The only place to be

A 'very good game'? I don't think anyone had a very good game. He did give the ball away in the first-half which led to a chance for Rodwell, which forced a save from Cech. And why is it absurd to point him out for the first goal? I actually praised his shielding in this game, but he messed up there. He wasn't the worst player on the pitch today and he only messed up twice, but to say he was very good is absurd.

Whilst I think we need to make the top four, finishing outside might not be the worst thing in the world. It would give us a chance to restart and build things properly. What we have at the moment is a result of spending money on the wrong players for about three years. It might force us to give the youngsters we have a chance in the first team rather than looking at the likes of Falcao. Financially it would be bad but the Premier League tv revenue is increasing from next year and we'd have a season without the pressure of winning the Champions League. It might also give a manager the chance to build something as well. Long-term I don't know if it wouldn't be exactly what we need.

Josh won't be playing in this, which is a bit of a shame considering his performance the other day. They'll try and play nice football which should play into our hands. Should win by about 3.

No, because that would be an idiotic thing to say. Ramires on the other hand.....

OMFG.....we need to close these threads after players have one bad game etc. Thought Luiz had an okay game today. Didn't think he was any worse than anyone else on the pitch and I still think it's him and one other as the centre-back pairing going forward. I've had reservations about him in the past but he's been a solid performer over the last few months and become someone fairly dependable. Do you often come away from games thinking that? Most times centre-backs go somewhat unnoticed and it's only their fuck-ups that draw attention. I've probably come away thinking that Cech was a 'really good goalkeeper' less than 100 times, but I know that's a problem with my assessment of him and has very little to do with him.

Look, there isn't a player easier to like than Rami and I know that for some the suggestion he should be dropped is like throwing a bag of kittens into a canal, but we can't be the side we want him to be with him in the first eleven. Can he be someone who comes off the bench and runs-around closing the opposition down? Sure. Why not? But we need someone better than him.

No-one is saying he should be Xavi. He should just be better than he is. Admiring a lack of refinement is fine in an artist. I've got a 6 year old cousin who can do these finger paintings. Do I want to put them up in my home because she's had no formal training? No fucking chance. But I agree. I would love to see what he'd be like if he could have a reliable first-touch coached into him but I think our priorities should be different.

Was at fault for Toure's goal and gave away the ball in the first-half which nearly led to a City goal. He shields play well, but he reminds me of Joe Cole in his final season with us in that the ball slows down whenever it gets to him. Teams give him time and space because they know he can't hurt them and his passing completion percentage is so high because he is so ponderous. But there are at least three positions we need to upgrade first in the summer, including the playmaking position beside him. I think we could still contend for trophies next year with Mikel in the side but long-term I think Chalobah could be the answer. But for now, Mikel doesn't make the team worse (most of the time).....he just doesn't make it any better.

Provide cover for Ivanovic, run all day, try and hit Man City on the fast break.

I'm never going to suggest that he doesn't work hard, but I'd rather have someone with better technical skills who can keep the ball moving accurately and efficiently rather than someone who can run around all day. So where do you have him pencilled into the team next year? Because I've got a playmaker like Modric alongside Mikel in the double-pivot, and Moses on the right-wing. So he's good enough because we're shit? Fair enough, at least you're honest. For me, I'd sell him in the summer and get a proper playmaker in to play alongside Mikel and I'd probably put Chalobah in the squad too.

He offers speed and energy when we're chasing the ball. How about, we try and get a midfielder who can control the tempo of games too? Should I start getting medical training so I know how to sow fingers back on, or should I take lessons to improve my sword-juggling skills first?

Why not lock the threads of players you like when they have bad games? What position do you have him pencilled in for next year by the way? Right-wing or midfield? I've said for a long-time that he has an inconsistent first-touch and we can't build a team with him in the midfield, if we plan on controlling games. People like you will always bring up the Barca goal. Fair enough. Torres should be kept around because he scored against them then? Wait, no?? But how can that be? He was piss poor today but not for the first-time. But if you can honestly say he's in your first XI next year, then fair enough.

He's only a luxury player in the sense that he needs the midfield behind him to do their job, which they simply haven't. How many games has he scored key goals in? Was he a luxury against Norwich? What about away to Leeds? He's been our best player this season. We're going to have to agree to disagree because I'm simply not used to having to defend Mata to other Chelsea supporters and I really don't think it's a skill I'm going to need to pick up anytime soon.

He's a good player who was bought for a good price and will be a great 3rd choice centre-back for us.

Azpi, Moses, Lukaku, De Bruyne, Ba, Mata....our board makes plenty of correct decisions. But who exactly on 'the board' would you like to see out? City were beatable today. They've been beatable for a while and were missing Kompany. Anyone who thinks we were beaten by a team who were that much better really needs to have their eyes tested. It might be simplistic but at key points, their midfield stepped up and our's didn't. But we still could've won that game.

I won't dispute his work rate, but sometimes you need someone who can control the tempo of the game rather than someone who can simply outrun it. It pisses me off that people seem happy with us trying to use Ramires to cover up our deficiencies rather than try and eliminate them. If we plan on being a top team, he has no place in the starting line-up. It would be Mikel and a playmaker in the double-pivot (even though I'm not overly enamoured with Mikel) and a proper winger. I have nothing against him personally because he's a lovely chap by all accounts, but I'd rather have someone with skill in that position rather than someone who can run all day. By the way, he was definitely MOTM against Arsenal because he was brilliant ON THE COUNTER-ATTACK AND BREAKING UP PLAY in the second-half, but that was a direct result of him and Lampard being unable to control the game. They were outplayed by Arsenal's midfield and almost cost us the game. But you choose to see his performance one way, I choose to see it another.

Didn't Mata have a pretty good game against United this year? And didn't he score against them last year too? I'm dying to know who this other 'very good team' in the league is that Mata doesn't show up against. It's really exciting isn't it - who could it be???

He's not good enough if we plan on controlling games rather than letting the other team have possession and try and hit them on the counter-attack. He doesn't have the technique you need to control possession, he simply has a great engine. The only good thing he did today was not get sent off because I was convinced he was going to. We need better players than Ramires in the double pivot and we need better players than him on the wing.

If I ever come to that realisation, I'll know that I've probably stuck just enough crayons up my nose.

We performed as well as this forum is going to perform for the first 15 minutes after the match. As I said in the main thread, same shit different day. This City team was eminently beatable until Benitez announced the team. No adventure, no ambition, no bollocks. Ramires isn't good enough. Half his touches are amateurish. Not good enough in the midfield, not good enough on the right....but, but, but Barca....SHUT UP!!! Moses or Oscar would've been better. Mikel. I'm going to guess his passing percentage was above 90% which makes him immune from criticism. Some people say he was away at the ACON. More like ACONvent Garden - best human statue I've ever seen for Toure's goal (shit joke, but I don't care). Mata, Hazard, Ba.....I'm sorry. Doesn't matter how good the chef is if we're going to give them shit to cook with. Cahill - great at the last-ditch tackle but at some point you have to wonder why he seems to make so many last-ditch tackles. I'm great at putting fires out, but maybe I should stop with the fire-eating when I'm so clearly shit at it. Ivanovic - you're not as good a right-back as Azpi has been for the last 5 months. It's not your fault. You shouldn't have been playing. You should've played on Friday so JT could play today. Lamps......had a good game, missed a penalty, tried to shoot from about 35 yards twice. Can't say much more. All in all, nothing surprising. Not being able to go turned out to be a blessing in the end. Going to treat myself to Robben on FUT and pretend it's still 2005.

Are you fucking serious? Here's an experiment you can try. Get all the money you can, sell all your stuff if you have to and buy the best diamond you can. Now go and give it to your significant other BUT before you do, find a steaming cowpat (or horse shit - only use your own shit in extreme situations because you care about them and you can't just surprise them with your own shit. You have to work out safety words and what you're going to eat before you shit). Now put that diamond in the shit. Say 'Tadaaa'. My guess is she's not going to be impressed with your thoughtful gift.

Same shit different day. Ramires isn't good enough. Moses should've started. Why is Ivanovic starting ahead of Azpi? Mikel - great until he fucks up. I feel sorry for the fans who travelled for this game because this City team was very beatable but we didn't have the bollocks to go out and try and win it. I feel sorry for Mata, Hazard and Ba playing ahead of Ramires, Mikel and Lamps because they simply can't control the midfield.

Defends well? Except for the goal right?

That's what 50% of his touches are like though. For every lovely touch in scoring against Barca, there's a misplaced pass. It's fucking pathetic.

Not good enough. Not good enough on the right. Not good enough down the middle.