robsblubot

I don't buy the reports. To me it's very likely Azpi will do a very specific job in the midfield rather than rounded midfielder role. We shall see who will challenge Costa first for ex, if Luiz or Azpi, because I know for sure it's not going to be Costa vs Terry/Cahill; that'd be asking to lose this. Or perhaps Azpi will attempt to block a specific run out wide... Very interesting formation but the most important piece if still missing: what their roles will be.

Paulinho is obviously a good player, but reckon he wouldn't fit the team very well. He can't replace Ramires because he's just too slow for that. Ramires plays at a much higher intensity. Ramires is also much better defensively, while Paulinho is better in attack. Yes, Paulinho has very good technique, but his slow languid pace isn;t really that great in the BPL. I'm actually unsure his best position is CM at all. He seems to shine when given a free role, so he can actually score and assist - more like a CAM. Kleberson had similar problems in the PL before. THis would be a very odd signing if true.

heh did not believe any of of the gloom and doom after the match... he will play in the final!

Nervy game ... We will be Liverpool and atletico will be chelsea. Well, that's the worst case scenario. Honestly don't think Jose will go for an all attacking a la psg frankly because we don't need it and it's going to be tight affair. Anyway. No excuses though players have been rested and should reach the final. They are good enough and deserve it.

It may be an unpopular opinion (in England), but I've always thought Lampard was better than Gerrard. Also, Gerrard hasn't aged as well as Lamps has and I reckon lamps at 35 is still better than Gerrard now... Ba had a great game and once again, if he doesn't demand more playing time we should try to keep him. He can't pick up a pass for his life though. and goes to the ground for no reason sometimes. In the first half he chests it beautifully, beats two players and then bizarrely goes to the ground on minimal contact.... I did not understand the reasoning behind signing Shwarzer, but it hs become crystal clear in the past couple of matches. Azpi was MoTM for me. He's even better on his natural RB position - didn't think it was even possible...

sorry a bit self-indulgent I know... I'm just an expert in ankle injuries as I've nursed one for a fucking whole year! yeah ligament damage and all. They will prob tape his ankle though, so he won't have all mobility by weds.

yeah absolutely, I don't think there is an "issue" per se anyway. Like Henrique, I was just expressing a personal preference, which is for the way Salah handles it. frankly, we just don't have enough visibility into the locker room and who's friend's with who. I assure you though, it is certainly something that clubs pay attention to.

Just notice that Salah celebrates with his teammates FIRST and then does his own thing. While Ba seems to ignore his teammates until he's done, which for a player so dependent on assists, does seem a bit odd to me. The club can also argue that "over" religion might be going against teamwork, unity, or whatnot. Wouldn't players of the same religion form a tight group? it ALWAYS happens as people team up with their equals. Like Henrique said it has happened in Brazil before and it has been rumored that Dunga (and Jorginho) built a weaker Brazil side in 2010 WC to accommodate a group of very religious athletes (some belong to a group known as "Athletes of Christ"). Also, imagine a player who will not play in certain places, or against certain teams. That might or might not be acceptable to the employer, the club. People don't seem to realize being a professional player is "just" a job. And NO players CANNOT do whatever they want to do. In some countries they have some legal protections concerning religion, but not in others. All I am saying is that this is a very controversial subject and not the "drop it" that some are trying to make it.

"parking the bus" is easier said than done. They all try to do it against the strongest sides, but I don't see many other teams playing the CL semis.

Well they can have them all for... the grand total of.... [evil grin] 1 million pounds!!! Seriously, no I mean the above offer is dead serious. The only striker in our squad that we could sell - as in someone would actually pay us to sign him - is Ba and for around 7m. That minus Torres absurd wages over another 2+ years... Torres' performances are consistently void regardless whether we attack or not. He does reach a certainly form at times (not long enough to regain confidence and goals though), which almost reminds ppl how good he used to be, then he picks up an injury and vanishes again. Based on what Torres has been saying, and his probable unwillingness to leave, would not be surprised if we give him the Malouda treatment next season.

If you win you are hated... period. The ones who you beat will always hate you. If you win by playing pragmatic football you are hated more. If you win and play the "the beautiful game," a la Liverpool atm or Barcelona before, you are hated less. now if you play pragmatic football and you lose, you are liked. but if you play "the beautiful game" and lose, then you are loved!

Fair enough, but in his defense (as if he needed it) he and many here (including myself) have very specific problems with Mikel's game. I read elsewhere a description that matches how I feel about him, "his game lacks urgency." I'm not saying he has no value, but I feel that his extremely short-passing game can only be useful in very specific conditions - such as yesterday. Italian football is a lot slower than the BPL, so it's very likely Mikel will do better there than here. Similarly, DL will prob play a lot better as a "defender" for Barcelona, but for different reasons (system). I'm not as sure as TPTB concerning who should leave and stay, but if Jose is part of the owner's long term plan, then Jose's system is the ultimate goal. And if we all see Mikel as a good squad player, it seems Jose doesnt.

Also with ankle injuries, they will need to wait until tomorrow to see what the swelling looks like, etc.

thought dislocated shoulder meant very little: it all depends on the damage done by the unnatural movement (nerve, muscle, even bone). Reckon they will get a clearer picture by tomorrow and the day after.

Torres will start instead of Ba just because he still got (slightly) more pace than Ba, or at least that used to be the case. I don't rate either, but would indeed start Torres away and Ba at home (with Eto unavailable).

Let's forget about his lack of creativity and his inability to pick up a pass (much less assist someone) for a second here. The boy can barely run! I actually remember how he used to play in the beginning of the season, and his movement was absolutely fantastic. He'd be all over the place, moving into channels opening up spaces for him and his teammates, whcih also improved the odds of assisting and/or scoring. Now I look at him and he doesn't move... doesn't chase as much. Doesn't tackle as much. What the hell is going on? I don't think we are going to get the answer though. The club will attempt to hide that until the season is over. No need to give too much information to your opponents at thsi point, but I have no doubt something is off with him.

Well we have to hope Jose is only starting Ramires because he's got no better option atm. Weren't for CL and I reckon Luiz/Lamps would have started last match. We clearly have several under performing players at the moment - really terrible timing! Ramires is one of them, Oscar another. While I think Oscar's issue is physical (coaching staff might know more bc he can barely run!), Ramires' remains a mystery. I value technique too highly to rate Ramires. Still value what he offers to some degree: dedication, aggressiveness, pace, work rate, etc. His passing is just not good enough to make him the player we need. I'd play Luiz instead without missing a beat - far better footballer in general. Luiz is a bit too similar to Matic though. Our midfield bbecomes a bit heavy with them. We need someone mobile like Ramires but with better technique (spec first touch and passing).

Indeed. He has been a nuisance this season, specially lately. There is no denying that, but going from that to, "he's useless lets sell him!" is kinda crazy to me. Now if we are talking about improving on Ramires, then yes, like someone like Vidal/Pogba, then it's a different story. I for one, had never heard of David Luiz before we signed him - don't follow Benfica/portugal. Seen lots of Ramires though, and his game hasn't changed a bit. He was no youngster when we signed him and if we didn't want "the athlete" Ramires, then someone made a huge mistake. Because that's what Ramires is and has always been. Even for Brazil, as you know Ramires isn't a starter and I reckon he shouldn't be for us either, but he can be a useful player nonetheless for no other reason than his ability (poor choice of words) to play in different positions; he has even played in RB!

Don't need him. Rather get a younger player like Wickham for a 3rd option striker. We need to sign first option, and second can very well be Lukaku. Bony seems like a good player, with strength and a good first touch, but Wickham has got that too and he's 19!

I like him - good player, but nowhere near ready. He's able to play on wings too so good rotation player in my book

Ramires is what he is - been there that before. Expect him to break down an opponent with a creative movement, or a perfect throughball is just unrealistic. Same way it's unrealistic to expect Ivanovic to become an attacking minded fullback at home. These are defensive players and we just started the match with too many of them. PLus of course, our piss poor strikers. Ba can score more goals than Torres, but boy, the football doesn't like him much.

We are a stoic team. Defensively solid, which takes away from us when going forward. Something's gotta give and that's the strategy we currently employ. I side with skipper that our team is just not setup for this type of matches. At some point Sunderland projected their FWs forward because our defense remained very deep for the entirety of the match. If one goes by numbers alone, if our opponent defends with 11 and we have 3-4 players still sitting in defense, well the numbers aren't on our side. The way we play is far more suited for single-elimination competitions... Cl here we g!

What a fucking aweful player cattermole is. He showcases the point that desire isn't everything; gotta know how to play football and he doesn't. Really poor strategy against a poor side. Not enough players committed forward. Matic goes all the way back to pick up the football to carry it forward. This is just too old school for me.

Don't rate modric much, great technique but nothing else. Vidal on the other hard has got everything including technique. I agree we can't get him though. Our results prove that we aren't lacking as much as ppl say aside from strikers of course. the grass is always greener... We do need better rotation players though.

that's how you tight-mark an 8-yeard-old...