellent esp with a nice assist to Willian at the end. Willian also had a good game, albeit with his usual lacklust final third contribution. Jorginho and Kante were pretty good on D. Kovacic better in attack. David Luiz was great and only behind Eden as a top performer. All in all we had a good game and happy with some improved performances from a number of players. Perhaps Sarri had the talk reported by the newspapers. Now, the marathon...

Depending how you see it. It’s successful in terms of money, but not in how many of them break into the starting xi. The system has a gap in terms of age. Fact remains a 18 yo is not going to get many minutes in our starting XI and that’s the case everywhere. Unless he’s amazing and I have to believe he’s not been amazing in practice. to be clear, I am claiming ignorance about whether Cho is good enough to be getting minutes, and at the same time accusing folks here of the same ignorance, even when they deny it. Assume we know shit.

Or perhaps their youngsters were simply more ready than ours? I'm not disputing that Chelsea managers are more cautious for obvious reasons, so it might be the case of an "and" rather than "or" here. CHO is 18 and it's usually really difficult for players at that age to get minutes at a top club, esp one who's constantly under pressure. Only truly amazing players can deliver at that young age and CHO has not, so far, showed that he can. I can only assume he has not been impressing in practice, otherwise there would be a clamour from players and coaches alike for him to start/get minutes (yes it does happen).

It's totally OK if he has poor games, but what does he do in those poor games? Does he track back when he loses the ball? Help his teammates by closing down players and plays? I don't see him doing any of that. He used to be a lot more dynamic and a bit more of a team player esp under Jose. Hazard does not enjoy the physical games, so it is something the opposition will always try against him.

Thank you!

Well sarri himself said that, so... reckon our team was setup so defensive minded that it took a couple of subs to open up the game. We did have opportunities to at least tie it then. as much as I like what sarri is doing, the result today was partly his fault. While there are no guarantees that a more attacking-minded starting xi would have fared better, reckon the odds of scoring would have been better. of our 3 CMs Kante is the more likely to score... honestly only Pedro hazard, and alonso are likely to score a goal and that’s just not enough esp when playing at home against a good, but smaller side. Gotta risk it more... if you lose you lose trying.

Dear admins, could someone please change my username from robguima to robchels? (with roblues, robblues, robchels5 as alternatives). just for a minor improvement in privacy.

Lol seem folks are really stuck on the fullbacks... alonso was unlucky there... good run and finish played well in the first and poorly in the second. The starting lineup might have been just too defensive, which was a choice by the manager, but I reckon this can only work in counter attacking situations. When the opposition sits, the false nine becomes very ineffective. tbf we just don’t have enough goals in these players esp considering none of them can score from outside the box. Something that needs to be fixed with either Ross, RLC, or going shopping. vardy is such an interesting striker, and at the same time not a good option for a big club (too reliant on pace and spaces).

While the manager can really influence defending, attacking and esp scoring is largely down to the quality of the attackers. sarri has also been complaining about the mentality of the team, like tomo said, lack of urgency at times.

heh did not say you did. many truths... at the very least each manager will have his own. And Lovren is definitely a top class defender and I wish him many many years at liverpool. It's all good. Just find it a bit silly to be slanting Alonso on every opportunity esp a guy who has made clear contributions in our league win. He has played better before though, so I'm not sure it's not something that can be fixed via adjustment, at least the defensive part: there shouldn't be a gap when Alonso goes to attack - that's basics. For ex, I see David Luiz sitting too deep at times, which would be unheard of some time ago. Now, speaking of improvement over him is great, but because I don't think he's a "donkey" it is easier said than done.

Does that mean he’s not shit?!?! Yes !!! Unfortunately for Chelsea, hazard spins don’t count in the final score, only goals do. So, when you have a player, a mere left back, who won us several tough matches in a winning season, forgive me if I cannot take “he’s shit” comments very seriously. Once again, different opinions and preferences are all part of the game, and the fun. As long as folks remember they are just that, opinions.

And yet you did the same thing when you said Alonso worked in conteball, which means he did work in a particular tactical setup. What I’m saying (not really an opinion but something I've learned) is that that’s all there is: roles within a tactical setup. And that formations are not that static: that when alonso is up the field we defend just like conteball, with 3 cbs (Luiz, Rudiger, and Azpi). there are no guarantees when players come from diff teams in the same league, let alone from leagues in different countries. So many things can go wrong with adapting to country, club (esp if come from smaller club), people, laws, customs, and finally (again) tactical setup. Some of these players haven't had an education and struggle in different environments. So many examples like Cuadrado with us: good in Italy and simply unplayable in the pl. Diego Costa, who adapted to the club and league, but not the country (same with Luiz Suarez). Now however you feel about this, like I said, he has just signed a new deal and will be our starter for the foreseeable future. Like it or not.

That's the BS managers tell the press and they know it! The players get a feeling during the match as to what type of refereeing they are dealing with. A card happy ref will contain the game and at the same time not letting it flow. The players will adjust accordingly. Agreed on your point of alonso (aerial game), and I may add that the premise that pace allows an attacking FB to recover from a mistake is a false one: no way at this level. Either the team provides the cover or it will become an attacking vector to be exploited by all opponents.

No, I disagree, they are exactly the same thing. You can't win games without scoring goals, and you can't score goals without attacking in numbers. Azpi is a player the opposition can ignore (like you said), which is not something that can be said of Alonso. There are many strategies a team and manager can employ to provide cover for an attacking fullback, like the one we use: other FB joins the CB line makings a 3CB system (Azpi is really perfect for it) I'm surprised to be honest, because this is very basic on how to balance a team and I've seen it being done since the days of Roberto Carlos who couldn't defend to save his life. Many teams use this combo of one attacking and one defensive FB. Modern times you see this being employed to protect Marcelo, who is prob the worst player at defending I've ever seen play the game. But all attacking fullbacks, however fast they may be, need cover because they will leave spaces behind. I do see that many here would prefer a more traditional defensive left back, which is fine of course, and yet the same folks like the more attacking way Sarri employs. You can't have it both ways. Not if you stick another Azpi on the left. I'm sure Alonso wouldn't be Mourinho's first choice for LF, but it is Sarri's. Now if the discussion is that it's worthwhile to give Marcelo freedom, but it isn't so for Alonso, then I'd have to agree that at this time he's not being effective. The same way Hazard goes several games, sometimes half a season without being effective. It happens and for many reasons: form, fitness, sharpness, or team mechanics (some exchange not working or being stopped by the opposition). Once again, that poses a question as to whether Emerson is even good enough to be in the squad. Concerning your LF suggestion, there might be other left backs that could potentially give more than Alonso (who plays for Spain too btw), but are they attainable? There are no guarantees that they would do a good job for us (diff league team, style, and requirements), let alone do what Alonso has already done (he was an important player in our league win). A player who has already worked well for us needs to be recovered, not shipped out. Yeah I don't know what to tell you... he is going nowhere. He just signed a new deal...

Sure but that did not stop alonso from being involved in many goals and assists before. His passing esp in tight spaces used to be pretty impressive if you care to watch footage from early season or last season. the issue is that he is in poor form and has been for quite a few games now (with ups and downs but never at the level he was before). Even when I say that managers shouldn’t be that quick to replace starters as fans would want, the fact alonso is pretty much untouchable speaks more about Emerson than alonso himself. now the recent change to a false nine is not going to help him either, because it moves hazard away from his area and now he has to gel in with Willian who’s even less of a passer than hazard is.

I will never understand the idea that alonso is bad because other teams will target his position in defense, which is akin to saying azpi needs to be dropped because he can’t attack. Same position different roles. ivanovic comparisons are super silly btw (he was an excellent defender at his peak). now, alonso is indeed playing poorly and very little attacking play has been coming out of his side.

would we get a 25% off if that happens?

Just to leave my 2 cents in case my position has not been clear enough. If the "fickle" term was directed at me, then I could not disagree more. I've watched Hazard play for a very long time and my opinion of him has not changed: great player and at the same time overrated by chelsea, and especially Belgium fans. Saying that Salah is the better player is merely stating one's opinion, and not a very controversial one outside of TC. On a professional level, I don't care for Eden very much. He disrespects the club every time he offers himself to RM (that's what agents are for!), which happens quite often. So, for me it is definitely a "fuck off!" While I wish we could have retained Hazard, because it's never easy to replace great players, I agree with @Unionjack that that ship has sailed, and we should've already cashed out on him. Club is much much bigger than ANY player.

it's because folks did not really watch him when he wasn't scoring. I did and his level of play wasn't much below than when he was scoring - just the shots weren't going in. Salah is a lot more than goals though. He beats players often in two very distinct ways: a. dribbling and pace and b. quick link up with teammates (+pace). The b, with his speed and quick feet, makes him especially effective in tougher games, like CL. It takes a lot of skill to link up at such pace and I think he showed a little bit of that when at chelsea. To think we had him and did not bet on him. And then we saw his improvement elsewhere and still let him go for peanuts...

Yeah I see that as well. Morata has all the tools, but is missing a few marbles. I’d just add that this weak mentality might also affect him in training, which might also explain his lack of progress on the physical side of his game since he joined.

@Stats hit the nail on the head. We all knew it would take a very special performance to beat them and it was indeed a very good performance with very few mistakes. Passing was a bit shaky in the first half, but got sorted out by Sarri at half time: better positioning, more compact, and off-the-ball movement. You can't pass the ball if there isn't a player in a good condition to receive the pass esp when opposition presses so much. Bad movement and positioning made the passing in the first half difficult and error prone. Alonso had a very good game: good defensively in the first half (won everything in the air too) frustrating their attacks and their best player (Sterling), and then improving along with the team in the second half. Sterling will always beat defenders one-on-one at times and it's up to the system to control that. It's the same when opponents play against Hazard: the team has to contain him. Kepa had a solid game too. Pedro and Hazard played well, with Willian just a bit below, but still good. David Luiz did not ONLY have a good defensive game without mistakes like many have said. He won this game for us with technical prowess esp for a defender. There is no first goal without that amazing pass from the back by Luiz. Something not many defenders can do. That goal changed the game as goals often do. The second was just the icing on the cake. Yes I know that he is mistake-prone, hence why I consider him a great player, but not a great defender. I do feel that his very obvious assets are often downplayed though. I was very worried when Kovacic left injured, since he played well and it was a game for him, but Ross came on and was excellent too. City is missing their best player (KDB) and it shows.

I'm actually very curious to see him play elsewhere, because I'd put money down that it's NOT going to be a whole lot different. The thing that bothers me the most about Eden is precisely when he's off form like he is now though. Say, when I compare top players who aren't, for one reason or another, able to influence a game (or many games), I still pay attention to what they are doing on the pitch. What is the work rate? How hard do they try to help their struggling teammates? Do they run into spaces? Pass more and more quickly? Mix things up? Do they get annoyed when things are't going their way? No I don't think he does well or tries nearly hard enough when he's off.

Yeah preferences are preferences - just don't think they are that important since we all have our own and yet the only one that matters is the manager's. While I agree that Carvalho was fantastic, I completely disagree that he would do well in Sarri's system. Sarri plays a high defense line and slow players like Carvalho struggle big time in high lines (like Terry once did under AVB). Godin is a great defender (similar to Carvalho) in a deep line at Atletico, but if you put him in a high line he would struggle too. Plus it is quite obvious Sarri values passing from the back in CBs a lot more than other managers, hence why Luiz is his fav defender - he's been asking to keep him.