Barbara

this post deserves to be in this page too

1) When are we going to meet to watch a Chelsea match? 2) I guess you're a Palmeiras fan, if so, tell us about how you became one and how attached you are to the team. 3) When are we going to play tennis together? 4) Players you want us to sign for next season and players you want to go? 5) When are you going to teach me how to drink? 6) Childhood dream not fulfilled yet? 7) Living room or bedroom?

So cute!!!! Congrats, mate! May he grow up healthy, strong, beautiful and a true Blue

Shouldn't have the new hot seat thread be opened today?

Azpilicueta still has a lot of trouble attacking. I'm not saying Patrick doesn't have a spot here, I'm saying it's unlikely, he's Bertrand 2.0 imo and until he proves me otherwise, that's what I'll always think of him. It took us long enough to get rid of Bertrand and I hope we get rid of him completely. It seems like not even the Mourinho effect helped him because Mourinho can develop, not create things - and even then he's not able to develop all players under him. So yeah, not holding my breath at all about Patrick

Cech is so much class! Now here to remember some of this legend moments with us

van Aanholt has spent so much time everywhere and he still hasn't learned how to defend. A guy like him has absolutely no chance in a Mourinho system unless Mou is able to do to him what he did to Marcelo. The thing is Marcelo was already much a better player at the time than Aanholt is now (although I don't know their ages, but Marcelo was hardly much older - if at all - than van Aanholt. I'm not giving up on hope yet on Shaw, although I do agree, it's a risk. How many English players we've seen looking promising and then just fade away? We've had our share of those, and tbh it's not even about English players, it could be about anywhere. In Brazil we see those guys fading away playing here or in Europe, every year. It's always a risk with youngsters, but let's hope we end up signing the good ones.

Don't want Fabregas anywhere near this club. For real. Few things would make me more upset than that. Also I don't think he's as great as some of you think. Get the cash, swap moves are rare anyway, the club is unlikely to make one.

I said a few days ago I didn't see him staying, and tbh, he shouldn't. Mourinho didn't give him some bad treatment as some here implied. Azpili played better than him at the end of the day and that's what got him in the team. That doesn't take anything away from what Ash is to his club, what he's done and what he means to us. I think he was struggling a lot with the defending when the matches piled up. At the end of the season he was able to play well because he was well rested, but the age seems to have caught up with him. He seemed out of breath quite enough times before Azpili displaced him. I'm sad he's leaving, but at the same time I think there was no point of keeping him if he could still do something somewhere else (in Mourinho's system he wouldn't have much of a chance). I also don't get the Lampard comparisons. Lamps had a better season than Ash did. I'm not saying we should give Lamps a new contract, but he wasn't as out of form as Ash was at some points and then there were the injuries too. I wouldn't be surprised if Lamps leaves or if he stays, but it was sort of obvious Ash was leaving. We may replace the player, but replacing the man will be difficult. I wish him the best and I'm very thankful for everything he did for us in those 8 years. Proper legend, he's left as one of us.

easily predictable we wouldn't give him a new contract, but such nice words from Ash.

Gambling is not my thing. I'd rather a more active thread and some banter.Steve give a good title for my bragging

Winning reps is boring, although a nice prize, but people can't see it To be honest even I wouldn't know if you added them or not (have no idea if as I write this post you already did), and I want to brag, hahahahahahahahahahaha. I enjoy your other idea much better - although as far as I understand you're thinking about doing both, right?

and that means Mandzukic shoudn't come any closer to the Bridge, especially if Costa is already coming. How many un-technical strikers are we willing to sign? It's good to have ONE poacher in your squad, but only have them? Guys that score because they're strong and annoying? Sorry, they may score goals, but they're very limited technically and who knows if they'll adapt to English Football? They won't have good technique to bail them out of the jail then. I think we're begging to make the same mistake all over again. I don't want him here, especially if the other striker is Costa.

are you kidding me? So many in this cunt list of yours aren't cunt... and cunt and having an ego aren't synonyms, I don't what your point could be

3rd place in my debut playing this kind of stuff. I'm tapping my own back now I remember I didn't even know the rules when I signed in and I filled @Ankit inbox with many questions about it. Well, it's been fun playing with you boys, but there should be more banter between us. Come on, we should come here and be more 'competitive' and provoke our rivals and stuff like that, ofc all in a very playful way. What were the prizes again @Steve? I don't remember, but I guess my 3rd place will give me something

Are you really sure *I* am the one that remind you of them? Because based in your answer, I may have doubts. Fact is City stadium often have many empty seats... it was only a joke that you seem to be particularly offended by it... @Jype, that intellectual thing was one of the most ridiculous things I've ever seen, especially given the amount it was paid for it. How much did City spend in the last window, do you know? And thanks for breaking down their losses for me. As for the broadcast rights, I posted how much every team made this season in the English Football Thread, but I have no idea how much they used to do. Was the difference that significant?

I think it's a great thing what UEFA did. It's not only about the sanctions (fine, limited squad, frozen wages), but about following up to. Basically the club has to stay within a loss margin that decreases every season, so not only City and PSG have to fulfill all the sanctions they got, but they also have to reduce even more their losses. I don't remember City's loss - I do remember it was astonishing - and it wasn't caused only because of insane high and many new signings. The Empthad is always that... empty. They aren't that much marketable as other clubs, so they don't have much revenue coming from their fans. If UEFA continue to investigate how the sheiks inject money through those ridiculous sponsorship endorsements (it's one thing to directly inject money and it's another completely different to make it look like a sponsor did), they can make those losses look even bigger. I don't know how those investors launder their money (because it's clear the only reason why they would accept having loss after loss some of which astronomical numbers has to be money laundering) and I'm sure they don't enjoy losing huge amounts of money every year, but this makes things harder for them. So the thing about all of those clubs being punished now (not only City and PSG) is that they have to fulfill with those sanctions AND with the reduced loss accepted for this season and the following. City can also risk face a three strike punishment down the line (don't know about PSG). But then again I wonder if they'll mind that much really. They're Champions League biggest clowns with their shameful campaigns every year. Also for those defending that any of this clubs could sue UEFA, please, don't be naive. The moment one of those clubs interject to a regular tribunal they're getting their ban earlier and longer. UEFA is a private organization that can have whoever they want in their tournaments and they can create whatever rules they want. The moment a club goes to regular justice system they're out of the equation and UEFA can definitely work around anything a regular tribunal decides. Nobody will ever resort to that because they know is suicide. UEFA doesn't oblige clubs to play their competitions. They are free to disagree with the rules and jump off the moment they want, so a legal mitigation will not going to happen at all because this isn't about a citizen universal right. This is business.

C'mon. This season was a joke if you really evaluate how all teams choked at the end and how a feeble attack as ours fought til the end. City won when others were weakened or transitioning (and when United went on a brainfart streak). We dethroned a great Arsenal team and gave United a real run for their money. We need to put things into perspective. Look at their ridiculous record at UCL... with their money and your theory they should have done much better than going further than group stage only once. City and PSG are only proof to me that not everyone with money can do what we've been doing. Money isn't everything

I can barely notice/care about the collar that. The whole thing is just so damn classy and beautiful and it's been a few years since I've bought an Inter shirt, so now I have a great reason to

damn it. I know which football team I'll be buying a shirt next season for sure

I don't think so either. We don't have youngsters playing in the attack and he would never take a jab on Hazard like that. Also it was in a WC context and wasn't there some kind of comments about him (not sure if about his age) that even led those NT retirement articles some time last year? Also the context of the answer is ironic when he says something along the lines 'thanks for letting me know I'll play my last world cup' maybe someone in the NT management staff made a comment about it being his farewell WC because a few lines later he says he feels like he could be playing two more WC. I think it was entirely something about the NT. I don't really remember what kind of drama happened last year when L'Equipe or another French newspaper even publicized an article about his retirement from Cameroon. Also it would make me really sad if their relationship (he used to be one of those players that only had amazing words to say about Mourinho) got strained because of a stupid comment. But if he indeed meant Mourinho, sorry, but the comment does make Mourinho sound like a fool.

It seems like you're a big Carlo fan. Have you been following him at Madrid? Are you supporting them in the final because of him? What's your age? What do you work with (in case you do work)? How have you become a Chelsea fan? Why Chelsea? Who would you like to see next in the hotseat? What would you ask them? If you were to move from India, where you'd like to live and why?

No, I didn't put it on Cahill. I'm just saying it showed that when we don't defend deep, Cahill struggles. I'm in no way blamimg him at all. I'm just arguing that certain conditions are difficult for him and he can't defend well in them. sure there's some agenda right. I don't even know why people don't give him a statue for his two previous seasons with us. He was certainly a rock back then wasn't he? *sarcasm* Don't be picky... it wasn't even a comparison, but something about Cahill. If you disagree then it's your prerogative. We only have 2 seasons filled of his mistakes to defend such a point that if the line is high he has trouble finding his foot. I'm the first one to say (as many others defending Luiz's stay) that Cahill and Terry was the partnership that earned their regular positions and that both collectively and separately had a season that can't be even compared to Luiz. What's your point, mate, in addition to being picky?

has it been discussed here yet? I'm a bit surprised Liverpool will get more money than City - the champion - and it seems it's down to facility fees. What are those? Why does Liverpoor receive more? I'm sad we couldn't win the league, but in all honesty, there's few things in football that makes me happier than Liverpoor losing. I can't stand how overrated, protected, hyped they are and their fans are the worst. Anyway, we made 94m, which I think is quite the revenue

Then why was he adamant in January David Luiz isn't for sale and he was indeed kept because we so desperately needed him? Why? Didn't you just said Iva is a hell of a defender and we still had Cole in the squad? He could have gotten rid of him easily, but he didn't and he was adamant on saying as a broken record he isn't for sale. It can change in the summer window, but if Mourinho went out of his way to say it a few times and he did, is because he is the kind of player Jose likes. I'm talking about a lot of things when I label the Mourinho kind of player and people with his spirit and as committed as him are missing a little bit these days at the Bridge. Yeah, he has brainfarts at moments that come from lack of concentration, I'm talking about giving everything, growing in the biggest matches when the teams need him the most. Mourinho value those things and I'm not sure he's ready to give up on a player with Luiz's potential - showed by his technical skills - just because he had a bad/average season. I really don't get what is your huge problem with him, but it's something you're entitled to and a few even feel the same. I think it's a bit too much. He isn't the best defender in the world - far from it - but he isn't as bad as you make him out to be imo. we can agree to disagree. Also the Ivanovic part of my argument had among other things the need to use him as a RB explaining how unless we sign Luke Shaw, Azpili is stuck in the LB and we don't have someone to play in the RB as I think Cole is likely to leave. Ivanovic is capable, I agree, but far from ideal, and it's not only the mistakes he did last season that hurt us. He had made many mistakes, the ones against Swansea were catastrophes, not only mistakes, throughout the whole season. But it were less flashy mistakes, and Cahill was hideous at some matches too, and Terry was injured. So my whole point is all of our defenders (except maybe Terry) had had streaks of bad form in the last three seasons, it's not only Luiz's privilege, so I think we could keep them and maybe we will. sorry to get into the discussion - your point is relevant, I don't think Henrique's is, but Gary Cahill who is acclaimed here isn't exactly a defender who can defend. He's a defender who can defend in a certain system (the whole defense playing very deep) and still it seems to some he's the best thing in defense these days. He's very limited and he excelled in a system that favored him. If there's a match that demands a different style - like the 2nd leg against Atlético, for example - he's a liability and the match itself showed it. I'm not even questioning you choosing him over Luiz (although the way you word it, it's as if he's the same level or kind of defender Terry is - he isn't and will never be because Terry is a hell of a defender, that although he's always been slow, when younger had more tools in his box than Gary and adapted better to different conditions/systems). But I do agree Dante can't defend.