fester

Ivan has been a great servant. With others he suffered last season due to an inadequate pre-season, he never seemed fully fit. This season he doesn't quite fit any of the roles in Antonio's formation. I also suspect that he is a player that needs to play to maintain levels. If he moves somewhere and gets to play regularly he can still do a good job. If you do leave Ivan, thanks for all the trophies.

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Interesting article from the Guardian

What I really noticed on v Everton was that when attacking Alonso and Moses really do have "whitewash on their boots", especially when they haven't got the ball. That means we always have width available. Under Jose, and Guus, we often ended up very narrow trying to force our way through the middle. This wing-back width gives Hazard and Pedro more space to work their magic. I think in the five wins we have seen the team progress with the system, from counter-attacking to dominating. Where next? I suspect that Conte has been working on this system from day 1, and was trying to bed it in in training while relying on the tried-and-tested 4-3-3 / 4-2-3-1 system initially in matches. The ease with which the team has adapted since half-time in the Arsenal game is fantastic, and suggests it was something already being worked on a lot. I remember reading various things by Juve fans when Conte first signed / arrived about his methods and tactics. They were all positive about him, and their intelligence about what to expect seems to be becoming reality quicker than expected. Forza Conte.

I'm more interested if Conte wants it to happen.

From what I've seen in preseason my concern is the defence. Playing 4-4-2/4-2-4 I think we have options in midfield and attack... First choice: Willian...Kante...Matic...Pedro Costa...Hazard Second choice: Cuadrado..Mikel...Chalobah...Kenedy Bats...Fabregas From preseason the regular defence was Ola...Cahill...JT...Dave And in fairness many of the goals we conceded were long shots that should have been shutdown by a midfielder. We have Ivan and Zouma to add in, but we definitely need to strengthen. As I suspect most Chelsea fans feel I am torn between splashing the cash and showing faith in the kids. We have seen RLC and Chalobah (and Baker) perform well for England U21's, at some point we need to show faith in them. Hopefully Conte will.

Kante and Chalobah midfield paring... Go Chelsea..

I agree. However, Conte's only been in position three days. Let's hope we see progression over the rest on pre-season, unlike last year.Sent from my XT1562 using Tapatalk

For a game like this hard to say. Depends a little on if it's on TV, but Chelsea have a good away following anyway and tickets normally sell out quite quick. If you have a membership, contact the club (box office) and talk to them about the situation. Despite appearances they can be really helpful sometimes.

There was a great young player who won player of the tournament at the Toulon tournament last week, now what was his name?

In alphabetical order: Chelsea, Liverpool; Man Citeh; Man Ure. I think Klopp will do the business at Liverpool. If Arsene couldn't challenge for the title this year, then they'll struggle next year to win their "trophy". Leicester will drop-off and I think Spuds over-achieved this season and will struggle under the weight of expectation next season. Citeh have Pep, it appears ManUre will have Jose, and I expect Conte to have a big impact at Chelsea.

When Jose arrived he went out and bought Paulo and Ricardo to ensure his defensive strategy was supported in the team. I expect Conte to do something similar and bring in at least one defender who knows his methods to help implement them. I think RA will spend money on at least two or three players, but do hope that promoting some of the youth - Traore, RLC, Brown, Solanki, Tomori, Miazga... - will also be prioritised.

More accurately, as with many successful people, Abramovich gets surrounded by "yes"-men, to scared to challenge in case they get fired. Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

We had some great buys Lukaku and KDB to name two, but unfortunately neither fitted into Jose's plans. Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

As someone who supported the club through the seventies and eighties I can't rank this as one of our worst seasons. Looking forward... Conte turned Juventus around very quickly - albeit he was experienced in the Italian league and is new to the EPL. This season we had too many players who didn't start playing until Christmas hopefully that lesson has been learned by all parties. We have an amazingly successful academy set-up, let's just hope that some of the get the chance to shine. My main concern for next season is our defence, we seem to lack any strength in depth there. Can Ivan return to form with a proper pre-season? What will happen with JT? Will Zouma return as the player he was before the injury?

I am happy for Conte to make the decision about whether Djibodji has a place in the Chelsea squad next season. I haven't seen enough of him to form any opinion.

I think Chelsea's scouting has been generally really good. Our issue has been giving players first team opportunities. That has seen us buy good players and then sell them on without them having any chance here (KDB is a great example). Hopefully, all Conte needs to do is say I need a round peg for this hole and the scouting team will find him one. Our biggest issue is that the players seemed to resist Jose demands, will they resist another demanding coach? Hopefully, not after the car crash of a season we've just had. I also suspect that getting JT out of the dressing room may help with this. Before I get slaughter... JT is our leader and a legend, but I also think he may be too "influential" behind the scenes.

Where to now? The “José” team is no more, sad, but inevitable. Unfortunately, we seemed to allow the Drogba, Lamps, Terry and Cech spine to reach its sell-by date without planning for the succession. Now in comes Conte to a squad with some excellent proven players in it (Costa, Hazard, Willian, Fabegas) and a host of younger talent that needs to be blended into a new team. With the inevitable addition of some new players. I would like to see some of the kids blended into the team, not just “training with the squad”. I’ve identified a few below, but there a many more, let’s just give them chance and give the club some identity back. I know little of Conte the manager, I hope he plays a positive style of football, focused on playing our own game rather than stopping the opposition playing theirs. Word seems to be that he likes 3-5-2. I like the idea of two strikers, hopefully one of them will be in the box when a cross goes in. So who? Costa and who else? I’d like to think Abraham, Bamford or Solanki might get a chance, but I suspect we’ll see a “big name” come in, Cavani or Higuan would be my choice. I also suspect we may keep Pato. Given in 3-5-2 the wide men are wingbacks how does that work with Hazard? Willian works hard, as does Kenedy so I see them fitting in, but Hazard? Maybe as a number 10, then where does Fabregas fit in? So many questions. What about RLC and Van Ginkel? We need at least one bully in midfield, possibly that Roma guy Nainggollen. So now to the three at the back. Zouma’s in. It’s a shame Christensen is on a two year loan to Munchengladbach, but I think Ake could fit in on the left. On the right of a three could Ivan do a job? How does Dave fit into the new system? I think we need to buy a new CB to play with Zouma and Ake. Not sure who, but not Stones for that role, if we buy Stones we still need another experienced CB. In goal then? I am happy with TC, but media reports he’s not happy. If TC does go the we should buy Forster from Southampton. I think Forster would be good competition for Begovic and that could motivate both keepers to better things. So assuming Conte plays 3-5-2 that makes my team: Forster: Zouma, new CB, Ake; Willian, Nainggollen, RLC, Hazard, Kenedy; Costa, Cavani. 2nd XI: Begovic; Ivan, Cahill, MIazga; Dave, Fabregas, Van Ginkel, Matic/Mikel, Cudrado; Solanki, Pato. I would keep Baba, Brown, Traore, Clarke-Salter, Palmer and a few other youngsters in the squad, but they would need to be getting some game time too. Third choice keeper would be Blackman or Collins. So what of: Oscar, Pedro, Remy? Along with the sale of Cortois and one of Mikel or Matic they would help fund the new purchases: an experienced CB (?), a skilful midfield enforcer (Nainggollen) and another experienced striker (Cavani or Higuan). How would my team fare in the league? OK I think, depends how quickly they adjust to Conte’s tactical ideas. Ideally the new CB would be someone who has experience of the system to provide defensive stability. There are tactical options by changing the wide players, more defensive (Dave and Baba) or more attacking (William and Cudrado). Whatever happens I’m expecting an interesting season ahead.

Lots of rumours from the twitteratti that Conte is in London and due to sign tomorrow. If he's the clubs' choice I would like to see the formal announcement made ASAP, so that planning can begin for the next campaign.

OK Chelsea time to show some class. Announce Conte will be the next manager and allow him to start a dialogue with Guus. Then start planning for next season (and beyond).

Interesting article on Conte that I picked up on Twitter... http://gianlucadimarzio.com/en/serie-a-showcase/conte-2/

They asked this question on 606 this evening. Got me thinking... In the Premier League, obviously, we need to avoid relegation, I think top 4 is unlikely and not bothered about the Europa League. So, when we're safe let's give the kids a chance, as many as feasible, and see how they perform. Aside from the league let's throw everything at trying to win the FA Cup and Champions League.

Mrs Fester is a doctor and reckons if it comes out she had a relationship with a patient (one of the players) she could end up in major professional doo-doo with the General Medical Council (GMC - doctors regulatory body). On which basis I'm surprised she's let it go to court.

I want a manager who will provide us with successful, dynamic football. My choice would have been Ancellotti, he played nice football and gave youngsters a chance last time he was here (McEachran). Not sure about Simone or Pelligrini (should have done better with Citeh). Given Guardiola seems to be out of reach, what about trying someone like Flores from Watford, he's got them playing well above themselves?

No major surgery required, just some rethinks. Our central defence is susceptible to pace, we got away with it last season, but have been found out this year. I think a re-jig of the defence is needed, and maybe (heaven forbid) it's time for JT to take a more secondary role. Zouma (or Ivan) with Cahill (or Terry) would give us some more pace at CB, with Dave and Rahman as FB's. I like when we play Cesc next to Matic, but this doesn't work in the big games as Cesc lacks the defensive discipline as demonstrated yesterday. That's where I'd like to see a "marquee" signing, but other that Pogba have no ideas who...a twenty year old Essien please!