Chris Gundleton

I don't think Poch is completely blameless but compared to last season, I do see improvements. Last year we went about 20 odd games with scoring like 4 goals, that is atrocious. As a season ticket holder, since the early 80s, I don't recall one game last season when I left the Bridge thinking that was a good game. This season, I have.... There has been poor games too but there has been some good, exciting games. When we go behind, I think we can come back, last season zero chance of coming back. Its frustrating that Poch can't get a run together, but equally, he hasn't had a bad run of loss after loss either (i.e. it's like W, W, L, D, L, D, W etc), so for most games, I'm thinking we have a chance, just depends which team turns up on the day. I'm willing to give him next season with a proven striker. If we are in the same position then no excuse but if we had a proven striker this year, we would be where say Spurs are in the league and we would have won the league cup based on all the chances we have missed throughout the season. Most of us would be happy with that. I see Poch more of a transition manager, like Ranieri was when he had to create a new team after the Wise, Di Matteo, Poyet, Petrescu team got old. Get us in a good position and them make way for a winning manager (after Poch has done most of the ground work.....).

I don't have any issues at all with Thiago the defender but I do with Thiago the slow passer. One of the reasons we beat Villa was because we moved the ball quickly, this simply doesn't happen with Thiago playing. It is for that reason, and that reason alone, that I would leave Thiago out of the starting 11.

Plus our play is so much faster.....

I'm not knocking Thiago Silva, as I do like him, but this match proves that we need to move on from him. As I have said before on this forum, a lot of the slow play starts with him. None of that tonight....a fantastic, fast paced, enjoyable game!

Easily Petrovic for me. Just on kicking alone he should remain in the team. Reminds me a little of Carlo Cudicini. Not in terms of playing style but in terms of signing. Both signed with low expectations but performed much higher than expected. As some of the posters have already said, fear that Poch will put Sanchez straight back in....

I thought he had a good game today. Best game for us in ages. Just thought at the end he was one of those who gave the ball away which resulted in the many Anthony Taylor free-kicks to Fulham….

Same here. I'm fearing a similar outcome. 1987: 2-0 loss away and then only a 1-0 victory at home. Can see the exact same happening again. Too many similarities, they are in the league below, Chelsea were/are the far superior team on paper, 2 legs, away leg first, etc. I can see the same scorelines with our inability to take chances rearing its ugly head again in the home leg.....

I reckon this is down to age. Very young players pick up muscle injuries as their bodies are still developing to adulthood. Seem to recall that Steven Gerrard was constantly injured in his early years for this reason (i only know this because one of my mates is a non scouser Liverpool fan and was bigging him up as something special). Of course I still think our medical department are shocking but some of these injuries might be down to Todd’s policy of only buying kids.

Gutless lightweight. You can be small physically but to add a lack of guts with that too is criminal. Always pulls out like he is going to get hurt. Should have scored last night if he had more guts and I partly blame him for their goal for the same reason. The way he s### himself when the ball came towards him for the Brentford second goal earlier in the season said it all for me......

We won’t do anything until we address the number 9 position. A proper striker today and we are 2 up and no doubt controlling the game. The longer these games go without scoring you know that the defence will mess up at some point. I don’t want Gallagher to leave but if he has to go to raise funds for a forward then I’d rather that then continue as we are. Nukunku is a start but for me he is the Hazard to Costa, lamps to Drogba, Gudjohnsen to Jimmy, Speedie to Dixon (the player who scores the 2nd most goals in a season after the main man). Another, which I think is on Poch, defenders should be allowed to hoof it sometimes!!! To me, it seems that even when they should simply put it in row z, when under pressure, they look for a stupid pass!

I'd like to see how we go in our next few home games first. Even when we are at the top of our game, Everton away has never been one of our favourite grounds. We've caught them at the wrong time too. I'd be fuming if we don't beat Sheffield United and Newcastle in the cup but if we do, like I expect, things will look better....

12 points is my prediction. We will lose to Everton and Wolves and win the rest. I also think we will beat Newcastle and Preston in the cups.....

That was Conte, Mourinho was Fabregas and Matic. Kante signed when Conte took over but I see your point...

This guy is awful. Earlier in this thread, when there were all these Drogba comparisons, I said Paul Furlong 2.0. Doing Paul Furlong a massive disservice! A half fit Broja over Jackson please!

All I see is that he has got perfect teeth!

Just to add, annoyingly if we played Forest and Bournemouth right now I firmly believe we would win those games quite comfortably. Having said that, I'd rather go into the Arsenal game on the back of our recent results rather than play them after the Villa defeat. Would be very happy with a draw.... I must admit, after Villa I was very worried about a relegation battle. I'm still keeping my expectations low, so that my weekend is not ruined, but am thinking an 7th/8th finish and good cup runs (i.e. beat Blackburn a kind draw and we could find ourselves in the semis).....

Now that we have built up a little bit of form my view is: Brentford will struggle this year so expect a win. Brighton I would like to think we can beat as I reckon they will struggle with Europe etc. Neutrals would say us and United are in the same place but I would say we are a much happier camp than they are so we could get a result. City, Arsenal and Newcastle I reckon are losses and it would be proper Chels to beat Spurs and end their unbeaten run. I'm going for 10 points with a draw against United or 12 points if we win at United....

I agree completely. A lot on here wouldn’t have been born the last time we went down so have no idea, or get the sense, of what a relegation season feels like. To avoid it you need experienced leaders who would get stuck in on which we have none. I’m fully expecting Burnley to turn us over for their first win of the season. You need goals to win matches and where we have precisely no natural finishers, anywhere in the squad, when your best chance of scoring is with Stirling who is a 1 goal in 6 chances player, you know you’re in trouble….. Thats not me being negative, that’s just the reality from someone who has seen it, and been there, all before….

Didn't like it previously either. As I said, great defender, and he was my player of the year when Mount won it second time round, but we need to speed things up and for that reason alone, he needs to be dropped. I do not see the point with Thiago literally walking out with the ball, waiting for an opposition forward to get close to him and then to turn around and play it back to Sanchez....

Paul Furlong 2.0

He needs to pass it quicker. I don't like it when he receives the ball and walks with it like it is a training session whilst the opposition have plenty of time to get in a defensive block. When he starts doing this it starts creeping in with the rest of the team.....

I agree. Won’t be popular with everyone, bearing in mind we have zero experience in the team, but for me Thiago is the instigator of the “sssllllooowww” play. Great defender, but my god, does he slow things up and I’m convinced that slow plays rubs off on the rest of the team….

I'm not saying David Silva is a poor man's Mata, because clearly he wasn't, but back in 2012, we sang "you're just a s*** Juan Mata" when playing city and I don't think it was tongue in cheek...

But we would have probably not won our two league titles since he left....

I would also like to think that Mata thinks of us more fondly than United. His two full seasons, Champs League, Europa League, FA Cup. Many goals and assists, 2 player of the years. At this time it was considered that David Silva was a poor man's Mata! He achieved massively for us and was underwhelming at United for all those years spent there....