Chris Gundleton

Back in the 80s, my Mum wrote to him saying that me, my Dad and my brother, all season ticket holders, were getting a ton of stick from West Ham fans as we lived in Essex. School was a nightmare, particularly in 86, when West Ham had their one decent year. Back in those days, there was only two Chelsea fans at my school, me and my younger brother. Ken wrote back, thanking us for our support in foreign territory, and a few days later a thank you card arrived signed by all the players (Kerry, Pat, Speedie et al)……

Agreed. He’s easily good enough to lead our line. The quality of his goals are excellent. The one against Newcastle away was very Drogba like.

All I am going to say here with the comparison to Jackson is that Jackson had one season in the Poch system and half of a Maresca’s first season where they were still playing Poch style. That system gave numerous chances to Jackson who, if I’m not mistaken, f***** up 90%. Stick JP in that side, which also included an in form Palmer, JP would have double the amount of goals Jackson scored. He would have also scored those chances that Jackson missed in the semi final against City in the Poch year. JP has been the one shining light this season and he scores all types of goals. He is a far superior footballer to Jackson and if anyone thinks Jackson is on par with JP, go and apply for a SD role at the Bridge, you’re as clueless as them….

Great. Pick a day when there are tube strikes….!!!

Iraola for me. I think we need a reset with playing style. I’m sick to death of the playing out from the back borefest so as you say similar to Poch, we need a manager to get as scoring again and be entertaining.

Full on Potter vibes now. I predict that we will beat Port Vale for our only remaining win this season. I also predict, at most, 4 goals scored in the remaining premier league games!!!

Agree. In the early Frank days, I recall a Christmas period where Ranieri went full on Tinker mode. Pretty sure we were playing Southampton at home. Might have been Boxing Day. It was 0-0, Frank was on the bench and the entire Bridge was singing “we want Frank, we want Frank”. Pretty sure this was his second season with us…..

Just to add, personally I do think it is a downgrade as I am getting Potter vibes, but stats can be spun to mislead, that’s the point I’m trying to make….

Enzo’s Chelsea stats are skewed because of the Conference League. Take that out and his win % would drop dramatically. I’d wager you could have prime Jose at Hull and Strasbourg when LR was in charge, and say Ranieri at Chelsea and Leicester (Enzo’s team) and Ranieri’s stats would be better as he would be at better clubs in their respective leagues. We all know that Jose is better, but your rationale would say Ranieri. For the avoidance of doubt, I hate both, LR and Enzo with their anti football….

I hate to correct you, as I can’t stand Arsenal, but they did win the European Cup Winners Cup under George Graham in the 90s. However, the sentiment is correct, we have been much more successful than them in Europe before and after Roman. In European terms, we would be the third biggest team in England after United and Liverpool. I suspect that a Spaniard, Italian, German or French football fan would consider us bigger than Arsenal based on our European successes. An English football fan would put us below Arsenal based on domestic honours.

Wikipedia says that the Hull chairman sacked Rosenior, after just missing out on the playoffs, because the football was boring. I’m seriously considering giving up my season ticket after 40+ years! I detest Pep with a passion who has completely destroyed the excitement of watching a game. What makes it worse is that now everyone thinks it’s the only way to play and these clowns are fixated on it. Give me counter attack or big un and a little un up top over possession borefest every day…..

Hi is certainly sh*ttens!

As for the performance, I agree with the sentiments here. Personally, I think we have more chance winning the Champions League. Get to the knockouts stage and get it right in one off games, like PSG, then who knows. We’re not ready to win the league yet, so I’m not going to sulk, like I would have done in the past, drawing a game we should have easily won. None of us realistically think we are going to win the league, last nights game is the perfect reason why. We will drop points because of Maresca but even with prime Jose, we won’t win the league, yet, with this squad. My view, a serious challenge is next year or the season thereafter….

What was he wearing? Looked like a fan had won a raffle and the prize was sitting on the bench. If you’re going to wear jeans, wear black, not faded denim and trainers. I thought Italians were meant to be stylish…..

Our version of Newcastle’s Saint-Maximin. Only beats players by kind of leaning in to them. Not a “kick and run” type of winger or “tricky” type of winger. Happy to get rid.

Personally think Ukraine Bolt is Personally, I angree with Ukraine Bolt. I am not anti Maresca but it’s soooooo obvious that he is a “Yes” man. They got rid of Poch because he was not a “Yes” man. Poch wanted to keep Chalobah and Petrovic (and Gallagher) and the team was on the up. Clearlake wants rid. Poch is out because he is standing up for his beliefs enter Maresca “I do whatever you want Clearlake”. This is probably due to Maresca not having a top CV and thinking how lucky he is at getting the Chelsea job. We can see that someone like Chalobah fits Maresca’s system. Good on the ball, can play as a wide centre back in a back 3 when the full back is inverting etc but he was shipped out because “he can’t play the system”. No, he was shipped out hoping for eventual pure profit. The “can’t play the system” is Maresca trying to save face and not looking weak to the media and us etc. Maresca has been told who the club wants to get rid of, nothing to do with “the system”, it’s the money. With these owners, we probably need a “Yes” man and Maresca appears to be fine with it so good. But the fans who think Maresca has a big say on who to keep are kidding themselves. I am sure, if he really had the choice he would want to keep Petrovic, Chalobah, Chilwell (particularly as we have no back up left back) but as Clearlake want them gone, Maresca spins the “can’t play the system”. But the players who clearly can’t play the system, Gusto, Badiashille, nothing from Maresca as Clearlake doesn’t want to sell. Others, with hardly any training with Maresca are getting minutes in front of Santos. This is why a lot of us are thinking that Clearlake have already made their mind up and he is a goner (we are also fearing another Salah or KDB type sale). I’m hoping this is not the case but it wouldn’t surprise me. Maresca is the perfect manager for Clearlake. I wouldn’t be surprised that if Clearlake decided to cash in on Palmer, and Maresca was not onboard with this, Maresca would also spin this as “Palmer doesn’t fit how he wants to play” and point out his drop off in goals.

Cynical me thinks that Maresca says things like that so when he is told by the owners to sell Santos, he already has his excuse and narrative “he can’t play the system”. We all know that Maresca is a “yes” man. This is when he is found out though. We are told that Chilwell can’t play the system but we know it’s his wage the owners want off the books whereas Gusto clearly can’t play the system but low wages so fine. At the end of the day, Maresca will be told who he can keep and who he must sell and Santos is in that bracket as a player he might get told to sell and he is simply preparing his excuse but spinning it as his reason regardless of whether he really wants him or not….

I must be in the minority here as one who actually likes Neto. I base this on what I see as opposed to “stats and data” which I think is load of b****** (the data has Sanchez in the top 10 keepers in Europe for f**** sake)! He always puts a shift in and has a bit of attitude which I like and is direct. If we have to look at stats, without Pep-Lite’s anti football, his numbers would be better and in term of goals would be around 10 as opposed to 6 which I think is a decent return for a winger. I think some of the younger crowd only compare wingers against Hazard which is unfair. In my experience of been going to the Bridge since 82, wingers can be the most exciting and equally the most frustrating as one week a world beater and the next they can’t do anything right. It’s a unique position where expectation is high. Where do I place Neto? I’ve seen a lot worse wingers and better over the years. Put Neto in the Mourinho’s mark 1 team (Duff/Robben) or Conte’s team (Hazard with either Willian or Pedro) I think he would look good in a system that fit his strengths. I’m not saying he is better than the names above but I think he would have been a good fit. Looking at Willian and Pedro are examples of what I mean about wingers always being hot and cold. Willian most of the time I thought was more farts than s*** and in his early years his goals returns were poor, if you only look at stats. Pedro could score a goal, work hard, however a lot of the time ran around like a headless chicken. Point being both Pedro and Willian can be great one week and rubbish the next, if your name is not Hazard, who wasn’t great all the time, then that is basically par for a winger….

Frank Lampard…..but I know what you mean.

I’ve said before, Poch should have been kept, for the progression, and then moved on when the right “winning” manager was identified (like Ranieri to José). Personally, I thought last season was exciting, from the turn of the year onwards. I don’t blame Poch for not beating Liverpool in the Cup Final, that was on the players for missing the numerous chances. The same with the semi against City (that was on Jackson missing sitters). The managers job is to set the team up to win, he did this, not his fault if the players missed chances his structure set up. Poch’s team was all over the place at the back but they were exciting to watch but the Poch haters here just can’t get over the Spurs connection. I’d guarantee that if it was an ex Chelsea legend in charge last season who had the exact same performances and results as Poch the entire fan base would be “we got rid of upward trajectory for Pep Lite borefest”. Same fan base would be saying ex Chelsea legend got us to a cup final and semi, where the players missed chances so on them, progress in the league and got the best out of the attacking players. Those here saying that the c*** football served up by Pep Lite doesn’t mean that Poch is a good manager is simply the Spurs bias coming through. Plenty of “One Step Beyond” moments last season. This season, if we beat Ipswich 1-0, expect it to be played then - pathetic…..

A bit early but based on the season so far, who has been your player of the year? Mine would be Cucu with Moises in 2nd. During our good run would have had Moises in first place. Would be a nice story for Cucu from being a player slated by the fan base at the start of his Chelsea career to player of the year a couple of years later.

At the start of the season I was pleasantly surprised that we were a good watch (was fully expecting a Sarriball style borefest). At the time I was hearing Liam Twomey, on the Straight Out of Cobham podcast, saying that this is not Maresca’s style as he prefers more control and slow build up. I was thinking “surely not” but f*** me, was he right…. If only we had Hazard still with us (the Hazard of then) he’d stick two fingers up to Pep-Lite like he did with Sarri but unlike Sarri, Maresca would probably drop him. Can only assume that the good play at the start of the season was a hangover from Poch. F***** hate Pep. Destroyed enjoyable football for boring keep ball, pass for the sake of passing. He’s started to go long now, due to Haaland, so just waiting for Pep to go full on Wimbledon, and all his “familiars” copying him “as the almighty genius” they think he is. F****** long ball Wimbledon style is better than this!

I think some of stick that Neto has been getting has been unfair. When we signed him, he was the one summer signing that I was excited about and was a proven Premier League player (be it with a bad injury record). Whenever he played for Wolves, I always thought this guy is good/dangerous and puts a shift in (although he has never been a big scorer). Been impressed with him in the 9 role in the past two games. When Jackson is fit for the run in, I would have Neto and Jackson alternating between the wing and number 9 during matches. Against the weaker sides, I would play Neto and Jackson as mentioned above with Palmer and Nkunku. Against the stronger sides, I would drop Nkunku and bring in James (would be Lavia but never fit) for the extra body in midfield. Of course, I would want a proper number 9 signed in the summer but for the run in, Conference League and the Club World Cup thingy that is what I would do…..

Jackson is a Kalou level player and should really be the back up to the main man but we won’t get one with these owners. Imagine if we had gone with Kalou as the number 9 with no Drogba, we would have won nothing. Actually, I think they are very similar in that they are wingers that can do a job, kind of, as a number 9. Personally, when Jackson is fit again for the end of the season, I would have him and Neto alternating between the wing and number 9 during matches. I’ve been impressed with Neto in the past two games and I think some of the hate on him has been unfair as at least he puts a shift in.

I don’t see the comparison with Drogba at all. A completely different style of striker. I see Jackson more as a poor, poor, poor man’s Henry. A converted winger etc. To be fair, this season he has got to a poor, poor man’s Henry level, credit where credit is due…..