Mario Mandzukic

[Sidzeret 2,257]

Just to put this whole minutes thing into context, when Jose was in charge of Real Madrid in the 2011-12 season they scored 121 goals.His two main strikers were Benzema and Higuain.

Benzema featured in 52 games, starting 40 and scoring 32 goals.

Higuain featured in 54 games, starting 28 and scoring 26.

Benzema got 3561 minutes, Higuain got 2785.

These are two top strikers who bring different things to the table seemingly able to live harmoniously with one another and get plenty of minutes and goals. Costa and Mandzukic can do the same for us hopefully.

The other thing to take away from that....Lukaku has fuck all chance of getting many minutes in that type of scenario.

I'm lazy to get the stats but I'm pretty sure it is similar to the situation he had at Inter with Eto'o and Milito.

Lukaku is our very own Balotelli.

[Jype 6,398]

Notice how the letters on the blue are different with the black/white hahaha Photoshop at its best.

I could do better in 10 seconds than those guys have with Photoshop, just need to visit chelseamegastore.com and add a custom print with Mandzukic 18...

Bullshit rumours in the Croatian page, but I still feel like there's something concrete in this.

[MrBlueGuy 1,552]

I'm lazy to get the stats but I'm pretty sure it is similar to the situation he had at Inter with Eto'o and Milito.

Lukaku is our very own Balotelli.

No at Inter Eto'o played on the wing under Jose and hardly scored, Milito was really the main man playing through the middle. It was under Rafa that Eto'o started to play centrally and went on an amazing scoring run while Milito faltered and picked up long term injuries. Apart from 11-12 season at Madrid, Jose never really had success with rotating strikers in his career.

[Amblève. 4,995]

Unless you are either Ronaldo, Hulk, Bale or Messi you are unlikely to a threat outside the box. The last part of that bold sentence is important, that is all we ask of him. Then you go on about the character idea again, when are we gonna give us this bs argument of only saints allowed to play for Chelsea? Cole, Terry, Costa, Hazard, Torres, Eto'o, Ramires and others all have or will play for Chelsea next season-and I can tell you personally they are on some level of 'asshole' too. Just like Diego Costa then for the last sentence of the 1st paragraph?

So Ibrahimovic, Lewandowski, Van Persie, Suarez, Rooney etc aren't threats outside the box, right?

No, not when you have a player in Lukaku who brings the same aspects to the table.

Except none of these players are idiots like Mandzukic (Ramires maybe but only if you count stupid tackles etc).

[MrBlueGuy 1,552]

So Ibrahimovic, Lewandowski, Van Persie, Suarez, Rooney etc aren't threats outside the box, right?

No, not when you have a player in Lukaku who brings the same aspects to the table.

Except none of these players are idiots like Mandzukic (Ramires maybe but only if you count stupid tackles etc).

Yh I forgot about Ibra but for the rests they occasionally scored some outside the box but 95% of their goals are inside. You can still be one of the best striker in the world even if you cannot score from distance as Lewandowski, Falcao and Cavani show. My point is that outside the box and attitude/personal argument is really weak and shouldn't be used to judge a player.

Btw just because he missed a few goals or picking up a few yellow cards doesn't mean he is an idiot. Diego Costa also missed the Madrid derby this season in the cup because of suspension due to amount of yellow cards, which is unbelievable for a striker and he is not an idiot trust me, in fact quite opposite. If you don't like Mario just say it, no need to start making him out to be someone worse than he is and then when he comes here starting to slate/abuse him.

[The only place to be 11,313]

Which poses the question, is it really worth taking Mandzukic? Wouldn't it be simpler to take the maximum cash that Bayern will offer then evaluate options on our own.

Lukaku can still go on loan next season and come back aged 22. That's still 4 years younger than Didier was when he rocked up at the Bridge.

As far as the cash deal goes, if we can get a top striker for a slightly cheaper price then it's not a bad option.

[Amblève. 4,995]

Yh I forgot about Ibra but for the rests they occasionally scored some outside the box but 95% of their goals are inside. You can still be one of the best striker in the world even if you cannot score from distance as Lewandowski, Falcao and Cavani show. My point is that outside the box and attitude/personal argument is really weak and shouldn't be used to judge a player.

Btw just because he missed a few goals or picking up a few yellow cards doesn't mean he is an idiot. Diego Costa also missed the Madrid derby this season in the cup because of suspension due to amount of yellow cards, which is unbelievable for a striker and he is not an idiot trust me, in fact quite opposite. If you don't like Mario just say it, no need to start making him out to be someone worse than he is and then when he comes here starting to slate/abuse him.

No, I don't like Mandzukic as a footballer based on what he does on the pitch and I already pointed out why. It's nothing personal, just on-pitch football talk.

The rest is a threat from outside because they have the ability to score from there unlike Mandzukic.

I'm in no way saying that you need to be a threat from outside the box to be one of the best strikers in the world but even without considering this aspect Mandzukic is still not one of them. He's good, not world class. But so is Lukaku, and to add to that he has the potential to become world class. So why buy Mandzukic?

Doing something stupid on a constant basis does qualify someone for being an idiot. If Mandzukic did it just a few times I wouldn't be calling it out. But that's who he is. He'll be crossing the line more often than not. Some might admire or even glorify it, I don't. It's pure stupidity if you're putting yourself and your team in an unnecessarily bad position.

[Tomo 21,685]

No at Inter Eto'o played on the wing under Jose and hardly scored, Milito was really the main man playing through the middle. It was under Rafa that Eto'o started to play centrally and went on an amazing scoring run while Milito faltered and picked up long term injuries. Apart from 11-12 season at Madrid, Jose never really had success with rotating strikers in his career.

04-05 and 05-06 with us?

Ok Drogba and Eidur/Crespo didn't personally get 30 goals, but you don't get 95 then 91 points if your strikers are crap.

[MrBlueGuy 1,552]

04-05 and 05-06 with us?

Ok Drogba and Eidur/Crespo didn't personally get 30 goals, but you don't get 95 then 91 points if your strikers are crap.

You can do if your defence is one of the best in BPL history, even at this season we got 80+ points despite having 3 strikers we currently have. Remember back then we don't lose to the likes of Sunderland or draw Norwich, we always win even if it is 1-0. So as long as your defence is great it is really possible for that. The likes of Joe Cole, Robben stepped in like Hazard, Oscar now.

[iceboy 992]

Speculation regarding a summer exit for the Croatia international has been building steadily for some months now.From the moment that it was announced that Robert Lewandowski will be joining Bayern this summer as a free agent - once his contract at Borussia Dortmund has expired - doubts have been cast over Mandzukic's role.The rumours have intensified after it was revealed that Pep Guardiola had left the striker out of his squad for the German Cup final.Disciplinary reasons have been cited for his absence, and they could force him a little closer to the exit door.Were Mandzukic to be made available, there would be no shortage of takers for a man who has been a regular source of goals for Wolfsburg and Bayern in the Bundesliga and one who has netted 13 times in 48 appearances for his country."If Mario stays here, it won't be easy for him because a world-class player is coming to us," Rummenigge told FAZ."The question is whether he wants to face up to his competition or would prefer to go to another club."We are open and fair and we talk about everything, so nothing is decided."

[The only place to be 11,313]

The rest is a threat from outside because they have the ability to score from there unlike Mandzukic.

I'm in no way saying that you need to be a threat from outside the box to be one of the best strikers in the world but even without considering this aspect Mandzukic is still not one of them. He's good, not world class. But so is Lukaku, and to add to that he has the potential to become world class. So why buy Mandzukic?

Plan A with us next season is almost certainly going to be a counter-attacking tactic. Costa is ideal for that (his running off defenders reminds me of Crespo at times). He also offers a threat in the box.

Plan B is going to come into play when we face teams who defend deep and with numbers and what you want then is an aerial threat. Mandzukic is strong in that department.

Now in my opinion, Lukaku fits in better right now as a Plan A type player, drifting wide and using his pace to get behind defences. He's bizarrely weak in the air (or not as strong as he should be at least). I don't know if he does the Plan B stuff as well. So it comes down to a combination of complimentary strikers who allow us to do different things.

[LondonPride1905 236]

Both Costa and Lukaku are a good threat in aerial duels. The croatian's height are where he excells, he scores brilliant tap - ins. Diving headers, headers, shots you wouldn't expect so easy to score and he does it. If we have Costa and Mandzukic as an option , rather than Eto'o, Ba and especially Torres, I think we should be more than happy. If we even manage to keep hold of Lukaku..Ideal scenario.

[xPetrCechx 13,548]

Both Costa and Lukaku are a good threat in aerial duels. The croatian's height are where he excells, he scores brilliant tap - ins. Diving headers, headers, shots you wouldn't expect so easy to score and he does it. If we have Costa and Mandzukic as an option , rather than Eto'o, Ba and especially Torres, I think we should be more than happy. If we even manage to keep hold of Lukaku..Ideal scenario.

[Bosnian Blue 2,471]

I don't rate him as much, let me put it this way: put Demba in that Bayern team and in Bundesliga and I think he could score as many goals as Mandzukic has.

[Barbara 15,149]

After seeing Torres fuck up for last few years, I shouldn't be so picky, but I want a GREAT striker, not a very good one.

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.

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

@didierforever

Lol, wrong dude. Do you think we after Costa because he is the only striker 'available' ?? No, it is because he is the kind of striker what we really need, therefore he is our primary target. You talk like we are not living on the same planet. Atletico never made Costa 'available' in the first place. We meet his damn buy out clause and they (have to) accept it.

You who wrote : 'could you give me a list of reasons, why Costa should START 45 games out of 60'. I replied why not, and I mentioned about 30:30 out of 60. Then you replied again with Messi comparison. I then said 45 games is reasonable number of games in a season. We don't talk about minutes at all there, the topic is about number of games as a starter. Now you talking about minutes, so basically you change the context yourself.

Allright, thank you for your time. I'm really done with you now. If there are some words that offended you, I'm sorry because I didn't mean to.

[LondonPride1905 236]

Both Costa and Lukaku are a good threat in aerial duels. The croatian's height are where he excells, he scores brilliant tap - ins. Diving headers, headers, shots you wouldn't expect so easy to score and he does it. If we have Costa and Mandzukic as an option , rather than Eto'o, Ba and especially Torres, I think we should be more than happy. If we even manage to keep hold of Lukaku..Ideal scenario.

Yeah, I was meant to write Mandzukic. Same thing Lol.

[didierforever 7,349]

@didierforever

Lol, wrong dude. Do you think we after Costa because he is the only striker 'available' ?? No, it is because he is the kind of striker what we really need, therefore he is our primary target. You talk like we are not living on the same planet. Atletico never made Costa 'available' in the first place. We meet his damn buy out clause and they (have to) accept it.

You who wrote : 'could you give me a list of reasons, why Costa should START 45 games out of 60'. I replied why not, and I mentioned about 30:30 out of 60. Then you replied again with Messi comparison. I then said 45 games is reasonable number of games in a season. We don't talk about minutes at all there, the topic is about number of games as a starter. Now you talking about minutes, so basically you change the context yourself.

Allright, thank you for your time. I'm really done with you now. If there are some words that offended you, I'm sorry because I didn't mean to.

oh!!! so there are better strikers that are available than him who?

cavani - 70+mil

suarez - 80mil

aguero - LOL

messi - LOL

falcao - 60mil + coming off a bad injury.

so who exactly?

when i asked u for a list of reasons, i meant on a technical basis. not on a reply "if he stays fit and continues scoring", if mario stays fit and continues scoring he should be our first striker. if bamford/feruz can do, even they can be our first striker. the question was to give me reasons why he should be taken as a first striker ahead of mario. like why should matic be first choice DM ahead of mikel, cos he is a better shield, far more dynamic, has a better passing range, can join in the attack etc,etc... these are a list of reasons. and since u think i took it out of context, so i went back and checked it. in 3 different posts, i have mentioned MINUTES. only u here think costa will be a nailed on starter, rest people will be talking about minutes. look at TOPTB's discussion about benzema and higuain. it will always come down to minutes.

If we sign both these guys, we ll see how many minutes each of them will get. Will it be costa having 3 times the minutes of mario (as u predict a 45-15 distribution) or a more sane and level headed 55%-45% distribution.

and real at the other part. do u even read my posts. MINUTES, i talk about MINUTES. i know what happens in real life unlike you. BA might have made 29 appearance but he got a total of 884 minutes. thats why i dint say appearances but MINUTES. again please read before replying.

If we sign both these guys, we ll see how many minutes each of them will get. Will it be costa having 3 times the minutes of mario (as u predict a 45-15 distribution) or a more sane and level headed 55%-45% distribution.