Slojo

I'll reiterate it again, we cannot persist with this guy in the long term, as soon as he's pressured he's vulnerable. He can't play it out from the back and he's a limited defender to boot. Besides being a physical presence, he offers very little else.

I've been having this argument in the Zouma thread with others who think he's good at playing it out from the back. He's a very limited footballer and not a great defender. No way can we persist with im at the back in the long term.

f**king Zouma again with a terrible pass.... Jesus Christ

We look tired I think, they're pressing us much better.

Best part is Pulisic and Mount haven't even swapped, that was just Pulisic wandering for a bit...

I think Jorginho has played well besides that misplaced pass that got him the yellow. However, it's probably a good idea to take him off, he's probably on his last chance. It's a shame because I think Kante has been the worst out of the two.

Mount has offered nothing going forward, whereas the others at least look threatening in some areas despite some sloppy play. Really need to get him off the pitch and try something else.

You got it wrong, it's "BuT hEs WoRlD cLaSs"

Yepp... That's another story though.

I'll give you that, you did call it. But Ziyech isn't fully fit yet, you have to consider that.

Great to see Mendy and Thiago back. I would've preferred to have seen Kovacic in the side over Kante though, and Pulisic on the left with Ziyech on the right. Still that's a good side.

It's not even that Mendy is a great goalkeeper, he's just competent. That's how bad we've had it under Kepa.

That is very true, but there's still more to it than that. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-8859381/Chelsea-defensive-errors-team-far-season-isnt-Kepas-fault.html We conceded the 2nd fewest shots in the league last season (just below Man City), yet we still managed to in the bottom 10 of goals conceded. This was down to many individual errors in the defensive side, not just Kepa. There's a severe lack of quality at the back, our attacking play is actually very good, one of the best for chances created and possession. But it's always undone by silly individual errors. It's just difficult to really know what the problem is. People argue that it's the lack of quality in the CB's, it's a Liverpool/Klopp situation, as soon as that's addressed, it will be hunky dory and we will be a force to be reckoned with. Others think it's a bit of a coincidence for how Rudiger and Christenen can become drastically worse overnight, and the defensive shape and managerial efforts are clearly the problem. For me I think it's both, but I don't know which one needs addressing more. I look at this team and I always pick these two things out... We are great on the ball, even our own fans don't give Lamps enough credit for good we are on the ball, but off the ball we are terrible, Championship teams put in a better shift and pressing duties than we do. The defensive shape sometimes is just all over the place, you see the space between the midfield and the defence and you can't help but notice why the defenders make so many mistakes at times. I'm just hoping Mendy fixes a lot of things at the back, but I don't think he will as much as some are expecting him to do.

We've barely seen Mendy play and it's like a Hazard situation. "If Hazard is available, we win this game", that's how drastic the goalkeeper situation is. Blimey... Just imagine if we didn't sign Mendy? How did we go a full season with Kepa and finish in the top 4? TWICE??

He had a good period when he first broke through under Conte, for months he actually looked solid and I remember thinking we've got a great player here. It was ever since he made that f**k up against Barcelona he wasn't the same, completely dented his confidence or something. But after that mistake he kept making more and that was that, we never saw that old Christensen.

I'm not saying you did this weekend but that seems to be the argument with Jorginho on this forum, if we lose a game he's always the scapegoat despite him making 0 mistakes, and I've seen you on that end. Even though I fully agree with what you said on that post, I just wish you would apply it towards other players.

f**king hell, if only you could apply this to Jorginho.

You have to expect that most Chelsea fans will defend Frank because he's a club legend. We also have a strong community here that gives managers time, and this is a wacky period right now. It's not just Frank who's slipping up, it's every other gaffer in the league. Covid and the restart has had a huge effect on the performances and expectations. On top of that, Frank has had to deal with a lot of injuries and ineligibilities. And this side needs time to gel, like it or not, he needs more time to get things going. Nobody can just sign that many players in key areas and get the ball rolling instantly, this is a project.

Every f**king time, you should've seen Souness, even Carragher was telling him to stop being so dramatic. Whenever anything happens to Liverpool or United, our main football broadcasting stations will always make a huge point about it and say "things have to change going forward". Every single time this happens, no other club gets this sort of defence. But that's what happens when you only hire United and Liverpool pundits.

That's the only issue, even though I think the Jorginho-Kovacic partnership is the best partnership in the side, it isn't the best defensively. But coming to think of it, is it still any good with Kante there? I don't think so... At least with Kovacic there, you've got good distribution and retention, teams can't afford to sit back or give us space. Kante misplaces far too many simple passes.

I don't wish Kepa any ill will and I know he will obviously be going through a difficult time mentally. But he really pissed me off in that Cup final, and that's something I just can't forget. He ruined any respect I had for him that day and completely f**ked things up. He lost this club a trophy as far as I'm concerned, all because he wanted the glory. Who can really respect that? Maybe in time I could've forgave that if he ended up being a good keeper. But he's not, he's atrocious, and he shouldn't be anywhere near the teamsheet.

Great post Phil. As bad as Willy is, he still doesn't make as many mistakes as Kepa, that's why I prefer him. But it's quite clear by the stats and by watching, that Christensen and Rudiger are our worst 2 defenders. Tomori can be a bit erratic at times but he looks promising also, I'm surprised to see him dropped as much as he has been because in contrast to Rudi and Christensen, I think he offers much more than those two. Zouma is obviously the best out of the bunch though, but that also worries me because I don't think Zouma is good enough even though I do think he's a decent defender. For me the defence should be Zouma/Tomori - Silva. Silva should always start when fit and eligble, he looks head and shoulders above everyone else imo.

Exactly this here... I don't know what it is, it's a shame.

Barkley being on loan will 100% be his decision, not the clubs.

You shouldn't be calling a club legend a bum mate. I get it, he's inexperienced and a gamble, but this comes across disrespectful as f**k.