The only place to be

Absolutely agree with this. Ramires always seems to play best when we're under pressure, yet you could make a case that it was the midfield's fault we were under so much pressure yesterday. There was a lack of composure in the double pivot, a lack of leadership which is why I almost didn't vote for him, but he worked very hard. My problem is what we do with him going forward. Unless we plan to put ourselves under almost contant pressure in games then I think we have to look at other options. It may sound harsh, but if he's the best player in the team then there's something wrong.

When he's the best player on the team, something's wrong. I love the guy, but he's at his best when the pressure is on and your back is against the wall, but we shouldn't be in that position. We should be dominating teams and with him and Lamps in midfield, we simply don't. I hate to criticise the guy because he always puts in a shift, but he simply doesn't fit into the team we want to be going forward.

Exactly.

I disagree. He's perfectly spherical.

Sacked, let go, made redundant, a parting of the ways, an amicable divorce.....whatever you want to call it, the fat cunt will be gone. The evil spirit will be exorcised, the tumour will have been removed and nearby restaurants will likely go into recession.

It's amazing that you claim to be a Chelsea supporter but don't seem to like anything about the club, including their supporters. When Rafa gets sacked in the summer (a happy day that will be), maybe you're be more comfortable following him. We'll try and get by without the pair of you - in fact as a parting gift, why not take our most expensive player ever. You know, because we love you both.

Missed him today. Could have done with his presence in midfield, especially in the second-half. It's amazing how well regarded he is as a midfielder by the supporters after less than 10 games there. Hopefully he isn't out for long.

Am I right in thinking that you're not a Chelsea fan, but a Rafa fan?

Can't wait until we sack Rafa too. If he's playing a weaker team in the league so he can have a better shot at winning some tin pot cup, he's a bigger cunt than we thought.

Big result for us today #greatresult #greatfans #greatclub #cfc✌✌✌ Legend.

Great penalty, decent in the first-half but simply wasn't the player we needed in the second-half.

I respect him because he's a good player. In fact I also think Luiz is playing much better this season but he needs to earn our trust that he won't make another brain fart. I think you're being overly critical of Ivanovic though.

10 MAN CHELSEA SOMEHOW BEAT SHIT ARSENAL TEAM. Well that should be the headline. Amazing in the first-half, but felt for sure this was another Southampton. Didn't want to be there when I saw Torres was in the starting line-up, but his presence wasn't a distraction when we were in control. When we were under pressure though, he was completely useless most of the time. A couple of nice runs and skinning Vermaelen mean his fans finally have something to beat off to that wasn't pre-Obama but leaving Ba on the bench almost cost us 3 points. Hard for me to vote for anyone in that midfield as MOTM because again, that's where we very nearly lost the game but Ramires didn't stop running all day. Lots of unfocussed energy but he gets it for working hard.

The difference between Cole and Lampard is that Cole is still the best in the world in his position. Hate to be the cunt in the room, but it's true in my opinion.

I don't trust The Sun but I hope this is true. Get him extended and then hopefully pick up Luke Shaw to learn from him. Now I hope he just sorts his barnet out.

Mikel has played about 300 games in his career. Now lets say he's played 45 minutes in each game. That's 13,500 minutes of game time. But this video that is less than 3 minutes long is going to convince me that he's a far better player than I've seen in his 6 years at the club? :lol2: Next you'll be telling me what percentage of his balls travel forwards. An absolutely fair assessment in my opinion.

Nationality has got fuck all to do with it.

That guy's been on the wind-up since he joined. If you can read his posts and think he's being sincere, then I'll apologise.

Really? We're talking about people who are apparently Chelsea fans who were criticising Makelele. I didn't see any in his time at the club. I'm sure there might have been some guy in a Chelsea shirt sitting in a pub in Russia or the Congo shouting the odds at him, but I don't care about that guy's opinion.

I could respond with 'Mikel sucks', but that wouldn't be true. He's a decent squad player.

Let's not start this shit again.

Well they weren't at any of the games I went to, any of the trains I travelled on or any of the pubs I watched games in so I really don't value their opinion that highly. Maybe we've just forgotten how good DMs can be? And yes, JT is better than Nesta in my opinion. He reads the game better than almost any defender I can remember in the last decade which he had to do because (like Tony Adams and Bobby Moore) he didn't have much pace to rely on. Nesta is better physically and a truly tremendous defender, but JT's intangibles make him the better player in my opinion. I'm not defensive or insecure and i made it clear that the over-reliance on statistics (when it suits people it should be noted) is not something unique to you, or even something you do. I was referring to the wider debate on Mikel which tends to include pass completion and how many passes went forward (which is a stupid debate to have). I am very predictable, but my final point will go back to my first point (circular arguments indeed). I've never known a player to inspire such division amongst fans. I don't hate him like I might hate Torres, I just wish he was better. I wish he was younger so I could make excuses about him being inexperienced, or I wish he'd just take a game by the shirt rather than being a passenger too dependent on what those around him were doing. I wish he'd just look like he was giving a shit once in a while. I wish he'd show some balls and assert himself, because he has the size and skill to do so. I wish he was a man, a leader. I wish he'd puff that chest out and put the team on his back. But I just don't think that's who he is as a person.

Then why are Man United struggling to replace Van Der Sar? Why did they struggle after Schmeichel? I think you're completely understating the job of finding a top-class keeper, which is why we did so well not just to get Courtois but also secure a great loan for him. Neuer cost €22 million because he only had one year left on his contract from what I recall. I hate the idea of changing keepers between games. It messes with the rhythm and it's unfair to drop someone after a good game. I think the idea of benching either one, or ever paying both of them is the wrong route to take.

Then we have a tough decision to make that is nowhere as simple as you've suggested. Either way, we're going to be better off be it financially or by having a young player who could serve this club for some time. It's why your constant jibes about the decision to buy him are ridiculous.

Bull, and indeed shit. I never heard a single worg against him. Everyone I knew said he was underrated, when I think looking back that shows how valued he was. Just look at the Charlton game in 2005, where everyone loved the fact that he scored. We wanted him to score because we thought he deserved his name in lights for the season he had. If Mikel doesn't score again I don't think many people would care. So because there's a death of quality DMs, we should lower our standards? Plus JT stacks up very well against players like Bobby Moore in my opinion. He's not really the same type of player as Beckenbauer and he's better than Nesta in my opinion. I don't hate him. I just wish he was better. And how do you know I don't know him personally? How do you know I don't know people who know him? How do you know I don't know people who have coached him since the time he arrived in this country? Nothing wrong with statistics backing up an opinion, but it's when there's nothing but statistics without proper interpretation that it becomes meaningless. There are certain posters who seem to watch games entirely through the prism of stats and 'whoscored.com' rather than watching the matches themselves. Like I said, I've never known of a player who so divides intelligent, thoughtful football fans like Mikel. I don't hate him and I don't think he's a rubbish player. I just don't think he's that great. There's nothing wrong with being an above-average player, but I don't think he's good enough to be a key player on this team. In fact I don't know if any other top club would conceivably bid for him. I've never heard of any other club being interested in him in fact.