Leif

All this talk of how unfair the treatment is on Conte, how the board shouldn't be so involved, how he deserves public backing from the club when paper rumours are around, etc. Yet no talk at all really about Roman. Will he forever be this godly-legend-saviour that can't be taken down? I want him down, out, very far away from the club. Story time: One day, you get adopted by a rich Russian man, who spoils you with a mansion to live in, local notoriety, the best of the best of whatever materialistic desire you have. You're 10 years old - you aren't questioning being given gold, you just take it regardless of conditions. Fast forward - You're 20 or-so now; you're coming to the age where it's normal to learn the art of reflection. So you reflect. What do you learn? - Something about your Russian dad. Firstly, yes, he showered you in all things expensive and shiny; (leading to your local rivals & friends displaying jealousy, creating the illusion that what you were going through was something to admire.) But, now too you realise, he was never really there for you, which was the trade for the glitz. He'd maybe talk you up and show you off if company was around, but he doesn't care about your personal development (youth academy), your social life (legends being reintegrated, creating community at the club), your desires (fans want consistency); he has the emotional capacity of a potato. So you decide, while grateful for the roof over your head that was provided, you're never going to become the best person you can be, by continuing to be overseen by a parent who thinks that by just pumping money into you that they're doing enough. I hope people will too realise that Roman only brings brought money, & is here for himself first, with us as an afterthought. He's the parent so many childhood friends admired because they dreamed of riches. They'll never know the truth of what comes with those riches, though. A profound absence from the person giving the money; an absence from the person at the top of the ladder which can lead to consistent shambles below, stress & ill-health. Roman is old news. We could've had better, and we can still have better.

fucking negative nancy /s

I remember thinking he was the next Ronaldo. Who has he ended up most like?

If the Daily Mail say it, we know it's true. Not just a stab in the dark.

We do play average football. But we largely have average players. Mind blowing.

That was the type of game Barkley would've no doubt scored in. When a team acts somewhat timid and less than their usual best, that's when Barkley seems to be straight forward and think '1 step: score' - where his current Chelsea team mates will make a 10-step-plan to getting a goal. That's not entirely to his credit though; every top team should be aiming to score as quickly & frequently as possible. We fail.

Can confirm we're by far the biggest team in Japan. feelsgoodfam

Nothing football related to say today. Just wanna suggest everyone who can, get into beekeeping. Very rewarding finally trying some of the honey they've made. Mine tastes of candy floss and violet (kinda soapy). Save the bees.

Out of all players in the league or club you can compare him to. Who is he like?

It's like the entire past 2 years of common sentiment: 'Barkley was so, so overhyped - what a shame, for us and for him. It's incredible that he can't string 2 good performances together' has been erased. It's been essentially 1 of the top 5 narratives in the Premier League for these past 1.5-2 years: Barkley (was) a highly-priced player, who was absolutely quarter of the player he was made out to be in highlights. It turned out, like Lukaku, he offered enough for casual fans to go 'He's a gem!!!!', but those who watched week-in-week-out were reporting bad attitudes, inconsistency, low football IQ (both of them). He's no more consistent or talented than Oscar was in his very worst days with us surely. And if we'd let someone like Oscar go, almost pushing him out, to then invite Barkley in, is lunacy. In the end everyone will want Barkley to play the exact role Oscar was supposed to have: and was more well-equipped to handle. And he won't do it well, because at 23/24, like Bakayoko, you begin to show your upper limitations. So far, Barkley has shown nothing that suggests he adds anything to any top side. Being a long range shooter (already an overblown 'trait of his'), does not make you good enough for a team like Chelsea just because you do the other basics right. I want to convince myself that he's good as a bench option, but then, he's not, compared to other players. You simply don't bring on a Barkley to change a game vs. Bayern, Barcelona, Madrid. You bring on a pass master, a defensive master, a pashunnn master. Not a jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none. If a game needs more pace/strength/clinical finishing/crossing ability/defensive nuance, you should be able to look at your bench and see which players offer what you're looking to inject. What the hell would Barkley inject? He's weaker than Bakayoko, not going to be replacing Kante in games, and has half the lungs of Drinkwater. I want logic.

I am enthused and excited.

You're on fire today Dimitr.

Well, it's not on purpose. It just is. There are views to be pointed out about players, good and bad. It seems many would rather celebrate every signing without ever critically analysing. I understand if so, it makes things more 'fun', but that's not going to hold up when it comes to debate, which is generally what forums are for, and what great conversations are made of. But of course. Dear love for my dear mate

I'm not dragging spirits in the mud if, as you could be implying, there's a chance I'm right about Barkley. Surely that would just be reporting things as they are? Often, it's about seeing only one-sided views being posted; and someone needs to inject an opposing one to make people think, especially if that person (me in this scenario) is genuinely 'on that other side' not being reported. If that's a buzz-kill to anyone, they need to grow their mind. I wouldn't exactly call you Mr Positive either. Or Mr Negative. If you say I lack positivity, I say you lack the full-bodied nature which makes us human. 'It's just a signing'. Right. And we just won the Champions League; its just a playful competition, it wasn't a big deal, right. (If what we do today is not a big deal, what we did then wasn't.) Get involved with the drama. If you dislike passion or views which clash from yours, my god football is not your sport. And if those critical views are 'negative', that's a really, really short-sighted way of seeing things.

No. I said, somewhere, we were correct to sell Salah in the environment we were in back then, and that still today, Salah would stunt us going forward from having a fully fluid, consistent team at the top level. He is not one of the best - his form is a level or 2 behind that. He's statistically productive; a lot more-so than when with us too, due to Roma's nurturing. Why do i need to provide world class players when you're providing Barkley? Shouldn't i be providing like-for-like players?

Well how do we define a target? Just anyone the papers have linked us to? Or people we've been linked with before Conte came? I don't think we've really been linked with anyone solidly in midfield. But I can list midfielders who aren't cup-tied, or are but still worth it, who actually have the potential to improve the team noticeably. Torreira (everyone wanted Verratti, why the hell wouldn't you want him?) Milinkovic-Savic (the perfect player) (cup-tied, yet worth signing ASAP. if we need a CM now, bring back Van Ginkel, Loftus-Cheek, etc until Savic is here and ready.) Illarramendi (the ideal stop-gap; actually good enough to provide for us today, yet cheap enough and shoddy-of-a-history-enough to ensure little-to-no financial loss should he not provide what we want.) Benat (same as above, less ideal player but certainly a brilliant playmaker) Seri (same cup-tied scenario as Savic, similar player to Verratti like Torreira is; would be taken by Barcelona, Bayern, Madrid, United, everyone.) Half of them are good enough to lead us upwards in climbing the ladder we've slipped from & unlock the potential of attacking players around them further. And that's not the level Barkley's on. Considering Barkley's hardly better than a handful of our youngsters, why buy him now, instead of wait for an actually great player? Is there a fetish on here for signing genuinely mediocre players, so they can transcend logic and become world-beaters? I'd re-call someone like Van Ginkel or RLC if we must have a central midfielder now!!!!! & then find a square peg to fit our square hole in the summer, instead of force this nobody on ourselves. Take away his English nationality and he's nothing in footballing terms. Battling to be as good as Meireles.

I think, roughly, he's as good at dribbling as Moses is, as good at passing as Cahill is, and about as hard-working as Loftus-Cheek is. From what I remember, he has the tackling ability of current Bakayoko, the same level of mental awareness (lack of quick-thinking). Everton fans main gripe is that he's never been consistent in his life. Never played 3 good games in a row in his life. I think playing 5-10 solid (not exceptional) games with wondergoals, along with playing a hundred anonymous games, shows the level he is. At 24. Elite. (We'd sign this level of player for £2.5m if we were shopping in Germany. But because we'd be shopping in Germany, there'd be none of this 'He's English' nonsense. So this level of player would instantly be sent out on loan, never to return.)

Nothing's a bargain if it's just clutter to add to your hoarding. Holy fuck I'm still stunned as I type this. Imagine thinking anything we lack can be solved by a move like thisAbsolutely dread the next 5-8 years for us; the writing's been on the wall. Now it's been bashed in with a hammer as if to say 'nope, not changing - this is the new Chelsea.'

he will be very good player!!! he english! shoot from long range!! give him time!!!

Post something interesting and i will.

Another player where nobody will be able to list 2 positive traits yet somehow still enjoy this move. Now it'll be: 'He can shoot from long range!!!!!'. Those 20 goals in 150 games sure are something. And, if he'll be scoring lots for us, he'll also be starting lots for us too - yet, who in the past year or 2 has said, 'for us to go forward...for us to improve...for us to ensure players like Hazard are given the platform they need....we need Ross Barkley.'? He's about to offer nothing. He's about to offer average all-round qualities you'd expect from a West Ham player. I cannot believe this

he looks 'talented' like an 18 year old with potential. exactly what we need

my fucking club embarrassed and annoyed.