robsblubot

That's why I did not want us to sign Ba. Ba is a good 2nd or 3rd option, which should be filled by a younger player. Ba is not good enough on the ball to start for a team like Chelsea and Lukaku could provide the physical presence when needed.

I've read that useless post where all the wrong stats are handpicked to prove the point that Mikel is a fantastic player. Yet, he rarely plays... So, I guess the stats that the Chelsea staff keep show otherwise, or at least they seem to look at them in a very different way. Lets just agree to completely disagree on this one as well.

thanks for the info, but really depressing (that we missed signing him).

Agreed, but it's not an experiment... he is just covering because of our thin squad. Having a player like him, who *can* cover as a DM/CM when needed is an asset, not a problem. Yes, I also think it was overused, but again, because we lacked squad players this season. Last season we had to play Ferreira as a CB, this season Luiz played several games in the midfield... just weird. Luiz, “We won the Champions League so last year I ate steak. Now I have chicken but I’m hungry again. When you win something, it gives you the appetite for more.” WTF?!

Ramires was dropped for disciplinary reasons. Something to do with being injured not showing up in time (he showed up late accompanied by Eva), and perhaps also not sticking around. Not a done deal for the WC-unlike Ronaldinho who showed up completely drunk-but Ramires will have to work hard AND talk with Brazil coaches/officials if he wants to secure a spot next year. This was NOT the time to not show 100% commitment though, if he wanted to play next year that is. BluesMaster, agree with need for a rest, but it could negatively affect the player's confidence. Or it could make him work even harder to make up for it and get a well deserved call up for next year.

Henrique, that's not what we are discussing.... we are discussing their effectiveness in different roles comparing them with their peers, in the BPL and abroad. After all, we need better than our opponents. Last OT from me: I thought we should've gotten Dembele and was disappointed when he moved to spurs. Not crazy about Arteta--too feeble for CM position IMO. Hard working player don't like to play for Arsenal, because they'd be the only ones doing the hard word for the little, pacey, and skilled others. But yeah, even United's CM bets have gone wrong... Anderson was one of the biggest disappointments for United and Brazilian supporters everywhere. He could've become a CM Brazil hasn't had in quite a while. Fellaini can become a very good player in that position though. But yeah, Yaya just dominates in that role.

Interesting... I think both Mikel and Luiz are not really good enough for the pivot role. in fact, I reckon Ramires is the only midfielder we've got who really shines in there. Ramires' mobility is the most fundamental requirement to play in the pivot and both Mikel and Luiz lack mobility. While Luiz is a pacey CB, he's a slow midfielder. Luiz displays more aggression than Mikel, but both are pretty slow and that is the reason players skip past them on occasion. It's very different in defense, where you've got no space behind you and opposition needs to employ short dribbling to go past you, and that's where Luiz shines. I'm not a big fan o Mikel, but I think he would be a lot better as an anchorman, a holding mid sitting immediately in front of the defense. David would prob do better in such a role as well, say in a 4-5-1 system. One of the most annoying things about our team is the lack of tactical variations... need to sort out the coaching. prob a discussion for a diff thread though.

So aside from a high score win by Arsenal, a tie against Everton will secure the 3rd spot. This late in the season, with VERY tired players (lacking cover in several positions) all that matters is to win and we did. Quality got us the win... not fitness, not effort (Villa wanted just as much), but quality.

double

Cahill did just that once again...

Plus David even runs like a defender, because his training schedule does not include running x numbers of miles like the midfielders. Here are the facts though: we were losing, down one man at half time then Luiz comes in as a sub and we end up winning the game. So, focusing on his shortcomings in a situation like this is disingenuous, especially knowing hes covering. He was an integral part of the win today. Once again, I'm going to say ppl are overemphasizing the wrong aspects of the game.

No people really are insane... expecting a defender to play in the midfield without giving him time to adapt, all that at the highest level, is

I'd take the Rooney from 2-3 years ago in a heartbeat, but his form is clearly (and visually) dipping. My guess is that someone at United started the rumors the same way someone at Chelsea would talk about Torres leaving; extremely expensive players who are/have been surplus to requirements. It's more like wishful thinking as they are both going nowhere.

So a player is no longer good enough to start for our toughest opponent. So, we are going to get him to start for us which will enable us to beat them... defies logic.

indeed...his first touch is perfect! He started his career playing futsal in indoor courts with smaller football. That's why he is comfortable even in small spaces when exchanging passes with Hazard and Mata. Like ppl have been saying, confidence and other factors will affect ones game one way or another, but his technique is flawless. He does lack strength and acceleration (not so much pace), but we've got that in Hazard, plenty. Been watching him at Internacional, Brazil, and now Chelsea. Can't wait to see him develop under Mourinho.

There was no mistake... there was no 'simulation'. There was an added emphasis on an aggression when the ball was nowhere near David... It was a red. Players do what you call 'wrong' 99% of the time, or do you think that every fucking time someone gets kicked he could not have stayed on his feet?! They "decide" to go to the ground because they feel getting the freekick/PK is more advantageous than continuing the play AND/OR to protect themselves because when you get kicked you want the leg being kicked to be off the ground. BTW, something very similar to this incident happened to me and I reacted similarly. First I was holding my ear because I didn't know whether I was hurt or not. Then I was smirking because a) I couldn't believe what the guy did (elbow) and I knew I got him and since this was a 5x5 tourney we also won the match.

Not sure we are all agreeing on what Luiz actually did here... He did get kicked so there was no playacting for that. His smirk was obviously a "gotcha!" because at that moment in the game he wanted to kill some time (red card hadn't been shown) and Rafael lashing out provided just that. Rafael is also his teammate for Brazil and that could've been some rivalry going on too, but all in the game. Now let's just say Luiz had gone easy on Rafael allowing him to take the ball and United eventually scored, would that make people around here happy? You can't be too nice in tough matches like this one, at least not if you want to win.

lol actually thought Anderson was having a pretty good game and was very happy with SAF for subbing him for lethargic Rooney. I was very disappointed with Ba. Contrary to most around here I don't think much of him aside from his finishing. However, I do expect him to stay on his feet. He's a big guy and I was wondering exactly what he was trying to accomplish by going to the ground on every dispute. Moses was just as poor with a single good play when he beat his marker but produced a terrible cross.

What exactly did Luiz do wrong? He got kicked by stupid Rafael when the ball was no longer in play and ppl are talking about a smirk by Luiz?! Who gives a shit?! What about the fucking kick?! It's apparently one of those 'beam me up' days... BTW my rant is against the (lol) press...

Looked a lot better than Ba who was on the ground for most of the game. Torres not being good enough - he's still better on the ball than Ba - does not make Ba good enough either. Ba looked pedestrian to me.

which could become (451) Cech Azpilicueta - Luiz - Terry - A.Cole Mikel Ramires -Oscar Mata Hazard Ba if needed

Being originally from Brazil, I've played plenty of football (not professionally I'm happy to say)... I've played with excellent players, like Ronaldinho, and others well known in Brazil only (Carlos Miguel, Danrley, Jamir).Don't see the relevance myself though - Mourinho never played much himself. Let's just say I couldn't disagree more with the following statatement: "The toughest thing for a football player is discipline." The toughest thing for a football player is technique. Technique comes first. Only when technique is good we can begin talking about other aspects, physical and mental. Of course a good player must be well rounded, but technique is king. We prob should stop now, because this is a very fundamental disagreement.

How do you know they all actually instructed Luiz to refrain from making too many forward runs? TBH, I find this idea that being "composed" is so difficult and needs so much work a bit silly. David *can* make forward runs because he has the quality to do that. Most other defenders don't have such quality and some are even extremely poor on the ball (that's a bad player in my book). Whether he makes the runs and how often he makes them is all up to the manager otherwise David would lose his starting spot, would he not? Players are released for less than explicit disobeying instructions from their managers. I've heard Luiz saying managers encouraged him to make the runs--not surprising. Now, if we are going to talk about his real deficiencies, which are heading and positioning; and defenders work on their positioning all their careers. Frankly, havne't noticed any crazy improvement in either one. Luiz remains the same excellent player he was since his first game for Chelsea, with his immense virtues (mental and technical) as well as his deficiencies. Of course, that's just my humble opinion.

Benitez, "Oi Luiz! Could you refrain from making forward runs a bit? Especially when your DM and/or FBs are not behind you." Luiz, "Sure boss!" Done! Seriously, players improve as they play and gain experience. Managers and coaches can speed up or slow down their development, but it's a natural process. While Benitez must be given credit for it, one cannot say it was *because* of Benitez.

If you been watching football, like me, long enough you see these systems come and go. Ajax in the 90s wasn't much different than Barcelona of today in terms of style. Invariably though, a counter attacking side will occasionally beat the "flavor of the month." It's just like a game of rock-paper-scissors...