The only place to be

The problem with Lamps is that he costs a fair whack, he's in a position that we need to strengthen in because he really doesn't fit there and there are young players who deserve chance. So you have to ask is he worth the amount he'd cost coming off the bench when we need a goal? Does he offer enough off the pitch and in terms of leadership on the pitch? Games like QPR and Southampton suggest not as much as some might think. I agree with you about Ramires and Mikel, but there in the same boat as Lamps for me. Good bench options but if we need to strengthen in the areas they currently play in, might we be better off cashing in now?

So you wouldn't want to spend money in the summer replacing him then? I actually think most of our problems come from that midfield two, be it him, Ramires or Mikel. We need someone who can keep possession and allow the likes of Mata and Oscar to create stuff. He's not good enough defensively against the big teams either.

Does Frank Lampard fit into the team well at the moment? Is he a good fit in the double pivot?

Thank god I'm not the only one. I've met him only very briefly and I agree - decent bloke. Surprisingly imposing as well which is a little different from the majority of refs who are kinda weedy with the obvious exception being Phil Dowd. Webb's got a good physical presence but doesn't tend to talk down to the players and tries to let the game flow as much as possible. Could make for a good game.

He's still underrated in my opinion. He's England's greatest left-back, he's probably been the best England player over the last decade and there's a good case for him being our greatest ever player. That might sound strong, but I can't think of any other Chelsea player who has been the best in their position in the world over a number of seasons.

I might get slaughtered for this, or reminded of great injustices but I think Webb is probably the best ref we have. He can let games run and is never in a rush to book a player. He tries to manage games so he doesn't become a factor in them.

Howard Webb appointed ref.

I don't know if many people want him to leave, but I don't know many who would have him in their first XI for next season and think we could win the league. As a player who could come off the bench when we're winning in the 70th minute, a bit like Mikel did on Saturday in the 90th, then sure why not. Maybe he even gets starts against the weaker teams, but beyond that I'm not sure. Honestly, I've already got him pencilled behind Chalobah for a position in the midfield.

I don't think anyone would say he isn't a decent enough player to look competent, good even, against Boro and West Brom (if we ignore how close we came to conceding against a West Brom team who were pretty toothless). Or maybe they just focussed more on the performances of Chalobah and Ake in the last week - I find it has a calming effect if you catch yourself thinking about Mikel, Lamps or Ramires.

And when we've lost a few matches we can sack Moyes and put Hiddink in charge.

See I can see where you're coming from, but sometimes you have to look at a player's ceiling and how good they could be. We spent £20 million on a 21 year old - you're always buying potential at that age so you can't then make decisions based on him only having potential. We're also ignoring the Champions League games where he's scored 5 goals from open play in 6 matches, and gave what I think is the performance of the season against Juventus. Mata at his absolute best is probably close to where he is now. I truly believe Oscar has the potential to be the best player in the world. Yes they could share time but in crunch games I'd definitely be looking to start Oscar in the middle and build the whole team around him. In that scenario we still need Mata and I'd put him on the right-wing but he needs to work on his defending and that's what any new coach should focus on in the summer. If we're not going to use Oscar like that and we're simply going to use him as a winger then we should sell him now. I'm a football fan first and foremost and I really don't want us to ruin or under-utilize what could be a once in a generation talent simply because we're focusing on the short-term once again.

The view that I take, is that Oscar has the potential to be one of the best players in the world. Already he's shown glimpses of just how good he can be especially in the Champions League, but also at international level. Now that's not say say Mata hasn't been great for us because he has but this is about incorporating both players into the same team whilst getting the best from each of them. If we're going to look at Oscar as a player we're going to keep around then I think we have to make a commitment to him and build the team around him. That's a gamble, but one I think has a tremendous upside and also allows Mata to play on the wing still. What Mata needs to do in that instance is work on his workrate and perhaps even his fitness. How many match threads do people make comments about him needing to be rested because he looks a bit tired? I'd say at least 35-40% of them. At some point that stops being a quirk and starts becoming a hinderance - the same hasn't been said anywhere near as much about Oscar. I would say this is another of our first-world problems like the Cech/Courtois debate but this is much more fundamental to the way the team is going to play in the next 5 years. We're talking about the heartbeat of the team here and which player serves us best going forward. We spent £20 million on Oscar's potential - at some point you actually have to try and turn that potential into reality and I think the game against West Brom showed just what he can do. Yes he should've finished those chances but it was encouraging to see him get in those positions, arriving late into the box, splitting defenders and finding space and even creating his own shooting opportunities from the edge of the area. Maybe it's something we leave until the summer, but at some point we are going to have to choose especially if we get a coach like Jose who likes players to do their jobs defensively with the odd exception.

I've said before that the CL win papered over cracks, but I wouldn't take a single thing over that moment in Munich. Seeing people I love experience something they never thought they'd see when they were fearing for the future of this club a few decades ago..... You can blame Lamps all you want but ANYONE who has any experience of a job or a boss knows that there are two people in an employer/employee relationship and AVB handled things wrong. But that's what young, inexperienced people do. What separates the winners from the losers is how they recover from those mistakes in the future. He may well benefit in the long-term from acknowledging his errors. He's working with a different calibre of player in a different environment. But on the field he's abandoned the reckless high line for a more measured version. The thing is that you ask what he's done different - what's the difference between this season and last season under Harry? Isn't it like one point? It isn't as unlikely as Spurs winning them in the slightest. RDM wasn't backed by everyone either - Roman wanted Pep and was almost certainly going to take a run at him this summer. We'll see. That's slanderous bollocks to throw at some of the players who have served this club well. I may have issues about Lamps's suitability for a role at this club next season but what you're saying is going beyond that. Regardless, he is responsible. He'd say the same thing if he was honest because he's the first-team coach. Giving him a free pass on some of the responsibilities that the title 'manager' entails is pointless.

Let's just ignore that whole Munich thing. I'm finding it hard to adequately convey what it's like for a human being to try a new role in a new environment for the first time. When we struggle, we are capable of learning from these experiences and not repeating them down the line (yes, even six months down the line). The expectations at the start of the season were to win the league and defend the CL. To try and say that Spurs's expectations are the same as our's is either disingenuous or naive and you're not the latter. Sure. And at least two of those will be sacked at the end of the season. In fact all three could finish above AVB and still be sacked - he's there next season if he finishes 5th. He had a team capable of winning the Champions League and failed to manage them adequtely. That isn't just the JTs and Franks of the squad, but the Lukakus and McEachrans. Look at how he wasted a whole year of Josh's career because he said he would use him and then let him rot - now look at how he's developing. But I'll give him credit for spotting Lukaku's talent for playing on the right-wing Hiring someone like AVB was the right move. But he wasn't ready and he fucked up - sacking him was the right decision and it led DIRECTLY to the greatest night in this club's history.

He's going in May. He confirmed as much on Wednesday. It was encouraging to see the fans in good voice yesterday and not just on Rafa's back. I, like the media apparently, anticipated that it would be far worse than it was but the fans weren excellent.

I'm not the one who thinks he can read the minds of former Arsenal directors. Maybe it was just a season too soon for him. He made a number of mistakes and it's entirely possible that he learnt from them. It's quite likely that he'd be being touted for our next manager if last year hadn't happened, but that's football sometimes.

How do you know?

But also after sacking one manager and appointing Benitez. Or he was an inexperienced manager who made a number of mistakes which he learnt from - ya know, like a HUMAN BEING does. Do you know what expectations are? If you seriously don't think Spurs have lower expectations than us at the start of each season then you are seriously deluded. He went to a team that finished 4th in the league and had a superstar on the cusp of a breakout year in their midst, and he's 3rd in the league. Because we're in a fucking state at the moment. So are Arsenal. So are City. Every top team besides Man United are seriously underperforming and Spurs are a small team looking good amongst them. Ignoring facts is exactly what you're doing though. Ignoring last year and what AVB is exactly what you're doing. He's proved absolutely FUCK ALL at the moment. 'Arry got that team to fourth in the league last year (they probably should've finished higher) and AVB still has to achieve that. Maybe wait until he surpasses that before you suggest we should hire him back.

Impossible to say, but I don't understand what makes you think that. Their biggest problems have been in the ownership and the manager, not the directorial issues. Do you think he would have sacked Wenger?

They were already in decline when he left. The legacy of a person's actions don't end the moment they leave a position like that. It befuddles my noggin why Peter Kenyon doesn't get more stick on here when the problems we have right now are about a decade in the making.

In case you hadn't noticed, we're 2 positions better off than we were last season. Benitez for Manager of the Year! Isn't it possible that AVB is a better manager than he was last year? He can be a disaster for which he was rightfully sacked and still have learnt from that experience to make himself a better manager can't he? He's also at a club with much lower expectations and less pressure. Despite that he seems to have happened upon one of the best young players in the world all of a sudden who is carrying that team. And then there's the fact that the league is weaker than it has been for many a year. BTW, he didn't just piss off the multimillionaires at our club - he pissed off people who were just starting off their career and people who earn very modest wages. But you carry on with overemphasising our club's internal issues to protect his image.

First time there's a bit of pressure on Mourinho, stories would start up about Hiddink taking over.

I'm with you on that one. I'd much rather look to Ake and Chalobah to play in the double pivot and have Oscar as the No.10 in the future.

I'd much rather get that Gareth Bale guy. But AVB has done well to get a top four team into the top four.

So the state Arsenal are in right now is nothing to do with Dein? As for Gill, it just shows how fans' perceptions of these type of men change so quickly. A couple of years go he was the guy who sold Ronaldo to Real Madrid and welcomed the Glazers with open arms. Now he's a 'top class CEO'. But you're right that Gourlay and Buck do have to be somewhat subservient to Roman - so we should definitely fire them and replace them. Who will replace them by the way? Oh right....