The Mak

Wrong Tom!

Well that's not what my post was about, so don't be ignorant and just quote 4 words of it without even caring to read the rest of it or the article for that matter. An Irishman enjoy a pint of Guinness? You're not that ignorant are you Tom?

Good job. Now if you considered to read the rest of my post you might understand what I'm actually trying to say. Thanks, bye.

Judging by this article, it would seem Mata felt like he was doing everything he could/was told and that is why he felt aggrieved. I also find it funny when people said his defensive contribution was pathetic, 3/4 tackles in his own half: Maybe its not outstanding, but its certainly not non-existent like some are exaggerating. He wasn't playing poorly by any stretch of the imagination, the game just called for a different approach. But surely it is understandable for him to feel frustrated? Anyway, here's the article. http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/pitchside-europe/mata-had-100-per-cent-pass-completion-why-144117558.html

Haha, it's ok mate! I know what you mean, but just let go. You'll feel much better and you'll also stop sounding like the partner of an abusive lover! ...or you could continue thinking that way and substitute the name of this video to 'Alex/Torres'! "Can I take your name please love." "Torres...Alex Torres"

Just under a million a goal. That sounds like a decent return alright...not to mention his ridiculous wages. Has Alex been hacked? Or is he still drunk from New Years? I'd rather have a shit goal return while trying to develop someone like Bamford instead of giving Torres another contract he doesn't deserve.

Exactly. That's why I think he should be loaned until after the World Cup. He's depreciated since, but he'll pick up form and if Belgium do well his price would skyrocket. I think we'd be fools to sell him now at such a low point when it is almost guaranteed that his price will go up from here onwards. Loan with an option to buy in the summer would be best.

...not when the criticism is disproportionate to the offence. When that happens, it seems like they're acting as if Mata is Marin. There's nothing more I can say without repeating myself again.

There's a difference between being critical and having an overreaction. @remains of the day, has pretty much summed it up.

BluesMaster has already answered for me: When the reaction is greater than the offence it portrays a lack of acknowledgement or respect for what he has done for the club up until now. If they say thanks for his service but also turn around say stuff like he 'challenged' the manager, it completely negates their 'appreciation' of him. Such accusations are absolutely ridiculous. It feels like people are blowing the whole situation out of proportion to suit their arguments.

Agreed. Complete overreactions. I agree that it may actually be of benefit to the club to move him on if things don't improve. But to belittle the man like people have done here is insulting to the 2 fantastic years of service he has provided. People are all too quick to forget how much we depended on him to win games and quick jump to José's side when things look good (for now). It seems like some people have been waiting for this moment for a while. Honestly, some of the reactions on here have shocked me and I expected more on an educated forum. Saying that Mata might have to move on is fine, but people should also show a level of respect for what he has done for the club up until that moment. It was the first semi-negative thing he's done here and it was because he's a footballer who wants to play football. For fuck sake. Look at all the insanely stupid shit JT has done but 95% of people here still call him 'legend'. Hypocrites.

One of the reasons why I wouldn't recommend starting De Bruyne. He seemed as if he already had a leg out the door in the last game so I'd only imagine that feeling has only grown now that it's January. He'll probably play though.

Not jumping the gun here, but Reus would be unbelievable replacement for Mata. More direct, knows the system and would replace Mata's goals from midfield. ST and CM are first on the list though.

Just get out troll. That's the second time now you've said that shit.

I'd give my vote for MOTM to Willian if there wasn't two Schurrle's instead. Can't give it to Oscar though because I think he could've easily stayed on his feet and scored instead of going to ground.

More of that Willian!! Great goal!!

Same reason at Traore really. To be honest, I think he's better than Moses and that's the reason why I wouldn't have him on our bench. He's banging them in at Vitesse and would like to see him continue to develop elsewhere, maybe in the Bundesliga or even in the PL if he gets the right club. We're actually so blessed in this department it's unbelieveable. It's a far sight from a few years ago. Piazon and Thorgan are in such good form right now and if Traore starts doing the same...my word. Let's just say that playing career mode in FIFA is enough of a selection headache as it is, so I wouldn't want to actually be making those decisions at Chelsea!

Keep him while KDB goes on loan. KDB should increase his price-tag dramatically between now and the end of the World Cup. For next season however, I think he's too good to be getting such limited game-time with us. The only way he might get considerable time is if we were stuck with injuries, which no one wants. Another loan I suppose. We could bring back the likes of Moses for our 6th choice AM then.

Can't argue with that really. I'll add your bench though! Howard, Azpilicueta, Lovren, Ramires, Lallana, Sturridge, Lukaku.

It's not as bad as it sounds. So it's actually -£34m, not 50. Couple this with the fact that we actually qualified past the CL group stages this year, which I think is £20m+ at least, and have a massive kit 10-year kit deal worth £300m (so another £30m per year) and we're fine. Big multi-million pound contracts will also be up in the coming seasons (Essien, Lampard, Cole and maybe even Torres). We don't plan to pay off anymore managers in the foreseeable future as well. Nothing to worry about.

I understand your sentiment, but I can still see Mata going for £30-40m purely based on his ability and age. A lot of the players you've mentioned were bought at around Mata's age, so they went for exorbitant fees and were sold for very little or nothing considering they were either touching 30 or on the wrong side of it by the time they were moved on. The exception is Zhirkov. You said he went for peanuts but he actually went for around £13m which was an exceptional fee considering we bought him for £15-18m and he was largely unimpressive. The purchase of Mata (and others of 2011 like Lukaku & Courtois) however signaled a significant shift in our purchasing behaviour up until that point as we had started to buy potential in the age range of 17-22 and not just established players or at youth level like the years before. Mata, Lukaku and Courtois have all flourished since their purchase (discounting this year for Mata) and we would not accept selling Lukaku or Courtois for little or nothing. Mata's first two years here should still stand as a testament of what he is capable of; it would be the main reason clubs want him after all. That, coupled with the example of Robben & Zhirkov - that being, if the right club wants him they will still pay a considerable amount - is why it's not totally unrealistic for people to imagine him going between £30-40m. Again, I emphasise right club because we're not going to transfer list him and expect £30m+, but If a club comes in for him it's the very least we should be looking for. This is all based on a club wanting Mata, not us wanting to get rid of him, which I cannot see. I think we would rather keep him than sell him for a little amount or, at the very least, for him to be used as a significant bargaining chip in an exchange deal.

For those who were talking about Mata's marketability affecting his price-tag: All i'll say is that, in the world of football, having 32 goals and 55 assists in two years is more important than marketability. When PSG have shit like Pastore soaking up resources they would kill to have Mata in their team because he is a proven player at the top-level, not because he has nice hair. For fuck sake.

Shut up, you loved it! I'll save the next one for you so!

A big fuck you to all the naysayers & negative nellys!! I said there's no chance of us getting hammered! José always gets his man! Delighted!

Please stop doing that Luiz.