Leif

I love it. Makes me want to finish in the top 4 even more now since it'd look rather sexy in the Champions League final next season.

Maybe Benitez doesn't actually need to leave...? Mou could still come in though; hear me out: As we know, Mourinho is wanted 'home' by most of us. He plays attractive football with steel, flair, and solid foundations. He often has a key player (Drogba, Sneijder, Ronaldo) and his next key player could be Hazard. We already know he can do the business here, so bring him in. Benitez isn't all bad though. Once I heard our players were eating fry-ups before most games I was rather shocked. I thought pro athletes would be getting a bit better nutrition! As the FSW, I'm sure Benitez specialises in rice, pasta & seafood dishes; all of which would give our players a good physical boost with a mix of carbs (rice, pasta) & protein with healthy fats in the seafood. So with Mourinho appointed manager, perhaps Benitez could become Head Chef or Chief of Nutrition? Worth some thought.

Dodged bullet i think

Del Bosque, Benitez (ew), Guardiola, Hiddink (maybe), Marcello Lippi, Prandelli, probably plenty more - all seem to have quiet and rather 'soft' personalities like Pellegrini, but they've all done rather well haven't they?

MMMMMMMMM

Wish Ba would come on for the second half. Scared we'll concede late on or concede a silly penalty and draw 0-0. Need more goals.

Still kinda maybe sorta think Luiz could be that playmaker we need in midfield...

Moses has just turned out to be a less talented Robben. I hate it. I had such high hopes for him.

well fuck

If he comes back I think the idea of working with Hazard will be one of the main reasons for doing so. You can't blame him if so.

hehehehehehehhehehehe. this news makes me feel like a 12 year old discovering his first boner.

I'm surprised this thread is barely active. Are people not aware that out on loan we have this 19 year old being one of the absolute best defenders in the whole of Holland, at the same time being one of the most influential players in Vitesse's over-achieving season where they currently sit in 2nd place in the league, only 5 points behind leaders Ajax? Also I really want to make this clear - Yes, he can play at right back and has done for a few games this season, but he is a centre back. Much like Ivanovic, he's probably better in the centre, but at the same time can be one of the best right backs in the league if deployed there. He is incredible. There's nothing stopping him from becoming one of the world's best defenders at all. All this talk of how Lukaku does on loan, or De Bruyne, even Bamford or Piazon - but out of all of them, Kalas is the only player who's playing like a leader week in, week out; and is by far the most consistent.

Because of a clause in his contract, next Summer his release clause is £12m. Just something to think about.

I think he reminds me of Robbie Fowler a bit... without the shit personality.

^^^ Yep, spot on. If you watch him, there's nothing which'll make you think "WOW, HE'S BRILLIANT AT THAT!!!". Not an amazing finisher, he doesn't have pace to burn, nothing special when it comes to passing to my knowledge - yet he scores goals. I guess it's that instinct which you just can't be taught. He's simply born to be a striker which is evident. He somehow knows where to be and when; which results in him scoring. I think he lacks the all-round play to be a starting striker here one day, but who knows.

Blackburn fans on Twitter saying he's their best full-back since Lucas Neill. Big compliment. Most seem to want to sign him next season.

I AM SO DAMN EXCITED FOR THIS!!! He's stronger than he looks by the way. I often see him shrug off people with ease. I'll enjoy watching him and Lukaku bullying Arsenal in a few years. Won't be too dissimilar to Anelka-Drogba.

Hat-Trick. He came on in the 77th minute vs. Wolfsburg and has now got his 3rd goal in the 86th minute.

Came on in the 77th minute vs. Wolfsburg. Scored 2 goals by the 83rd minute.

I would feel rather intimidated, I admit. Something I'm keeping in mind is that if I get a big dog it'll likely have a bigger penis than me which could cause a lot of tension in my house. My jealousy would be obvious and could eventually cause us to part ways leaving a burning hole in my heart.

Does anyone on here have or know anyone who has a Finnish Spitz dog? I think I want one. I know "Google is my friend" but I'm just getting really bias info on there (well, from the sites I click on) regarding whether it's a decent dog or not. They look rather small. Like a fox. The reason for me being interested is the fact that (apparently) they're low cost as they're one of the healthier dog breeds and don't require much grooming and all that. I'd probably go for one of those orange looking ones as opposed to the grey ones.

Just want to say - You guys do know that Madrid are less stable than us, right? They sack more managers, have done worse in their league than we have in our own this season (we're in transition; they are not), have been chokers in the Champions League for ages now after a long time of success in Europe, constantly have rollercoaster media press, have had big disputes regarding captains (Casillas this season) etc, the fans bring out banners comparing Mourinho to Hitler and so-on. So maybe it shouldn't be a question of why would he leave Madrid for Chelsea; but more like - Why wouldn't he leave Madrid full stop?

As said, he's the player who'll wrap up the 3 points vs. the Wigans, Southamptons & West Hams of this world, but more than likely be a ghost vs. the big teams. I'd take him for £15m or under (not idea if that's likely or not) if he isn't going to be relied upon being our main striker - which he probably would be. So, eh.

Great signing. I didn't want him for the reported figure last season which was closer to £30m, but this is really good business now. ​He's useless out on the right, so I expect this to be a luxury rotation option for Hazard. You know those 'wunderkid' flair players such as Gotze and Reus? They wouldn't be able to show that flair and excitement without proper rest (which Schurrle will now provide for our players) and without balance in the team to let them do as they please to an extent - which he should again also now offer. It also means we should be conceding less goals in theory when he plays as he helps full backs tremendously well and finds himself all over the pitch if the situation calls for it. I don't expect him to go down as a typical club legend who bangs in goals for fun. I really do expect him to have a 'green' period like Marin - only he'll actually get to see the light at the end of the tunnel and come out a good player for us. He'll probably turn into a fan favourite, for sure. That said, he's inconsistent these days and has really poor finishing when directly in front of goal. There's more chance of him scoring if he's outside the box. Assuming this deal really does go through, I think he'll like it here.