5 things to learn from the MCFC defeat

[BLionheart 516]

1- Chelsea are not invincible!!! :

yes they are not , and i think most of us already knew that but we didn' know exactly the type of teams that can beat chelsea and now we do , those teams are the likes of Man city , Inter milan and may be Real madrid . in other words teams who have very solid defense in terms of discipline , physical strength and aggressiveness and very sharp and deadly on the counter attack having speedy forwards with clinical finishers .

so for me i am not too worried about this as there is only one man city in the league . and to be honest i have expected this even before the league starts , we can beat any team in the EPL but we tend to have problems when facing Man city so as Drogba has said if we were told that we will lose both games against city but win the league we would have signed for it , and i think that we would win our first five games , lose against city and still be the top of the league with 3 points ahead of united most of us would have signed for it as well .

2- Chelsea has improved since last year but they are still gonna lose if they are to face the exact same intermilan of last year.

well 22 goals scored with only 2 in return , yes we have faced some of the bottom table teams but compared to last year's first six fixtures i don't think there was a big difference . scoring from every where and it sure looks like they are all on fire malouda Drogba anelka and kalou have already scored more than 5 goals each .

chelsea has definitely improved but let's not get carried away , yesterday it was pretty clear that we still lack the extra spark a la messi , yes lampard was missing and it might have been a lot easier with him on the field but he is no messi . when i was watching the game i couldn't help but notice that this match was very similar to both of the inter clashes specially the bridge game which ended with the same result with the same exact manner .

3- Chelsea has one of the smallest squads in the league :

last year when we had mikel , essien , belleti and deco injured we still didn't have to use the youngsters like McEachran or Matic . in the very few times we used kakuta , sturridge or Matic it was to give them game time not because we didn't have other options ... but still i like that because it means we will get to see a lot of Kakuta and McEachran this year .

the only place i am worried about is defense with iva the only decent cover for CB and RB because as much as i hate to admit it bruma looks way far from being ready for regular first team action and ferrera is completely useless now .

the other player that can not be replaced in chelsea is Lampard , yes you can play ramires while he is injured or benayoun but no one will be able to provide what lamps does .

4- Sturridge still has a lot to learn and he must learn quickly .

after his cameo in the community shield a lot of the fans have been crazy about him waiting for more but he was very disappointing to them as he has been one of our worst players against zilina , Newcastle and man city . so unless he starts listening to what Carlo says and improves quickly he will just turn into another kalou .

5- we have every right to say that kakuta and McEachran are the future of the club .

those two are absolutely future world-class stars if they stay away from bad injuries and i am talking about near future . they are both very smart players and clearly have special talent . so while kakuta proved that with one moment of brilliance he can change games like our first goal against new castle that was pure class assist also his assist in the U-19 final , Josh McEachran proved to be very mature for his age , i have never imagined a 17 years old midfielder playing with this calmness and awareness of the game some are already linking him and jack wilshire with Lampard and gerrard .

they will be provided game time not only because carlo said so but apparently he doesn't have a lot of options as i have mentioned before and that will help their progress to turn into wold class footballers

[zolayes 14,489]

1- Chelsea are not invincible!!! :

yes they are not , and i think most of us already knew that but we didn' know exactly the type of teams that can beat chelsea and now we do , those teams are the likes of Man city , Inter milan and may be Real madrid . in other words teams who have very solid defense in terms of discipline , physical strength and aggressiveness and very sharp and deadly on the counter attack having speedy forwards with clinical finishers .

so for me i am not too worried about this as there is only one man city in the league . and to be honest i have expected this even before the league starts , we can beat any team in the EPL but we tend to have problems when facing Man city so as Drogba has said if we were told that we will lose both games against city but win the league we would have signed for it , and i think that we would win our first five games , lose against city and still be the top of the league with 3 points ahead of united most of us would have signed for it as well .

2- Chelsea has improved since last year but they are still gonna lose if they are to face the exact same intermilan of last year.

well 22 goals scored with only 2 in return , yes we have faced some of the bottom table teams but compared to last year's first six fixtures i don't think there was a big difference . scoring from every where and it sure looks like they are all on fire malouda Drogba anelka and kalou have already scored more than 5 goals each .

chelsea has definitely improved but let's not get carried away , yesterday it was pretty clear that we still lack the extra spark a la messi , yes lampard was missing and it might have been a lot easier with him on the field but he is no messi . when i was watching the game i couldn't help but notice that this match was very similar to both of the inter clashes specially the bridge game which ended with the same result with the same exact manner .

3- Chelsea has one of the smallest squads in the league :

last year when we had mikel , essien , belleti and deco injured we still didn't have to use the youngsters like McEachran or Matic . in the very few times we used kakuta , sturridge or Matic it was to give them game time not because we didn't have other options ... but still i like that because it means we will get to see a lot of Kakuta and McEachran this year .

the only place i am worried about is defense with iva the only decent cover for CB and RB because as much as i hate to admit it bruma looks way far from being ready for regular first team action and ferrera is completely useless now .

the other player that can not be replaced in chelsea is Lampard , yes you can play ramires while he is injured or benayoun but no one will be able to provide what lamps does .

4- Sturridge still has a lot to learn and he must learn quickly .

after his cameo in the community shield a lot of the fans have been crazy about him waiting for more but he was very disappointing to them as he has been one of our worst players against zilina , Newcastle and man city . so unless he starts listening to what Carlo says and improves quickly he will just turn into another kalou .

5- we have every right to say that kakuta and McEachran are the future of the club .

those two are absolutely future world-class stars if they stay away from bad injuries and i am talking about near future . they are both very smart players and clearly have special talent . so while kakuta proved that with one moment of brilliance he can change games like our first goal against new castle that was pure class assist also his assist in the U-19 final , Josh McEachran proved to be very mature for his age , i have never imagined a 17 years old midfielder playing with this calmness and awareness of the game some are already linking him and jack wilshire with Lampard and gerrard .

they will be provided game time not only because carlo said so but apparently he doesn't have a lot of options as i have mentioned before and that will help their progress to turn into wold class footballers

a good analysis ...we let go some of our most experienced plays to make way for youth ..of course this was a gamble but imo a much needed one.

the youngteams players obviously need time to fully find their feet , I admit I have been disappointed with Danny as he is the oldest and most experienced.

To a lesser extent also Bruma . The big positive is the form of Josh ,,,but we cant expect him to replace Lampard just yet.

I am also concerned a little with our defence if we suffer injuries and 3 match suspensions ..Still other teams have also their problems, including

Inter ...Beneathus is no Jose .

overall a good read ..thanks for posting

[Slam Dunk 1,442]

I agree with you in that Sturridge has been disappointing, but I do not believe it is all down to him. I do not understand the logic in using him in the right-attacker role. For me, he seems to be a player that should be making runs behind the centre backs, as we have seen him do a few times before. CA said that he wanted to use Sturridge's pace down the right side vs City, surely Anelka provides that, as well as the ability to beat a player 1 on 1. I feel he deserves a full 90mins playing in the centre, then we will see how much he has to learn.

[BLionheart 516]

I agree with you in that Sturridge has been disappointing, but I do not believe it is all down to him. I do not understand the logic in using him in the right-attacker role. For me, he seems to be a player that should be making runs behind the centre backs, as we have seen him do a few times before. CA said that he wanted to use Sturridge's pace down the right side vs City, surely Anelka provides that, as well as the ability to beat a player 1 on 1. I feel he deserves a full 90mins playing in the centre, then we will see how much he has to learn.

nope , i don't think that is why he was such a disappointment ... for me the reasons behind his failure to impress are pretty clear ,

he tries too hard that he ends up screwing every ball he gets ... sometimes he is trying to get past 3 or 4 oppositions or shoot from 40 yards and off course the outcome of that wasn't so pleasing .

his positioning is very bad specially for a lefty player on the right wing , when a lefty player plays there he should always try to get more involved in the game , break to the inside of the field rather than the outside but daniel is always moving next to the line that i can't recall him being anywhere except on the very right of the field .

with all the pace he has , he doesn't know yet how to use that in his favor and he ends up running into his opponents instead of getting past them , it's not as simple as kick the ball and you will get it first cause you are faster that might have ended up well for him in the reserves but welcome to reality .... you have to have some tricks , to look one way and go the other , to move one way and quickly turn back and may be back again , so untill you can do those kind of tricks , you need to keep it simple and just pass the ball or play a one two .

his shooting is not good enough really , the only times i recall sensing danger coming from daniel is when he cuts inside to shoot but his shots is not really good . and that as well affects him badly because as soon as he scores more often he will get more comfortable playing with the team and will just stop trying too much at the same time .

that's what i think of daniel sturridge and it's only my opinion so may be it's not 100% right

[Styles 9,790]

I already knew our squad was very thin and we are 2 or 3 lengthy injuries away from a crisis. If Drogba for instance is injured we're done for.

The Man City game just highlighted two things for me; we need an attacking right back with pace. If Bosingwa isn't going to return the same player that is now a priority for January or the summer. We still do not have a dribbler in the team capable of unlocking good defensive teams.We didn't have one against Inter last year and we certainly didn't have one against Man City this year.

[Slam Dunk 1,442]

that's what i think of daniel sturridge and it's only my opinion so may be it's not 100% right

I can see what you're saying and perhaps you are right, he is trying too hard, but can you blame him? He wants to impress. I was merely saying that the reason that he is taking on players and shooting from impossible angles is because he isn't playing where he should be. If he was making runs behind the defence, he would be doing what he does best. Finishing. He can't do that out wide so he HAS to cut inside and work a chance for himself. Maybe it will be good for his development, no-one can tell at this point, it will take time though.

[DYC. 7,542]

4.

Only his performances as striker should be praised or critisized. He's not a right attacker but the coach is playing him there.

[Fulham Broadway 16,854]

Sturridge will be offloaded at the end of the season imo. West Ham or the Yids will get him, another Carlton Cole. Not World class.

Yes losing to Man City was painful, but I could see it happening. Tevez is one of the best -and someone at SW 6 should have done some research to check that it was his mums birthday.

That said, losing to them is not as bad as losing to West Brom at home or drawing at Bolton....

[BLionheart 516]

Sturridge will be offloaded at the end of the season imo. West Ham or the Yids will get him, another Carlton Cole. Not World class.

Yes losing to Man City was painful, but I could see it happening. Tevez is one of the best -and someone at SW 6 should have done some research to check that it was his mums birthday.

That said, losing to them is not as bad as losing to West Brom at home or drawing at Bolton....

Offloaded !!!!!!! that was a bit harsh i would say , he clearly has some quality and the lad's talent is very clear but he is still struggling to show what he's got .

although i agree with you that this season will have a great impact on his career as a footballer .

[LDN Blue 7,903]

Sturridge will be offloaded at the end of the season imo. West Ham or the Yids will get him, another Carlton Cole. Not World class.

I didn't want to say that but I share the same view if I'm honest. I think Carlo's going to run out of patience soon.

[Badboy 1,526]

I think the flak sturridge is getting is a bit harsh he did not play well in 2 games.

[Kostas 1,468]

Give him a break,he has had a couple really bad games and we're already on the verge of offloading him? Everyone can have a bad game or 2.

[diskoviolente 425]

Wherefrom comes this lack of trust in our players especially when they are our youngsters, what do we expect from players like Sturry and Bruma ?

One game - and it is a make - or - break-situation for the the guys who needs time to adapt. Unless you are not some sort of genius like Messi you need time to adapt to the game.

Against City all the lads besides from Anelka and Josh looked off the tracks, so don´t blame Sturry for not finding the net when everyone was having trouble, yes it would´ve been nice

if he turns up a little more in these games but there was a reason that Drogba didn´t sliced the ManCity defense, and if can´t surly young Daniel can´t (by now).

Sturridge is facing a lot of gametime this season so give him a break and judge his work when the season is over.

I don´t want to take anything away from his late poorness, but there have been other games where he really showed what he´s capable of.

[Madmax 9,219]

So 3 poor performances from Sturridge make him worthy of being 'offloaded' yet a couple of decent cameos from Josh and Kakuta make them potentially 'world-class'? Crying out for some perspective here. Why can't everyone just view them as youngsters who are dying to impress the gaffer, the fans and the footballing universe in general? They are expected to make mistakes because they are still just barely out of their teens. They aren't 30 year old regular first teamers.

Everyone knew we'd have among the smallest squads in the league so it's not fair bringing that up now that we've lost 2 games. No one talked about the small squad when we won 5 on the trot and obliterated everyone put in front of us. I don't know about you but I'd rather have 19 seniors and 5 youngsters rather than 25 seniors, 6 of whom are there just to make up the numbers.

[warnie_666 1,081]

Carlo mentioned that Sturridge needs to stop playing wide and learn to make his runs towards the centre. Sturridge on right often wanders on the flank, but if we see our front three they keeps moving and changing places. Sturridge needs to adapt to that style of play. He has a killer of a left foot. Needs confidence and he should be good. 2 bad games dont make him bad. Last season he was scoring well in FA Cup and also made some good contributions in EPL. He needs time......and Confidence.

On watchign Man City game I feel that the team didnt realize what struck them. Having a cake walk of first 5 games they werent ready for the power and tenacity of Man City. You see the Blackpool game and see the showboating by Drogba and the rest, it makes you feel the team is invicible.

What this match has done is brought our team back to the ground. We can now take our opponents seriously and put on more efficient performances.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

Drogba was pony against Man City and I think he's been below par for the last three games but no-one seems to pick that up because he's Drogba. Sturridge was poor, fair enough, but cut the kid some slack.

Otherwise a very good read and I enjoyed the way you expressed your thoughts.

[LDN Blue 7,903]

Guys don't get me wrong. I like Sturridge as much as the next Chelsea fan, but the fact is sometimes we get class players who we think will be a future starter and they often end up being sold. Take example Carlton Cole, I hope i'm 100% wrong, but we know how managers do get impatient with players. There's no doubt though, he does need to start making more of his chances.

[Term-X 7,891]

Guys don't get me wrong. I like Sturridge as much as the next Chelsea fan, but the fact is sometimes we get class players who we think will be a future starter and they often end up being sold. Take example Carlton Cole, I hope i'm 100% wrong, but we know how managers do get impatient with players. There's no doubt though, he does need to start making more of his chances.

Exactly.

I trust the professionals to judge him, rather than having to decipher the views of those with dsl cables.