Signing of the Season

[manpe 10,855]

Why not? CFC do not sell their star players, Hazard will be here for a long time unless someone like Real or Barcelona (the only clubs he'll realistically go to from ours) cough up big, big money, which I simply don't see them doing.

Hazard will be a superstar for us.

To be fair there are signs of Barcelona slowly fading away, they may not be such an alluring destination in five years anymore. Xavi isn't getting any younger, neither is Iniesta. Messi alone won't be enough to keep them at this level. Busquets and Faberglass will do their best to carry the torch, but it won't be enough imo. Puyol is already out of the picture and look what kind of effect it has had on Barca's defense. This kind of talent is hard to come by even in La Masia so I think that in five years they won't be this desirable Barcelona they are now. This current crop is their golden generation who everybody wants to play with and once they are past it or retired, they will once again become a so-and-so club and so will Spain.

Real on the other hand seems to always attract superstars, no matter if they win anything or not, so I agree that they could be able to get Hazard if they really wanted to. I'm worried they could target him as a replacement for Ronaldo, but £100m and we can talk

The prospect of having Hazard at 27 years of age around his peak, is a very mouth watering thought indeed. Unless he gets major injury problems, there is nothing to suggest he won't reach the biggest heights for a footballer. Hopefully the club recognize that and keep hold of him whatever it takes.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

Marko Marin - di Matteo didn't ever fancy him, and he has barely played under Benitez, either. It speaks volumes that the likes of Benayoun and even young Ake are played ahead of him. He'll be gone in the summer, which is a shame because he's not had a chance to impress here - but I don't think he is "Chelsea standard". He seemed to be a panic buy before last Summer as the club thought we were consigned to the Europa League. Either way, he's been a disaster, although not particularly been bad on the pitch when he's played. 3/10

Demba Ba - a very astute signing by the club. We needed a classy striking option instead of Torres, and he has been supplied. It is very difficult to adapt to a new team mid-season, for him to have scored six goals for us already despite being rotated and rested more than half the time is pretty decent in my opinion. A brilliant buy in terms of value-for-money - Demba will be here for three-four years and do a decent job for us, the same as Anelka. Great technically and very strong, we look so much better when he plays. If Benitez didn't have a hard-on for Torres, he'd have played twice the games and probably have netted 10+ goals for us by now. 8/10.

Victor Moses - what a great buy. Everyone knows I am a big fan of Moses because of his versatility and his ability to do a job in any attacking position. He also had a good amount of potential and can be an important player on a squad level for us in the future. When you compare his performances to his worth, you would have to agree he has been a good buy in terms of value for money. He's been solid if not spectacular, and his return of 10 goals in 25 starts is respectable for any forward. 7/10.

Oscar - one for the future, but he has achieved more in English football than I expected him to this year. 60 appearances in a debut season - actually, in any season, for a club is absolutely incredible, but he still has the same boundless energy he had in his first games. He is capable of the spectacular of course, but just as important is his ability to get stuck in a do a good job for the team. His work ethic is excellent and he uses his body well to shield the ball away from opponents. We haven't even begun to see how good he is in my view, but he hasn't started badly at all, has he? 7/10.

Eden Hazard - big things were expected of him, and rightly so for £32 million. He has had a good first season in my opinion. I look at him and think "wow, this guy can be as good as Ronaldo", and he genuinely can. The main thing with EH17 is his team ethic - he is a very selfless person. That makes him different from the Messis, Ronaldos, and even Nanis and Walcotts of this world. It is very rare for a forward player, especially a wide player, to be selfless. He has had a good season overall, although he did tail off around November-January time. But, like little Oscar, we have so much more to see in this guy, and as far as I am concerned his potential is unlimited. Can he become the best player in the world? Yes, in my opinion. Yes he can. That doesn't mean he automatically will, but he has the potential to be a legend in his own right one day. 8/10.

Cesar Azpilicueta - my signing of the season. An absolutely inspired transfer. I am a fan of Ligue Un and have seen Azpi play for Marseille over the last two years, and yet I didn't think this was at all going to be a spectacular signing on any account. However, we've found a real gem here. Our right-back position is sorted for the next six-seven years as far as I am concerned. He is a great full-back; if he was English the media would have wanked themselves into a coma over him. He is absolutely unreal - pace, speed, aggression, tenacity, discipline; all the traits of a full-back and he has them in abundance. He has the potential to become our own Philipp Lahm. He is already brilliant defensively, and he will only improve in an offensive sense. Great, great buy. 9/10

[Mufassir08 2,400]

Very well said Alex

[Strike 6,961]

A bit of perspective on Oscar: The guy has played a ridiculous amount of games and that too most of them in awkward positions. Many people are forgetting Oscar is a central player because the club has used him wide more than in the centre

[manpe 10,855]

A bit of perspective on Oscar: The guy has played a ridiculous amount of games and that too most of them in awkward positions. Many people are forgetting Oscar is a central player because the club has used him wide more than in the centre

True. His role in the team is very uncertain, hence his uncertain performances. Nobody really knows where to play him, his preferred position is occupied and everything else just isn't for him. He's not a winger, not really a deep midfielder yet. He's a playmaker but he can't play like one because Mata and Hazard are on the ball too much. Will be interesting to see where the next manager sees him.

[Strike 6,961]

True. His role in the team is very uncertain, hence his uncertain performances. Nobody really knows where to play him, his preferred position is occupied and everything else just isn't for him. He's not a winger, not really a deep midfielder yet. He's a playmaker but he can't play like one because Mata and Hazard are on the ball too much. Will be interesting to see where the next manager sees him.

@Madmax, wrote a good piece on his first game as a deep-lying midfielder - vs Sunderland in December. Was never used deep after that I think? atleast not from the start.

http://desaijaimin.blogspot.in/

I think he's ideally suited for a Midfield 3 but since we have Mata at CAM, there's no ideal position for him

[Stingray 9,441]

Without any doubt ..... Hazard.

What he brings is incredible at such a tender age. This guy WILL be our Ronaldo or Messi. Pace, intellect, teamethic, creativity, skill, technique, vista, balls n guts ...... Everything we dreamed of for years.

He costed us a serious bit, but it is going to be worth every penny. You will all see his loyalty, just as you have seen how much of a teamplayer he is (despite people calling him a big ego beforehand). You heard it here first. Our next legend that will rip the EPL apart next year.

Greetz from the belgian fanboys