different level

Maybe it's a bit harsh to say that, considering his broken nose and the fact that he is not exactly the first option in attack, but it seems to me that so far in two months he hasn't offered that much more than Torres. In fact he looked like he has borrowed Nando's cloak of invisibility in his last couple of matches. Then again he didn't have many chances in front of him and unlike Nando he hasn't missed sitters, but definitely needs to improve

Captain, Leader, Legend!

They are a goal down and will be pushing to score, so our wingers will have lots of spaces for cut ins and go on to punish them. An easy one.

I think at this point it's better to get knocked out than playing another replay, so a must win game against Boro.

Oh, man, hell no. Not another away game, against manure even. Still in it, but no more replays!

I think this is the first match of the season without Nando participating even for a couple of minutes

I'd be satisfied with pretty much anybody but City, United or Everton for the quarterfinal draw. Btw after three straight away games we should play at The Bridge. if we beat Boro. Do some teams receive the priority to be hosts in the FA Cup draw?

Nice second half. Why did it take them so long?

Rafa, you moron. Why play almost our strongest eleven against these nobodies? You better rest Mata and Lamps on Thursday against Sparta. If we lose to City next Sunday, you are a gonner.

A week or two ago I thought about the JT situation and it felt really strange, like there is something more to it. In the past he's been playing through injuries and has always been a starter as long as he is medically cleared and now those continuous spells at the bench, with the excuse he has not regained his fitness, are really shady.

We should beat them with a team full of Torreses.

Couldn't care less if Rafa plays Torres or not, just rest Mata and Lamps, please. Brentford are the kind of team we have to beat with our eyes closed.

Unbelievable. Was he too busy being a reject with his loan spells at Le Arse and WHU to notice the club did anything possible to help Nando, including getting rid of all our strikers at some point?

Never mind that. Rafa just said he's going to pick a strong team for the match, meaning Mata and Hazard are unlikely to be rested....

What's with all the complaining? Yes, it was a rather frugal performance, but the bottom line is we won and that's all I care about. The result has always been more important than the showing, we should know that better than anyone.

Turnbull /// Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Bertrand /// Luiz, Mikel /// Moses, Oscar, Benayoun/Marin /// Ba Should be a walkover. I'll be pretty upset if we have to waste more effort for these amateurs.

Pretty boring to watch. The team didn't seem to put too much effort on this game, but anyway we won without wasting too much energy.

Maybe he should or maybe he shouldn't have. Who cares?

Аn average day in the life of Florent Malouda: 8:37 am -- Eats breakfast in the shower so he can get to training early. Even though no one will notice. 9:45 am -- While practicing free kicks, he hears the U-21 kids dare one of their cohorts to "kick a ball at Old Man Malouda." When it happens, Malouda takes a few steps in their direction and they all run away screaming. 10:16 am -- Checks his bank balance. 11:22 am -- Tells a dirty joke to his invisible friend and weight-room spotter BraniFrank RamirTerry, who finds it borderline offensive. Malouda apologizes. 12:30 pm -- He watches through a window as the non-exiled first-team players enjoy a specially prepared lunch while eating a sandwich he had been carrying in his sock all morning. Between soggy bites, he sees that Fernando Torres looks depressed despite being surrounded by other people who are actually talking to him. Malouda decides he will leave a friendship bracelet on Torres' training kit before leaving the club. 1:11 pm -- Checks his bank balance. 2:50 pm -- Plays several games of FIFA 13 career mode with a modified Chelsea team made up entirely of players named "Florent Malouda." He keeps the original Florent Malouda character on the bench, though. 3:26 pm -- He tweets just to try and prove to himself that he still exists. 4:09 pm -- Wanders around the parking lot hoping to "accidentally" bump into Rafa Benitez. When it finally happens, Benitez says "hello Mr. Abramovich" to him and then drives off. 5:15 pm -- Takes his daily picture of himself with the Champions League trophy. 7:20 pm -- For dinner, he eats a sandwich he had been carrying in his other sock all day while imitating Didier Drogba's voice. 9:41 pm -- Stares at his bank balance until he drifts into a deep and restful sleep.

If Torres leaves, I could totally see a move for another ultra expensive striker.

Probably one last effort to boost Nando's price before selling him in the summer?

Really happy for him and hopefully the goal will boost his confidence. He has a lot to prove that he can be a worthy squad player for us and the upcoming cup games offer him a great opportunity to do so.

I think only the people who were expecting him to join the squad and instantly turn into a Messi or Ronaldo say he is a flop. Yes, we paid a lot, but it's his first season, give him some time, he definitely could be that guy! Maybe there is also the Mata factor who is overshadowing a bit Eden's contribution to the team, but don't be so foolish, he's also having a great season, proving his worth and IMO he is the second most creative player in the team at the moment. Also I believe his season is on par, if not a bit better than Mata's first one, so be more patient, this guy is special.

Words can't describe how much I wanted this to work out. For almost two years I was defending him from the insults from fans (including Chelsea fans), I really thought a class player like him would turn his fortune around. It was like every game we played I said to myself: "This is the match when the Torres we know returns" and most of the times I ended up bitterly disappointed. Sure there were times when he stepped up and improved for a short spell somehow convincing me and probably the rest of us that he can be our star striker, only to return to his poor form putting again the cloak of invisibility. Now I think I gave up on the hope that the things between him and Chelsea could work out, but what can you expect from a player who has lost all his speed, leading to loss of confidence in his finishing which was once world class. Sometimes we can see flashes of his old briilliance, but in no way could that be enough for the extremely ambitious club that we are.

I also heard he played well, although I hadn't watched a full AcoN match, but those are definitely some positive news. Mikel is a very underrated player, quite often been made fun of his inability to do something creative up front and also being a back passer, but last month his absence was felt when we had to defend a lead.