Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the latest BPL standings after the win at Fulham. CONGRATS this time go to Ossie13; well done, mate! So many of you got the full time score correct. I obviously missed the bulletin! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Butch’s Prediction League Regular Season Standings 2009-2010 The Shedend Forums --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name Gp St Sb FS Pe Sc TG Pr Bo To Cu Av Rt Ch --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 01 MadMac 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 310 310 311 na 02 Rahul 02 9 4 30 0 10 0 15 30 215 450 225 227 na 03 ChelseaBootBoy 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 218 218 219 na 04 Loz 03 9 4 30 0 5 5 15 30 215 561 187 190 na 05 PloKoon13 02 9 4 30 0 5 0 10 0 175 375 188 190 na 06 Ossie13 03 9 5 30 0 5 0 15 50 240 546 182 185 na 07 TT 03 9 4 30 0 5 5 15 30 215 521 174 177 na 08 Kalpit Vora 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 173 173 174 na 09 Crystalballs 03 9 3 15 0 5 10 0 0 150 511 170 173 na 10 TeaBarBoy 03 10 5 15 0 5 5 5 15 195 506 169 172 na 11 Ruh Buh Juh 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 170 170 171 na 12 Pauly 02 9 3 15 2 5 0 5 0 143 334 167 169 na 13 Geezer 03 9 4 15 0 5 10 10 170 486 162 165 na 14 Coombsie 03 9 2 30 0 5 5 15 0 165 456 152 155 na 15 Derek Dove 03 10 4 15 0 5 20 0 15 195 448 149 152 na 16 Badenblue 03 9 3 30 0 10 0 15 0 175 441 147 150 na 17 Barak81 02 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 293 147 149 na 18 Butch 03 9 4 15 0 5 10 10 0 170 434 145 148 na 19 Sigity 01 8 1 30 0 5 5 10 0 140 140 140 141 na --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ BPL Winners’ Circle 2009-10 ------------------------------ 01 MadMac 1 Ossie13 1 Pauly 1 ------------------------------ Record = TT (19) – 2008/9 -------------------------------------------------------------- BPL Top-10 Scores 2009-2010 -------------------------------------------------------------- 01 310* MadMac – Hull (h, epl) 02 240 Ossie13 – Fulham (a, epl) 03 235 Loz – Hull (h, epl) Rahul – Hull (h, epl) 04 218 ChelseaBootBoy – Hull (h, epl) 05 215 Loz – Fulham (a, epl) Rahul – Fulham (a, epl) TT – Fulham (a, epl) 06 200 PloKoon13 – Hull (h, epl) TeaBarBoy – Hull (h, 3pl) -------------------------------------------------------------- *Joint-record with Waldron (2008/9) Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the latest BPL standings after our 3-1 win in Sunderland. CONGRATS this time go to Pauly; well done, mate! Again, please send your predictions in before midnight of the day before the game Stamford Bridge time. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Butch’s Prediction League Regular Season Standings 2009-2010 The Shedend Forums --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name Gp St Sb FS Pe Sc TG Pr Bo To Cu Av Rt Ch --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 01 MadMac 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 310 310 311 na 02 Rahul 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 235 235 236 na 03 ChelseaBootBoy 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 218 218 219 na 04 PloKoon13 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 200 201 na 05 Pauly 01 9 3 15 4 5 5 0 50 191 191 191 192 na 06 Crystalballs 02 7 2 30 0 5 0 10 30 165 361 181 183 na 07 Loz 02 8 2 15 4 0 0 0 0 111 346 173 175 na 08 Kalpit Vora 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 173 173 174 na 09 Ruh Buh Juh 01 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 170 170 171 na 10 Geezer 02 8 2 15 2 0 10 10 15 148 316 158 160 na 11 TeaBarBoy 02 8 2 0 4 0 0 15 0 111 311 156 158 na 12 Ossie13 02 8 2 15 4 0 0 0 0 111 306 153 155 na TT 02 8 2 15 2 5 5 0 0 123 306 153 155 na 13 Barak81 02 7 1 15 2 5 0 0 0 98 293 147 149 na 14 Coombsie 02 7 1 15 2 5 5 20 0 123 291 146 148 na 15 Badenblue 02 7 0 15 2 0 0 0 0 83 266 133 135 na 16 Butch 02 7 1 15 4 0 10 0 0 101 264 132 134 na 17 Derek Dove 02 7 2 15 0 5 0 0 0 110 253 127 129 na --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ BPL Winners’ Circle 2009-10 ------------------------------ 01 MadMac 1 Pauly 1 ------------------------------ Record = TT (19) – 2008/9 -------------------------------------------------------------- BPL Top-10 Scores 2009-2010 -------------------------------------------------------------- 01 310* MadMac – Hull (h, epl) 02 235 Loz – Hull (h, epl) Rahul – Hull (h, epl) 03 218 ChelseaBootBoy – Hull (h, epl) 04 200 PloKoon13 – Hull (h, epl) TeaBarBoy – Hull (h, 3pl) -------------------------------------------------------------- *Joint-record with Waldron (2008/9) Cheers, Butch

I thought our midfield 4 and 2 full backs were absolutely brilliant. The midfield 4 were brilliant from start to finish, while our full backs excelled in halves, Bossa the first half and Ash the second. I almost believe it was a change in tactics by Carlo to concentrate on Lamps passing over the top for Ash to run onto in the second half as he did that on numerous occasions to great effect. In the first, Bossa was more involved and the passing and moving was really great to watch. It wasn't so much about Sunderland, for they did frustrate us to great effect in that first half when we hardly got clear sight of goal (best effort was Ballack's volley that was cleared off the line) but about us wearing them down with our passing and movement. Drogs and Kalou were disappointing, particularly the latter, and even Studge came in and looked much more sharp and direct, getting in two decent shots in the less than 10 minutes he was on. But back to the diamond, I was really happy to see the crisp passing and fluid movement. I really feel it was down partly to Lamps in position in the middle where his vision and passing was made us of. He looked much more comfortable and involved. Essien also looked much more comfortable, but then that, more than most, was probably due to a lack of threat in the Sunderland middle. I agree with Pauly about Deco and Ballack being also effective. Add Bossa to that quartet in the first half and there was a passage of play lasting about 10 minutes midway through the half when we passed them off the pitch. The only thing is our final ball was missing. Let's hope we can keep this up. Cheers, Butch

That's why I put "negative" in quotations. My feeling is people were reacting to what they perceived to be negative. Cech is going to be another key player for us this season for sure! Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Just a quick note to let you know that your predictions for the long-term predictions are due in before midnight of December 31st, Stamford Bridge time, to be eligible for points towards your total BPL score at the end of the season. For those of you who miss the deadline but still would like to participate, you will be deducted half the number of points for competitions that have not been settled, e.g. if we are knocked out of a cup competition or if one of the cup competitions has ended, and will garner no points for those competitions that have been settled. The long-term prediction questions are posted on the BPL submission form so you can just enter your predictions in the "comments" section if you like, or send in your predictions for the questions below to dsettach-at-gmail-dot-com. 1. Where will Chelsea finish in the league? 2. How many wins? 3. How many losses? 4. How many draws? 5. How many goals for? 6. How many goals against? 7. How many points? 8. Top Chelsea scorer (eg., Shevchenko)? 9. How many league goals for top scorer? 10. FA Cup progress (eg., Winners, 4th Round)? 11. League Cup progress? 12. Champions League progress? Cheers, Butch

Not sure why we have to attack each other simply because we don't see eye to eye. I thought Pauly made some valid points, even if he chose to be "negative" very early in the season (maybe too early for some, despite my feeling he has made some of these comments "tongue in cheek"). Anyway, can we please try to be a bit tolerant. There is a long season ahead of us. I wasn't particularly impressed by the performance all truth be told, but I am hoping Carlo learns from this. How can he not? He's obviously a good manager so he will learn his players' strengths as well as the EPL. Hull played well, I thought. They made things difficult for us and got stuck in. Hunt and Boateng in particular were distracting our players from the task at hand by being very spikey and getting under our skin. Our diamond will always be a target, as that is basically Carlo's change to the way we play and what he will essentially be judged on. Look at it another way and I think we should understand it is here to stay (he'll live by it and die by it). Do we have the players to fit the diamond? I'm not sure myself, but we have really good players who should be able to fit any formation if push comes to shove. Sure, Mikel struggled at times, but I am not sure any moreso than Essien. I felt Malouda wasn't all that bad. Lampard, I have said before, so I agree with Pauly would be useful more "in the thick of things" rather than so high up. Deco on for Malouda was a different option, but made us even more narrow, so there are pros and cons to everything. I just feel that for a team to play predominantly through the middle, quick, intelligent players are needed - players who can make cute passes and intelligent runs. We are too slow and predictable at the moment (I feel we have been for a long time save for when we had Duff and Robben). Can we improve? Of course. The key of course is going to be Drogba. He looked hungry, was combative and has been creating chances all summer long. As long as he continues this form, we're in with a shout and Carlo will be afforded some time to develop/refine our tactics. Of course, we were lucky to get the win on the day, even if we missed 3 sitters (Drogba very early in first half, Anelka very early in second half, and Kalou with a header late on). But we have much room for improvement and we will improve. I'm certain of it. Cheers, Butch

That'll do me quite nicely! Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Welcome back to the BPL competition. First game of the season was Hull City at Stamford Bridge. CONGRATS this time went to MadMac; well done, mate! Also, please keep in mind predictions should be sent in by midnight the day before the match, Stamford Bridge time. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Butch’s Prediction League Regular Season Standings 2009-2010 The Shedend Forums --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name Gp St Sb FS Pe Sc TG Pr Bo To Cu Av Rt Ch --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 01 MadMac 01 11 6 30 0 5 20 20 65 310 310 310 311 na 02 Loz 01 11 5 15 0 5 10 0 45 235 235 235 236 na Rahul 01 11 6 15 0 5 0 0 45 235 235 235 236 na 03 ChelseaBootBoy 01 11 6 15 2 5 0 0 30 218 218 218 219 na 04 PloKoon13 01 11 5 15 0 5 5 0 15 200 200 200 201 na TeaBarBoy 01 11 5 15 0 5 5 0 15 200 200 200 201 na 05 Crystalballs 01 11 5 15 4 10 0 0 15 196 196 196 197 na 06 Barak81 01 11 4 15 0 5 10 0 15 195 195 195 196 na Ossie13 01 11 5 15 0 5 0 0 15 195 195 195 196 na 07 Badenblue 01 11 4 15 2 5 0 0 15 183 183 183 184 na TT 01 11 4 15 2 5 0 0 15 183 183 183 184 na 08 Kalpit Vora 01 10 5 15 2 5 0 5 0 173 173 173 174 na 09 Ruh Buh Juh 01 10 5 15 0 5 0 0 0 170 170 170 171 na 10 Coombsie 01 9 4 15 2 5 20 0 0 168 168 168 169 na Geezer 01 10 5 15 2 5 0 0 0 168 168 168 169 na 11 Butch 01 10 4 15 2 5 5 0 0 163 163 163 164 na 12 Derek Dove 01 10 2 15 2 10 0 0 0 143 143 143 144 na --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ BPL Winners’ Circle 2009-10 ------------------------------ 01 MadMac 1 ------------------------------ *Record = TT (19) – 2008/9 -------------------------------------------------------------- BPL Top-10 Scores 2009-2010 -------------------------------------------------------------- 01 311 MadMac – Hull (h, epl) 02 236 Loz – Hull (h, epl) Rahul – Hull (h, epl) 03 219 ChelseaBootBoy – Hull (h, epl) 04 201 PloKoon13 – Hull (h, epl) TeaBarBoy – Hull (h, 3pl) -------------------------------------------------------------- *Record = Waldron (310) – 2008/9 Cheers, Butch

I think we need to give our "rotating D" a bit more time, but I did have the following early observations from the Man Utd game in particular: (1) it was very narrow - Man Utd were running circles around us, which is how I think most EPL teams are going to play. There is a natural tendency to go wide, and we were definitely not defending wide very well. Essien in particular was not giving Ivan much cover. The left was OK, as Flo had a natural tendency to drift wide and he has struck up a decent partnership with Ash. (2) Lamps looked lost - I think that in games where the opposing side will have a lot of possession, for example against the Man Utd's, Arsenal's and Barcelona's, Lamps would be better used on the left of the D where his defensive qualities will be better used and where he will be more involved. That first half he was out of the game. Having said that, against sides who will have significantly less possession than us, having Lamps further up at the tip of the D makes sense. (3) our players are going to need time to get used to the different responsibilities required of a diamond formation. We were losing possession too easily and looked totally uncomfortable in that first half. I tend to agree that Deco is probably our current player most suited to the tip of the diamond, with Joe Cole an exciting prospect to have Ancelotti try and "fit" there. My first choice diamond line-up is: Deco Lamps Essien Mikel Cheers, Butch

Number 9 is a glaring availability. Cheers, Butch

Why do we need to sell. Alex is great as is and will remain so for a fair few years. I rate Riccy very highly but how long can we expect him to operate at a very high level and remain available? I vote "no" to selling him. It makes no sense. Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the FINAL STANDINGS for the BPL season 2008-2009, incorporating all win bonuses in the different competitions, e.g. Regular Season, Long-term Predictions, Winners' Circle, Best Average Score and Highest Score. Once again, CONGRATS to TT for winning the competition, and see you all very soon for the BPL season 2009-2010! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Butch’s Prediction League Standings 2008-9 FINAL STANDINGS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name GP RS Winner Bonus Points Cu Av Rt RS LT AV WC HS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 01 TT 59 11707 100 0 100 100 0 12007 204 263 02 James 01 258 0 0 0 0 0 258 258 259 03 Ossie13 52 9287 30 100 0 0 0 9417 181 233 04 Butch 59 10147 50 0 0 0 0 10197 173 232 05 Loz 58 9830 0 50 0 0 0 9880 170 228 06 Crystalballs 58 8447 0 0 0 0 0 9731 168 226 07 Chippy 42 7578 0 0 30 50 0 7658 182 224 08 Geezer 30 5658 0 0 50 30 0 5738 191 221 09 Waldron 37 6386 0 50 0 0 100 6536 177 214 10 Derek Dove 56 8738 0 0 0 0 30 8768 157 213 11 TeaBarBoy 42 7201 0 0 0 0 0 7201 171 213 12 A Adeolu 01 208 0 0 0 0 0 208 208 209 13 Olotu Francis 01 203 0 0 0 0 0 203 203 204 14 Coombsie 42 6556 0 0 0 0 0 6775 161 203 15 CFCChampions 01 200 0 0 0 0 0 200 200 201 16 IB Edet 01 193 0 0 0 0 0 193 193 194 17 Nick White 23 3861 0 30 0 50 0 3941 171 194 18 Simeon Oyelakin 01 193 0 0 0 0 0 193 193 194 19 Venture Hemen 01 190 0 0 0 0 0 190 190 191 20 Adeleke T 01 188 0 0 0 0 0 188 188 189 21 Mod 15 2602 0 0 0 0 0 2602 173 188 22 Kelvin M 01 185 0 0 0 0 0 185 185 186 23 Tim W 12 2075 0 0 0 0 0 2075 173 185 24 PloKoon13 02 364 0 0 0 0 0 364 182 184 25 Abidem 02 358 0 0 0 0 0 358 179 181 26 Joshua S Bart 01 178 0 0 0 0 0 178 178 179 27 A Luke 01 171 0 0 0 0 0 171 171 172 28 A Samuel 01 171 0 0 0 0 0 171 171 172 29 Adekunle 03 504 0 0 0 0 0 504 168 171 30 Goose 18 2734 0 0 0 0 0 2734 152 170 31 Luiz Scolari 01 166 0 0 0 0 0 166 166 167 32 Johnson Ovie 01 165 0 0 0 0 0 165 165 166 33 MadMac 23 3512 0 0 0 0 0 3512 153 176 34 Dave Madden 18 2630 0 0 0 0 0 2630 146 164 35 Johan Gruyff 17 2463 0 0 0 0 0 2463 145 162 36 Olisa Joshua 01 161 0 0 0 0 0 161 161 162 37 Singablue 05 786 0 0 0 0 0 786 157 162 38 Ethicalstrategy 02 317 0 0 0 0 0 317 159 161 39 Dan Harkin 13 5363 0 0 0 0 0 1910 147 160 40 Kalpit Vora 08 1213 0 0 0 0 0 1213 152 160 41 Benedict M 01 158 0 0 0 0 0 158 158 159 42 Larry 01 158 0 0 0 0 0 158 158 159 43 Lexzy 01 158 0 0 0 0 0 158 158 159 44 Innocent L 01 153 0 0 0 0 0 153 153 154 45 Gatta 01 150 0 0 0 0 0 150 150 151 46 Ben Hawkins 01 148 0 0 0 0 0 148 148 149 47 T Barbados 01 148 0 0 0 0 0 148 148 149 48 SergeyMS 03 429 0 0 0 0 0 429 143 146 49 Thomas Anderson 01 145 0 0 0 0 0 145 145 146 50 Dave McD 01 143 0 0 0 0 0 143 143 144 51 OE Tosy 01 143 0 0 0 0 0 143 143 144 52 Olijeh 01 140 0 0 0 0 0 140 140 141 53 Azeez T 01 138 0 0 0 0 0 138 138 139 54 Charles 01 138 0 0 0 0 0 138 138 139 55 Luka I Wayas 01 138 0 0 0 0 0 138 138 139 56 Ruh Buh Juh 05 663 0 0 0 0 0 663 133 138 57 Badiru K 01 136 0 0 0 0 0 136 136 137 58 Dadi 01 136 0 0 0 0 0 136 136 137 59 Liam Smith 01 136 0 0 0 0 0 136 136 137 60 A Sarokin 01 134 0 0 0 0 0 134 134 135 61 Oyedemi G 01 133 0 0 0 0 0 133 133 134 62 Sonny Umosen 01 133 0 0 0 0 0 133 133 134 63 Syed Hassan 01 133 0 0 0 0 0 133 133 134 64 Taiwo 01 133 0 0 0 0 0 133 133 134 65 Abidemi 01 131 0 0 0 0 0 131 131 132 66 M Orekoya 01 131 0 0 0 0 0 131 131 132 67 Navien 01 131 0 0 0 0 0 131 131 132 68 Oluremi Johnny 01 131 0 0 0 0 0 131 131 132 69 A Kamal 01 130 0 0 0 0 0 130 130 131 70 Azlan 01 130 0 0 0 0 0 130 130 131 71 Mike O 02 256 0 0 0 0 0 256 128 130 72 Rodney 01 128 0 0 0 0 0 128 128 129 73 Rufai 01 128 0 0 0 0 0 128 128 129 74 Hafiz 01 126 0 0 0 0 0 126 126 127 75 Mark 01 126 0 0 0 0 0 126 126 127 76 Lucky O 01 123 0 0 0 0 0 123 123 124 77 Ejyke 01 121 0 0 0 0 0 121 121 122 78 Lawrence N 01 118 0 0 0 0 0 118 118 119 79 Nwosu Henry 01 118 0 0 0 0 0 118 118 119 80 Obinna Micheal 01 118 0 0 0 0 0 118 118 119 81 Remi 01 116 0 0 0 0 0 116 116 117 82 Ya-square 01 116 0 0 0 0 0 116 116 117 83 Graham 01 112 0 0 0 0 0 112 112 113 84 Timothy 01 111 0 0 0 0 0 111 111 112 85 Christopher 01 109 0 0 0 0 0 109 109 110 86 Fatai 01 108 0 0 0 0 0 108 108 109 87 Sarkodie Frank 01 108 0 0 0 0 0 108 108 109 88 Sujan 01 106 0 0 0 0 0 106 106 107 89 Patrick 01 98 0 0 0 0 0 98 98 99 90 E Ezeh 01 96 0 0 0 0 0 96 96 97 91 O O’Ranti 01 96 0 0 0 0 0 96 96 97 92 Bayo 01 95 0 0 0 0 0 95 95 96 93 Samuel Boateng 01 95 0 0 0 0 0 95 95 96 94 Wale 01 93 0 0 0 0 0 93 93 94 95 Bright 01 88 0 0 0 0 0 88 88 89 96 A Yusuf 01 86 0 0 0 0 0 86 86 87 97 Kayode Joseph 01 85 0 0 0 0 0 85 85 86 98 AS Sunday 01 83 0 0 0 0 0 83 83 84 99 Kolawole A 01 76 0 0 0 0 0 76 76 77 100 Charlie 01 61 0 0 0 0 0 61 61 62 101 AT Akanji 01 43 0 0 0 0 0 43 43 44 102 TJ Obajemihi 01 43 0 0 0 0 0 43 43 44 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cheers, Butch

Unless we're thinking of starting the season with a strike force of Drogba, Anelka, Sheva, and Pizzaman, I think we should keep him as I would rather him than either Sheva or Pizzaman to be honest. But even then, during the ANC we'd be left with Anelka, Sheva and Pizzaman and that is a bit worrying as either way the latter two are going to figure prominently. Could we already have identified a striking target to bring in before the end of the transfer window? Are we planning on making Atletico sweat until late into the window on an offer from us? From everything I've read, that seems to be the approach. I am predicting a pretty hectic final few days in August. The alternative is that Carlo feels Sheva will be reborn under his tutelage. Doesn't bear thinking! Cheers, Butch

When you're not looking, TT! LOL No, seriously, it begins with the Hull match (first match of EPL). Cheers, Butch

Regardless of what is going on behind the scenes, I have to say I am disappointed. Keeping in mind JT is Chelsea and Chelsea is JT, yadda, yadda, yadda...you'd think we'd be able to be more emphatic in all of this than Carlo saying he will be speaking with JT and that there was no problem. The amount of "unsettling" going on in the press is ridiculous. How difficult would it have been to have JT sitting beside Carlo showing him support and blowing these stories out of the water. He was scheduled back at Cobham only a few days after Carlo's press conference. Surely, we could've postponed it a few days to have had JT sitting there. What a statement that would have been IF everything was settled. Which leads me to believe something is going on. Now, before I get all Man City fans hopes up and give me fellow Blues fans heart attacks, I am not saying JT is leaving. I do have a funny feeling JT is playing Chelsea and Man City for a better deal. There are not too many situations that would "force" Chelsea's hands as there are not many "rich" clubs that would be willing to fork out silly money for a 29 year old English center back. So, JT is probably thinking, "right, better take full advantage". And I would say, "shame on you, son". Chelsea are not going to let JT go, but I think Roman will likely be calling his bluff, which opens that door of possibly ever so slightly. But you can't look at this as just Chelsea losing a good player, or even "one" player. The knock-on effect would be astronomical. Think about the likes of Ash, Frank and Didier. What sort of message would it be giving them? Unsettling to say the least. The club would be in a bit of a dilemma. But in closing I must reiterate that if there was no problem, JT would already have said something. The club's PR would have seen to it that it happened. The silence is deafening.

My heart says Ribery but (a) he prefers Real (Bayern are just playing hard to get), and (b) how will we accommodate Ash, Zhirkov, Ribery and Malouda? I almost feel our chances of signing Ribery went out the window when we signed Zhirkov (basically, we decided to make the tough decision early on as Bayern look like they are determined to see this go down to the wire and we probably did not want to risk it. Sad thing for us is that we don't get him and sad thing for Bayern is that Real will likely get him anyway on deadline day for a snippet of the price they wanted (they wouldn't want to keep an unhappy camper). Seen this all too many times before. My head says either a more central or right-sided creative player. So take your pick - I don't know what the criteria is for the names bandied about are not like-for-like alternatives. It almost sounds like as long as he is creative and is expensive we will be interested (crazy, I know). So, creative forwards like Aguero or Tevez, or more attacking midfielders like Sneijder seem to be the media-generated choices. To be honest, I wouldn't be unhappy with any of those three. Cheers, Butch

Great start to his Chelsea reign: JT is going nowhere, is a symbol of this team, will be captain next season, and will be at Chelsea forever. You tell 'em, Carlo! Cheers, Butch

Just for the heck of it, I am going to say now that I would not take 60 million quid for JT (or Lamps). Our club identity is worth more than that. Anyway, whether or not JT would actually want to go doesn't even matter. His deal lasts to 2012. Cheers, Butch

Totally agree with TomP. Cheers, Butch

I wish, i wish, i wish, but I wonder... Madrid seem so certain. Cheers, Butch

I have this distinct feeling that we've already completed our major transfers of the off-season: Aguero and Zhirkov, and they will be presented at the same time as Carlito on July 1st. The rest is all paper talk. Cheers, Butch

Hah! Nice one. Cheers, Butch

Considering the up-turn in Flo's form towards the end of the season, I believe we just need someone to push him continually. A Zhirkov or Robben would not be bad alternatives; that is, if Ribery wants to go to Barca. Cheers, Butch

Absolutely ludicrous. Usually, these figure bandied about in the press are inaccurate to say the least, but as a matter of principle, if it were true, this is a case where I hope the club think very, very carefully. I don't see anyone, and I mean anyone, worth 200,000 quid a week. If JT and Lamps are not, then no one is. We're talking about two priceless players for Chelsea, absolute legends, who not only put in the effort but are also icons and perform week-in, week-out and who are on astronomical wages as it is. And then we supposedly contemplate quashing that "structure" by bringing in someone who does well in another league but who we have no idea how well he would do here. I cannot believe it. This world is going to pot. Cheers, Butch

I wish him all the best. I didn't really want us to sign him, although I saw the potential benefit from having a midfielder with good close ball control and passing ability in our midfield. But I also don't think he played to his potential with us - don't know if it was down to injuries or what. So, I guess it is just a matter of things not working out between the two parties and it would probably make sense to part ways. I believe he still has something to offer but maybe in a league that doesn't place so much emphasis on the physical side of football. Cheers, Butch