Magic Lamps

we could use a proper finisher from close distance here

the ref is a shame as usual

we have to get the counter attack on andnot dwell so long on the ball

Wouldn't a passport also mean he could be listed as HG player? IMO that would not be charity but benefit our club. Maybe Mikel is not a real rotation option, cos he limits our play, but in certain situations he can be a tactically important option, like protecting a lead but also calm down the play and he is still good enough to play the lower sides. Tho given his limitedness, it is important we keep MvG.

The thing about Oscar is, he will never be a creative no 10 like David Silva or Özil. The defensive responsibilities he takes here make him more of a no 8. Still he remains one of our tactically most important players. Having a defensively disciplined player in the CAM position enables Fabregas to have the play in front of him when he drops deep and cover when he advances to play the killer passes like he did monday. Also Oscar often serves as a ball carrier and picks up the ball between the centre-halves when Cesc temporarily takes on the no.10. position. This way Oscar and FAbregas complement each other just fine.

By far the best ice buckett challenge yet. Because he mentions what it is actually good for + uses an enormous amount of ice water + because it is fuckin JOse MOurinho.

lol. Imagine his team mates lifting that ice buckett over his head and he's just: "this does not fuckin slip now"

True. But the problem is most celebrities don't even mention that it is about ALS in their videos. Should do it like Charlie Sheen and donate money (maybe a bit more than 10k)

Usually a club can buy such decisions at the CAS. Fifa/Uefa only sanction clubs because they want money from them and the CAS can command a settlement. I'd be rather surprised if such a ban is upheld by CAS.

hard done by. maybe not a penalty, but never a dive. he was at full sprint.

exactly what you need against parked busses. what a nice chip. lampard-esque assist

what an amazing goal. that is what we have fabregas for

castrated the defender with that sharp shot

and diego scores

well this is awkward. why did no one mark the scorer? he was in acres of space, everyone could see it coming.

The problem is we can not simply buy a foreign player. Our non-homegrown squad already exceeds the 17 players contingent( btw who will even be excleded?). OUr addition needs to be homegrown steven Fletcher would be a great option if homegrown. (is he?) jay rodriguez would probably be the best available homegrown option. Suddenly Liverpool look smart snapping up Rickie Lambert. He would have been a perfect 2nd/3rd striker Also I have always been a fan of GAry hoopers instinctive finishing in the scottish premiership...

Don't want to deflate the great optimism around here, but didn't Mourinho announce our world cup players, at least Schürrle and the Brazilians, GErmans and Belgianswould not be ready yet? Probably only a bluff. But I can see Schürrle sitting this out and Salah starting.

The only thing important is the 3 points. Even if it is unspectacular and without a Costa goal, a win is a win. We usually win scrappy on th opening day, so expect no difference this time.

Bayern want a CB who can also play RB as a replacement for the injured Javi Martinez. BAyern would be even more frightening with a CB of this calibre. Actually I'd rather see him a ManU. IMO it would not make them title contenders whilst Benatia at BAyern would almost make theminvincible. The thing is BAyern usually don't pay crazy sums for players, unlike the Manchester teams do.

Actually, in hindsight i had to change my mind, Mou was probably was right to sell Mata, even though to a team that has been a rival of ours for a decade and even though a player in his prime. It was a gamble and it looks like it will pay off. We got good money for a player we did not need and now we have Fabregas who is a lot more complete for less money than what we got for Juan. On the other hand IMO, Mata was a fool to force the move. He could have easily stayed here, still would have a good 30 games per season and actually compete for titles. If Utd don't add some major signings they will be challenging for top 4 or 3 but nothing more. MOu did not like his deficiencies which were exposed in his system, but I think he could have used him in some games. On a side note, Mata is probably marginally better than Kagawa due to his slightly superior vision, passing and finishing and ball control, but when on form Kagawa is faster, more direct and a way better athlete. Kagawa was even more dumb to join Utd to rot on the bench with players like Valencia and Young starting over him. He should have known, SAF never used a proper no10 and it seemed to me, he somehow was forced to make that signing after we got Hazard. At Dortmund he might have had the chance to play with Reus and maintain their grip on the league title a bit longer.

The question is where will Bamford be more useful and also whether he is not too good for the CC. Would love to see him in the Premier League but probably won't see playing time anywhere.

Why not? They don't make up places in the squad but add cover. Who gives a shit if they have a future here. Until we have found other homegrown players as backup, we can keep them.

one player stil has to go because of too many foreigners. 1 or 2 injuries and we have the same problem as always. ON paper there is enough cover due to the versatility of players like Azpi, Iva and FAbregas. Though in reality when some players have to cover multiple positions they will be tired at the end of the season as they were last season. I can't believe we are surrenering 6 squad places because we deliberatley and unnecessarily shipped out 4+ homegrown players. Who gives a shit about Bertrand's and Moses development? They will never have high resale value either and don't cost that much but would have done a job when called upon. The advantages of keeping them outweigh the risk of having a squad that is too thin by far.

why in heaven do we loan out, sell or cast off all our foreign players? Cole, Lamps, Bert, Lukaku, Moses....all good players. congratulations our squad is once again paper thin. We have to play in 4 competitions and 60+ player and need every player we got. Loaning out homegrown players will not help us get rid of that non-homegrown player either. We'll only have ourselves to blame if our squad is worn out like Arsene's winter coat at the end of the season. Back on topic. I'd much rather loaned out Salah than MOses. Salah is not really much better but is maybe our worst foreign player.

LOL. I think he alluded to how often that phrase was used when we were in search of pivot players.