The Mak

Or Makélelé? It was considered, believe me! Yeah, there's so many ways to spell nearly every name; you don't realise it until you see peoples reactions to various spellings. Nah, I'm more Irish than anything else; the French thing is just in honour of Le Big Mak...what a man. Anyway, I could talk about him all day, so back to topic!

ROFL!! Haha, nah, close though! I think we're going with Ryan-etta! Her name is Maia; pronounced like the -miah in Jeremiah!

I would've liked to post a lot more this month, but with my daughter being born (on my birthday! ) at the start if the month, it kind of took up some of my time...I've mainly just been reading and, for me, it's between @Corner and @The only place to be; always have something to contribute, whatever the topic. Also like to mention @ and @!

These remarks just confirmed my beliefs about you a few days ago; that you're a cunt to anyone who doesn't agree with you. That's why I refused to respond to your comment, because I'd know I'd be wasting my time trying to 'discuss' something with someone who is just a Lampard fanatic rather than a Chelsea fan. I've seen the way you write your posts, with shit like: Just a few examples of many, we may even see more in your response to me. You leave no room for discussion. You act as if you know better than anyone else. You won't even aknowledge other peoples arguments on a site which is about discussion. News flash; it makes you sound more like a vitriolic Lampard preacher than a Chelsea fan. This is the Lampard thread, yes, but the sit is called TalkChelsea, so fucking sue us if we're trying to look out for the club as a whole. You wanted to argue with me a few days ago that Lampard shouldn't dare have his wages lowered from 150k a week because it would be some sort of insult. If it were up to you, he'd be on that wage and at the club until he's 40. You argued about Gerrard being on a similar contract, but seriously, who gives a shit? We're not Liverpool, one of the worst run football clubs in the world. We're Chelsea, we don't cling to history, we make it. So if you believe that me, @The only place to be or anyone else, are terrible fans because we want Lampard's wages to be lowered, only, to make room for players like KDB, Chalobah, Josh etc. on the books, so we can evolve; or because we're looking out for the club as a whole instead of just one player, then ok. We must be the worst fucking Chelsea fans on the planet...but only because you said so.

Ba would've buried that!

Not to derail this thread or anything, but those 1k are including friendlies...it seems as if Pelé counted goals when he was down the park with his mates using jumpers for goalposts! But seriously, I know you're probably bias for obvious reasons, but I don't buy into "he has to win a world cup" crap. Especially because the Argentinean national team is shit compared to Brazil's at the time. For me, Messi is the greatest. But I'd also go with saying that each are the greatest of their respective eras, Pelé for his, Maradona for his and Messi for his (Even though I believe Messi pisses on Maradona). Also, wasn't Pelé injured for, like, 95% of the 62' World Cup? That's like Paulo Ferreira counting his 2nd CL! You're like, "Yeah, you have a medal, but come on..."

Trust the Torres fanboy to make stupid comparisons. But there are some comparisons in case you've overlooked them: Villa has almost twice the amount of goals for Spain, in less games; Falcao too, in one season at Atletico, has scored nearly double than any of Torres' seasons there. Just for your information...

@super_frank8, Mate, I appreciate your enthusiasm for Frank and you bring up very valid points: he can still contribute, Luiz & Lamps looks promising, he is already a legend at this club and yes, letting Drogba go was a massive mistake, and I'm not just saying it in retrospection. However, I believe your love for Frank is blinding you a bit...I said: And you responded with: Dude, I'm agreeing with you. I just do not believe Frank, a 34yr old, should be on 150k a week. It's just not logical considering the obvious points I have mentioned. Just as an example, I'm pretty sure Giggs and Scholes' wages fall around the 70k mark, which is fair. So I do not understand why you seem to be fighting for Frank's wages? If Frank really is everything you say he is, and I love him to bits myself (I was the most happy for him in Munich), there should be no problem over money; because Frank is a legend at this club, so it should be about more than just money, correct? It's about playing for your club, doing whats best for your club; because no one man is bigger than the club, right? We love Frank, he loves us. If a fair contract is offered to him, there shouldn't be a problem; but I'm afraid that's down to the board, and I hope they make the right, fair, decision.

@super_frank8, Ok mate, it's pretty clear you love Lamps, most of us do. But the fact remains we were up against a young, inexperienced Villa side who pretty much had the sting taken out of them from the off with Torres' goal. You mentioned he had a great game against Leeds, which I would see as a point against your argument than anything else; yes, his grit and leadership was great but they are a Championship team at the end of the day...I would still worry about Lamps facing the big guns in a DM role, as we all know his strengths, and his defensive abilities are not them. I'd much prefer him coming on/starting as the middle of the 3 AM, but that's just me. Yes, he needs a contract. Not a big one like he's been on for the past number of years. As much as I love Frank, sentimentality aside, with FFP looming we have to look at things from a business perspective as well; 150k a week for an older player who gradually play less and less, and who seems to be becoming more injury prone, is not a wise move. His wage should be lessened and give him some appearance based bonuses. If he accepts such a contract it will endear him to the club even more, as it means he too understands that sentimentality should not stop us from progressing, evolving and signing new players.

We were good, but let's face it, Villa were absolutely abysmal! Poor Piazon Ah well, he'll learn from his experience at least! Smash them like super Frank!

Yes, a contract. Not a big one like he's been on for the past number of years. As much as I love Frank, sentimentality aside, with FFP looming we have to look at things from a business perspective as well; 150k a week for an older player who will most likely play less, and who seems to be becoming more injury prone, is not a wise move. His wage should be lessened and give him some appearance based bonuses. If he accepts such a contract it will endear him to the club even more, as it means he too understands that sentimentality should not stop us from progressing, evolving and signing new players.

This is what I don't get. Show me. Show me where Roman wants this 'brand of attacking football'....because he certainly doesn't give interviews. Does this idea stem from the media? Oh, our best friends! As far as what the past couple of weeks have taught me, Roman wants a winning team above anything else. Roman is a winner. So is José. I'm not saying he's defitely coming here, but I wouldn't rule it out.

Recalling Lukaku to have him as our 'super sub' is ridiculous. If he's scoring goals at West Brom from starting or from coming off the bench, I don't care, because he's scoring goals. It all goes towards his experience and it builds his reputation within the league, it's a gradual process. If he's not getting a major amount of game time, but still scores, it's brilliant; as next season he will most likely start more games for West Brom or whoever else wants him. Remember, for him, he is building himself to be no. 1 at Chelsea, and to do that he has to first become no. 1 at West Brom, or whoever else. So what's the point in recalling him early to be no. 2, or even 3, here??? One step forwards, two steps back. Drogba made his name as a starter, not a 'super sub'. If we wanted a 'super sub' we would've kept Kalou... Edit: And, obviously, he doesn't have as much weight or expectation on his shoulders playing for a lesser team(s), which is quite influential.

Hmmmm....

Jose Mourinho has reopened his long-term feud with Rafael Benitez by suggesting the Spaniard's mind was elsewhere when Chelsea lost to Corinthians in the final of the FIFA Club World Cup last weekend. Mourinho has been widely tipped to leave the Bernabeu in the summer, with Benitez mentioned as a possible replacement. The former Liverpool boss even hinted that he has had contact with the Primera Liga champions by claiming: "I know things, but I am not going to say anything about Real Madrid because I don't think I should." That triggered a response from Mourinho, who said: "As a Chelsea fan, all I can say is that I hope he wasn't thinking about Real Madrid during the Corinthians game." http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11668/8351173/Jose-Mourinho-hits-back-at-Rafael-Benitez-over-Real-Madrid-comments I dunno about you guys, but I would gladly take a job swap at the end of the season!

Yeah we did, but that was before we spent £80+ million on Hazard, Oscar, Moses, Marin, Azip.

Noticed that too. Lazy bastard. Tired maybe, but show some fucking enthusiasm. Show Chelsea fans you give a fuck.

Luiz fucks up. *forum explodes*

Yeah...lets hope he gets injured.

I was just using an example from our current squad. As I said, KDB could occupy a CM role in the future, or Josh, or whoever, with Oscar as a AM etc. I'm not saying, "this is the team we should field!". I'm saying that this formation would allow us to use our entire squad better, instead of relying solely on either defensive or attacking midfielders. P.S. Oscar should be able to do and play as he's told; if he's put as a CM, he'll be told to play like one. Really? Because Tiote reminds of a certain player we could do with right now, whats his name? Oh yeah...Makélelé. Ok, be it an inferior version, but I'd rather have an inferior Mak instead of a Mikel...

I'm just not sure why we are continuing to play this formation when it is clear we do not have the players for it. I remember when AVB was absolutely determined to play 4-3-3, even though we did not have the players for it. He was trying to fit our players into his system, instead of fitting a system around the players we had. His stubbornness, refusal to play the old guard and persistence on playing Mata on the LW saw him lose his job. As soon as RDM came in, he changed it to 4-2-3-1 to basically pack the midfield to make up for the lack of quality we had there. I'm unsure as to why we continued to play it in this campaign with the players we had and now it seems like a little bit of history repeating; trying to fit players into a system that does not suit them. The main thing for me is the stupid pivot. Fact is, we have no quality defensive-midfielders (Mikel fanboys can rant and rave all they like, I've always believed that there are other players that can do what Mikel does, except they can run and/or pass - see Tiote/Cabaye. Also, Romeu/Josh/Cahlobah are not ready yet). Couple this with no decent striker, which cannot be helped by changing formation I'll admit, makes the 4-2-3-1 pointless. Seriously, how can this formation be used when the pivot and the striker cannot fulfill their duties? It leads to a disconnect and lack of organisation between defense and midfield, along with a blunt attack. Now i'll admit I'm not a tactical expert, but for me, I'd like to see something along the lines of a 4-3-2-1, 4-1-2-1-2 (January permitting another striker/s) or 4-3-3. Personally, I'd prefer to see a 4-3-2-1 like this: Cech Azip - JT - Luiz - Cole Mikel Oscar Ramires Hazard - Mata Torres Ideally I'd have a better defensive-mid in there instead of Mikel. Ramires is best as a CM, no one can fault his work-rate there, but asking him to sit back in as a DM is shackling his strengths and it's is not working for him there at all. Oscar has a great work rate too. However, Mata & Hazard don't really, so they wouldn't have as much responsibility with 3 behind them instead of the 2. They can also be pushed out wide if we want a 4-3-3, which also accommodates Moses/Marin. And, of course, I'd have anyone except Torres leading the attack. But mainly for me, having one DM, two CMs and two AM/Wingers also allows us to fully rotate and utilize all of our squad, giving multiple combinations instead of relying on just DMs and AMs: DM = Mikel/Romeu/Josh/Cahlobah CM = Ramires/Oscar/Josh/KDB/Cahlobah/Lamps (if he's still here) AM = Mata/Hazard/Oscar/KDB/Moses/Marin What do you guys think? Am I talking nonsense? What formation would you like to see? (Sorry for the rant )

I said it weeks ago, he is a fucking cancer of this club. Now it seems like the Torres 'I don't give a shit' disease has spread to the rest of the squad (though not all, yet). Torres FC: that's what Roman and the board want. Are they happy now?! These missed sitters and losses are worth it if I finally see that fucking nancy boy and his fat spanish pimp daddy leave my beloved Chelsea.

What about Lars and/or Sven Bender? Any word of them moving in January? They're both DM right? I think we need two new DMs in all honesty and if we sign them both, we could have a pair of Benders... I'll get my coat.

Not a player I would want us to gamble on and really do see it is a gamble. Right now all I see is a player player for a bigger contract. That's all.

Not 100% on the name yet mate, but we're close! They give you 10 days after she's born to register, so we may take the full 10 days. A bit bad to not have a name yet, but my bro lives in Iceland and they give you 6 months to register and he took THE WHOLE 6 MONTHS to name his son! Haha Right, I'm off! Wish me luck! I'll just read this topic later to get a running commentary if I don't get to see the highlights