🇪🇸 Cesc Fàbregas

[Jase 43,479]

One quiet game and the meltdown here is just

[Styles 9,790]

One quiet game and the meltdown here is just

I love a good troll job tbh

But anyways, back to the topic...4 passes in 30 minutes

[Special Juan 28,141]

I heard Dowd was immense against him.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

Forget Fellaini, old man Dowd had him in his pocket all game: https://vine.co/v/OhLZrDBbe1l !

[DYC. 7,542]

Exactly, Fellaini is slow and lacks agility and yet Fabregas still couldn't lose him.

He's supposed to be the guy that makes the team tick and he completed 4 passes in 30 minutes of football.

Fabregas is slow and isn't the most agille haha. And unlike Fellaini, Fabregas isn't the most mobile of players. Add a poor day in the office and he'll struggle.

You're right. I never said he was good. He was very poor in the first half. Better in the 2nd half but still not a good game overall.

I've said this before but Fab is not the type to dominate the midfield. His style is not controlling. Which is not a bad thing, until you're looking for that kind of presence.

But it's not like Mourinho's style suits those type of players.

[Gilvorak 3,734]

Kroos is "slow" and "immobile" as well and would have dominated that game yesterday. Still can't believe how shocking he was yesterday up against average footballers like Fellaini and Blind.

His minimal influence on the game affected the entire team.

[Cescy 40]

Coming to the conclusion that he can't hack it in big games or can't be a midfield controller because of this one game is silly. He has done a wonderful job in most games for us so far and has been showing improvement in his positioning and defending. He'll only get better as he gets more comfortable in his role at Chelsea. His passing was just really off yesterday. Happens to the best of them and is nothing to get in a panic over.

[stroey 2,525]

Kroos is "slow" and "immobile" as well and would have dominated that game yesterday. Still can't believe how shocking he was yesterday up against average footballers like Fellaini and Blind.

His minimal influence on the game affected the entire team.

The difference is Modric, Kroos has Modric next to him who can control a game too. Cesc had Oscar...If Kroos played for us yesterday, the difference wouldn't be big with Cesc.

[Daniel1980 1,425]

The overreaction here to one poor game is unbelievable. Suddenly Fabregas can't control midfield and can't make the team tick.

If anything, yesterday's game proved how much our entire play has come to depend on him, which is, in my opinion, not a good thing. If he plays well, the team looks like a well-oiled machine. If he makes mistakes or isn't influential, our entire midfield looks poor and error-prone. That shows how much playmaking he usually does.

Yesterday he couldn't do it properly and wasn't effective partly due to the absence of runners in the team, and was outmuscled, marked, and he misplaced 5 friggin' passes in the first half. And suddenly it's the end of the world and he can't do what he did very well in most of the previous games. If he's that ineffective in 5 games in a row, then such reaction will be appropriate. Shit happens. He had a bad day. If you expect him to play well in every single game, you're in for disappointment, because no player does.

[Bir_CFC 3,455]

People will try to mark him out of the game. That's when either one of the attackers has to drop (Oscar tried but didn't do a good job this game) or one of the CBs should bring the ball out of defense (Cahill tries a couple times, but he's not that good on the ball).

I'm not heavily criticizing any of the players mentioned above or the team or Jose. It was a below par performance relative to the high expectations we've set so far but even so it wasn't so poor. Although, I would say one area we need to improve.

Zouma is highly rated but we need to also get (or promote) a proper quick ball playing CB for the future. Our CBs don't complement our defensive philosophy of high pressing. It's honestly a huge testament to the players and the coaching staff how good it's working. A more competent CB pairing will help considerably in controlling games too.

This is a controversial opinion but I think our CBs are holding back the full potential of this team. I'm not saying they are bad, Terry and Cahill have been fantastic but I don't think they fit the playing style Jose really wants.

Ugh I really wanted Benatia here.

[bababoom 4,478]

Should we rest him against QPR? one more yellow card and he faces suspension which means he misses the Liverpool game...

[petre.ispirescu 4,928]

Should we rest him against QPR? one more yellow card and he faces suspension which means he misses the Liverpool game...

And pair him with Ake for tomorrow? Not a bad idea

[MrBlueGuy 1,552]

Just play him tomorrow and tell him to get that tactical yellow card, easy stuff for Mou right?

[DYC. 7,542]

Kroos is "slow" and "immobile" as well and would have dominated that game yesterday. Still can't believe how shocking he was yesterday up against average footballers like Fellaini and Blind.

His minimal influence on the game affected the entire team.

Kroos is a completely different footballer. Simply put, Kroos is a Xavi type of player. A real midfield meastro. Fabregas is not. I don't know why people get annoyed with that statement, it's all about style. It does not make Fabregas a lesser player, it just makes him different. (The thing that makes Kroos special is his versatality though, he has the ability to adjust the way he plays. He was a completely different player under Heynckes, more Fabregas-esque).

But saying Kroos would have dominated is a 'bit too easy'. Real is so much better in possession than Chelsea, it's not even funny. The movement, the understanding between the players.. every touch is good, always turning into the right spaces, passing is precise, they remain calm under pressure. Their style is based on technique, possession and a high tempo/quick passing. Compare that with Chelsea's style. Powerful, disciplined, emphasis on counter-attacking. Chelsea dominate against lesser sides, of course, but that's because of the difference in quality.

And Kroos plays with Modric (very important like stroey said, just like when Xavi had Iniesta), James and Isco in midfield. All players strong in possession, all highly gifted technically. With Bale they're not as strong in possession but stronger on the break. Except for Hazard, Fabregas plays with Willian/Schurrle, Oscar, Matic, who don't compare in those aspects.

But even then, Fabregas' game is not the same as the likes of Xavi, Kroos, Scholes. He's like a classic #10 but he's not good in tight spaces. He's better when starting from deep positions, and then slowly moving up unmarked.

People will try to mark him out of the game. That's when either one of the attackers has to drop (Oscar tried but didn't do a good job this game) or one of the CBs should bring the ball out of defense (Cahill tries a couple times, but he's not that good on the ball).

I'm not heavily criticizing any of the players mentioned above or the team or Jose. It was a below par performance relative to the high expectations we've set so far but even so it wasn't so poor. Although, I would say one area we need to improve.

Zouma is highly rated but we need to also get (or promote) a proper quick ball playing CB for the future. Our CBs don't complement our defensive philosophy of high pressing. It's honestly a huge testament to the players and the coaching staff how good it's working. A more competent CB pairing will help considerably in controlling games too.

This is a controversial opinion but I think our CBs are holding back the full potential of this team. I'm not saying they are bad, Terry and Cahill have been fantastic but I don't think they fit the playing style Jose really wants.

Ugh I really wanted Benatia here.

This is true. But then again, Mourinho's Real had the right type of players yet they were never the most controlling side. A very counter-attacking side, pressing mostly in their own half or soaking up the pressure. I think it's safe to say Mourinho prefers it like this.

But yes, a ball-playing CB would help. I don't think Mou wants one though. I can see him getting a pacey CB though. Either that or Zouma will play a more prominant role. I do wonder wether he'll change his mind on Oscar and buy a playmaking #10. Doubt it though..

We can't forget this team will still do a lot growing though.

[chelseafc9010 224]

People saying it's an overreaction to one game, he was the same against Man City as well, less so against Arsenal but it is worrying. He seems poor on the ball under pressure in big matches.

[Daniel1980 1,425]

People saying it's an overreaction to one game, he was the same against Man City as well, less so against Arsenal but it is worrying. He seems poor on the ball under pressure in big matches.

No, he wasn't. We played too negatively against City, but in that game Cesc rarely put a foot wrong and was careful in possession and stayed focused throughout the game. Against Arsenal he was very good both defensively and offensively and was one of the most influential players on the pitch.

Even stats make it obvious:

Against United: 43 passes with 84% pass accuracy, 62 touches (very low for him, about the same amount of touches as Hazard, Matic, Luis, Cahill)

Against City: 66 passes with 87% pass accuracy, 81 touches (more touches than any other Chelsea player)

Against Arsenal: 70 passes with 89% pass accuracy, 89 touches (more touches than any player on the pitch)

The difference is glaring. He was far more influential and careful against City and Arsenal.

[chelseafc9010 224]

I'm not talking about his passing mainly, I'm talking about him being marked out of the game.

[Daniel1980 1,425]

I'm not talking about his passing mainly, I'm talking about him being marked out of the game.

The amount of touches he had demonstrates the difference pretty well. The amount of touches he had against United is abnormally low for him--he was marked out of the game, and he wasn't marked out of the game against City and Arsenal.

[chelseafc9010 224]

The amount of touches he had demonstrates the difference pretty well. The amount of touches he had against United is abnormally low for him--he was marked out of the game, and he wasn't marked out of the game against City and Arsenal.

The touches against City were mostly passing to Terry and Cahill and back. He rarely ever had the ball with enough time to make the difference further up the pitch.

[MrExcalibur100 7,124]

Just to throw this out there. One of Fabregas' weak points is that he doesn't have the close control and balls skills of a Modric, Iniesta, Gundogan or Xavi. It's sometimes difficult for him when the opposition gets in his face and puts pressure on him. Add that to his lack of quickness, it becomes a problem for him to shake off his marker. This is usually more apparent against higher quality sides who are far superior tactically to the smaller teams.