Barbara

Both Sky Sports and Telegraph chose him as MOTM...

yeah, his hat-trick was in September and he was very important in the draw against City... but I feel they'll find someone else to give it...

exactly! Watching MOTD they highlighted Villa players when we were attacking, they had 8 and sometimes 9 players behind the ball. There were Villa players everywhere and we still handled it very well. Let's not forget those guys conceded 3 goals to Arsenal because of a 4-minute blackout and were back in their flawless marking for the rest of the game (which is why I disagree with some early assessments in the pre-match thread of people saying they couldn't defend). They defend quite well and we dealt with it brilliantly. We created, we involved them with our passing (698 passes is something to make Pep jealous of), we were effective and we had a few more clear chances created (I count both Costa headers - as he wasn't properly marked in any, as well as Oscar's weak shot - and I guess there was also a Willian shot that Guzan saved - not the first goal - , but I'm not so sure). That's a good response against a team that can properly park the bus and show quality doing that. I have no complaints.

I'm watching the MOTD link and I've noticed that the two headers that were comfortably saved by Guzan were when Diego was still and then just jumped to head the ball (the first one - in the first half, he was moving, then stopped, then jumped). In the third goal he jumps while still moving (doesn't stop like the first attempt) - that movement made all difference in terms of power. I think he could improve the positioning of his header shots and the power. Good headers are good exactly because of that, the technique to hit the ball where it'll be trickier and with enough power to prevent the goalkeeper of reacting quickly enough. Even then positioning is more important. Goals such as van Persie's first in the world cup and Etoo's against us at Goodison Park are all about there they're hitting the shot. Diego is better to head if he's in motion, if he's still when the cross comes and just jumps, he doesn't have the technique to spot it well and add enough power. I think both things are quite possible to learn. He looks like he's 40, but he's only 25. He has plenty of time to learn new tricks.

Guys, when does MOTD and the Sky Sports show to cover today's match start? UK time Thanks!

that's the Oscar we all want to see. He has those things in his bag. We don't see those moments of brilliance very often YET, but I hope we do them happening more closely now. He seems to have had another good match today (only caught the second half). He's a smart kid, with a great amount of talent, but he isn't a flashy player. He just needs to be more consistent and perform well from December on. Hope he can do both starting this season.

I wonder if he'll improve his aerial threat. He had three headers today and the third one was the charm. It's no secret it's the area he is less impressive, but still, IIRC it's the second header he's scored for us... Do you guys think he'll improve it? We have some aerial monsters in the team on Terry, Iva and of course, Didier. Maybe they can give him some tips and we could make a work with him on that. Can you imagine if he becomes a threat there too? Even if he doesn't though, he's amazing, much more than I've expected and seriously, it feels so good to have a proper striker. This man is perfect and he has an amazing personality. Funny, light hearted and I haven't seen any hint of he hot headed guy from Atlético yet. Most of his yellows, if not all of them, he didn't even deserve them. Hope he keeps it up and when the unavoidable suspension comes we can make it happen in one of the cups.

x I LOVE DIEGO COSTA

Oscar... haven't you have a breakfast today??????

I meant Villa getting in dangerous spots, but Costa already solved it. I didn't mean us, but Villa growing in the match.

COSTA!!!!!

I don't like what I see so far... edit: Ivanovic has been a monster in the attack. Amazing cross.

horrible angle... I feel like I haven't seen the goal...

just arrived home before the second started... how was the first?

I mean to figure out the reason why. Maybe it is because he can't cope, maybe it's because he's been burned, or last season especially was thinking about something else. Some players just don't develop as well under some circumstances compared to others. I think we could observe and come to conclusions, after all, he's been here for three seasons now. It has nothing to do with how good he is, but how much he fits. José touched this subject about him last season... he talked about his struggles. Maybe it's only a question of getting used to it, like Ramires, who also took two seasons to completely adapt, or maybe it's a question of him not performing under such circumstances. It happens sometimes.

I've been watching it for more than 20 years now... I don't think it is.

I take this being a break or make year for him in terms of his endurance in the winter. He's 23, there's no break or make at this age if people are reasonable which doesn't mean after 3 seasons here that fans, the board or himself can't conclude he can't cope with the winter days or the league's demands physically after a few months. Maybe he runs out of gas too soon. His technical struggles are understandable, and also frustrating, but they aren't what's going to make him break or make it here. At the same time one could expect him to be further in his development curve, he struggled to keep up with the league from winter on. Maybe he won't ever flourish here as he could for example in Spain or France. It affected his development and could jeopardize his career here, but then it's about the league, not his quality. It's similar to what I think about Mara although they struggle with different things in England.

Honestly? Defensive wise is like comparing apples and oranges. La Liga is such a light league, with huge pitches and teams more likely to play a style closer to Barcelona tiki taka rather than Madrid counter. That's why atlético was successful there last year with such a physical style, no teams practice it there.Mourinho only worried about Barça defensively. Against them it was more defensive and he was cautious playing Valencia that was the third force for most time he's spent there. What forces him to play more defensive here is better opposition, faster and more physical teams and it being a more competitive league. Now regarding the attack, I do believe he wants to emulate what he had there, but defensively the leagues are two worlds apart.

José was clearly in a bad mood, wasn't he? It seemed like the last thing he wanted was to be in that press room. lol And it seems he thinks our squad is small... didn't he say for a while until a couple of weeks ago that we had a fantastic squad? That we were set? Now we're small? If we are small, it's his fault and the board (not saying I agree we have a small squad). If he thought we were small shouldn't he have been worried about bringing more players? Tbh I didn't get this interview... he seemed in a bad mood, didn't engage in conversation and said things such as this one that don't make much sense to me based on his speech the last two months... weird to say the least. Should we expect tracking suits tomorrow? lol

the big question is how much happier they will be if we start getting the same kind of results they do...

but Oscar finishes it with a wink to Schurrle, which was cute They were probably discussing how to do it rather than who would do it. some of his actions were on tumblr x

Hazard just got a new number, I thought he'd continue to be the one to sell the most. I'm buying a Cesc #3 kit though... I really don't like our kits this season, last season I bought all three (Hazard first, Schurrle away and Oscar third), but I can barely stand the third one. I like collars or v-necks, so the first kit for me is a big disappointment and boring as heck.

His laughter is priceless, LOL Thanks a lot for the vid also it looks like from the rest of the vid that he was aiming to hit Oscar and Willian or scare them. He's indeed a light hearted guy off the pitch

Should he be happy for conceding in such a close match? Regardless of who scored, he was involved, his team lost the advantage, of course he's going to look like that...