The only place to be

You also failed to mention what happened in the Champions League that season. He's a good manager and City have a good squad (although nowhere near as good as some people think it is) and they'll invest, but I'm happy with this change. If Mourinho comes then we're the favourites for the league in my opinion, and rightly so. We're a good team, with a deep squad if all our loan players come back and we make the right signings. Personally I'm quite happy with the news about Pellegrini and Falcao over the last few days. Dodging bullets all over the shop.

First things first, fair play to the Norwich City supporters who made their way down in such impressive numbers on a Monday night. Also our fans deserve some credit, although it was a bit of a casual affair as these things usually are. Onto the match and it was a disappointing result and also a disappointing performance from the team. At times it was just like watching the first team with good build-up play, plenty of possession but no incisiveness to create that clear chance. When we did have them, hesitancy and lack of quality meant they weren't taken. Whereas the 'double pivot' has been the issue for the first team, in the youth team it was in the three attacking midfielders lack of ability to do something that was really our downfall. Boga took his goal well and looked superb on the ball but Swift was fairly anonymous in a wider role, whilst Kiwomya had no space to take advantage of as he has done previously. The lack of width was criminal at times and that's really something the coaches have to look at. The problem is that Norwich came to defend and try to hit us on the counter, and their gameplan went perfectly. Our's stagnated and there was no attempt to change it, so we ended up looking like Barcelona in their first-leg against Milan - short on a Plan B. If you want bright spots then they were as evident as they've been all season. Loftus-Cheek is a great talent, tremendously strong and very comfortable on the ball. He was actually required to run with the ball more than he would normally have to and he looked at times like a young Yaya Toure doing so. Clearly he needs to work on his goal threat from deep positions though, and he can get a bit casual at times but he's got an exciting future. Baker continued to work his bollocks off for the team. He's also got this ability to take set-pieces with either foot which is pretty unusual, but he's also got some aggression issues he needs to work on. He got sent-off against Fulham recently for losing it a little and putting in a bad tackle and looked a little close to the edge at the end of the game last night. Boga impressed in a more central, free role than he's had in some games and took his goal superbly. It was one of the few moments he had real space in the game and he didn't disappoint, unfortunately those moments became fewer and further between as the match wore on. His ability on the ball is without doubt though and despite being only 16 he might be in the frame for something more next season. Christensen filled Ake's boots well and is a calm, composed presence who (as with most of our players) is eminently comfortable in possession but also reads the game and reacts well without the ball. Davey on the other hand is like John Terry without John Terry's defensive instincts. Hate to be harsh on the kid but whilst he has his moments I don't think you'll ever feel that comfortable with him in the middle. The keeper.....nice distribution. Obviously it was a tough night because we were pushing forward but I have serious doubts about whether this kid could make it as a pro. I'd love to be proven wrong in years to come, but the reflexes aren't there, he's not really a commanding presence for his defenders and he's slow off the line. Aina has a lot of promise. Again great physical tools and good on the ball too, he's the archetypal modern full-back with a big engine who provides width in attack but also gets back and defends too. Nditi was on the other side and was largely poor. Also should have seen red for a stamp on a Norwich player's leg and was getting booed from that moment until he was taken off for Wright. Feruz....last night my thoughts were broadly 'well done, you've got the shirt, you've got the contract and you're getting paid well - you clearly think you've arrived' but I think that's a little unfair but to say he's gone off the boil in the games I've seen him play recently is an understatement. Yes it's tough when teams play deep and limit your ability to get behind them, but he still had two chances that you'd expect him at the very least to get on-target. What I've loved about him is how automatic he seems to be - you feed the ball to him and he hits the corners, either scoring or forcing a save. Maybe it's tiredness at the end of the season but he's really got to get back on track because his development is starting to worry some people. So a disappointing night where we lost the cup....but part of me is left wondering what the fuck Norwich were doing. Youth team football is all about developing youngsters to maximise their potential and ultimately create professional footballers. If you're a coach at this level, trophies are great but your JOB is to take this kids who have talent and get them to a point where they can earn a wage in this profession. Whatever you say about our performance, you can be proud that these kids all look great with the ball at their feet. Last night was another night where they got to improve their skills by PLAYING FOOTBALL. This isn't the final of the Champions League where professional footballers are trying to win the biggest trophy in club football. Backs to the wall, parking the bus tactics at this level are in my opinion pathetic. When we lost to Villa in the NextGen, they played football and you could pick out 2-3 players from their team who could seriously make the step-up as others have done at that club. What we saw from Norwich last night was a team built in their first-team's image, accepting their role as underdog. Where's the ambition? If you're teaching these kids to play like this when they're in the factory of your club, then what the fuck are you expecting from them when you stick them in the first team? More of the same? Treading water? Yes we wanted to win last night, but we wanted to do it the right way. Though I've criticised the tactics, the coaching staff still had in mind that this was a youth game where players' development is integral to everything we do, so players like Musonda and Nditi did get gametime because they need it for their own progression as players. I don't want to sound holier than thou in regards to what Norwich are doing, but they have a pastoral duty to their kids to make sure that last night wasn't the highlight of their careers, but just one more step on the road to being able to provide for themselves and their families for the next twenty years. So back to Chelsea and like I've mentioned a few times, a disappointing and frustrating night but taken as a whole season it's been a very promising one that has suffered a little from players going off on loans and the general malaise that has engulfed the club at times. But two finals and some fantastic wins is a good showing, and the performance of some players means that the academy is doing it's job and making kids ready for first-team football. The most heartening thing to take from last night? Nathan Ake was unavailable for selection because he's needed for Wednesday's Europa League Final. Nat Chalobah was unavailable because he's become one of Watford's most important players.

Can't be bothered to hate United - their fans are pretty pathetic on the whole. Liverpool - rivalry is pretty much over now they're shit, but they could re-emerge especially with cunts like Suarez in their ranks. Their fans are amogst the worst. London teams - Fulham are too nice, QPR are pitiful, Arsenal fans lost the will to hate not long after they lost the will to win. Millwall - everyone hates them but if we played them more regularly it would be a tasty rivalry. Spurs - again, we've battered them over so many years that we've started to look for new and interesting ways to mug them off. Unsettling their best players and keeping them out of the CL in the unlikeliest of circumstances is just taking the piss and they know it. Still a great atmosphere at the matches. Leeds - oh Leeds.....again, probably the biggest and best rivalry we've got in my opinion. It's got history, violence, vitriole and the 5-1 Cup win was a nice reminder that Leeds still exist and their fans are still scum. So Leeds is my own personal choice although inevitable when you grow up watching the 1970 Cup Final and Replay on a battered old VHS. It's a multi-layered, decades old rivalry of flash and panache versus grim, Northern, down t'pit workmanlike performances.

He's going to walk in the door, sit the players down, keep them in suspenceful silence for a few minutes and then it's going to happen..... He's going to slam his Intertoto Cup Winner's medal down on the table for them all to see....a hushed silence will fall over the room.....he's won their respect. A good result for Pellegrini next season is making it out of the Champions League group stages and finishing top three. I reckon that if they give him £200 million to spend then he can do it.

My first thought was that the ball didn't travel far enough to say it was definitely going wide, especially with the way the balls move nowadays. I think it's absolutely the right decision for both Mata and also Jones.

Good times, but what's amazing about that team was how many went on to be either managers or coaches. GK 1 Ed de Goey RWB 2 Dan Petrescu 85' CB 5 Frank Leboeuf CB 6 Steve Clarke CB 12 Michael Duberry LWB 17 Danny Granville CM 11 Dennis Wise (c) 25' CM 16 Roberto Di Matteo AM 8 Gustavo Poyet 81' ST 9 Gianluca Vialli ST 19 Tore André Flo 71' Substitutes: GK 13 Kevin Hitchcock DF 18 Andy Myers DF 26 Laurent Charvet MF 28 Jody Morris MF 24 Eddie Newton 81' FW 10 Mark Hughes FW 25 Gianfranco Zola 71' Player-Manager: Gianluca Vialli By my count there's about 9 managers and 3 coaches from that lot including 2 Chelsea managers and 2 Chelsea coaches. #leaders

No. I actually think No.25 would be more acceptable than him getting....No.8 But this is getting way, way, way ahead of ourselves. The good thing is that I think the market for Rooney might be quite small, especially if he wants to keep his family in this country and he wants to be around players like Cole and Terry. It does seem as though Lewandowski and Rooney are destined for either Bayern or us....although United could scupper either one of those deals. 9 is possible....15 maybe? Drog's old number about to be vacated by Malouda.

Fair enough...you can never have too many Belgians. Ultimately what made Drogba Drogba was his will to win - that's what a lot of people see in Rooney. Big-game players who get goals in CL Finals and the last minute of derbies. If either Lukaku or Benteke has that then they're set (I actually love Lukaku's dedication to being a footballer - Drogbaesque). In a rough season, we've unearthed real gems like Hazard, Azpi (getting a full-back who can stick around for a few years is always a good sign) and even Luiz whilst Mata and Rami have stepped up. Next season is the most open league for years and I wouldn't be surprised if a couple of bookies made us favourites if we get Jose. On another point, I think I've thought of a post that could turn every single member on here against me....it involves which number shirt Rooney would get if we did sign him.

This is another point that I was going to expand upon later, but we got very lucky this season in a game of chicken. We had to give players like Lukaku, De Bruyne and Chalobah experience because we hadn't done a good enough job developing players in the past so we did it all in one go (25 players out on loan this season?). I don't think anyone will ever admit it at the club, but I think this season was a write-off from the start. Call it transition if you want but they stuck with Robbie when they knew they wanted Pep in the summer, and they cut costs EVERYWHERE. Essien's loan, Meireles sale, the lack of investment in January....so long as we got top four then that was enough. Fortunately it paid off but it was a dangerous game to play and now we're in a very strong position going into next season.

I think they're very similar players who can do very similar things in our team. I actually think Lukaku might have a bit more versatility but broadly speaking they're big guys who like to play on the last man but also use their strength to bring other players into the game.

The lack of depth and ability to change games been the most notable thing this season and you're right about Benayoun and Marin....even Moses hasn't really changed the shape of many games, but Benitez wouldn't do that anyway. With Mourinho, he's always happy to shake things up. Say we start with this front four Rooney Hazard Mata Oscar But the opposition does what some teams have managed and crowds us out or simply drops deep so passing through them becomes tough. We could easily change to Lukaku Hazard Rooney Schurrle maybe pushing Schurrle into a front two, and dropping Oscar or Mata into the double pivot so that we can play a more direct game. Talking to United fans, they agree that he looks a little disillusioned and lost. It's hard to criticise Fergie because he's a great manager but I get the sense that Rooney feels a little taken for granted because he's become this guy that will do a job wherever he's put. I think that if Mourinho did get him and said to him 'you're the man, show everyone what a mistake it was to sell you' then he has a monster season. United fans know that. They don't want to sell him to an English club because he might come back and murder them. He plays best when he's motivated, when he's got that fire and something to prove and I think he's the best signing we could make to help with the development of Hazard (look at how he played with Ronaldo) and also Lukaku (who still gets 20-25 starts a season). And just to throw in a minor point....the guy shifts football shirts worldwide. It's not a romantic point to make, but financially it helps.

The versatility is a massive plus in my books. People wanting us to sign Benteke and Lukaku confuse me because they're the same fucking player, whereas Wayne can drop off and create from deep. If the rumours are true then a front three of Schurrle, Lukaku and Rooney just offers so many variations and each one could get plenty of game time. Then there's obviously Mata, Hazard, Oscar, Moses and possibly Piazon filling the gaps in that front four. There's physicality, pace, height and grace in almost equal measure and more importantly, competition.

Hey chum, I understand we've had our little disagreements in the past but there's no reason for you to be like that. Let bygones be bygones and I'll buy you a drink the next time you come to the Bridge....you just tell me where and when, okay.

It's the constant bitching and moaning, and living in the past that I just find perplexing - fitting considering the club he's joined You take the view that we made a mistake selling him yet you keep reliving it. You keep bringing it up and the same people make the same stupid, myopic points about the Torres transfer. We got into a situation that unfortunately meant we probably had to sell Sturridge from an economic point of view. But he's a Liverpool player so Fuck Him He's Dead (FHHD).

To the people suggesting Courtois would need a season in the PL on loan to adapt....um, what experience did Cech have? Maybe we should loan him to Rennes? That seemed to be a good learning ground for Cech.

Sorry...I made a mistake. Those were Drogba's stats in 2005-06. Rooney's were 27 apps, 12 goals and 10 assists playing in a second striker role in more games than as a main striker. Clearly Drogba was in decline.....and there are no pub teams in the Premier League. To suggest there are is at best disrespectful and at worse nonsensical.

100 goals in 4 years getting inconsistent playing time in a forward role isn't quite what I'd call 'here and there', but clearly something just isn't right at United. He's been there for 9 years, relationships develop wrinkles over that time. I think he's lost a bit of enthusiasm there and Van Persie's signing probably didn't help. He's still been effective in a deeper role. He some issues. Using blanker statements like 'he has an attitude problem' is ridiculous. When he was asked to play in wide roles or deep roles he didn't complain. When someone like Jose says he'd like to coach Rooney specifically because of his mentality, I think you're really barking up the wrong tree. Buying any striker is a major risk. The upside is huge, but it's also a gamble. But again I defer to Mourinho's view on him - he's a truly world-class player and if motivated properly, I think he'll lead us to the title next season. He isn't the only striker that can lead us to trophies, but I think he's definitely got to be considered. 12 goals and 11 assists in 29 appearances is good isn't it?

Rooney has won the Champions League and scored in the final. He's also proved himself in the Premier League, again and again. I like Lewandowski and I think he fits our system better than players like Falcao, but Rooney is (on his day) on another level. He's a leader and a fighter and we need that....we need another Drogba. Not really seen that in Lewandowski up to this point.

Wow...that's some commitment. BRB - just checking my ex-girlfriend's facebook page.

And? Where does the argument go from here, or do you just repeat it over and over again? How long for? To what end? Is this going to happen every time he scores? I said it a few weeks back, but it comes down to mentality. Yes, we sold him. Yes, it may have been a mistake. Move on. The club will. The supporters will. Danny will. Lukaku and Sturridge both had strong games a few weeks back. Some fans chose to celebrate Lukaku's performance, other's chose to bemoan the fact that we sold Sturridge.

Whereas if we sign Lewandowski.....what?? He's had two good seasons in a tough league. There are absolutely no guarantees and anyone suggesting otherwise is a fucking moron. That's why I use the word 'if' a lot because that's what surrounds any transfer. There are great discussions to be had around Rooney the player fitting into our squad, but most people want to write him off, that he's in a decline and that he's just not good looking enough. I would like to coach Rooney, as much for his football as for his mentality. That's what Mourinho said about Rooney in 2010. Mourinho understands mentality is more important than almost any other attribute in football and it's something that certain people on here having got the first fucking clue about.

I think we should look at him, mainly because Rooney is a better player (on his day) than Lewandowski. Lewandowski is a great goalscorer, but Rooney has that x-factor that very few players have. Motivated, fit and hungry Rooney every time.

I don't think that's true in the slightest. We don't offer contracts to squad players that go beyond their 30th birthday anymore. He was never going to get a four year contract and players don't accept two year contracts.

I don't. I'd love Frank to stay forever. He's a legend. But I don't know if Frank the player is the best fit for this team. Yes you can point to yesterday, Stoke away, Everton away and maybe Swansea at home as classic Frank performances, but he used to put them in every week. I accept there's a case for that being enough to offer him a new contract. I really don't love stats, but I think they have their place. Does what we gain from having him in the squad make us better as a team, or are there other options out there? Yesterday was the classic example - we struggled in midfield but he scored two goals.