The only place to be

Oh well. Liked the idea of him coming here but staying in Germany on higher wages seems like a no-brainer.

I don't know. Since reading this assessment linking Mourinho's psychological state to his fashion I've worn nothing but suits. Made washing myself a bit of a struggle in the shower but I'm thinking my bank manager will be impressed with my commitment to maintaining a professional air at all times. So do shorts and a t-shirt. Honestly I might boycott all games until every player takes the field in a three piece morning suit. God forbid if a player continues to play after their top hat comes off....sartorial elegance must be placed above form and function at all times. Sure the players might slip in their wingtips but that's the price that must be paid for us presenting a better image to the masses watching around the world.

And how does that fit with our sponsors Hackett? Isn't his image linked to our sponsors, the primary one being Adidas. Again there are a lot of marketing factors at play that have nothing to do with this pseudo-psychological assessment. You might want him in Armani, but he's obliged to wear Hackett and Adidas gear a certain number of times per season in each competition. Was Steve Jobs sponsored by Fruit of the Loom?

Because that's what he felt comfortable in, and he was pretty mental. If you want money from someone in Silicon Valley, 9 times out of 10 they'll wear a suit. At a certain point though people just wear what they want and what they're comfortable in. For some that will be a suit, for others it might be something different. Sometimes people might want to wear a suit one day and a tracksuit another. They might just feel a bit bloated one day and not fancy wearing a suit....I think you're just placing far too much stock in cod psychology.

Nope. He deserves the credit that most supporters gave him...he was widely viewed as one of our best players last year and in my opinion he actually picked up a lot of the slack that JT leaves nowadays because of his advancing years. Those two together complimented each other perfectly. Your comment about replicating performances in a shittier team could apply to Lamps, JT, Cole, Cech etc. In fact JT is a great example of a player who simply didn't replicate his club form at international level. Do you want to criticise him? Of course not. For some reason Cahill is an easy target. Great point. Cahill isn't world class, but very, very few players are. Defenders are going for £50 million who aren't world class, such is the dearth of decent options nowadays.

And some people place far too much stock in image. At some point you grow up and learn to be comfortable in what enables you to do your job best. Sometimes you might want to wear a suit, sometimes you might be more comfortable in a tracksuit and your mind might be on the task at hand. That type of comfort with the way you dress and not being beholden to a few people on the internet is generally a sign of maturity and confidence.

Here's a little trick I've developed. If you look about 4 feet to the right (or left depending on where you're sitting) of the dugout at around 3pm on a Saturday (time may vary), there's occasionally a football match going on. That should take your mind off the pointless sartorial criticism. To be honest I think you spend way too long worrying about what we wear. Football isn't a fashion contest.

He isn't world class, but he doesn't get the credit he deserves and people bang on far too much about the system we employed to diminish the performances he put in. I'm not sure why that is....actually I've got quite a good idea why that is and so does any member of this forum with half a brain. Indulging the witless cunt(s) who have an agenda and look to serve it at every occasion must offer up some pleasures, although what they are is beyond me. Chelsea have a system that requires every player to do their job and Cahill has never let us down. He wears that shirt with pride and puts 100% effort in EVERY time he wears it, unlike some other players. That might not make him coveted by some of the bigger clubs but to Jose and to the supporters in the ground, it's invaluable. For England he gets very little protection in front of him and very little from the full-backs (who in turn get very little from the wide midfielders). That isn't because it's an attacking formation, it's because it's a formation under the guidance of a very average, tactically naive manager. He's a great bloke and a fantastic defender. Not everyone has to be world class to earn the respect of the supporters.

Backtracking.

Honestly, I don't know. Maybe suck it up, spend £600 million knocking the stadium down hoping the council help us acquire the extra land we would need and spend three years playing somewhere like Twickers. Battersea was probably the ideal place with Earls Court a close second. Whatever happens the club needs to be open and honest with the CPO.

It's amazing that Henrique got so much mileage out of calling Mourinho classless. Once again he enters a thread with the sole purpose of antagonising members. Why people rise to the bait I don't know.

I'm not sure he does self-awareness.

You should watch the game and then see it's not just an excuse. The amount of runs he made and Iniesta or Pedro just held on to the ball was getting a bit silly in the first-half. 'Supporters' sticking the boot in early I see. How about you wait until he's in a Chelsea shirt before you start giving him shit. Or are we now at the point where we're not even going to support our players before ripping them to shit.

The bar is set lower for Costa because he isn't the self-proclaimed 'complete striker' who is too good to be on our bench. As it is Costa is actually getting criticised in his thread. Truth is both players are being let down a bit by those around them, although Costa is getting in good positions and just laid it on a plate for Busquets.

A new record for people slating a signing....before he's even signed.

Buying a player for £12 million who is now worth about double that. Sack them! Sack them all!

I think the point about fitness is a massive oversimplification and doesn't take into account the individual player's own fitness. The fact is his contract will be four years at most meaning we're talking about a guy who will be 33 by the time he finishes here. That's no different from Ashley Cole or Patrice Evra are now. In fact Luis is younger than Ivanovic and Baines just to put him into context. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a young player who is available at a value price at the moment whilst we have to bear in mind that we do have younger options coming through the academy. What we are getting is one of the top left-backs in Europe for a couple of seasons minimum. That's not to be sneezed at.

Really? How so? No it's not. And Luke Shaw is that English core? He's the only English player we could possibly sign/produce in the next 5 years? We can't promote young lads? He's unproven, he's overpriced and he's not as good currently as Luis. Maybe five years down the line we can sign him like we did Ashley but this club is about winning the league next season.

Gotta be a favourite for first manager sacked.

That wasn't too different from what we play against a lot of the time though and I thought he was pretty poor. His movement was terrible and he'd sometimes come quite deep to pick up the ball, but just be two yards away from the guy in possession. The when he'd drop off to receive the ball his first touch would let him down. Let's not forget he was injured very recently and it did show. He didn't look to be moving too freely which is why I think he was replaced.

A two-year loan similar to what Courtois had might be his best option if he wants to play here long-term because he doesn't seem happy with anything other than a starting role....and there's question marks over whether he's good enough. Costa is a great player with space to run into, like Lukaku but better. Against packed defences with his back to goal, Lukaku is at best unproven although on the evidence of yesterday he doesn't seem capable of providing what we need as an option B. It's why I'd be happy if we did get someone like Mandzukic in because he has that good control in tight situations. At the moment I'm not sure how Lukaku is most valuable to us.

Here's the thing - as a professional footballer he's light years ahead of where Drogba was as the same age. But Drogba came to us as a 26 year old with good technique and presence. As players arriving at this club, they're quite far apart in those terms. That comparison is probably weighing on people's perceptions of him, and maybe even his own opinion of his talents. Is it inconceivable that he might not be ready to lead the line for this club until the next World Cup? Might he need that amount of time to mature?

Should be but newly promoted sides on opening days are usually hyped up beyond belief. Wigan in 2005 was an easy one on paper but we were lucky to get three points that day. Cardiff at home to City last season is another one. I don't like newly-promoted sides on opening days. Yup. It's a tough run in sandwiched between Champions League games but if we can get through that period and be amongst the top three (hopefully higher but keeping expectations low) then that four month period after is where we can pick up some serious points. Fergie used to say that if United were 5 points off the top at Christmas then they could definitely win the league with their experience. I think the same applies. It's unkind scheduling but if we can use the squad effectively for the midweek CL games then we've got enough to win these games. Of course if we win all these games.....

If we can get to the 22nd of November and be near the top then we've got a run through to the 11th of April where the toughest game is Man City (31/1). That's TWENTY ONE matches where we should only face one top four team. The title can be won there. That's 63 points up for grabs. Whilst our last 6 matches are toughies, 4 of them are at home.

Opening day away to Burnley. Shit. Tough game, almost certainly going to be moved to Sunday or Monday. City at home September 20th. Man United at home, Arsenal away and Liverpool at home in our final SIX games. From 30th of August to 8th of November, we'll play Everton away, Man City away, Arsenal at home, Man United away and Liverpool away on alternating matchdays.....Fuck. That first three months is as tough a fixture schedule as I can remember, plus there will be Champions League matches. If we can get through that then the Christmas period is kind (Stoke, West Ham, Southampton and Spurs) but then the run in is tough with three teams looking at either the title or top four (Man United, Arsenal and Liverpool) and three teams who could be fighting relegation (Palace, West Brom and Sunderland). Not kind scheduling.