Wxgba

I'm expecting another gritty performance from us. If we're to beat Fulham, it won't be emphatically - far from it. Fortunately, Fulham will be suffering from fatigue, too. This is a very tough, intense period of the season and it's another must-win game. I'm hoping for a better performance than against Wigan, but a similar result will leave me happy. I'd like to see Bertrand retain his place at left-back after his performance against Wigan. He doesn't see too much playing time so should be fighting fit. Drogba ought to be rested with the big game against Barca coming up, replacing him with Torres up-front. Other than that, I'm not too fussed on the line-up, so long as we come out of the game with three points and no injuries.

I just want to reiterate what LDN Blue replied in this thread almost a month ago. Daniel Sturridge is one heck of a talent, and heading for goal for him is hereditary. If Sturridge's "selfishness" is seen as a problem that needs to be addressed instantly then we, as Chelsea fans, have no hope of witnessing exciting football at the Bridge. Yes, he often keeps hold of the ball too long. Yes, he often makes the wrong pass. Okay, he doesn't track back as much as is expected from a winger... You want to know why? Because he's not a winger. He's a striker going through a learning curve. Not everything can revolve around him, and he can't always be the focal point of every attack - he's learning this, slowly but surely. He's one of the finest, young, British talents plying his trade in the Premier League right now. We have him at our club. We ought to be proud, rather than jumping on the "Sturridge is too greedy" bandwagon. Not many players possess the threat he does with the ball at his feet, and it's always nice to have a player in the team that's willing to run directly at opposing defenders. It causes problems, and without Sturridge doing that, who else will threaten people by dribbling with the ball? No-one. Sturridge is an asset to the club, and I'm fully behind him, seemingly against the majority. Give him time to improve and develop as a support striker/winger/whatever his actual role is, and he'll come good. Very good. And we'll all be laughing!* *Whilst reading the above post, please listen to Take That - Patience, thanks.

I agree with Malouda and Essien, yes, but Drogba? Give me a break. He's a defender's worst nightmare. His physical presence alone is enough to warrant a place in the starting eleven. "Other than coming somewhat close to scoring 3-4 times what else does he do?": 1. Isn't a striker's job to create chances on goal? 2. Do you even watch the matches? Drogba's great at holding the ball up and is often an efficient outlet when we're in trouble at the back. A big hoof up the pitch is wasteful in most circumstances, but when Drogba's up there he's a presence that will more often than not retain possession and start one of our attacks. A great team player that definitely deserves his time on the pitch, whether that be alongside Torres or centrally on his own. The fans were definitely booing him, but I think that it's totally unjust that they did so. Okay, his decision-making is one of his weaknesses, which I'm sure himself and the coaching staff are fully aware of and are working on improving. The fans ought to understand that he's still raw and needs a lot of development to fulfil his potential. At the minute, he's still a hot prospect learning through experience - people need to understand this and cut him some slack. It's not our job, as fans, to boo any member of our team, regardless of their actions on the pitch. He's a Chelsea player, get behind the lad. All booing will succeed in doing is hinder his confidence, and a player such as Sturridge strives on confidence. Booing him won't make his decision-making better; it's more likely to affect it negatively with him giving his all to try and win the crowd over. A player should never have to do that to his own fans. The kid's a breath of fresh air. He's positive and always looking to run at players. Yes, he might be a little selfish, but as I've said, I'm sure the background staff are aware of this and are helping him to improve on a weekly basis. Cut him some slack, will you?

I keep coming back with varying identities, so I feel a name change quite fitting. In all seriousness, I don't stick around for long enough periods to warrant frequent name changes. 'Bruyne' it is, then! P.S. I'm back.

Can I change my name to 'Bruyne', please?

What's the chances of our "strongest team" struggling to overcome Pompey then? You've simply got to play the youngsters in this... surely.

We did pay £50m for Torres though, which wasn't exactly deemed a gamble, so surely it's worth taking the risk? Personally I think Hulk would set the Premier League alight given the opportunity. Unfortunately, I can't see us signing anyone other than Cahill in this transfer window.

He's decent, yes. But he has set high standards that I doubt he'd be able to replicate if he was to make a "big move" elsewhere in the forthcoming transfer windows.

I'm happy with that, though I don't think he'll get two. I do, however, feel confident enough in us to think we'll beat them by a couple of goals. Drogba out isn't too much of a problem (as has been mentioned), as it makes Villas-Boas' team selection that little bit easier. Ashley Cole's absence, on the other hand, does worry me slightly.

After some careful consideration, I've come to the conclusion that, although I was raging at the time, Bosingwa's red is justifiable. Foy may have been lacking some common sense sending him off, but he was refereeing to the rulebook all day long. Well, at least when it concerned us he did. Wright-Phillips was through on goal, and would have been able to produce a shot on goal had Bos not hauled him down, therefore denying him a goalscoring opportunity. Seeing Cech's positioning, it would have been difficult for SWP to score, but the decisions aren't made on the likelihood of scoring per se. When down to ten men, and even nine, we were still, by far, the better side. We were unlucky to come away from the game with nothing. On another day, we'd have hit about five or six against them, because they were woeful at best. Although they entered the top-half after the game on Sunday, there's no way they'll be there come the end of the season. They'll be in, or around, the relegation zone. A poor side, with a bunch of overpaid, erratic and controversial players. That only leads to one thing... disaster. Enough of QPR anyway, that's done with now. Bring on Arsenal.

I don't think we should get too carried away, thus far. Some good, sharp and incisive passing has created us many chance, yes, but don't forget the quality - or lack of - opponent we find ourselves against. Two goals, even if he doesn't manage to go on to gain his hat-trick, will do Torres the world of good. He needs this. Here's hoping the second half brings us more goals and excitement (and a clean sheet)!

We, as Chelsea fans, need to stop being so ignorant and look at the bigger picture. Long-term success supersedes short-term fame and gain, and I hope AVB sticks to the philosophy that he's seemingly begun with; attempting to unearth and nurture young prospects who will be the future of Chelsea Football Club. We need to stop being so greedy and realise the facts - mainly that big-money, big-name signings aren't exactly our forte.

He's flown out with the squad, yes, but he's still recovering from injury.

Personally, I'm a big fan of Johnson, and I like the fact that he's more than capable of playing on both wings. However, as he's young, English, versatile, and at the country's richest club, there's no way we'll be able to acquire him for a reasonable fee - it'll be massively inflated and I don't think he's worth more than £10-£15m. City being City will want more than that so I'm hoping we turn our attention to a cheaper, more reasonable outlet.

Thanks, mate. I made a reappearance the other day and liked the look and feel surrounding the place so thought I might start frequenting more often again.

Can mine be changed to gdostephens, please?

Credit where it's due - it's a good topic that will spark a lot of interest and discussion. However, I do believe your article - assuming this is yours - is rather unbiased for a forum. Personally, I'd prefer to read more about what you think and what you'd "say", as opposed to the hypothetical "Many people may say..." that you continually refer to. Don't worry, I'm not slating your work, I'm merely criticising constructively to give you some feedback. I agree, particularly on the unlucky part to your argument. Torres was unlucky, without a question about it. His first goal for us may have been a touch lucky in the way that it fell for him. It's clichéd, I know, but I am a firm believer that one makes their own luck and he fully deserved that goal. You're perfectly right in everything you've said, mate, so you've not to worry. One thing I do believe many people are bypassing is the fact that Torres does possess much more than a goalscoring threat. Although he hasn't been prolific (as of yet...), he's still been threatening. His movement's been good whilst the service, simultaneously, has been poor. With better service he would have opened up his tally for the club much sooner. He also works ever so hard off the ball, which people seem to forget/ignore. After he's had time to rest and recuperate - which he's now had - and a full pre-season to fully get himself settled within the club, he'll soon be back to his best. Mark my words.

Fernando Torres's Chelsea debut brings back memories of Chris Sutton Richard Williams is a little premature in this inkling, I feel. How can you possibly compare Torres to Sutton? 11 years difference between the two transfers, alongside the fact that both players aren't comparable in any sense to anyone with half a brain. The calibre of Torres significantly outweighs that of Sutton - the only real comparison you're able to make is in relation to the inflated fee paid for both. The amount of media-hype around Torres can't be helping him. Everyone other than us Chelsea fans want to see him fail, including the media. Take the Guardian's most viewed articles currently - all of the top five portray Chelsea, particularly Torres, in a bad light. All a bit presumptuous to me. Torres needs to break the ice as soon as he can to stop them espousing such drivel, and I'm confident he will if he's provided with the chances.

I'd like to see a 4-4-2 formation implemented for this game, with a front pairing of Anelka and Torres, leaving Drogba on the bench. He needs to buck up his ideas and I believe the only way to do such a thing is to let him know that he's not untouchable and in turn, demoted to the bench for the game against Fulham. Either that, or play a front three consisting of Anelka, Torres and Malouda. The formation deployed vs. Liverpool didn't seem to suit Torres, and with his £50m price-tag, he needs to be the focal point of our attack that we ought to build around. Change the formation, please, Carlo.

Let's face it - we were poor. Below par in every respect; performance, determination and will to win. Torres' inclusion from the start was a pivotal fault in Ancelotti's tactics, I feel, though don't get me wrong - I'm, by no means, blaming Carlo for today's loss. It's solely the players' fault. Many of them look disinterested, particularly to say that this was probably one of the biggest games of the season so far considering the circumstances. I don't think the front three of Drogba, Anelka and our new acquisition, Torres, clicked as well as imagined, although there were a few instances where they showed promise. Anelka today was one of our better players, playing just behind Drogba and Torres. I do think this three could work, but it'll have to be given some time to gel and develop. Torres didn't really put on the show I'm sure I and many other Chelsea fans were expecting this afternoon. He worked but was constantly fizzled out by the Liverpool back-line, who were quite impressive today. Although Liverpool did play well, I feel it's our performance that was disappointing. No real, clean-cut chances were created and our dominance in possession was not taken advantage of - something you can't afford to do, particularly against opposition such as the rejuvenated Liverpool of late. Not many players can come out of today's game with their held up high, with a few exceptions: Cole and Anelka were two of the better players, for me. Today was a real chance to take advantage of Man United and Arsenal's improbable results yesterday. It's not very often we'll be presented with opportunities such as this. Then again, I still have faith that we have the quality available to turn it around and push for the title in the remaining months. I still don't feel we've hit a 'purple patch' which most of our rivals have done at some point, and I think ours is long overdue. Onwards and upwards. That just about sums it up. JoulJoul, do you watch the games? Anelka was probably our best and most influential in our previous game against Sunderland, and was one of the few players who showed up against Liverpool this afternoon. It also sounds as though your daughter should sign up here.

I agree. With the current predicament we find ourselves in, kissing the badge is just a false allusion to the fans that a player is committed to the club. You frequently see it, but it'd be intriguing to see some figures on how many people kiss the badge and then remain at that club for the rest of their career or, alternatively, don't go on to kiss any other badges for other teams they play for.

His goal today did require a lot of skill, though there was an element of fortune with the flick over the defender's leg which left him with the chance to shoot. Very acute finish, nevertheless. Looks like a good prospect but I think a move to use would still be a bit premature in his development as a footballer.

Or quite possibly one of our summer signings?

I agree in all respects. Currently, I don't feel Bosingwa and Zhirkov are integral and indispensable members of the team, more so adequate squad players that could be replaced. However, unless suitable replacements are lined up, I see no need to sell them on just yet. Drogba, I too believe, will fail to replicate the form produced last season but will still be an important influence on the team for a season or two yet, even if that is playing second fiddle to Torres - whether or not Drogba will like that is another story, however. I think we all can dismiss the rumours of Mikel and Malouda's departure as bullshit, because they are very much the heart and back-bone of the current squad. I'm glad to see the source is The Sun. A more reliable source and I may remain worried. Just now though, I'm dismissing it as journalistic drivel.