Post-season review - Chelsea 2013/14

[iseah100 5,612]

stop trolling

we'll go through ( i'm 99% sure it will happen ) because we completely dominated the second half, we were defensively solid, the only chance you had was hazard hitting the post and a pen generously offered by Silva

Mark my words, only Barca and Bayern can defeat us, overrated Real will fail again in the semis

Well....this is awkward.

[Stats 7,056]

Thinking about it this question will be more worthy asking at the end of the season? If we win the UCL or PL or perhaps both it is a definite success. If you stopped the season where we are now and went out the semis and finished 3rd for instance then maybe their is more discussion for debate but one can only truly answer this at the end of the season.

[Ainsley Harriott 2,732]

Some people are quiet around here...

[Barbara 15,149]

so is this thread used ONLY when we lose?

where are the haters now?

Some people are quiet around here...

the haters I don't mind, but it never ceases to surprise me how fickle people can be.

The moment to discuss if the season is failure is when it ends or when you're out of every possible competition.

Where are the people who voted it's a failure?

And I'll take a step further, does everyone who voted something in the between still think the same?

We're in UCL bloody SF with a squad that became thin in the competition very quickly (I don't think we have a thin squad for EPL, it could be deeper, but it's not exactly thin). People jump to conclusions too fast and just because they have unrealistic and delusional expectations that couldn't be reached, they call it a failure (and some something in between - although some people gave fair arguments for that, it's the ones with unrealistic expectations that make no sense).

I just read the problem is that we were top of the table for a considerable time and let it slip between our fingers. Was Arsenal EVER seriously the team that would win this? We were top of the league when City's matches started being postponed. Mathematically we were NEVER top of league, during all rounds we stayed there, if City won their belated matches they would take the spot from us.

Liverpool is a worse squad than us with TWO - not only one, but TWO great strikers, one of which world class and probably the best in the world right now. Haven't those people seen ManU win a title all because of van Persie last year? Let me tell a very simple rule in football: whenever you outscore the goals you concede you win three points. Winning three points week in and out because your striker just push the ball into the net makes you champion, not matter how weak the rest of your squad AND/OR system is.

Sometimes things couldn't be more obvious and simple if you asked them to. I can accept that we didn't make the best out of the summer window, but we had a target that didn't work out and the market wasn't favorable. I'd rather have André, Marco, Willian, Eto'o and then Salah and Matic than spend all that money only in Cavani. Cavani solves our problem, probably gives us the EPL title and we're back to what we were years ago. A team that wins now and then and when one of the starts is injured and other teams start to figure us out, the manager is out, the team fades away and the titles go away. This generation lives out of fast food, expect patience is clearly a stretch and it annoys me to no end.

So the fact we're fighting for the title til the end, in UCL SF despite having no striker force and with a few bumps in the way (injuries, players having dip of forms because of their inexperience and immaturity, bad days in the office - God forbid those to happen) we have to come here and say it's either a failure or simply that it wasn't as successful as they expected (that's what the in between people are saying).

I honestly would like to know what their down-on-earth expectations were. Because being top4 in Europe (it could be more) and fighting til the end for the league title - the hardest to accomplish imo - isn't enough to reach their expectations. At least the people who calls it a failure make it very clear where their delusions are. The people (some, not all) that say it's not a success admit that they accept this is a team for the future, they accept that Mourinho needed time, for fuck sake, some of them even accept this is a transition year and still they say not a success or a failure. I must admit, understanding you people is VERY, VERY, VERY difficult.

[termninja 5,290]

I would place it between neither and success but closer to success Especially if we reach CL final.

I don't care about trophies this year, but what I do care is our team's mentality, and that has improved a lot. For pretty much all of this season, we played decent, but most importantly, I felt secured watching us play, unlike previous few seasons. STABILITY

Now we bring this season to an end, adress our striking options, decide on Courtois, and look towards a new dawn! :blue scalf:

[iseah100 5,612]

It's a success already. Guaranteed a spot in the CL next season, Semi Final this year. I'd say it's a success.

[Beepu 1,714]

It's a successful season for me. We are one of 4 teams in the biggest club competition in the world, and the only english one. Fighting for the title and we finally look like we can challenge the 'big boys' on the same playing field. And all this while having glaring deficiencies in our team.

[Rmpr 8,977]

And I'll take a step further, does everyone who voted something in the between still think the same?

I do and you only need to read Liquidator's point to understand why...

[Barbara 15,149]

I do and you only need to read Liquidator's point to understand why...

Oh I said some had some understandable reasons, even if I disagree

I understand his #1 point if he concludes that City has a better team. Leading the table for a few rounds, while City had games to do and winning them could pass us, wasn't realistic, but it certainly made us believe. So I get the feeling that spread among fans, but it was never realistic... we were fighting, but we weren't really leaders if the other team could play their matches and winning them pass us.

I definitely agree about #2.

But I completely disagree about #3. If this team couldn't make it because of too much immaturity, promoting youth in an already very young team makes no sense in my head. It's not only about winning the title, but developing the ones that are already in the first team.

What does playing a couple of matches make to one of those boys? Basically nothing. So let's focus in developing the young guys (not as young as the youth boys) we already have before bringing even more just for the 'charitable' match that will say, oh at least Baker or Ake played 90 minutes this season. So what? It doesn't mean promotion at all. We can't afford it now with so many young players in the main team.

So that's why I disagree - but understand/respect - those arguments. City being better than us doesn't make us unsuccessful, not promoting young players when we have plenty of them already in team doesn't make us unsuccessful. Not signing a decent striker definitely makes our WINDOW unsuccessful and influences on our season. But I still get a positive at the end of the day.

[The only place to be 11,313]

A bit of both for me. It's probably a bit more success than failure but there have been some issues this year.

It will feel like a bit of a failure no matter what we expected at the start of the season because of how we led the league for a considerable period of time but ultimately won't win it.

And now we might. It's why using the league title as the ultimate barometer for success is a little flimsy.

We are in a transition season.

We are 7 wins away from having the greatest season in this club's history.

This season has been a success no matter what happens from now on.

[Fernando 6,464]

We can end up winning a double, one trophy or fuck all. Still a success.

Top 3 and semis cl, that's all I asked for from the beginning, so job well done!

[kobematabryant 400]

This is our best season since we won the double.

[Jase 43,479]

Guess there might be a lot of shift in votes or thoughts if we do win the league and/or Champions League from here...

[The_Flash 1,144]

If we can win our remaining games obviously beat to new liverpool we can still rescue this we deserve it

Really wish we could win the league

[zolayes 14,489]

I would place it between neither and success but closer to success Especially if we reach CL final.

I don't care about trophies this year, but what I do care is our team's mentality, and that has improved a lot. For pretty much all of this season, we played decent, but most importantly, I felt secured watching us play, unlike previous few seasons. STABILITY

Now we bring this season to an end, adress our striking options, decide on Courtois, and look towards a new dawn! :blue scalf:

we reach the CL Final AND it still isnt a success ,,,, I think Barca and Arse and Manure and City and <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<would have thought so

[DanAdibi! 106]

This is simple - give where we were last season. We have switched to another gear this season (Mourinho factor) - The future looks bright.

[DanAdibi! 106]

If we can win our remaining games obviously beat to new liverpool we can still rescue this we deserve it

Really wish we could win the league

It's best just to take it at a time.

You never maybe Liverpool drop points this weekend and we won't even have to beat them.

There is still a long way to go (4 games - anything can happen).

[Shane 2,275]

We've got pride in the shirt after that fat cunt was in charge last year.

We're challenging for the league with 4 games to go and we're in the semi-finals of the Champions League.

We've made a profit in transfers in January as well as bringing in a player in the middle of the park that we've been crying out for for the last few years.

2013/14 has been a huge success, whatever happens in the 3 crunch games next week.