Leif

Ironic considering how much time I spent trying to convince people it was a good move originally, but it doesn't look like Moses is going to quite cut it. We need a right winger. A new right winger. A proper right winger. One who hugs the touchline preferably but someone in Hazard's mould wouldn't go a miss. We can't play our 3 Amigos in every game, and I just don't feel comfortable with him playing anymore. Maybe some games Hazard could go out right and we could get someone like Schurrle in (in theory) and put him in the left, I don't know.

Oh. Crap. I might get flamed for this after looking at the above comments, but I thought he wasn't very good today. All those times Hernandez got in behind him and then the fact he let Van Persie stroll around freely in the box had me biting my nails more than I should have! It was an improvement in general today, and as a defensive unit I guess we were pretty solid, but I wouldn't say today he was faultless or anything.

Meh. We'll cope. Bertrand rarely looks below average when at left-back and he performed just fine today.

We like to joke about him a bit, but we must all surely agree that today was one of Torres's better games.

We've got our manager!..not sure how I feel about this.

That was his 50th assist for us today.

90% pass accuracy. 67% aerials won. 55 touches. 2 fouls. 4 shots. 3 tackles. (Just in case anyone's planning on bringing up today's game in a future Mikel debate. I'm saving you time. I'm nice.)

I really hope people appreciate that pass from Mata. Really, try and think of any other player currently who does what he does on a consistent basis with passes like that. I'm struggling to find even 1.

Mata now has 14 goals/assists (collectively) in his last 12 FA Cup appearances. Mata filling Drogba's void a bit.

For the people who've been saying that the FA Cup is 'nothing', I hope you didn't watch today. It's a very special trophy to those who grew up sitting beside a radio listening to hear the draw etc. Over the past decade, the FA Cup has pretty much lived at Stamford Bridge. I hope that trend continues with a top 4 finish to make it even sweeter. Note: Mata had a fever 2 days ago. I don't believe you get over a fever in 2/3 days, nevermind the lack of match fitness after only playing 19 minutes in the past 2 weeks. I didn't think he had a bad game at all. Not an average Mata game, but an average Silva (these days) sort of game; which is still better than any attacking midfielder in the Premier League. La Liga watchers who don't tend to see Mata & Chelsea had very little idea that today he was off form. All I could see, hear and read was comparisons to Iniesta of all people - and that's coming from Barcelona and Madrid fans (with a scattering of others). Good day! Now time for the youth!!!

I seem to remember "Ba was just a bad signing, should have recalled Lukaku" in January because he, like all strikers had a dry spell. Come on out from under those rocks and put your hands up people I'm referring to.

Life is an amazing thing. Not trying to sound incredibly weird (like i am), but I just took a moment to appreciate all the different factors to 'normal' things like sounds. I find it amazing how birds, people, computers - they all have unique sounds created in rather odd ways. heh.

This might just be a crap idea and not even doable, but you see how there's now that widget at the right hand side on the forum homepage showing recent 'likes' on posts? Well how about a widget which shows which posts have been 'liked' most (not most recent) each day? Like perhaps the top 3 liked posts? And of course, if possible, the order would change in real-time. I just think this would be good for those who come on late at night and have missed a brilliant post in a topic no-longer being posted in (thus not very high in the "View New Posts" page), or maybe something really humorous & insightful has been posted and more people deserve to see that 1 particular post, even if it's not in a topic they'd usually go into. Just a thought. heh.

Wanna know how to sort some of our problems? Here you go: We must switch to a 4-3-2-1. Why? Well - Mikel flourishes (heh) as a sole defensive midfielder. He clearly feels awkward playing with a partner. So he'd play deep in the midfield '3' much like in a 4-3-3. Now Ramires can slot back into his best position, RCM, where he is bursting with energy and can run all over the pitch, doing as he pleases (within reason). Lampard or whoever can take up a more stable and rooted position at LCM, doing both attacking and defensive work. But of course, my plan would be implemented next season, meaning there might not even be a Lampard! (De Bruyne, anyone?) Assuming we sign a deep-playmaker such as Benat who can also do defensive work, he'll slot into Mikel's role, Ramires remains, and then we need another player bursting with energy in the LCM role to protect Benat (or whoever). Again, De Bruyne could fill this role quite well while also adding another top-passer to the team. So, that's the midfield sorted. (Well, in one way. There's so many options with a formation like this!!) The '2' would of course be Hazard + Mata. However, instead of Hazard's current inverted winger role and Mata's advanced-attacking-midfielder role, they'd both act as inside forwards-come-playmakers behind the lone striker. This means both players are closer together, which will result in more 'magic' and interchanging in roles. They'd typically play slightly deeper than the position Mata currently occupies unless we're up against some minnows. I feel that if you're too close to the lone-striker you can't pick him out with as much precision. Both players pushing too far up with the striker would leave the 3 players behind them too exposed to long-balls. So, you're probably thinking - "Are you CRAZY!? This formation would be too narrow! Who would track back!?". Ah, so naive. With Hazard & Mata in more central roles, they'll still be able to drift out wide and create a standard 4-3-3 when needed. When the 4-3-2-1 is in place however, yes, we need width both for attacking and defending. A few seasons ago, Cole would be perfect for this. Now? Not so much. Do you know who is perfect however? Baines. He has the best crossing accuracy out of all players in the top 5 leagues this season, he tracks back well after attacking, can take set-pieces and is a reliable, solid option. On the right, Azpi can continue to grow and develop and hopefully become a permanent fixture there; marauding forward yet instilling defensive soundness. This would probably also suit Bertrand a bit more as he does like to (try) whipping in a decent cross when there's no-one ahead of him. For the more cautious games where the team will line-up in a 4-3-3, it would make more sense to drop Mata completely (depending on the scenario), sticking Hazard out left and having Moses coming in on the right. (Yep, that's right. In this formation Mata won't be an untouchable!) Ivanovic or Azpi can then go on the right for the full-back position. This formation, with 3 deep players in midfield instead of the current 2 means the defense will be much more protected AND there'll be more close-by passing options. This means less running around for Terry and less need to maraud forward for Luiz! As for the striker, we'd need someone who's not afraid to close down the opponents, otherwise they'll build up from the back and try to exploit the lack of width compared to other formations. Falcao is a big no-no. Cavani is a big yes-yes. Lukaku would also thrive in this set-up I feel. This formation would be quite contrasting to what we've usually had. It's very much an attacking formation with (potentially) Baines, Azpi, Hazard, Mata & the striker all attacking while De Bruyne also likes to get forward a bit, as does Ramires. Discipline in roles would need to be restored so players don't get carried away. Voila. Note: If you ever saw Milan's 4-3-2-1, I believe Kaka and Seedorf were in the '2' roles I'm talking about. Kaka was a genuine goal-threat, often more-so than the striker. This is the role I'm expecting from Hazard while Mata would be in the more disciplined Seedorf role.

Remember that time he, for some reason, decided to let Juve score? ahhhh, good times. Remember that time he lost the ball then just stood there without even trying to win it back? Of course you do! It happens every game.

Us posters who don't like Mikel (as a player, not a person) expect this level from him. You see the slide tackles in this video? This is what we want. We don't care if it's in a 4-3-3 or partnered with someone in a 4-2-3-1. It doesn't matter. A top quality midfielder is versatile. Busquets is just as good in Spain's 4-2-3-1 as he is in Barcelona's 4-3-3. The formation just can't be an excuse. Of course it may seem unfair to be saying "Hi Mikel, please play more like our best ever defensive midfielder", but he's only half the player I see in this video. I expect successors to at least challenge someone's title of "Best ever in their position" at a club! The slide tackles, positioning, interceptions etc. in this video below are orgasmic. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63WojjZy7QE Now, here's a point:- If we were to want to replace Mikel, who with? I want a Makelele type player again. Who's the closest player to Makelele these days who's actually a realistic target? I've heard people say Sven Bender (I don't see it), Capoue (I don't see it) and Nainggolan (I don't see it).

I just miss Makelele so much ._.

Arsenal have Monreal as their starting LB with Gibbs there to do the job against weaker opposition or when for whatever reason Monreal can't start. It was similar when Clichy was there. I expect Bertrand and Gibbs to always have that same 'back up'/utility role unless they move elsewhere. That's not necessarily a bad thing though. Plenty players have had wonderful careers as bit-part players. O'Shea, Belletti etc.

German papers saying Werder will re-sign him for £2m.

With all the money we have we should have bought Reus. Or Draxler. Or even Holtby. Or.. anyone else from the Bundesliga. It's not an exaggeration what I'm about to say, brace yourselves. We bought Marin when he was probably the worst attacker in the league. The absolute worst. 2 or 3 seasons ago I would have bit your hand off for the rumoured price we got him for though! He really was good when he was younger.

Love this. Enjoy if you haven't seen already! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyPLMdA37-Q

Yeah I toyed with this idea last season when I first signed up here for some reason (not too sure what triggered it). The thing is right... even if we miss out on the CL spots, there'll still be all that pressure for the next manager to get us back into the top 4 - maybe even more pressure than trying to stay in the top 4. Meaning the idea of youth being used more could unfortunately be void. That is, unless we lose some of our gems which would put a lump in my throat. (By Gems I do mean Hazard, Oscar etc. Mata seems loyal enough to stay regardless... hopefully.) You know when you eat loads of junk food, stuff you really shouldn't be indulging in, and then you finally do that great poo which just seems to clean out your system? Us missing out on the top 4 could be that great big poo. Hopefully that makes some sense. (I'm saying that as a positive thing.) Again, although it's even perhaps logical on a few levels to miss out on the CL for a season, it would really deflate me going from "CHELSEA TO SIGN MOURINHO AND RONALDO IN A PACKAGE DEAL!" (yeah, i know we aint getting Ronaldo) to "CHELSEA TO SIGN ALLEGRI TO GET THEM INTO THE TOP 4! OH, BUT WAIT, HE'S ALSO TAKING MILAN'S RIGHT-BACK ABATE WITH HIM! WOOO!!!" etc.

Stingray because well just because

I personally feel it's no coincidence that both Swansea City and now Boro decided to drop him pretty much when 'crunch time' near the end of the season came about.

So guys, question - Who looked like the better left back today? Ryan Bertrand or Luke Shaw? Take your time.