just

As Tony Gale said the other day, it's Mourinho's team, still playing Mourinho's system. Only with less organisation. Grant has brought one player, Anelka, and (when he has choosen to play him), often used him out of position. I'm sorry but whatever happens, whatever we win or lose, I hope he isn't in charge next season.

Great opportunity to jump in now and get him on the cheap.

Ditch the word "possibly" and we are in full agreement.

He was fantastic last night. He was fantastic against ManU on Saturday. He was fantastic against Arsenal. He is fantastic full stop. The best in the world. Have we ever had a more consistent big game player? Consider this. A huge number of Chelsea fans hate Drogba. Why? Falls down too easily at times? Yep, guess he does. Whinges too much too match officials? Yep, seen him do that. Has too much to say to the media? Christ, yes. Wish he would just keep schtum. Has made it clear he wants to leave Chelsea. Unfortunately, yes. This is true. Are all the above reasons to hate/despise him? Consider this. A huge number of Chelsea fans absolutely worshipped Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. Why? Fell down too easily at times? ............. He invented falling over. Whinged too much too match officials? Yep, Not many Benny. Had too much to say to the media? Yep. Everytime he went back to Holland. Wish he would just have kept schtum. Had made it clear he wanted to leave Chelsea. Yes. This is true. He would have pulled on armbands and swum to Barcelona. Do you know, in a way it would be good to have a Jimmy-type clone back. Wandering around the pitch. Limited ability. Not being arsed to run for any ball more than 5 yards away. Never winning a header. Never tracking back. Moaning at his own team mates. Back to a few seasons of no silverware. Maybe a few would start to appreciate Drogba and his sheer quality. PS. For those comparing Drogba to Sheva, and saying his best years are behind him, can I just say, IMO, you are well wide of the mark. One of Sheva's main assets was his pace. When that pace is gone, (as it is in Sheva's case), it never returns. Drogba has never had Sheva pace. The Drog's principle assets are his awesome physical prescence and his work ethic. Neither of which look to be in the slightest decline.

Another vote for The Hated One here. Didier Drogba. Gonna be funny next season when he's not at the Bridge and we'll be watching any of Huntelaar/Villa/Aguero/Zlatan/InsertBigNameHere in a Blue shirt trying to emulate Drogs performance last night and falling a million miles short. Our loss is going to be someone's massive gain.

Cilla Black avatar ! Keep it up Mod. Brilliant work. I liked the gay Gerrard Stevens look-a-like in glasses best. They'll all be flooding on here in the next couple of days so can we make a few suggestions for avatars? I offer the following: 1. Stan Boardman 2. A car with its wheels missing. 3. Any of the Harry Enfield "calm down" scousers 4. A picture of someone sifting through a bin 5. A Liverpoo shirt being burnt

dk I'm shocked at that. You're normally a reasoned sort of bloke. I thought Drogba was superb yesterday against United. I have no doubt we would have lost that game without him.

Just, the problem is that Drogs does not want to play hear next season, so who is to blame for that??? Duh, the answer is Drogs. What's that got to do with anything? So he wants to leave. He's said that since Mourinho left. Get over it. Alright, he can be a wuss. There are too many times he gets a knock and stays down like he's been shot. That's fine to have moan about. I don't want to see that anymore than the next bloke. But people ignore the fact he does get some brutal treatment at times. One "tackle" from behind on him in the CC final was one of the worst I've seen all season but he never even got a free-kick. The isolated, lone-striker role he plays is one of the most difficult jobs in football. Look how awfully Sheva has done it. Look how averagely Anelka has done it. Drogba generally does it brilliantly. And when we did put another natural striker alongside him for a part of last season, look what he did in that formation.

Drogba. All the Drogba haters, (and unfortunately there are a great many on here), are in for a massive shock next season when he isn't around. And the funniest bit is we'll probably spend the equivalent of the GDP of a small nation to bring in some "big name" who really isn't half the player Drogba is. Essien was second.

No one single player should take free-kicks all the time. It's dependant on many factors. Distance from goal, angle to goal, position on the pitch the kick is being taken from i.e. left, right or central. etc What should happen is this. The management should have worked on all these different scenarios on the training ground a thousand times over. And from this, certain players should have been given the responsibility to take kicks in specific situations. It's called preparation. Unfortunately, I don't think it happens that way under Avram. It's a case of whoever fancies it, gets to take it.

All I know is, whenever we have met Valencia, (and Villa and Drogba have been playing), Drogba has looked twice the player Villa has.

Born in Hammersmith, lived in Acton West London. Father was, and still is, a Chelsea fan. He took me as a kid. I started going on my own in my teens. I never ever made a concious decision to support Chelsea, it was simply a part of my upbringing.

One thing I've noticed is his intelligence as a footballer. He always appears calm and invariably makes the right decision in most situations. He's got everything you could want in a full-back. I'd have him in heartbeat. I'd certainly choose him over Alves.

Yeah I'd go along with that. The best that I've seen. I said this at the last World Cup. Only Zambrotta came close IMO. He played against us in the CL a few years back. Can't remember who for though. He was very young and was on loan at the time from Bayern. Looked a stunning player even then.

RIP. Condolences to Frank and his family.

All true Coco. And you have forgotten the most important factor. Avram's luck. He could quite possibly turn out to be the luckiest fu*ker who has ever pulled on a pair of trousers.

That's the one. I remember the comedian Jasper Carrott being on the pitch before the game? Then the game started and I realised we had 11 comedians on the pitch. They creamed us big-time. Was mental outside. Ambushed on some waste ground with the brummies throwing bricks and concrete at us from all sides. The local constabulary turned up in numbers to restore order and promptly laid into the Chelsea boys with truncheons flying. Ended up running around half of Birmingham. Got separated from my mates, couldn't find my way back and so missed me lift home. Had to catch a train back to London. Got in about 7.00 the next morning.

I was up there the other night and have stayed off here until today. I also have not bothered to read any posts in this thread. Here's my views. I'll try and keep it short and sweet. Aside from the first 25 minutes, when we knocked the ball around well but without ever looking like we were going to hurt them, I thought we were abysmal. Not bad. Bad doesn't go half way to describing how we played. No, we were abysmal. Truly shocking. How we managed to get a draw out of the game will go down as one of the all-time great mysteries. On a par with Lord Lucan, the Bermuda Triangle and The Marie Celeste. 2nd half I couldn't believe how much better than us they were. And Liverpool, as we all know, are not a brilliant side. They were better in every department. In every area of the park. Without Cech and that ginger full-back who can't kick with his right foot, we would be out already. And, if we don't perform a million times better next Wednesday, we will be. I still believe that I, and all those others on here who have called for a change in formation that accomodates two central strikers together, are 100% right. We simply don't look like we can hurt a defensively organised team like Liverpool with a 4-3-3 that isolates a lone central striker. In fact, we can't even make them break into a sweat. We don't have enough pace or attacking, over-lapping full-backs who are good enough to make that system work and stretch Carragher and Co. Dear Christ I hope I'm wrong, but if we play that system next week I think we could be in for another horror show. Actually, based on what I watched the other night, I'm cacking myself.

Many times. Rottenham on a few occaisions, in the 80's. Bolton when we won the title. Leicester away in the drawn cup game of '97, the one that had the fans spilling onto the pitch from the Leicester end because of the fighting. Though I wasn't in the away ends, my closest near death experiences were at Wet Spam and Birmingham City in the 80's. Actually had to change clothes with a mate at the Spammers game in an effort to avoid being lynched.

One of my problems with him is that match against Italy in the world cup. In particular, how he tactically played the game when Italy went down to 10 men. His reluctance to make more of the numerical advantage was a missed opportunity IMO.

And Italians

OK. First let me adjust the chin strap on my tin-helmet. Incoming fire. As an Englishman who watched Australia in the last World Cup, I do need convincing. I keep hearing his name, but to be honest, Hiddink's management and Australia's performances, didn't set my TV on fire. I'm not convinced Hiddink would be the man for us. But I remain open to persuasion. I hope our Aussie contingent can sway me with their reasoned opinions on why he should he get the job.

I'd drive to LA myself to pick him up and bring him back.

I'll submit one for the best foreign players to have played for us. No British or Irish included. 1. Zola 2. Ruud 3. Desailly 4. Gallas 5. Makelele 6. Drogba 7. Cech 8. Robbie Di 9. Super Dan 10. Poyet Numbers 4 & 10 may upset some with their inclusion because they have both left Chelsea and proved themselves top class c*nts. But there's no denying they were quality players when they wore a Chelsea shirt. Could also argue for Dorigo to be included in there as well. Top player in his day. I could also perhaps make a case for Ruud to be in the no:1 position. IMO, that first season he played for us under Hoddle he was virtually flawless. In every game he played. For the entire season. Zola was better over a long span of time, but I don't think he was quite as good, as consistent or as influential as Ruud was in that first season.

That's nothing...be prepared to really be ripped off, should we progress to the final. Ithink Moscow is one of the most expensive cities in the world. So? Thousands upon thousands of fans will still travel should we make the final. Glory, some of our lads, (optimists one and all), have already booked flights and accomodation. Not to Moscow itself mind, but to somewhere not too far away where it is much, much cheaper to get to and relatively simply to travel in for the game. I myself haven't booked to go yet, (and I don't wont to say where it is either), for fear of jinxing us. Although I swore I'd never go there again after losing the semi-final last season, I shall be at Anfield on Tuesday and if we get any sort of decent result there I may well take the gamble and book it then. It is a tip worth remembering for those travelling to away games abroad. The flight deals to Moscow will be skyhigh because they know there will be a huge demand. If so, don't fly there. Go somewhere else in the country, or indeed to a different country altogether, and travel in from there. Make sure you check the travel arrangements and links carefully though. We have done it this way many, many times and have never had a problem. Normally saves us a packet too. Tea Bar Boy may have some good info on different options and ways of doing it. He's in the travel game.