robsblubot

Thought the "getting on my tits" showed annoyance, or perhaps at least surprise, with the "from heaven to hell" stance shift you presented. Or should I read it differently?

Oh yeah... forgot we cannot talk about/criticise a player after a game around here. it was just a game... people are NOT making a big deal out of it, but he wasn't great and so we can't say he was. He was amazing in the first match and average in the second. What I expect from him: consistently something in between.

There is no nice in football! The best play and Courtois is the better goalkeeper. The fact Cech is still a top gk is really irrelevant - only one plays and Jose picked the right one to start. As we all like chech and are grateful to him, we wish him all the best here or elsewhere. Still I just can't see him to ever start ahead of Courtois.

Reckon not mutually exclusive.Wickham seems pretty skillful at times with good first touch and control spec chest - interesting player.

Torres out and Wickham in - problem solved

The grass is always greener... Hazard is younger and already the better player. People here do have to take age and development into account esp when talking about deals and transfer market. Di Maria can break a leg - in the artistic sense

Yeah disagree to disagree as I still think he was pedestrian. For me Oscar was better than him in every aspect, especially in the key moments in the second half which actually won us the match. And yet, the 22 Oscar is constantly criticized by not providing enough key passes, goals, and assists. Should I then be satisfied with sideway passes from our 27yo maestro? I will praise him when he truly has a great game like the last one. We did NOT play well today. A better team could've punished us for it (they were so poor though) and these type of performances is the reason we did not win the league last season. It's nice to praise the newly promoted outfit, but they look like going right back to where they came from - no quality in the final third whatsoever.

Good post. Though Willian should be playing at his best right now while oscar is a work in progress according to Jose himself. It's also down to what your definition of #10 is. Btw oscar wears #8 and fits his game just fine. My personal feeling is that oscar is, and will always be, twice the player. Seen too many Willians, the dribbling machines from Brazil, but it usually takes that tactical nous to get the great player, and I reckon that's what chelsea and Jose are trying with oscar. Don't get me wrong, William is a good player and should've come on for Andre who was our worst player IMO.

I'm not saying anything other than that i expect more from him. He had a poor game. Decent but poor by his standards. He doesn't have to win us every match that's why we have other stars,but I'm not going to praise him for this performance.

Exactly! and scoring that first was key! It opened the game up.

Have to disagree with that because I'm sure Jose dint pay 32m for Gareth fucking Barry. Gareth who is a good player and rarely misplaces a pass. I just have to think fabregas ought to be/do better than that.

Just can't imagine going into this without oscar and his interceptions. That's the time his defensive skills payoff regardless of all else he does on the pitch. Our defense will be tested without a doubt - first real challenge.

Oscar motm second half Courtois is unreal

talking about out of his league... https://www.google.com/search?q=schweinsteiger+girl&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS503US503&espv=2&tbm=isch&imgil=tfhisZmbrCjj-M%253A%253BY3HZTRKpaN_BSM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Ftwovibes.wordpress.com%25252Ftag%25252Fgermany%25252F&source=iu&usg=__qzLIiJZz0oGFdS3CqwAIVA6NeBg%3D&sa=X&ei=n7P3U7WBFZXNsQT4ioG4CQ&ved=0CCQQ9QEwAg&biw=1382&bih=714#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=J31VScGtpM0WVM%253A%3BLFIwtf1XHZv9KM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fmedia.tumblr.com%252Ftumblr_lbh6mgSiM71qd3znl.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fjegelskerdannyagger.tumblr.com%252Fpost%252F1498098218%252Ftop-10-wags-1-sarah-brandner%3B470%3B490 I shan't be too surprised though; I'm not a famous footballer making millions and my wife is also way out of my league - unanimous too btw.

wonder why we bothered with friendlies...

Don't think that's the point of the discussion. We are merely thinking ahead. We are considering, before it happens, whether our once successful CB pairing will remain as successful as Jose changes the system; whatever helped them last season (deep line, protection) may not be the same this time around. By the end of last season our defense line wasn't as sharp (results and goals conceded against nobodies attest to that) and I reckon it was because the protection wasn't as sharp either - they were more exposed. Cahill's weak technically... His long balls are pretty poor, and he usually just doesn't every try them. He's got an OK first touch, adequate for a no-nonsense CB, but he's got to give the ball to a teammate ASAP esp when under pressure. These are limitations that can be exploited - it's never binary like some here say: solid non-solid/liability, mistakes vs no mistakes. He's a good player, but hardly a top CB for me. Godin is twice the player IMO. I'd have gone for Godin instead of Luis, because for me Atletico's spine was formed by Courtois, Godin, and Costa. Their midfield was good too, but more about hardworking players than quality.

The difference in characteristics between the players is the striking part. Sounds like a desperate buy to me. They've replaced a hard-working player, Luis Suarez, who gets in trouble for going overboard, being too involved, too aggressive, with a player who vanishes from games, who is known for "not giving a damn" a times, and one who gets in trouble off the pitch a lot. Yes, one can make a case that they are both nuts, but on the pitch I know for sure what kind of nuts I'd want and would not want to play against.

Messi is very relaxed with the ball at his feet... wonder why.... He's never going to be a technical player, as that boat has sailed. However, he's got his own virtues as a defender. This is going to be a huge season for him, because he's not going to enjoy as much protection from the other areas as he did last season, and he will be more exposed as a result. Reckon our defense line will have to move up a bit too. Huge huge season for him - the season of his career.

Don't think it was AVB at all: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2203372/Florent-Malouda-snub-backed-Chelsea-players-says-Roberto-Di-Matteo.html BTW, I did. Clubs like any employer have the leverage to choose who they want to employ. Malouda was getting paid as usual. If he was unhappy with the way the club was using him, he was welcome to leave, but he chose to stay playing with the U21 and collecting his fat paycheck every other week.

He'd be a huge improvement over De Gea atm.

Don't think I need to say which team he supports... Isn't it a bit early for Champions League...

agreed. There is no way we will defend as well as last season simply because we are going to have fewer players committed to defending in our team. The defenders will be far more exposed. Huge season for our defense players and huge test on JT's fitness.

Great game! striking to me was the constant movement and how our players (esp mid) moved in blocks, which allows for short passing as opposed to those, overused (last season) long balls. Long balls are a valid tool, but their much lower completion rate can destroy a team's possession esp away from home. Matic, Fabregas, and Oscar were fantastic in midfield. There was a bit of a gap between defence and middle and I reckon this happened because our defense line is used to play very deep and with this new midfield they have to move up a bit. I hope their lack of pace won't cause too much trouble, but we shall see. early days and our opponent was pretty weak, even at home, so I will be cautiously optimistic for now. No surprise on Diego for me as I've known he can actually play football... unlike some other strikers...

Man United looked pretty much the same from last season - Ashley Young just like the terible footballer he is. City... did NOT like what I saw: pundits were trying to make it a contest, but it wasn't. It could've been that Newcastle were poor, but regardless, gotta give something to City esp away from home.

ah yeah, you are right. There is no registration for either, and reckon the only requirements are: work permit and not cup-tied.