Barbara

megged Silva as well

you totally called that! I'm your witness. I think luck helped us with the fair result, Torres deserved a goal and we deserved a win. If he was unlucky in the shot that hit the post, he was lucky in the mistake Hart and Nastasic did. tit for that, with Ms. Luck because he went to celebrate with 'fans' (as we didn't know back then it was his son) behind the visitor's dugout and not Chelsea's.

I was supposed to have posted it yesterday, but I fell asleep lol I think, I really think, Mourinho completely changed our team and while there are tactical aspects of it (that I actually covered in an article I wrote, but I didn't post it yet), I think it's nothing short of amazing what he's done individually with those players. There are too many of them for us to ignore or to write it off as a coincidence. Torres - well, that's the epitome of them all. Mourinho admitted he was surprised by how hard Torres works (I admit I'm surprised to know he does too because watching him in the pitch the past two years he looked like he didn't give fuck), but was it just that? So one day Fernando woke up in his house and he said to himself 'I'll start working harder'? I think it was a mix of things and that Fernando's commitment and working hard attitude definitely is a huge part of it, but I can also see Mourinho's work. It's about the way he's positioning himself, the way he bought Mourinho's high pressing and work-rate oriented philosophy. Also I believe Mourinho gave him the confidence he was lacking when he didn't write him off right away. Mourinho is one of the biggest names in the world, and he's been saying since the team came back from pre-season that he trusts Torres and this changed Torres. So allied to his hard work at training sessions, I feel like Torres felt backed up by Mourinho's trust and I think the drills in training contributed to him improving his all-around game given his age and the stage of his career he is at right now. Ramires - can we take a moment to appreciate how much his ball control, first touch and passing improved? Those were (and continue to be though in a much less influencing way) the biggest detractors of his game. While he has always been a pit bull defending and faster than light, it was the final pass to the attack, or his weak first touch that frustrated us (and probably him as well) too many times. He's started the season where he left off previously, but I feel like I'm witnessing the birth of a Pirlo. I'm serious. Those crosses he made from way behind to Torres (twice in the first half), the way he's been starting attacks for us - with consistent good passes that actually buildup, added to the way he has always relentlessly defended and his outstanding finishing, Mourinho may be molding him into an unplayable and invaluable beast. Mourinho has been talking about doing it with Lampard, but still it's Ramires - who's still quite young and seems to have lungs made of steel - who seems to be turning into something more. Let's not forget he was also the guy who's started the counter against Schalke where Hazard scored and many other occasions this season that it was his pass that started it all. John Terry - both men said it themselves: Mourinho was what Terry need to regain self-esteem, confidence and go back to his best days. Except the mistake in the Norwich goal, he hasn't put one foot wrong this whole season. But in all fairness, do we really expect a CB to be infallible all the time at all matches? He's been nothing sort of brilliant so far and mistakes are expected and normal - so I can't discredit him for making one in 15 matches or so. If he and Mourinho credit the manager for that, who else should I credit? On lesser levels, I also see Mourinho's work in the following: Oscar - we have to take into consideration that Oscar struggled last season mostly because of adaptation, still the normal thing is for him to carry on from where he left off when the season ended. But it seems he took a jump. He isn't continuing from where he left, he simply skipped a few steps in the ladder and he's been much, much, much better than he was last season (than he's ever been imo actually). I guess that also passes through Mourinho. Not only he gave Oscar the confidence he needed, but it feels like Mourinho is polishing a very, very rare and precious gem here. The sky seems to be the limit. Hazard - this guy couldn't press even the enter button if it was presented to him in a match and while he's still finding his attacking feet, his work-rate came from non-existent to an essential part of our defensive system. He's always there, he never gives ups, he goes for the tackles, he presses from the highest position in the field to the lowest. He's working hard everywhere and although I don't know him from his Lille times, based on what I saw last season I'm really surprised because I thought he didn't have it in himself to be the player he's becoming. I wonder if Eden knew he had it Schürrle - I don't know much about his Bundesliga days, but he said it, German press said it and it seems like he's become a stronger player since he came here. I'm taking their words as I really haven't seen him before to state it myself. I do know though that he's just now scored his first hat-trick ever and maybe when he says Chelsea [and imo it translates into Mourinho] made him stronger and better, he's just giving credit where its due. I think David Luiz is next on Mourinho's to do list. I'm sure Mourinho knows that technically Luiz is far superior to Cahill, but we can't afford the concentration and sloppiness mistakes he makes from time to time. Mourinho knows - and he's been saying that since there were speculations about his transfer to Barça - that there are defensive aspects of Luiz's game that need to be worked on, Mourinho knows that he could have the best defender in the world at the end of the season because Luiz will put all his effort to arrive at the WC as sharp as he can. I'm looking forward to see this lad growing under Mourinho's management and becoming another unplayable beast just like Ramires is morphing into. I.can't.wait!!!! Not only Luiz, but this whole engine to be perfectly oiled and running under Mourinho. This is a machine in the making imo and once Mourinho is done adjusting it there won't be one team in the world who won't fear playing us. I don't think we have the most talented squad out there and I don't think in the short term [reads this season] we'll be the most delightful team to watch or the best team in the world, or the most entertaining. I do believe with all my heart that we'll be the most difficult team to play against because what I see molding in front of my eyes is a very efficient team, that will play attractive football - although not the most attractive - but that will work so well together, with flashes of brilliance, but mostly hard work and focus, that it'll make it very difficult for any opposition to beat us. Again, I can't wait!!!!!!

here a link (though low resolution) for those who don't want to download, just watch http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x16iaej_chelsea-vs-manchester-city-2-1-motd_sport

high five, sis! I'm celebrating it right there with you

uh... my whole post was just to say where those two flawed players offer liabilities for us... I started it saying that was my view and jumped into the convo. I do think a player that has been amazing for us last season proved his 24m price tag, and I agree Cahill comparatively played beyond is 7m. David Luiz has a problem that needs fixing otherwise he'll never fulfill completely the potential he has - or as has been put here, he'll never justify his price tag. It doesn't change the fact he's a better player than Cahill and I feel like Cahill failed in more goals last season than Luiz did. I don't have stats, and I won't bother looking for them, but that's how I feel. I agree with Alex that Cahill is more disciplined, still when he's in the lineup against a team that has good strikers, I'm always biting my lip in apprehension... Also I thought the whole point of the discussion was to say who should play - which imo is Luiz - but it seems like it span into something else. Sorry if I offended anyone, I was really just stating what I think, not what is written in rock as the the truth.

I disagree... also just my view. I think Luiz is a better footballer and a better CB and Mourinho knows it too. Luiz rarely makes a mistake because of any limitation he may have as a CB (in my opinion he doesn't have any, maybe except aerial duels). He normally makes mistakes because of sloppiness and lack of concentration. From time to time he also pays the price for risking a more aggressive and bold style of defending, but I can't fault him on that because it comes with the package and it's positive especially when 9 times out of 10 that he takes risks we don't pay for it. Cahill makes mistakes due to his limitations, like today. It wasn't only in the goal, the next attempt he failed yet again. While Cahill's positioning is decent (Luiz's is very good imo and Terry's is nearly flawless) two things make it look worse than it is: 1) he lacks pace and whenever the striker 'surprises' him he can't pursue them fast enough to at least make things difficult [it happened in the goal, he chased Aguero too damn slowly); 2) he lacks vision - or at least his reading of the game is very limited. In the second play I mentioned (I'm almost sure it was a Silva shot inside the box) he was positioned where he should, near the player that could receive the pass and between said player and the one who has the ball. But as he can't read the game well he just stands between both, without properly marking any of them although he's positioned where he should be. Because of the combination of those two things his positioning looks very poor - when in fact it's decent.@JDY, saw it coming and posted it days before the match because against a world class striker Cahill is simply not enough. @The Skipper, asked you to elaborate further on why you think Cahill is the best CB, I'll jump into the conversation between the two of you and explain why I think Luiz is not only a better footballer, but also a better CB. I think a CB must have the following aspects to his game: - good positioning - good vision/reading to defend, to move, to anticipate, to cover, - good movement - pace - aerial prowess - good reflexes As a bonus a CB can also offer: - aggressive defending (the risks I mentioned above) - good pass - vision to build the plays from behind - score goals (headers, free kicks, penalties) - intuition. Out of the 'must' package there isn't one thing I think Cahill is better than Luiz. Maybe they're about the same with header clearances, but tbf while I know Luiz isn't impressive on that, I don't remember exactly how Cahill is because when it comes to that all I can see is John Terry and how immense he is on that. So maybe there's a tie here, or even something that Cahill is better, but I don't think so because if he was really good on that I guess I would remember him for that. Cahill does textbook defense and in order for a CB to offer above average defending while doing textbook defending he must excel in those aspects and honestly while he is decent in some, good in others, there isn't one of those things I think he's superb. Then there's the bonus parts that is the opposite of textbook defense and in all those things (maybe exception scoring headers once in a while) Cahill fails in all of them. So all in all imo Cahill is decent, but not enough a good player to be in a club like Chelsea - unless he's a squad player. Luiz problems are from a different nature - which doesn't exempt him from them. He sometimes lacks concentration and he can be sloppy at times. I do fault him for that, especially because for Brazil those things happen way less often. I don't know why that happens. There are a lot of factors and possible reasons, but I can only speculate. Maybe because it's he plays for the NT much less, or because he's an extreme patriotic player and he plays his blood for Seleção [if that's the case, I guess it's psychological and something he can't control because he already proved and showed his passion for us], or maybe it's because he plays by Thiago Silva and that can make a whole difference [although Terry has been nothing short of brilliant for us]. Still I don't feel he does that on purpose, he's showed and proved his passion for us, I think it's more a psychological fault he has. At the end of the day I feel like Luiz makes mistakes because he isn't constant enough whereas Cahill make them because he isn't good enough. I'm about to post on Mourinho's thread about his work with our players and I'll mention Torres, Ramires, Oscar, Schürrle and Terry, but I'll also mention that I think the next in the list is going to be David Luiz.

but that's exact my point. He played out of his mind and he still didn't get a spot in the starting eleven... how much he doesn't play now won't make much difference, either way he isn't in the starting eleven because they have some of the best midfielders in the world. Then I also said I don't think he'll miss his spot as a squad player in the NT - though I didn't elaborate on that. I think he won't miss his spot in the WC in general, he will go as a squad player and nothing will get him into the starting eleven if the season he had with us last year didn't get him there.

what they said!

I can't with bitter people. They're the most unbearable kind of people... the worst! but they never fail to make me laugh my arse off.

Our first half performance was really good. We were dominating them, controlling the match and had 2-3 chances to score that we missed. If you think that City were playing well themselves, I'd say we had a nearly perfect first half. Then second half we had issues in the pivot with Lamps and in the defense with Cahill. Is it me or Cahill seemed even slower than Terry today? Terry makes up for his slowness with his flawless positioning, but Cahill's is decent. The problem is that while Cahill positions himself decently his reading of the opponents is really poor. Just after their goal he once again was completely lost in the box in a Silva shot... Before being replaced Lampard was offering them space, wasn't pressing close enough and was bypassed consecutively a handful of times... As I said the other day with Luiz and Terry in the back I'm never nervous - even though I acknowledge Luiz's mistakes. But with Cahill and whoever along him, I'm always nervous, at the edge of my seat... he's good, but while Luiz's mistakes are because of sloppiness, Cahill's are because of limitation. He's limited. He had some good moments there though, two of them even after their goal, but I was afraid we'd concede against because of his inability to anticipate and read the Silva and Aguero's movement. Ramires was simply a beast. He was amazing defending, attacking, building. It must be said he's been improving his first touch and passing (forward) since Mourinho arrived. Our three AM weren't that good, except for Schürrle in the first. Hazard and Oscar had more than forgettable matches. Willian was very good though. I think we should start rotating Willian into the team... Ramires + Oscar killed Toure this match. Oscar wasn't much good in the attack, but once again he was very good pressing and tackling and marking. Torres has been superb. It's not only about the goal scored, the assist, and the unlucky post hit. I guess only Ramires and Ivanovic (who was also immense and keeps me proving Azpilicueta only has a spot in this team if he replaces Cole - who was his usual this season: not good enough) worked harder than Torres. Torres pressed, tackled, moved around, ran, linked up, he did everything and with few, few mistakes. He was absolutely essential for the win. I think this match is a step up in our progress this season. We can't fault ourselves when City had a bit of control at some range of the second. City is a great side atm and they were losing, so ofc they would put pressure and they have great quality to make it happen. We could have done better, but when Mikel came in it helped to settle the situation (and Cahill cut off some of his mistakes). We've been growing - as we should - and teams should start getting worried about facing us, especially at the Bridge. You can already label this as a Mourinho team and while I'm sure we'll have a few bad moments (and matches) coming in the next couple of months, I think the players are much more settled and if we continue progressing like this, we'll soon be unplayable at home and pretty tough away - no matter who we face. What can I say? I'm an optimistic

What can I say? It's the third time I voted for him as MOTM this season (Totts, Schalke) and maybe there was a 4th, but I can't be sure. Anyway, he was amazing today. I was pissed when he missed that first attempt and even said he was 'back', but he proved me wrong, never looked back, and worked hard. He was one of the players to work the hardest there for us. Tacking, pressing, moving around, running. The only fault was the sitter, but when he assists, hits the post (unlucky and that would have been an amazing goal), and then scores the winner, he more than made up for that. Actually some players would have given up that ball because it was two defenders and Hart, and only him. Actually last two seasons' Torres wouldn't have bothered, and not only did he fought til the end, but he actually scored. Of course there's room to improvement - most players have it - but I don't have a complaint, if Torres play like this for us all season, I'm very happy. As I said in the live thread - and using Mourinho's words myself: we have strikers.

let's take a moment to let this info sink in #respect

I'd marry him and seeing how I'm allergic to getting married again, that's saying a lot Now the big question is: would you hug Jose Mourinho?

WE HAVE STRIKERS!!!!!! TORRES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

well done, Mou. Hazard has been useless through and through

Hazard.... terrible - not that he was much better than that today

can Mou just sub frigging Cahill? if he doesn't go off we will certainly concede again

he was slower than Terry in that goal. that's ridic

Cahill... never a mistake from him, let alone two in a row.

Torres has been immense, if he hasn't missed that chance he'd be my first half MOTM, but as it stands Ramires it is. But Torres has been great - despite the terrible miss

what was that touch by Oscar? *orgasmic*

Torres made up for the missed goal. he was absolutely AMAZING AND MY BOY FINALLY SCORED!!!!!!!!!

Torres is fucking back!!!!!!! how did he miss that?

I honestly think Azpilicueta is highly overrated in this forum. I don't think he has a great cross, he's been making mistakes the matches he's played so far this season and imo Iva is by far the most solid between the two of them. I think he's a decent FB, he may be slightly better than Iva in the attack, but his cross isn't even a '8' and the rest of things Iva is the best man imo - by a fair lead.