The Big Drog

Personally I prefer Terry/Luiz. I think Luiz is an outstanding player, an absolute joy to watch and it's not every centre back that you can say that about.

Vital part of the team in the double winning campaign but really I always thought we could do better than Malouda. Last couple of seasons have been very poor, he adds little to nothing to the side, technically he is good but but there are better technical players around who are younger and offer more.

Does anybody have the squad that is available for this match?

Thanks lads for the stream suggestions.

If there is already a thread for this or there is a more appropriate section to place this thread in then apologies. I really want to see our pre season but I dont have Chelsea TV. I could try streaming but that isn't hugely reliable and I have my doubts about how many streams there will actually be of our pre season games. So I am wondering if it is possible to order Chelsea TV for the duration of our pre season and cancel it when it is over, and does anybody know how much Chelsea TV costs per month?

Absolutely delighted for Terry, a figure of hatred in the media and the mass public but we never wavered in our support of him. I would have paid good money to see Rio Ferdinand's reaction as the verdict was being read out.

I dont think I've ever looked forward to a season as much as this one. Despite Drogba leaving, Hazard, Marin, Oscar (hopefully) and De Bruyne are such exciting technical players to add to Mata and Torres, we should definitely produce some the best football the club has seen since Abramovich arrived.

Does anybody know what channels this will be on that are available in the UK and Ireland?

That was different, Lampard was simply struggling with a different football philosophy and a coach who didn't believe him to be part of his long term plan. Essien's problems are physical, he speed is gone, his power is gone, his bravery is gone. He was never technically outstanding, he was always a physical midfielder but that physicality has been taken from him by injury.

No, just someone who can clearly see that Essien's knees are knackered, making him a shadow of the player that he was.

I think it's an opinion shared by anyone with functioning eyes that has seen Essien play in his prime and Essien now.

That's just bitter. The only reasons he is likened to Mourinho is because he worked for Mourinho and is Portugese. In reality his football philosophy is completely different to that of Mourinho's. I suppose they do look alike. I dont think he is naive at all, for reasons I pointed out in my earlier post on this thread. Yes. I dont see why a manager cant be animated on the touchline, look at Guardiola on the touchline. One of the main reasons things went so badly at Chelsea, he didn't get all pally with the English media, as they expect you to, and so he was cast as a villain. DVD's are an important part of modern football, Pep Guardiola made great use of DVD's to scout the opposition and also inspirational DVD's to show his players before games. I dont think he was necessarily stubborn, he was brought in on the back of a world record fee to implement a certain kind of football, that was his job. I dont think he is overly arrogant either, confident yes. What manager doesn't have the occasional moan?

Mate it's over, Essien is finished.

Ye but I doubt the club would squander a talent of the stature of Courtois. Realistically Stoch, Sinclair and Matic weren't good enough to crack the starting 11 at the club, Courtois is.

Yes but Courtois is on a completely different level to any of those.

Yes at times the tactics did appear strange but you have to put it into context. Roman Abramovich paid a world record fee to bring him to Chelsea to play a certain style of football, that's a fact. AVB will have been fully aware of Roman's ambition for beautiful football at Chelsea from their meetings, Roman will have given AVB his vision for the club and AVB was given the job of implementing that vision. This is what led to games like the 5-3 loss to Arsenal, AVB felt the need to play an open, attractive style of football because that is what he was brought to the club to do and because that is his football philosophy, unfortunately we didn't have the players to play that way. I also believe AVB would have been disappointed with his squad when the transfer window shut. He got Mata and Romeu, two players who suited his type of football, but they were never going to be enough to instigate a full overhaul of the playing style. It was an odd match from the start, a manager with an open, attractive philosophy brought to the club by an owner wanting him to implement that but with a squad of players who were just incapable of playing such a way. It was a battle of two entirely different philosophies and it had disastrous consequences on the pitch. Did Villas Boas make mistakes along the way? Sure, his man management certainly could have been better but I also dont think he approved of the player power at Chelsea and wasn't entirely sold on Lampard as a long term feature in his plans. Had Villas Boas had a squad without Drogba, Bosingwa, Kalou and had a squad with Hazard, Marin and Oscar (hopefully) then his chances of succeeding at Chelsea would have increased hugely. I believe he is a quality manager, tactically terrific and plays the game the right way but at Chelsea he was entrenched in a catch 22, he wanted and was told to play beautiful football but the players were unable to do that, while the squad were far more comfortable reverting back to their physical style but neither the coach nor the owner wanted that.

Undoubtedly Mikel has improved aspects of his game, his decision making his improved, his positioning in defensive positions has improved, his anticipation of where the greatest dangers will come from have improved, his decision making has improved and he is far less rash with his challenges than he was. Is he now a genuinely top class shielding midfielder? I have my doubts. In possession he remains rather plodding, not really a problem give that our general build up play tends to be measured but with players like Hazard, Marin, Mata, Oscar (hopefully) and Torres, quick distribution to those players to enable them to exploit space will be so important and Im not sure if Mikel is the right man for the job. Mobility will always be an issue with Mikel too, he struggles to cover ground fast. No doubt he is a calming influence, he is a physical presence in the middle of the pitch, would I have him over Busquets, Alonso or even Romeu? No.

Yes but you also have to see it from his point of view. He is in the team, playing well then a new manager comes along and he is nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he wants assurances about his role next season, I think he should be a regular starter but if that's not how the club sees it then Romeu will likely move on. If Barcelona but him back then they will obviously have a role and plan for him in the squad next season.

I think that is debatable and depends on what reports you read. Yes we did show faith in him and it paid off, he was terrific. Then Di Matteo came in and he disappeared, no wonder his performances dropped off, if a new manager doesn't play you after you did so well under the previous manager it is bound to knock your confidence, he is only 20 after all. Like Fabregas, he left to get regular first team football. It doesn't mean he doesn't love Barcelona, he simply felt he had a better chance of advancing his career elsewhere.

Why? He barely got a kick under Di Matteo? Why shouldn't he consider going back to the club he supports and that schooled him, when that club also happens to be the greatest team in the world playing a style of football that must be a joy to be part of then you can hardly begrudge him leaving.

It would be a shame if he left but entirely understandable, he is a hugely talented player that we completely neglected during the latter part of the season. Considering we are trying to adopt a more fluid, short passing approach this lad would have been perfect for a role in the double pivot. Defensively he is very aware, he is mobile and he is hugely impressive on the ball having been schooled at La Masia. If he is to leave then he will be at home at Barcelona and it will leave us with a sense of disappointment that we have ultimately failed to utilise his talents while he had been at this club.

Who? Barcelona aside, what other team has a world class forward line for considerably less money?

"They cant do it on a wet Tuesday night at Stoke."

Why?

Honestly I think if we signed Messi and Iniesta, some people would still find reason to complain. We seem to be on the verge of signing a genuinely top prospect, an incredible talent who is only 20 years old. Most people would be absolutely over the moon with this and the prospect of a Torres Mata, Oscar, Hazard forward line next season, instead we get random complaints and sniping, you just cant please some people.