The only place to be

After what he did to Shawcross, he deserves a medal. But seriously (because I was joking), it was indefensible but it happens every now and again. I remember Spackers twatting Keown once which was completely out of character but players sometimes see the red mist. To be honest it wasn't much more than a love tap.

I'm all for buying great young English talent - I'm just not convinced that Butland comes under that category. At the moment he looks like he could be the next Simonsen/Foster/Carson/Robinson and get a lot of press simply because he's young and English. Courtois actually looks like he could be the real deal, has played at the highest level and we already own him. Personally I'd be more inclined to sell Cech, which I'm sure some will look on like it's heresy but it's got to be an option.

You want him to play left-back? I'd be sad if he doesn't retire here, but he's got to accept a new role and I'm not entirely sure what that is. Personally I don't want to see arguably the greatest player we've had sitting on the bench and getting a few minutes in cup games and at the end of league games. Also we need to look at the youth players that he would be taking minutes from.

The Grant appointment was always baffling because no-one really knew who he was. It was vindication of a lot of rivals who spouted shit about Roman picking the team and he's proved himself to be a pretty average manager. Strangely we still managed to reach a Champions League Final and only lost on penalties. It makes you wonder how good Robbie Di Matteo actually was considering he managed the same feat a few years later. The Rafa appointment isn't baffling or absurd in the slightest. It actually makes a lot of sense from Roman's point of view when you look at his track record, his availability/the lack of other options and his relationship with Torres. Yes the fans hated him but Roman decided that he wouldn't make decisions based on that (which the Robbie hiring was) so he took a bit of short-term 'discomfort' until the guy he really wanted was available. Big Phil was flavour of the month so it wasn't that absurd. In hindsight it was a major mistake though.

Lampard isn't Lampard anymore.

Just to balance out the in the other thread, how about a top 5 best moments as a Chelsea fan? 1. Gav Peacock scoring against United 93/94 at the Bridge. United were awesome then and we beat them. Sure we got lucky (Cantona's long-distance effort bouncing off the pitch onto the crossbar and I think Kharine decided to head an effort off the line instead of catch it because he thought it was a backpass - could be a different game). 2. Munich 3. Mourinho's first title. =4. Barcelona, 3-0 up at half-time in whatever year Tore Andre Flo played (98?). Unbelievable. =4. Barcelona 3-0 in twenty minutes. The best I think we've ever looked. 5. Chelsea-Liverpool, 4-2 FA Cup 97, Hughes, Vialli, Zola....Sparky comes on at 2-0 down and changes it....Hansen, what's the score....that's the game where we won the trophy. special mention to Robbie in the final. So many other things could've gone on that list though. Spencer in Vienna doing a Weah, Chelsea beating Spurs 4-3 in 93/94, Chelsea beating Spurs 6-1, Chelsea beating Spurs 5-1, Chelsea beating Spurs in the Makita Cup because that thing counts right? Paul Furlong scoring with his arse, Gullit's debut at Gillingham, Gronjkaer scoring on the last day.....

I've got to say that reading some of these lists, some people really don't know how lucky they are to support the club at this point in time. I grew up around fans who fought to keep this club alive so losing on a penalty shoot-out in the Champions League really wasn't that bad. But.... 1. FA Cup Final 1994. David Ellery, you massive cunt. 2. Craig Burley's amazing through ball for David Beckham - special mention to the United cunts on the way back from Villa Park. 3. Losing to Millwall in the FA Cup in 1995. 4. Liverpool in the Champions League - both results were kickers. 5. Robbie being sacked/Rafa being hired. But I've got to be honest, since I've been going I've been exceedingly lucky. I've seen some of the greatest players in the world pull on the Chelsea shirt and I've seen some of the greatest teams play against us. Sure there have been some shit moments, but supporting Chelsea is brilliant.

It's banter. Trust me, they've heard worse.

Menacing words? Look, you support the club in your way and I'll support it in mine. I think looking for ways to suggest I'm a better fan is pointless when there's no circumstance in which I wouldn't support Chelsea.

Leeds Scum.

So you'd support another team over Chelsea?? Like I've mentioned in other threads, seeing this forum has exposed me to a type of 'Chelsea fan' I've not really encountered from actually going to the club and supporting them. I suppose it's the downside of being successful.

How about you just support one team? I vote it be your Brazilian team.

It makes me laugh. Corinthians supporters coming onto a Chelsea forum to give some stick. Did anyone go on the Corinthians forum? Do they even have one? I assume there was a fear of kidnapping or being raped if any of us ventured onto it.

This guy could be our keeper for the next 15 years. Maybe it's time to look at cashing in on Cech and building longer-term. We'll have a new manager in the summer and the rest of Mourinho's team will be on their way (Lamps, Drogba, Cole....maybe JT), maybe we should just start with a clean slate.

I don't know what your sources are, but this is complete bollocks. People have clearly defined roles and there is a hierarchical structure in place in terms of the playing, administrative and commercial aspects of the club. You're providing analysis that implies you have a fucking clue about how the club is run - you don't. I actually know people who work at the club and the things you're saying are fucking laughable. As for the manager situation, you're not saying anything that people at the club don't already know. They want to get a guy they can stick with long-term but NONE of the options has panned out. Look at the AVB situation. He was given as much support as anyone could ask for, but HE lost the players. Not just the senior ones like Spurs cunts like to suggest, but literally everyone from the first team to the reserves to the youth team. Even the staff came to despise him because he's just not a good people person. After he went, Roman had eyes for one person only - Guardiola. People think I've got some man crush on him, and as a coach i do like him. But it's what he represents to Roman that I think is most important. He's the only guy he'll give his unconditional support to. He's the only guy who could suffer through some bad results whilst implementing a new style that would get time. It's why he's so important to us. So much rests on his appointment that it is un-fucking-true. People don't seem to realise how important the next few years is to Chelsea Football Club. People who just want to sack Rafa without having a plan C really don't seem to have the best interests for this club at heart. I'm of the belief he can get us a top-four finish and that's all he needs to do. When he was first appointed I said I didn't want his name in our record books more than it needed to and that appears to be what will happen. But we need top four and whilst he's still the guy leading us, he'll get my support. As for 4231, part of it is down to the way Emenalo sees football and it's partly down to it being the formation de jour. It offers defensive solidiity whilst providing more attacking options if done right, whilst placing a premium on possession which minimises fatigue and maximising opposition exertion.

It's not propaganda and I'm not a club insider - you're confusing me with someone who actually goes INSIDE the GROUND which seems to be rather anomalous around these parts. I'll be honest because that's what I've always done. I hate Rafa, but he's the manager and he's here until summer so I want him to do a good job so we can bring in Guardiola in the summer and start rebuilding. I cheer myself up by thinking of a future midfield of McEachran and Chalobah. I go on youtube and look at videos of Islam Feruz and think 'this kid has got something'. We just need the guy who has the job security to take a chance and build something new. In the meantime, I'll be at Elland Road supporting MY team whilst people on here look forward to a chance to bitch and moan about Benitez. If that's what makes them happy then fine, but they can fuck right off calling me some stooge for the board.

I don't care if the board love Chelsea - their job isn't to do that. Their job is to attract income and reduce expenditure whilst trying to provide the tools for the coach to win games. Were you so anti-Gourlay and Buck in Munich in May? I don't remember many people mentioning they should be sacked when Drogba's penalty went in. As for the rest, if you're so pessimistic about the club why are you sticking around? I look at my club and I see a bright future with all of the young talent we have. But we simply haven't replaced Mourinho as the figurehead of the club and that's what Roman sees Guardiola as. Like I said the amount of people throwing this club and some of it's players and achievements under the bus because of a few rough results is astounding.

What the board has done in terms of getting us prepared for FFP is pretty impressive. But it's not just that. I think they've done well in changing us from an 'ageing team' and focussing on acquiring some truly exciting youth products. That to me shows that they've learnt from the mistakes of 7 years ago when we were very focussed on the short-term. Then there's the attempts to find a new stadium which I know some fans don't like, but I honestly think we need to do to kick on. I don't know if they've alienated me. They've been part of some of the greatest moments of my life, but I've had to say goodbye to some people I revered. But I disagree with the notion that Guardiola would be definitely sacked within a year. I think Roman sees him as our next great manager, after Jose. The truth is Jose has never been replaced. The team that won last year was still his team. They're the ones who carried themselves to the trophy through sheer force of will, and they (Cech, Cole, Terry, Lamps, Drogba) almost got there at least three times previously. That's why I call it year 7 of Mourinho's 5 year plan. Now we need an equally forceful personality to build something new and I do believe that is Guardiola. It is not Benitez. I don't want him here beyond June. So whilst I am pissed off at what's happening, it was somewhat inevitable when we peaked last year and then didn't get the right manager in (sorry Robbie). But I console myself with looking at the performances of youngsters like De Bruyne, Chalobah, McEachran etc. because I honestly believe in 12 months time we'll be at the beginning of something even better than what happened in Roman's first decade in charge. I believe it'll be more sustainable, more consistent and take us from Stamford Bridge to somewhere new.

I agree. Anyone can see that this squad has been designed for a certain person in June 2013. The way we loaned players out to get experience, the way we trimmed a lot of fat (some of which we needed) from the wage bill and the players we signed all pointed to this season being nothing but a holding season. Robbie was never the long-term guy, but simply someone to get us through the season and into next season's Champions League. But the board got cold feet and dumped him for Rafa. Now I actually think he can do the job and then fuck off, but I don't for a minute think it will be pretty. Last season was essentially the 7th year of Mourinho's 5 year plan for Chelsea. The team was still his. I honestly think we're going to see almost all of it go next year and I think anyone who thought this process would be painless was kidding themselves.

Are you a plant sent by Eugene and Michael to defend Rafa and the board?

Because I've asked questions like who would do better? Fucking hell. Like I've said in another post, coming on this site has introduced me to a type of supporter I really haven't seen in over 20 years of going to the Bridge. I seriously sit there. I started in the West Stand when it had Wooden seats (with the occassional game in the Shed STANDING), then moved to the East stand, then to the new Family Enclosure in the Shed and now I tend to stick to the MHL. If you think I'm a plant to defend Rafa then you're pretty delusional considering the amount I go on about hiring a certain Catalonian bloke, and probably duty bound to ban me from this site.

Couldn't agree more. I've got to be honest and say that since registering on this site my eyes have been opened to a whole swathe of Chelsea supporters I wasn't particularly aware of. For more than 20 years, the Chelsea fans I've interacted with have been at matches, on the way to matches, in pubs etc. and I've got to say I don't recognise a lot of the people on this site based on those experiences. Throwing shit at players who have worked their bollocks off for the club because they have one poor game (which wasn't strictly their fault) is complete bullshit.

Fine. I'll be brave and offer you a bet. Rafa Benitez will lead us to fourth spot. If he doesn't, I'll leave this forum. If he does, you leave this forum. As for the rest of your ignorant drivel, is it as painful to write as it is to read?

Thank fuck I'll be at the game. Having seen some of the hysterical responses on here from some 'fans' I think I'll take my chances getting a kicking from some Leeds scum.

I agree that Torres is a liability as a player, but in business terms he's an asset. As for Roman, this whole discussion came from the idea that he didn't care about what a person meant to Chelsea Football Club. It's untrue and I pointed it out. My last response came from your absurd statement that he puts money before the club. It's one of the stupidest things I've heard in a while. Actually, having read a fair few things on here today I take that back. Actually Buck and Gourlay's performance has been pretty good in financial terms as well as the Champions League win (remember they sacked AVB and turned around our season - does that not earn them any credit)?