TomCFC

Nice cross Ramires.

Remember when we put seven past them? Those were the days...

AVB suited and booted! Not an easy start.

The youngest ever Premier League manager - good luck mate!

Kalou on the Bench >>>> Kalou the Sub >>>> Kalou the Starter

Sorry to be annoying, but can anyone post a stream please? Cheers. EDIT: Just seen above. Thanks!

AVB on Torres selection (via BBC website): "We know that we are defenders of our 4-3-3 system, in that system we have one main striker position so we have to choose. We made the decision that we were most comfortable with and that is the most important thing."

Afternoon everyone! Just got back from lunch and hope we smash Stoke! Not sure why Drogba's on the bench - hopefully this isn't Old Trafford Part 2 - but it'll be interesting to see how El Nino performs. :blue scalf: COME ON YOU BLUES!

Not to jinx it or anything, but we've never lost to Stoke in the Premier League...

Co-signed.

I'm so happy we've signed him, but where does Lukaku fit into the team? Even if we sell Kalou and Anelka (PLEASE ROMAN! ), I can't see him being much more than a bench warmer this season, unfortunately. Torres, Drogba, Malouda, Sturridge and so on aren't easy to win a place over, especially for an 18-year-old.

Not too confident about this as an opening match, but we need to get off to a winning start. Regardless of how tough Stoke are, the press will be against AvB from day one.

Because stability is important. It took Ferguson three years to win a trophy (and that was "just" the FA Cup), but they kept him and were soon repayed with countless domestic and European pieces of silverware. If Roman was in that position as United chairman there and then, Ferguson would have gone - fact (well, not quite a fact, but you know). I'd much rather win the league and/or CL every season, as United tend to, than keep hiring and firing managers for short term success. Roman has to keep the faith in AVB - look at his age, experience and price tag (not that he particularly cares about losing money/pay offs). Even if he takes his time and only wins, say the Carling or FA Cup, he shouldn't be sacked. He had instant success at Porto, but the Premier League is a different kettle of fish. Roman shouldn't expect us to win the Champions League straight away this year - IMO, that would have only been a possibility under the long-term management of proven people like Carlo, Guus and Jose. I'm not having a dig at Andre, but rather saying we - including Roman - need to stand by him for long, stable success.

I second this. It's pretty frustrating having to flick through all those pages.

Hopefully his memory loss will wipe out that drought and he'll start his Chelsea career on Sunday.

I suppose it's better than getting a Zhirkov 18 shirt!

Unlucky if anyone's got a Josh 46 shirt!

AVB - http://www.chelseafc.com/page/LatestNews/0,,10268~2418310,00.html

Imagine if he pulled a Robinho and went off to City...

When we've got Drogba, I wouldn't select Torres against a physical side like Stoke - regardless of fitness or form.

He's fine and training.

Torres and Lukaku training:

You can watch AVB's press conference at 12:45 here - http://www.chelseafc.com/page/LatestNews/0,,10268~2417947,00.html

Has it been confirmed yet?

Yes, far too many. Scolari just had to go, but Mourinho and Ancelotti certainly didn't. I don't think it's fair to include a temporary manager like Hiddink in that list. Grant may have relegated two clubs in as many years, but he took over at a difficult time and did a lot for us in less a season - he took the title race to the last day of the season, we lost the Carling Cup final in extra time and the Champions League final on penalties. Had the Moscow goals been one inch wider, he would have gone down in history.