Radford10

Imo Alonso was voted in because 1) his attacking threat 2) solid but not spectacular defending 3) poor standard of LBs in the prem

His goals and consistent (although not incredible) performances have got him there. Must have been close with Davies and Young but deserved. Pretty poor group of left backs in Prem atm. Robertson would have deserved it if he had started the league the same way hes finishing it.

Hes good enough to play early round cup games or the odd match, plus we cant discount the influence he has on the dressing room and the youngsters at the club. As the 5th/6th choice in a back 3 i dont see why you wouldnt keep him on for another year at least. Only guessing but id say he'd be content with that role also.

He is good experience and to have in the changing room if its only for the remaining 15 months on his contract. He shouldnt be expecting a starting place. Been off that pace for a year now.

Whats he done?

Its amazing, he just keeps getting better. I was hoping for a lwb upgrade this year but if he keeps turning in performances like 2nd half burnley and spurs away we would be mad to spend £60m on sandro.

He's the only bit of excitement around the club at the moment. Can't wait to see him next week from the start. Just need the board to sort themselves out and stop selling players and buy.

I was hoping Rudiger would impress and take his position over the first half of the season. Seems Gary may have sped this process up. Was impressed with Rudiger and Christensen today. The future is bright for us in the CB spots. Continued displays like that from Luiz and Cahill will see them lose their spots by the end of the year i reckon. Remember debating with someone the benefits of Cahill's goals. My argument against was that he costs more goals than he scores. I was proven right again this weekend.

So much polarized thought in this forum. GC is a great CB and will do a fantastic job if we have to rely on him over the season. But... he is the weaker of the 3 CBs and as team that strives to be the best in the world you have to upgrade on the weakest positions. Which is no disrespect imo. DL and Dave are top quality options. We are clearly trying to find upgrades in Rudiger and further links to Vvd/Bonucci/Manolas. And i agree with the opinion that every top club in England would have wished to have had Cahill over the last 5 years and i'd say they would all love to have Cahill in their team still. Happy he got the captaincy. Can't see him being first team post xmas with Rudiger taking his place more permanently. But people need to stop saying hes though bad because he is clearly not.

Dave is our best defender! He has been incredible in that RCB role. Harsh rating him on one game against very good opposition. Cahill's age and the hint of him being on the downturn has him as the natural player to be upgraded. Azpil to get the captaincy for me. VvD loves a goal if we buy him and Ake has shown to be capable at putting one in. Cahill might have scored 6 prem goals but he also made 4 or 5 mistakes that led straight to goals being conceeded. Swansea, Stoke and Man City all coming straight to mind. Hoping for Azpil Luiz VvD set up next season. With Azpil, Luiz, VvD, Cahill, Ake and AC in the squad. With Azpil a back up for Moses im hoping AC and Ake will get plenty of game time.

We kept only 4 clean sheets in the prem after xmas. Goals are good also but you have to judge on his defending. Plus the 'crucial' Stoke goal came after he needlessly fouled Walters and gave away the Pen. Some of the criticism of Cahill on this page is over the top but he is the weak link in the back 3. Doesn't mean he's a bad player, you just have to look at improving. He's slow and nervous on the ball (maybe to do with him being on the left side) and is pretty poor in 1 v 1 situations. However, no one smells danger quicker than him. He has usually smelt danger, dealt with it and back in position before Luiz has even realised something is happening haha. Also, judging a player on his ability to play well in the CL next year by his performance 5 years ago is probably not a good idea.

Slight changes being; Luiz, Kante, Pedro, Moses and Alonso. Half the team seems like more than a slight change haha. Plus the manager and a completely different style of play. Completely agree we shouldnt be looking to change things up unless we definitely need too or there is an opportunity that cant be passed on.

He has been a fantastic player for us over the years and he is still a good player but i think its time to move on. Mistakes are becoming too frequent. Fantastic cover though.

Totally agree. If Alonso is to be replaced, it needs to be with someone who is genuinely better than him. Not sure Baba is that guy. Wouldn't mind seeing Kennedy back in January and playing back up to Alonso. I think he has the attributes to become a top class wing back. We have endless talent in the youth system. We need to start bringing them through and save on these huge transfer fees. I might be in the minority here but i'd rather we start giving our youth players chances even if it is detrimental to our title chances. I think it would be beneficial in the long run.

Totally agree, however those teams play a young a side which gives them that natural energy. We need to rebuild a younger team. Im not saying either that we need to buy buy buy because i think chelsea have what they need on the sidelines but are just not using them. They need time but the current crop of youth are good enough to do big things imo