Rekin

So Baka is starting. His first game with the team is away to Spurs, not the easiest debut. Can we all agree to go easy on him if he doesnt perform well? He might have been signed a while ago, but he has yet to play regularly with the others, and he just came back from knee surgery. Let's not panic if he looks rusty.

Out of curiosity, what exactly do we lose with Cahill out of the starting eleven? I think it makes far more sense to play rudiger ahead of him. Fuck, such a stupid tackle, exactly the last thing we needed. New season, captain, doubts over squad size and he does that? It really shows him for the meathead he is.

Well, that was fun while it lasted. I think the team will look very, very different once Hazard and Bakayoko joins, but we have to have a plan B for when there are injuries.

Are you trying to be funny, or are those the players you really think we will get? Seriously, can you stop fucking crying? We have won the league twice in the last three seasons, and we have bought three great players (including a club record). Your complaining don't even make sense. You are complaining about how we have no width, which suggests you were more pleased when we still had players such as Chalobah, RLC and Ivanovic. Those players were average, and at worst the new players we will get are average as well. Status quo doesnt really change, does it? We will have a group of really good players, with some average to good rotation options.

A lot of those players were not even on our bench. Our width right now is below average. Two players would make it acceptable, three good and four great. Considering that the party line has been four new signings the whole time, then we should be ok. The club signed four players in July, no reason why they cant do it in August.

Maybe people should read the rest of the message? It says he is one of several options, options which include The Ox and Barkley. Furthermore, this dude has been fuck all reliable for us this window.

The problems with a thin squad comes from wear and tear along the season, we can easily survive late signings. The single most important thing is that we get the players, them coming early is a bonus. We do have a very capable starting eleven as it is, if the remaining signings are width, then the rush goes away a little bit. I mean, right now the intended season-wide starting eleven is this (I assume): Morata Hazard Pedro Bakayoko Kante Alonso Moses Cahill Luiz Cesar Courtois Bakayoko and Hazard should be fit somewhat soon. If we get say Telles, Ox and Barkley then we can survive the first month or so before we need to throw them in a starting eleven potentially.

The signings we have been linked with as of late: Richarlison - LW Renato Sanches - CM Oxlade - RWB/CM Candreva - RW Alex Sandro - LBW Sergi Roberto - CM/RWB Ross Barkley - AMC/CM Out of these, Sanches and Alex Sandro were recently described as staying. It doesn't mean its true, but I would at least take it as that they are not close right now. There was some link recently, plus Di Marzio before, that described Richarlison as close to Chelsea. I would speculate that either him or Candreva is one of the "close ones". The other close one if I had to guess would be one of Barkley/Roberto or The Ox. It could also be a Rudiger type of situation that is appearing out of nowhere. There are so few reliable outlets right now reporting anything other than the usual "we want to sign four players". Is Matt Law on vacation?

Look, I too want Sandro. I think he would be a huge signing that would accomplish a lot. But if we cant get him, or any other WBL that we know is a clear upgrade on Alonso, then we at the very least need to try and find someone who is at a similar level that he can compete with. If Alonso got injured we would be 100% screwed, we have zero replacement for him right now.

I do agree that we need more quality on LWB, but I think it is just as important to get width there if we fail the primarily objective. Right now we have Alonso and nothing. Baba is not even an alternative considering his injury. If I have to choose between getting no one, and getting someone like Bertrand, Dalbert or Telles, then I will go for the latter without question.

Or you know, getting another LWB.

The Standard is reporting that information from "insiders" suggests that Chelsea not only target 4 players before the window closes, but that "2-3" are close as we speak.

I don't think it means anything. Coaches have said similar things about a lot of players that have left, sometimes just days after. In the end it is the club that makes these decisions, and the quote could just be a ploy to weaken the negotiation position of Chelsea.

While true, a majority of these players had next to no role for the team last season. Still, the situation is a bit strange. Some of the sales brought in next to no money if I remember it right (Ivanovic, Mikel, Chalobah) but the rest should have brought in enough to cover the new purchases by themselves (60+20+10+6,2+5+10+45=£156,2m). I dont know how the fees have been accounted for, as I am sure a lot of it comes in installments, but the same argument can be made for the purchases. Basically we have sold players for more than we have bought. Even if you look at wages then we should be in a huge surplus. Terry, Mikel, Ivanovic, Oscar, Matic and Costa are all senior players that will offer a lot of space. Conte keeps saying that we need more players, media is writing that we expect 3-4 new players. The season starts in 2 weeks, the window closes in 4 weeks. I have been defending the board for a while now, but they are cutting it too close for my taste. It is really important to have players train together for a bit for them to have a good start. I am sure that we can have a great season if we buy all the remaining players on deadline day, but it will impact the first month of games. With this season looking super close, that can really make the difference. If I can make a little prediction then I think that the club will be aware of the backlash from selling Matic to a direct rival, especially one being coached by Mourinho. If they have their PR game on point then they will want to quickly offer a signing to make people a bit more managable. In the end, we are three good signings away from having a great squad. Having four weeks to seal them, we only need to average one signing per week. It is perfectly doable, but it certainly is starting to feel a bit off. There are so few rumours right now which helps in making it feel like nothing is being done (even though I am certain the opposite is true).

A Bola is a terrible source. I hope its true, we certainly seem interested in the player, but I will be a little bit optimistic when someone reliable reports it.

Im fascinated by the situation, selling Costa, Matic and Oscar will have brought in a lot of money to us. Yet we have crazy poor depth right now. Let us look at our squad. GK: Courtois, Caballero & Eduardo Verdict: 5/5 CB: Cahill, Rudiger, Luiz, Christensen, Azpilicueta Verdict: 4/5 Comment: Strong, but Cahill is average, and we have yet to see how well Christensen and Rudiger will perform. LWB: Alonso Verdict: 1/5 Comment: Alonso is not a world beater to begin with, but to have not a single backup for him? Immediate signing here if we want to compete RWB: Moses (Rudiger, Azpilicueta) Verdict: 3/5 Comment: Could be a lot better here. None of these are ideal for the position, but at least we have a couple of players who can do an ok job there. CM: Bakayoko, Kante, Fabregas Verdict: 2/5 Comment: Problem here is not that any of these players are bad, it is that getting a long-term injury on any of Bakayoko or Kante will force Fabregas into a two man midfield, and that would be a disaster. Really need backup here. LW&RW: Hazard, Pedro, Boga, Musonda, Willian Verdict: 4/5 Comment: Hazard and Pedro are great, Willian is OK and the others need to prove themselves. I do not see this as a priority if any of Boga/Musonda step up, but otherwise it is an area for next year. ST: Morata & Bats Verdict: 3/5 Comment: Early to predict how well Morata will do. Poor width. In my opinion, the priority for us is to get a really good LWB, a CM rotation option and a strong RWB. If we get that our team looks much, much better. The board better work hard this month. I know there are a few youngsters, but we have yet to see what the intention for them is.

Matic is far from useless. Selling him will only be the right choice if he doesnt become a key player for United, and if we dont struggle in the middle. We are apparently getting really well paid for him, but it means little if the money isnt invested into another strong CM.

I mean there must be some kind of plan here. We are short on players, and Costa together with Matic are both leaving. There is just no way we are relying on Fabregas, Kante and Baka to carry us through the whole season with all the different games. I am just going to assume that some deals are going on behind the scenes. We know for a fact there is some kind of interest in Sanches and Sandro. Hopefully both will work out.

Moses accomplishes nothing, that is the problem. He is superior to Alonso in terms of athleticism, something which pays off as he is able to participate in the game more than Alonso, but he is really limited once he has the ball. What we saw today is nothing new, he gets the ball and does a half-hearted attempt at dribbling, and then passes it back to the offensive winger next to him. Rince and repeat game after game. How often do you see him dribble his way into a dangeorus area, or provide a dangerous cross? His tenacity is what makes him acceptable for now, but he is quite a bit from being good enough for a team wanting to compete in CL. He does ok in the defence, but a WB is expected to do more than that. Alonso is good on the ball, but his slow acceleration hampers him from participating as much as Moses. He benefits greatly from his height, and from Hazard opening up the other teams defence. When he has someone who clearly isnt good enough of a winger, such as Morata, he disappears from games.

I think Musonda deserves to be given a chance this season. His frame is really weak, but otherwise he looks a gem. Rudiger also looks like someone I already prefer to Cahill. Good passing range.

I wouldnt blame Morata too much. He isnt a winger, and Alonso was woeful (he is supposed to support him). Moses/Willian showed like no penetration, only short passes between each other. Alonso was just not there, I barely saw him all game. Fabregas did nothing that Matic couldnt have done, while Matic could have done a lot that Fabregas cant do. Fabregas, Willian, Cahill, Alonso and Moses are players that rely on performances of those next to them. They are supporting players, not stars. It is extremely visible today, but also during last season. The sooner we move on from them the better.

Fuck sake, I wanted to see Morata as the CF. No Christensen either. This friendly is really killing my mood.

Morata is not a winger, Willian tries the same tricks every time and Moses do not know how to cross. All of these things are big problems.

My god, this team has zero fucking penetration. Alonso and Moses rely so heavily on the people in front of them, they are so average otherwise. Fabregas is useless against pressure in the middle. A lot to work on before the season, and we really need more signings.

I would like this. Some people say that he was trash this season, but I mean come on. He is 19, went to one of the biggest clubs in the world and cost a fortune. It is a lot to put on a teenager. It was only a friendly but he was great against us. If we got him and he turns out to be worth all the hype he got last year, we suddenly have a midfield general for the next 12-13 years.