Vagabond

Neither is CHO, but we'll have to make due with what we have.

Kruger Dunning in full effect. I guess Sarri is a clown as well for *not* taking off Willian instead of CHO?

Since you wrote a post back that it's hard to take me seriously, why exactly are you even responding to me? How about you sod off and just put me on your ignore list so you don't get triggered by my opinion and I don't get dumbfounded by yours? *edit* You're also the guy that thought CHO should've stayed on the pitch and Willian taken off, no?

Since you seem to love stats that much, here are a few pointers. CHO didn't score even once in his 350 PL minutes and got a single assist in that time. Except for against Brighton every single one of his scorers came at a point where the opposition was at least 2:0 down already and all of them were in the EL against the likes of PAOK Saloniki, Malmö or Kiev that had stellar aggregate records of 5:1 or 8:0 against us. There is a difference between the round of 16 in the EL and a mid table PL team.

He is and that's why I said (and why I hope) maybe 2 or 3 years down the line he will be better. But he is not on their level at the moment, which is the reason I feel both Willian are Pedro are getting massively disrespected when some of you are claiming he offers more than they do even now. He doesn't. And that's the bottom line, no matter how mad all of you may get over it. You are the kind of guys that will gang up on Willian for the tiniest mistake only to live in denial when CHO does a lot worse. I just won't stand for that, sorry.

No, he isn't. If he is up against a fullback that can keep up with him he is out of ideas immediatly and completely ineffective, while both Pedro and Willian are a lot more flexible. Watch him more closely in the next games he plays, you will see. Of course that's partly due to his lack of experience as well, but it's a fact nonetheless.

How is it hard to argue when against Liverpool we suddenly started to have chances as soon as CHO left the pitch and Hazard went onto the wing? Literally the opposite of what you are claiming is hard to argue against happened. Am I living in a parallel universe or are you?

I know I'm not making friends with my comments, but I'm trying to see the player realistically instead of jumping on hype trains regarding players that didn't do anything special yet. Pedro and Willian are both better technically, both have better vision and both retain posession better than CHO does. They both don't get discouraged as easily and Pedro especially is defensively lightyears ahead of CHO or did we already forget the game where Pedro tackled an opponent in our own box and saved our ass even after scoring one? You will never see that from CHO who honestly carries himself like he thinks he is like Eden already so he doesn't have to track back. That's the truth, wether you can see it or not. And it's fine, CHO is still a kid in my eyes and has plenty of time to evolve into a better player. But I simply refuse to lead a discussion about wether CHO is en par or even ahead (LOL?!?) of those two. I know he has many fanboys at Chelsea, but that doesn't change footballing facts. I really hope Sarri won't cave in to the pressure anymore, since some people seem to be prepared to end the season with even less points just so Odoi has a place in the starting XI. Sure, if that's your opinion it's fine with me. Just admit it then and stand by it instead of acting like Odoi has anything on Willian or Pedro.

Fair enough, if that's your opinion. I must say that it's really hard for me to take anybody seriously that thinks CHO is as good or better than Willian and Pedro at this point in his career. Two or three years down the line, maybe, if he keeps working. That being said I don't think a quality discussion between us is possible since we are obviously lightyears apart considering our assessment of Odoi. I simply can't see what he has done that would warrant the status he has with you and many other fans.

Are you seriously advocating a weaker starting lineup against rivals just so a single player has the chance to "take away from that experience"? What the hell is going on? Sorry, I prefer going into games with a higher chance of winning, especially against Liverpool. It was a gamble by Sarri and it failed. Hazard should've been on the wing from the start and CHO should've been on the bench where he belongs at the moment, with maybe some minutes at the end. We are not playing for CHO, he is playing for us. But that's just me I guess.

Well, others have said that CHO should've been there to watch out for Mané, because Dave was already watching Keita. But since this goal was definitely a group effort with them building the pressure and us doing nothing at the start of the second half I wouldn't single anybody out. Don't get me wrong, CHO has potential.. but that's about it at the moment. He is not better than Willian or Pedro and personal preferences shouldn't matter when you want your best players on the pitch. No way. Coman is A LOT better than CHO at this moment. Bayern just wants a young alternative since it's the last season for both Robben and Ribery. I'm telling you, he won't get more minutes than he does at Chelsea and there also won't be any pressure on the coach from the media and fans because of it. CHO will be in for an unpleasant surprise if ends up in Munich next season.

I'd say he was bad yesterday (worse than Willian) and he was average against West Ham since Eden basically saved us by himself. But I'm not one of those fans that get excited about a lineup just because him and RLC are starting and I will never say things like "we look better" because of it despite us struggling creatively like in so many games this season. I also watched a few Bayern games this season and I have to say there is no way CHO gets past Gnabry or Coman, if he doesn't even perform better than Willian. So he will be in for a reality check if he leaves Chelsea.

Damn, I wrote a reply that somehow got lost mid transmission or smth. It isnt here anymore. Long story short, I found it in an article on marca.com. Madrid considers both the Kovacic and Hazard matter closed because of the ban. Would be nice to get a clarification from the club or UEFA about players on loans though.

Alonso I can understand, since he had some really, really bad blackouts this season. Remember him laying down against United in the box while the ball was still in play and basically gifting them the equalizer? Or the absolute idiocy of not paying attention for the City first goal on that day we decided never to talk about again? I actually like Barkley and hate when fans are putting him under a magnifying glass. Since the start of the season people are commenting on the balls he loses every game, I find it disgusting. I don't know which game, but I counted once and in a game were Hazard lost 3 more balls than Barkley, it was Ross who was singled out for "having a mare". Both Willian and Pedro are miles ahead of CHO in my book and saved our asses this season as well, which is why I laugh at people whining about CHO not playing. Every damn game I read the same whining about RLC and CHO not playing, which turns into hatred for their alternatives Barkley and Willian most of the times, since Pedro and Kova are playing too smart to be criticized that easily. Sometimes I'd like them to play like 10 games in a row just to prove a point. But I get the feeling then I'll hear something along the lines that at least we used homegrown players... meanwhile one of those homegrown players put in a transfer request at not even 19years of age. How some Chelsea fans are defending that little sh*t (I'm taller than him ? ) is beyond me, but that's just me I guess.

If I'm informed correctly getting Kovacic is impossible at this time, since he would have to sign a new contract. So at this point the only question is how much he can help the team until the end of the season. This whole situation with having too many midfielders could really take a bad turn if RLCs back issues continue and Kova leaves. I think Ross is not as bad a player as some make him out to be, but I don't know if he can handle the pressure at a big club and people will use him as a scapegoat.