Orangutan

Most Chelsea signings I really only know from reputation. Pretty exciting to get a player who I know is quality because I've seen it with my own eyes. Quite a nice pre-World Cup surprise. Did not expect it to happen so soon.

One of the new legion of post-Abramovich fans from the US here. When I was at university, I liked to listen to Greg James and to Chris Moyles on Radio 1 while studying. When the sport updates would come on, I found myself hoping to here that Chelsea were doing well. I think I liked the idea of an "evil" Russian billionaire building a team to conquer Europe. In fall 2008, I had the opportunity to study abroad in London. Our dorms were in Chelsea, right off the King's Road (on Manresa Road specifically). Being able to watch all the games on TV really sealed the deal. Also, a Chelsea bar was one of the favorite hangouts of our group. I specifically recall watching a frustrating 1-1 draw with Bordeaux there and not mind much because of the great company (and a few pints). I've been a huge fan ever since. This forum was huge in helping me find streams before the NBC tv deal made every league game available. My only regret is that I didn't make it to a game at the Bridge while I was in London. I only went to two Fulham games. I couldn't afford Chelsea tickets. Should have sold a kidney. Only need one anyhow.

Wonder if bringing on Lamps or Cole at the end wouldn't have calmed things a bit, just from an experience point of view. Ah well, no use in playing the hindsight game. Just remember, we're still unbeaten in 12 in all comps, 11 in the league. Will be at worst 1 point of the league lead by tomorrow night. Still a long way to go.

Strange that opinion here seems to be Ramires is poor tonight. The BBC's reporter was praising him. Seems like he gets a lot more criticism here than anywhere else. Of course, I'm limited to text updates only (still at work here in the States) so he might be playing absolutely terrible for all I know.

I've been feeling the same way myself. Away game against a team desperate for points plus the risk of complacency after an excellent week could easily spell a long afternoon. Here's hoping Hazard scores another couple of world-class goals and puts all our nerves at ease quickly.

Team selection seems as though it should be straightforward. Personally, I'd rest Azpi to get Cole a game and rest Frank to bring back Ramires. Otherwise the same team, just switch Torres in for Ba on the bench. I seem to get about 10 of 11 right, usually, so I'll be curious to see how Mourinho surprises me today.

I honestly don't have any problem with him essentially saying "I'm too good to be a second option." I don't read that as demanding Cech's job. He's proven at Atletico that he's world class and it's only normal that a world class player doesn't want to sit on the bench (see also Mata, Juan). It doesn't benefit anyone for him to be on the bench, playing 1 game in 3 behind Cech. Either dump Cech and install Courtois or sell Courtois for a handsome fee and reinvest the profits in a top-quality striker.

Can reach? Sure. He has amazing talent. I'm not sure if he will or won't ever reach that level, but he's already one of the best few players in the Premier League at 23. If he keeps developing, he could absolutely end up as a ballon d'or candidate. I agree that right now those comparisons are premature. Also, it's certainly possible that he's already reached his peak at a relatively young age. But I definitely understand why some are so eager to predict even greater things for his future.

Feel it's worth mentioning that we're unbeaten in (if I count right) 9 games in all comps and 7 in the league. You'd think we're in struggling along in 6th and 7th by the tone of this thread.

Quite right about Mata. Mata's stated weakness is his defensive work. Not really an issue if the opponent isn't attempting to attack. He was certainly a useful option to have for these kinds of games.

Well, we did it against Bayern in the final, too.

We are not out of the title race at three points off of the top. That said, I think it's extremely unlikely that we win it. Manchester City is the strongest team in the league. I've felt that all along. Not a good two points to drop but these things happen when (hat-trick against United excepted) you don't have in-form strikers.

Mikel and Matic seem to be competing for the same role. Since Matic is cup-tied, Mikel will likely need to play in the CL. So it's best not to let him get rusty in the interim. Makes sense.

Of course, the whole resting Frank thing is contingent upon actually having someone to play in his place. I wouldn't mind seeing Benayoun start, but I'm not sure if he's in Chelsea's long term plans and it we don't have a Mata or a Modric just yet. I do agree with Spiller to an extent. Frank hasn't got off to a stellar star but he's making some decent passes around the box. He should have won a penalty against Stoke and came close again today when setting up Anelka for the equalizer. He's getting into dangerous areas and asking questions of the defense. Lampard is still crucial to the midfield because he gives a much different element compared to Ramires and Mikel. Mikel shields the D. Ramires wins balls and starts counterattacks. Lampard plays in the forwards (or tries to). See the first goal for evidence of this. Ramires wins the ball and gets it away to Anelka and then Anelka and Lampard interchange for the goal. Anyhow, to get closer to the thread topic, I will be curious to see what, if anything, happens Monday. If it truly is a done deal, I should think we would get more solid information immediately after the weekend.

There is a player on the Chicago Blackhawks (ice hockey) team named Fernando Pisani. For months I've been singing to the tune of Lady Gag's "Alejandro" where she also mentions the name Fernando. It's not really a song, per se. But I end up singing something like. Go score the goal, go score the goal, Fernando! If you don't know what I mean, the chorus kicks in at 1:10 in this video:

You can hardly blame Birmingham but it's a shameful way to go about winning three points. No wonder we can't score. They've got every single player in the box.

Seriously. You've seen them (unjustly) given.

I don't mind resting a few players here. We have to rotate just from necessity. We can't have our first XI play 7 games in 3 weeks. It won't work. We're just switching out a few players. People talk about guarding against complacency. You can bet that Zhirkov, Benayoun, and Sturridge won't be complacent at all. They'll be hungry to prove they deserve more game time. I think it's an extremely strong side and should be enough to get it done. You can argue Ramires vs. Benayoun or Sturridge vs. Kalou but I think this is a nice balance between maintaining continuity and keeping the squad fresh and the players happy.

Well it wasn't pretty, but West Ham made sure of that with their approach to the game. Behrami, Parker, and Noble were pressurizing the midfield and diving into every challenge. They missed the ball often enough but Chris Foy was happy enough to turn a blind eye to their thuggery. Seemingly no amount of fouls was enough to add up to yellow card for Behrami. Scott Parker ran over Essien when the ball was already ten yards away and not even a free kick was given. I supposed it is to be expected as teams attempt to come up with a way to deal with Chelsea. Hell, Drogba ended the game with a torn jersey, I noticed.

I agree with you. We played a good offsides trap. No luck about it.

Not trying to be flip, but how do we all know what Essien's preferred position is. Maybe he said it in an interview but I don't recall hearing it. Essien has played as a defensive midfielder in the past and I'm sure he'll play as one in the future, too. It's not as if we're "losing" Essien if he doesn't play further forward. We're just utilizing his immense talent in a different way. I wouldn't be opposed to signing a dedicated CDM but I think Ramires, Essien, and Mikel have it covered between the three of them with Mancienne possibly capable of covering as well (as I already mentioned).

Despite the fact that we proved last season Stoke can be beaten handily, I am still wary of the challenge they present. They will be committed and won't make it nearly as easy as Wigan and West Brom. We should win but I don't see much chance of another 6 goal thrashing. As for the team, I think we will go with the same team as last week, though I wouldn't be shocked to see Ramires jump right into the starting lineup.

That's a strange question. What is your solution to this problem besides the solution that will actually be used if said problem arises? If I can't say Essien or Ramires, I would say Mancienne? He's still around, right? Allegedly.

Disappointing for Chelsea and disappointing for the kid because it's just such a random thing. I don't believe in destiny but it's clear that it wasn't in the cards for him to be a professional footballer. What a shame.

Where does he fit? Given that he can play anywhere on the left side, he should be the first choice substitute for any of those three. But everyone wants Kakuta and Van Aanholt in the team and so they leave Zhirkov out. Don't think Carlo will do the same, though.