The only place to be

For the first 20 and the final 20. In between they had as much of the game as Madrid and should've had two goals at least. They did what they needed to and defended well. Modric was absolutely phenomenal tonight though. Drove that team on when players like Ozil and Higuain failed to turn up.

Not to tempt the mockers gods, but I haven't thought this United team was that good all season. In fact their midfield has been an area that needs improving since 2010/2011. In the CL Final, Barca showed that they have a weakness in between their defensive and midfield lines that teams can exploit. Spurs did it at Old Trafford, Everton did it at Goodison and we did it. If you match up with them in a 442-type formation then they're comfortable but as soon as you play midfielders deep and have playmakers stepping off the centrebacks then they are vulnerable. And you're right that Hazard changed the match too. He gave us that drive and made them a little nervous, which of course makes them drop even deeper.

Luiz has shown himself to be a leader and to be fair, he has won the Champions League. In fact he was apparently crocked in that match but played anyway and did us all proud. If he isn't captain material then who is in the current squad? Cech - I'm not a massive fan of keepers being captain, but he's a good shout. Mata - leads by example but not the most vocal player on the pitch. And that's it.

Luiz is a defender. That's what he's going to be for us and that's where he's been best this season. Converting him to a midfielder full-time isn't realistic and this is similar to last season when we had Bertrand on the left-wing to do a job that we didn't have the personnel to do. Two things about Mikel - the idea that he needs to be pushed is embarrassing, disgraceful and probably true. I've alluded to his attitude before but that's one of the reasons Luiz gets the nod ahead of him at the moment. Not to turn this thread into a Mikel-bashing thread but he's not the type of person/human/man I want representing this club. I also think you've got it back-to-front with Mikel in terms of teams who press him. Southampton did it and we lost. Steaua did it and he looked unsteady. The great myth about the Man United cup game is that he came on and changed the game, but the truth (or the way I saw it anyway) is that United stopped pushing from midfield. They sat back and we managed to get on top of them. If teams give Mikel time then we'll win but if they put pressure on him then we're in trouble. Luiz is by no means the perfect midfielder, but he's never a passenger. He will actually drive the team forward at times - just look at those straight, powerfully-hit passes he'll knock forward to Ba or a winger cutting in that slice through a teams first bank of defenders. When teams set up with two banks (as Swansea did for the first 30 minutes on Sunday) those passes forced them to re-align and it creates a sense of urgency in both teams. He also gets stuck in on the defensive side of the ball, but he can be too ambitious and get caught out sometimes. Hopefully we either bring someone in next season or Romeu picks up where he left off and becomes that guy who invigorates the team going forward but is also a strong defensive presence.

Pretty much spot on. It's a similar situation to how Everton use Fellaini - he's better in a deeper midfield role but they need what he brings to the team in an attacking role. Luiz has been our best defender this year and that's where his future lies but at the moment we can get by with Terry, Ivanovic and Cahill covering the 2 CB roles and pushing Luiz forward. The reason we need him there is simple - Lamps, Rami and Mikel have been inconsistent at best in that role in the team. What Luiz brings is energy to the role (like Rami) with a bit better technique (like Lamps) and an ability to defend (like Mikel can allegedly do). He might not be better than each of these players at these particular aspects of the game, but he's probably offering the best combination of them at this point in time. Plus he's emerged as a leader. He gives a shit, gets stuck in and steps up when we need him to. Is he perfect? Fuck no. But one of our midfielders managed to misplace a pass against Swansea that should've resulted in a goal for them and it wasn't the guy who has played about a dozen games in midfield who made it. It was the guy with about 900 appearances as a midfielder. So basically, some people need to back off. He's not perfect but he's doing the job we need him to right now as well as being a leader in this team. There are other midfielders far more worthy of criticism.

If we actually go for Pellegrini when Mourinho is available, things could get a little ugly.

Can't blame Davey for the penalty. He slipped and still tried to make the tackle with his head. Thought we had the better of the game but were simply too wasteful in front of goal, and like everyone else I'm a little concerned about Feruz. He hasn't looked nearly as clinical as he has done previously but he still works his bollocks off up front alone. Got to give Norwich some credit for sitting back and hitting us on the counter for much of the game but we dominated that match for at least two-thirds of it and once again showed that we're turning out quality players who are comfortable on the ball and physically strong without it. Yes the silverware is nice, but at this level it's all about creating players who can make it at this club, or at least have good careers elsewhere and I think we're doing that. Thought the celebration was a bit much considering there's a second leg to come but it just shows what beating our academy means to clubs nowadays.

Strong team. The only surprise is perhaps Colkett instead of Swift considering we're away from home but good to see Musonda there.

Spot on. Azpi gets love because of what he represents - a young, unproven, cheap buy who becomes a first-teamer. A unheralded guy with a great attitude that we help make a star. Not player of the year but an important example of what this club should be trying to do in future.

So I'll be the Rupert..... Rafa did well today. Swansea are clearly on their vacation but they were still pretty good in defence up until the goal. Losing Rami could've been a massive blow but Rafa made the right choice by bringing on Lamps and not Mikel. He provided that go-forward we needed and changed the game for us. Oscar took his goal beautifully and went well from then on but he was absolute garbage for most of the first-half. Just like the Fulham game, it was an old-fashioned Chelsea win in the end and it's starting to become a bit of a habit. A great 4 days for this club though. 1. A great win in Basel 2. Chalobah scores a screamer and grows his reputation 3. Lukaku gets 1 goal and sets up 2 4. Spurs drop 2 points 5. Chelsea get a nice win 6. Lamps gets his goal whilst looking like Frank Lampard 7. Bobby Tambling gets a great reception after his recent troubles 8. Arsenal drop 2 points 9. United can't get our record 10. QPR get relegated In a shitty season, a few decent days.

Did I say he would?

Tough to measure his success. Ideally we'd want to sell more than a million Chelsea shirts worldwide and gain greater following in the emerging South American markets. To help that we should print up lots of plastic flags with his face on....I really think the more plastic flags the better, maybe even sell someone like Chalobah who is completely unproven at the top level and use that to print more plastic flags. Also we need to include a clause in his contract about kissing the badge when he scores.

Nice litmus test today. Two players scored. One was someone we let go and represents our past. The other is a guy on loan from us who represents our future (hopefully). Some fans bitch and moan about us letting one go. Others celebrate the great job the other is doing and look to his return. :tophat:

The comparisons between Coutinho and Oscar are a little unfair. Coutinho is playing in a shit team, but in his correct position without anyone else taking up the space he occupies. Oscar is being played out of a position a lot of the time and in the same team as Mata who does a lot of the playmaking Oscar would do at any other club. He's also lacking consistent playing time in the centre when he gets the chance and he's new to the European game.

Where's 'there'? We have a pop at the board for not giving youth a chance, but I'm starting to wonder if the fans haven't got some part to play in it. He's scored 14 goals in his first season, created goals for his teammates and loves this club.....but when it comes down to it how many t-shirts will he sell? Now Falcao, there's a guy who can shift t-shirts. I bet fans will be queueing up to get his name printed on the back of their shirts. Shame we can't sign Shevchenko again because not only did he shift shirts, but he had that long name too which is where you really make money. That's why Ba won't last here. Nice player, works hard, scores goals but really how much money can you make off 2 letters? Thank god. There's no handshakes to talk about and that Lampard/ChelseaTV blunder really didn't have legs. Personally I couldn't give a shit. He's been given a chance by West Brom and then fans there are decent people who have showered him with love and affection. We're still not sure if we want him back next season because he's 'not ready'.

I thought we were sending all our young players to Swansea. We could send him to Watford. It's the easy choice and it saves us having to have some balls and give some young players a chance for once, and what could be better for a young player than a relegation fight to get him ready for the rigours of a title push and Champions League football? Personally I think the best place for him would be Man United. They develop youngsters well, they need a midfielder like him, they've got a good manager in place and he'll get European experience. Plus he'd have some company alongside Zaha in making the step-up from Championship to Premier League level.

Playing up top alone now that West Brom are down to 10 and doing a good job. Chased down a long ball from the keeper, muscled the defender out of the way, turned him on the byline and set-up a support runner for a shot which was defended well by Southampton. Bit of a beast. And just set up Long for the third goal - 1 goal, 2 assists. Can't wait for him to be ready.

14th goal of the season. :blue scalf:

Scousers looking on with envy.

This would probably be the first scoop Chelsea TV has ever had. But in all likelihood it's just a mistake in the graphics department.

I actually agree that he's done well, but we do have good players in Terry, Cahill and Ivanovic as well. The question is whether he offers more in midfield than we lose using another combination of defenders. It's a testament to how much he's grown as a player this year. If Mata hadn't been so important for us, Luiz would probably be my player of the season.

It's a discussion that has been going on for years in football circles. Saying he's 'miles ahead' is ridiculous. They have different roles in the team and I think you're completely underestimating how good Chalobah is. This isn't something new either - he's looked exceptional for years and even United fans who watched their youth games realised that. The better comparison isn't Wilshere - it's Pogba. If you want to discuss McEachran then put something in his thread rather than making half-arsed assertions in this one. McEachran has a completely different set of issues and I've explained my view on them before. Using that as an argument against Chalobah is absolutely ridiculous to anyone who has watched their development. Also there is a 20 year old in the Championship who is exceptionally talented and has been bought by Man United for about £15 million - I wonder if their fans are discussing whether to loan him to Swansea or Watford next season. Fortunately I have confidence in this guy. He's overachieved at every level he's played at and shows a level of maturity, composure and heart that we desperately need in our midfield.

Actually Bale has played on the left-wing, the right-wing (when Lennon was absent against City) and in the central free-role. As for the yardstick, I think it's right to compare Luiz to our current midfield because if they were doing a good job week-in and week-out (Ramires, Lampard and Mikel) then this wouldn't even be an issue. If Romeu hadn't been injured, this probably wouldn't be an issue. But it is an issue so let's not obfuscate the issue for the sake of it.

You realise we haven't sold De Bruyne don't you?

It's not unrealistic, it's just a long shot. Forgetting all your bs about me not helping him (he's been mentioned as a future England captain by people who know football for a while now), this kid is something special and is something that both England and Chelsea are missing at the moment. A good season next year will certainly see him being mentioned as a possible option for the World Cup squad just like Wilshere was in 2010 (and Wilshere was younger as well). Like I said it depends where he ends up next season, but there's absolutely no reason to think he won't be in the discussion. Who is his competition? Barry? Cleverley? Rodwell?? There's not really a single nailed-on starter for the World Cup except Wilshere and he's starting to get a reputation as being somewhat injury-prone. Who else is there? Gerrard and Milner? It's a possibility, but this kid is something special indeed. As for Jack Cork, if Leon Osman and Jordan Henderson can get England cap then anything is possible.