robsblubot

Do you know why he was out of position?! He ran to the left to cover Ashley who wasn't there. Simply incredible ppl are criticizing him today when Cahill had a far poorer game. Not that I think the poor performance had much to do with the defenders mind you. Football is a bit more complicated than: if you concede, it's the defender's fault and if you don't score, it's the forwarder's fault. Defending is the responsibility of the entire team and so is attacking. If the defenders cannot pass the ball, for example, it hurts attacking.

agreed concerning attacking play, but defensively they were pretty much absent. Now, can you really expect lots of defensive contribution from those 3? Perhaps Oscar is the one who can drop back and add a little in the midfield, something he did not do enough against United, but Mata and Hazard are attackers first.

Once again, David is criticized for the style of his play, rather than his performance. He was Chelsea's best defender against United. RVP beat Cahill twice, once for each goal. So much for being predictable... However, can you really fault Cahill too much? RVP is one of the best strikers in the world and I feel Chelsea (read RDM) should've handled him differently: some f* cover?!

Chelsea's last chance... does he fucking know Chelsea are playing with 9 men!?!?!

Sad really: Torres does even know how to fucking dive properly! Honestly, game is lost now.

Sad really: Torres does even know how to fucking dive properly! Honestly, game is lost now.

KEEP ON THE PRESSURE!!!! COME ON!!! United have been poor at defending... if we keep on the pressure they will concede!

Yes, that may help Ashley, but would move Ramires out from the middle, where he's been winning the ball back and making some runs. He will have to pull one of the attacking players to the left to help Ashley a bit. Thought he was going to start this Match with Bertrand on the left for extra defending there, but ppl would've criticized the defensive approach for sure.

True, but Valencia is a great player IMO. It was RDM's job to handle that side by provide some support to Ashley.

only towards the end of the first half, but if Chelsea can keep this up they are bound to get the equalizer. Valencia is still a big problem on the right; that's manager's job!

NEEDED THAT GOAL BEFORE HALFTIME!!!

YEAH!!!!!

good header by Torres...

no one is looking good. It's fucking 2x0 for United! Hazard, Mata, and Oscar haven't are not defending well enough and have not created much up front either. Torres is pretty much the same as always. Ramires is actually playing decently considering United are winning the midfield; he's just outnumbered.

lucky united... for them it hits the post and goes out!!!

Sadly United are still controlling the match. I was afraid of this... new system, more attacking minded, with fewer players defending. The old Chelsea would've done better I'm afraid.

Second goal he was covering the wing (Ashsley wan't there), so he ran towards valencia who was able to cross to RVP. Cahill did not mark RVP well enough, the same way he missed Defoe against Tottenham, but Cahill is never criticized. However! It's really ridiculous to pick defenders as culprits when the opponents completely dominates the game.

could you explain exactly how did he lose the game? just curious...

Cahill made a mistake in the second goal, but the reason for the partial loss is because United have control of the the midfield and the game. Valencia is causing lots of problems on the right. First goal was caused by a bad/forced pass from Hazard, or was it Oscar?

few clubs can afford his wages, and he's under a long-term contact with Chelsea, so realistically, he is going nowhere. He may rot on the bench, but still happily collect his paycheck every other week. Personally, I think his problems are more physical than of motivation; his pace is gone. I really wanted to know whether Chelsea's fitness coaches think they can get him closer to his former self or not. I'm sad to say it, but it seems Chelsea have been had. Liverpool fitness coaches probably noticed he was getting slower and advised the manager to sell him.

AVB is a good manager and Spurs were missing some key players too. Chelsea just have way more quality in every position. Not particularly a fan of Friedel and Gallas selection over the alternative... well, I guess I DID like the selection against Chelsea, but wish AVB would play Lloris and Vertonghen (in CB) against the other sides (so they drop more points).

Completely agree. He's always laboring a bit when about to get a shot off... and that's all defenders need to stop it.

People need to realize that this is what Chelsea wanted to do when they started rebuilding the team. It's going to be different. More attacking, more movement, more goals, but defending won't be the same -- it can't be. There won't be as many players committed to defending as in the past. Both David and Cahill played well, with one mistake each in my book; David needs to be more aware about what's going on around him, and Cahill must never ever mark a striker, esp one like Defoe, from behind. However, like I said, defense will always be a bit more exposed than last season. Mikel, Ramires, Oscar had good a game. Hazard was even better and Mata was fantastic. Torres had a decent game, but certainly not at the same level as the others. Ivanovic had a decent game too, but also behind the other players esp Cole who was just fantastic IMO. Cech played like the top GK he is. BTW, I thought that a better shot stopper like Lloris might have stopped the Cahill shot (w/ or without deflection). I'd expect Cech to stop that one btw. Fantastic game and start of the season for Chelsea.

Just for the record, I wrote no such thing. It was mere example (to add to the many points I made or thought I did) of a player who at 38 dominates in the league. Also, please re-read what I wrote about Oscar: Oscar will probably do better for Brazil *because* he has moved to a much stronger league, which will help him fulfill his potential. Ronaldinho is shite IMHO; I know people will disagree, but that's how I feel. And I played with him a couple of times (just for fun) when he was 17. I will not comment on the rest as I've already stated my opinion once. This discussion is pertinent concerning Paulinho though, because aside from a few showings for Brazil all the data we have on him is from playing in Brazil. Now Corinthians did win the Libertadores Cup which is closer to the European game than the Brazilian league is (far more physical), and Paulinho was a key player for them. Comparing Paulinho with Romeu is difficult, because they look completely different players: Romeu is slow and seems to work best when sitting deep as a holding mid. Although Paulinho can play as a holding mid, because he's a good marker, he shines in a more versatile role.

I only measure success by trophies won, and by that Gremio and Corinthians aren't very different, despite Corinthians having far more supporters. Let's not go there though... Here's my prediction: Corinthians wont be able to contain Chelsea. Pretty much the same way Santos couldn't cope with barca. Or internacional would have fared against Inter (had they not lost to Mazembe first ). I don't think it's so much about quality of refereeing (which has been poor due to the renewal), but style, which has been the same for decades. I've heard former referees claim that it was a penalty because the attacker "was touched by the defender." Because of the above (refereeing styles), players like Ramires and Paulinho usually have an easier time adapting abroad, because European leagues demand more dynamism, defensive work, as well as strength (esp the premiere). People don't realize it, but Oscar is also a special player because he is complete. 38-year-old Ze Roberto was just MOTM yesterday against Fluminense in Rio. BTW, I expect Neymar not to do well in the next world cup precisely because he's staying in Brazil. Which is a shame, because Brazil need him to fulfill his potential. Let's agree to disagree (on the quality of the Brazilian league).