Closed Newcastle v Chelsea

[MichaelDance 552]

Other than under AVB, I don't remember us winning anywhere near that comfortably at SJP. We actually lost there in 2004. Or do you mean at home?

Yeah sorry we won them 4 - 0 in 2004 at home but hey 10 years on, better, stronger team we could win 10 years on at theirs.

[quickpassnmove 924]

If they're both available I wouldn't be surprised if Oscar drops out and Mikel and Ramires both play in a three with Cesc. Can't see that being a particularly popular selection. But would allow Mikel to shield, and then the legs of Ramires or the vision of Cesc to alternate within our attacks - whilst at all times remaining defensively stable. Almost like two men to do the job of Matic.

I'll go and hide and await the negative responses now.

sounds good to me. Oscar needs a break and Matic is out

[DavidEU 2,023]

Yeah sorry we won them 4 - 0 in 2004 at home but hey 10 years on, better, stronger team we could win 10 years on at theirs.

Definitely. We've got a good chance to win there and win well. People on here are nervous as there's a few stats against us and Matic is out.

[MichaelDance 552]

Definitely. We've got a good chance to win there and win well. People on here are nervous as there's a few stats against us and Matic is out.

Yeah true, the thing about us is we learn from our mistakes unlike other teams.

[MrBlueGuy 1,552]

Anyone would be happy with a point? Obviously it depends on the match but if we come out with a draw I wouldn't be too unhappy. This is probably the hardest away fixture we got left along with Arsenal and Spurs. Just hope Costa keeps on scoring though, don't want Aguero to pull too far away

[CHOULO19 24,332]

Maybe we should set the negativity on here about Mikel at an all time high so that when he actually plays quite well, he gets a little bit of appreciation. Granted he's no Matic, but there are far worse players out there!

Alright, I'll start:

Oh shit! No Matic??? If Mikel starts we will lose

Mikel will start? we're dooooomed

It's catching on!

[xPetrCechx 13,565]

Hard One...

[Magic Lamps 11,677]

I hate this fixture, we always seem to lose at Newcastle. At least Remy can't score against us this time.

The thing is they thrive on open park games, with their powerful but technically limited players driving through the middle. So the absence of Matic is particularly untimely. Anyway, I go along with Choulo's and other's idea of playing Mikel AND Ramires, resting Oscar. Also Ivanovic deserves a rest once.

-----------Tibo----------

Azpi--Cahill---JT---Luis

-------Mikel--Ramy-----

Schürrle--Fab---Hazard

------------Costa---------

I know they will be ambitious and give their all, but just as Spurs they have some absolute muppets in their team especially in Defense, who will commit error after error when we put them under sufficient pressure. I am pretty sure they will start like Tottenham and run their lungs out, so our defense is key to withstand their punctual onslaughts. On the other side of the field, we should look to stretch them with two AMs attacking one side, dribblings and little on-twos giving us space. When enough service falls to Costa we will score. I can not see us failing to score vs that joke of a defense. So as long as we don't surrender them midfield, or committing too many player forward at a time, we should be fine.

[Viper22 2,418]

For me i'd play (assuming Ake is out and Rambo is fit):

--------------Courtois-----------------

---Ivan-----Cahill----JT-----Azpi---

----------------Mikel-------------------

-------Ramires---------Oscar-------

-Willian----------------------Hazard-

----------------Costa------------------

Subs: Cech, Luis, Zouma, Fabregas, Schurrle, Remy, Drogba.

We need Ramires' legs and Mikel's shielding of the back 4 as others have said. And I thought that Fab looked far more in need of a rest than Oscar so i'd drop Oscar back into a 3 man midfield. I've always thought that he'd work well there.

Fabregas ready to come off the bench if we're in trouble for Oscar/Ramires. Everyone can have a proper rest in the week against Sporting.

[dee25 1,044]

I'm liking the idea of playing a midfield of Mikel, Cesc and Ramires (assuming he's fit) and dropping one of Oscar or Willian. Whatever we'll miss from playing one less attacking mid can be made up by allowing Cesc more freedom to influence the game. It would also be helpful if Luis came in for Azpi to provide an attacking threat down the left flank but that probably won't happen. It's a shame because with Luis, Ramires and Cesc supporting Hazard and Costa - I think that would be our best bet at claiming 3 points.

[BleedsBlue 1,549]

Hard One...

THATS WHAT SHE SAID! sorry couldn't resist.

[petre.ispirescu 4,928]

And Jack Colback.

By the way, you said Sissoko has always played well when you watch Newcastle and so, you better not watch the game this Saturday!

[robdog 2,084]

I hate this fixture, we always seem to lose at Newcastle.

At home too. Remember in 2012? That incredible shot by Cisse that caught Cech off of his line? Barcodes are like Everton, they always play CFC tuff no matter the situation.

The thing is they thrive on open park games, with their powerful but technically limited players driving through the middle. So the absence of Matic is particularly untimely. Anyway, I go along with Choulo's and other's idea of playing Mikel AND Ramires, resting Oscar. Also Ivanovic deserves a rest once.

-----------Tibo----------

Azpi--Cahill---JT---Luis

-------Mikel--Ramy-----

Schürrle--Fab---Hazard

------------Costa---------

I know they will be ambitious and give their all, but just as Spurs they have some absolute muppets in their team especially in Defense, who will commit error after error when we put them under sufficient pressure. I am pretty sure they will start like Tottenham and run their lungs out, so our defense is key to withstand their punctual onslaughts. On the other side of the field, we should look to stretch them with two AMs attacking one side, dribblings and little on-twos giving us space. When enough service falls to Costa we will score. I can not see us failing to score vs that joke of a defense. So as long as we don't surrender them midfield, or committing too many player forward at a time, we should be fine.

I have to agree w/ this right here. I like you lineup, but we could insert Oscar on the left if need be, but I don't see a need to take out Willian. He has been playing very good on both sides of the halfway line as of late. Bring in Zie German if we need to go a bit more offensive.

[Nike 373]

2 Brazilians need to start every game for chelsea(not counting luis or costa)...

So, rambo/willian, willian/oscar, or oscar/rambo. Chelsea is not athletic enough without them and it will show and expose cesc, matic, jt and cahill.

[cosmicway 1,333]

We have until February to concentrate on the league and draw clear of the rest.

Then there are some big matches coming up.

[Chelsea Legend 11 4,062]

We're gonna be forced to switch out our natural shield to the back four, why on earth do people want to switch our back 4 as well? its all about understanding and familiarity, I for one don't want to see any changes made to the back four. The midfield is a completely different story, without Matic I think the smart move is to play Mikel and Ramires with Cesc. I would play Oscar wide right and Hazard on the left because I think this will provide us with the most flexibility in formation and variation from attacking runs.

Pardew is a proud man, he won't park the bus at home like Sunderland. He spoke about the importance of getting at us in order to get something out of the game which I truly hope they do! We have been good at soaking up pressure the past few weeks. I can see this game being WIDE open and the possibility for goals being great. The need for Mikel in this game is SO important, Cesc and Ramires will likely be overpowered I don't see that happening with Mikel.

Costa has to be Costa again. We will need an early goal but we also need to control the first 10-15mins of the second half. If we surrender too much of the possession to them early in the second I can envision it being a very difficult game to get a result in... This fixture worries me more than most, early kickoff at a ground we don't have a lot of luck in. Its rare we look good in early kickoffs away, hoping this is the season to put this to bed much like we have the poor November.

[Special Juan 27,602]

Train tickets are sorted and me and the lad are ready.....

CAREFREEEEE!!

[MrExcalibur100 7,124]

Train tickets are sorted and me and the lad are ready.....

CAREFREEEEE!!

Long journey, that. I've never been to the North-East before. I hope you and you kid have a good time and enjoy the game!