Jon9344

A shame it has come to an end.
The way he stuck with us when Carragher and his media friends was trying to push the narrative that he should jump ship and go to Man Utd.
Also, the way he called out Anthony Taylor and the corrupt referees won’t be forgotten, only him and Mourinho would have the guts and care enough to take them the task IMO.
Thanks for all the trophies Tommy, and making us the World Champions that we are now.

Maybe I'm being nit picky here but these empty gesture social media posts by the players are pissing me off. "Thanks for everything gaffer" "thank you and good luck mister" none of these guys has more to say than that? After they downed tools and let down the coach that led them to a champions league?
 
I hope behind closed doors players like Mount, Havertz, Mendy, Pulisic etc feel sh*t that they let Tuchel down. They either let him down or Tuchel had them all playing above their usual capability in his first 6 months, whatever it is he deserves better.

He deserved more time, poor decision in my opinion. 

So glad I spent half an hour writing that essay post earlier. 

Absolutely bang on. 

I also don't buy the notion that we have a bad squad. 18 months ago we were European Champions, deservedly so, and many people thought we would win the title last season, which we looked on course to challenge for until the injuries and covid issues happened. I think there are a few individuals who are not very good, but on paper our squad realistically is third or at a push second best in the premier league.
We played our best attacking football last season when James and Chilwell were both fully fit, meaning we were essentially attacking with 5 players and created alot of chances. What I don't understand is why we are not playing in a similar way this season. Someone else said this the other day but it feels as though we are playing with the handbrake on at the moment. But during this period last season when James and Chilwell were fit, we were moving the ball quickly, creating chances and teams were struggling to cope with us.
I think this is what Tuchel wants us to get back to, I don't for one minute believe he wants us to play this slow, boring, pragmatic football. But I think the players are not playing with much confidence at the moment and therefore may be a bit frightened to take risks. There was one instance yesterday where Kova played a ball in behind for Chilly, who squared it for Auba for a tap in. Granted it was offside and disallowed but we should be seeing progressive runs and passing a lot more often. For me there's no coincidence that Chilwell was involved in that, and the way in which he scored against West Ham which came from a similar pass. 
I said it the other day but we are missing a Fabregas/ Eriksen/ De Bruyne type player in midfield. Someone who can create something out of nothing. 75% of the teams will play a 'low block' against us this season, which they are well within their rights to do. Without moving the ball quickly, or someone who can create something out of nothing I genuinely struggle to see how we will break these teams down. Kovacic for me could be this player for us but for the most part is quite happy making shorter passes.

I am not 100% sure if he has lost the dressing room or not. The performance against Spurs, the result against Leicester with 10 men, and coming back to beat West Ham with 2 late goals all show to me that the players can fight and still put in a shift. But then the Southampton, Leeds, and Zagreb performances also show that they're also capable of turning up and going through the motions.
I am certain of one thing, if Tuchel was to go and Poch/ Zidane/ Potter or whoever else come in, then the results in the short term will improve and we will look like a world class squad again. But how long until the players down tools for them, and we start the process again?
I still back Tuchel to turn this around. I also think with the new ownership we won't be as trigger happy as Roman was and therefore Tuchel will be given more time. He has also just been backed nearly £300m with his players, it would be daft to pull the trigger so soon after signing all those players.
Tuchel for me still has a lot of credit in the bank. We won the champions league under him, he guided us through the stormy sanction period, and stayed when he could've so easily left and joined another top side in Europe, and whilst all that was going on we were 2 missed penalties away from winning the domestic cups. Yes, I would like to see the football get better and the results improve but I am still certain he is the right man for the job and given time will turn this around.
For all the doom and gloom surrounding our start, we are still only 3 points behind 4th placed Brighton, who won't maintain this level of form all season. If we are able to put one or two results together then all of a sudden we will look in a much better position. 

Really good read that and makes me even angrier with what is happening to the club. Its because it Chelsea and its acceptable.... years of jealousy and hatred for us winning it all, seems most are rounding on us to have their moment. I just can't accept the hypocrisy. 

Really good read that and makes me even angrier with what is happening to the club. Its because it Chelsea and its acceptable.... years of jealousy and hatred for us winning it all, seems most are rounding on us to have their moment. I just can't accept the hypocrisy. 

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2022/mar/11/shouldnt-someone-in-football-also-care-about-the-war-in-yemen-just-a-little?s=09
 
Great article 

Roman has built the best academy in the country, where the best of its fruits are still to come. Without it, England will not get any closer to a major trophy than it recently has. The quick and smooth transfer of this club to a supportive owner is in the country’s interests.

Since i've been going to the Bridge
Fighting administration. Done that ✔️ 
Being relegated. Done that (twice) ✔️ 
Playing to an empty stadium. Done that ✔️
Being under a transfer embargo. Done that ✔️
Being skint with no money to pay players or staff. Done that ✔️
Ground being owned by Marler Estates  ✔️
Save The Bridge ✔️
Energy crisis and East Stand building costs leading to Ray Wilkins sale and bankruptcy✔️
Matthew Harding’s death✔️
Electric fences, ✔️
Dave Mitchell and Darren Wood✔️
Dave Mellor shagging some slapper in a Chelsea top ✔️
Been there, seen it, done it survived it. 💙💙
Being hated by everyone. Still doing that ✔️
Winning everything there is to win at the top level. DONE THAT ✔️
Done it all, won it all, f**k em all!!
Carefree. 💙💙

We want sponsors who will support us in the Good times... and the Bad. I hope that all this is remembered when a new owner comes in and we continue normal jogging. 
 
Well played Trivago..... F**k off Three. I hope Nike see sense and don't just jump on the bandwagon.

We want sponsors who will support us in the Good times... and the Bad. I hope that all this is remembered when a new owner comes in and we continue normal jogging. 
 
Well played Trivago..... F**k off Three. I hope Nike see sense and don't just jump on the bandwagon.

Statement from the Chelsea Supporters Trust. Will be meeting fans from 12 noon on Sunday.
https://chelseasupporterstrust.com/wp-content/uploads/QA.pdf

We want sponsors who will support us in the Good times... and the Bad. I hope that all this is remembered when a new owner comes in and we continue normal jogging. 
 
Well played Trivago..... F**k off Three. I hope Nike see sense and don't just jump on the bandwagon.

We should remember who decided to back away from us when this whole thing gets sorted. Three needs Chelsea, the reigning Champions of the World to promote their pretty garbage mobile network in all honesty. They won't get a bigger outlet for sponsorship than us. 
 
I hope once this who thing calms down and we move onto the next chapter.. because we will.... Three is f**ked right off and we have a sponsor who wants to support us. 

We should remember who decided to back away from us when this whole thing gets sorted. Three needs Chelsea, the reigning Champions of the World to promote their pretty garbage mobile network in all honesty. They won't get a bigger outlet for sponsorship than us. 
 
I hope once this who thing calms down and we move onto the next chapter.. because we will.... Three is f**ked right off and we have a sponsor who wants to support us. 

A lot to address here. 
Firstly, should Abramovich have been sanctioned? I am no expert on this, and ultimately don't really understand fully the criteria for such powerful sanctions to be applied. It's an immense show of force from the government, and one that must ultimately be applauded if it has any impact on Putin and his war effort as a whole. I will fully support anything which helps give Putin a bloody nose, in any way at all. I suppose it comes down to whether there has been foul play on the part of Roman, and whether freezing his assets actually has any financial impact on Putin at all. There is certainly uncertainty on both fronts, particularly the latter. 
For all the (paper) talk of Roman being a villain, I have seen very little in the way of substance detailing what (if anything) he has actually done wrong (being Russian isn't a crime). The majority of the pitch fork mob seem disinterested in drilling into the specific detail, and have jumped straight to a firm guilty verdict on the basis of 'association'. That isn't good enough for me; with his nationality, standing, and (past) history in politics, it is of no surprise he has a historic relationship with Putin, as do many. Of course, for the majority of football fans, this is the excuse they have been waiting for since 2003, so they will naturally go with the narrative that suits. The evidence of his wrong doing (as provided by those who are so quick to condemn him), usually consists of a 5 year old image of him sitting in the same room as Putin. Obviously, anyone could produce a similar image with most world leaders, including our own Boris Johnson, doing the same thing. 
The latest, arguably more credible, evidence of his involvement is his links to companies who have provided steel to the Russian government, which may have been used to build tanks and the like. Now, once again, the link seems to lack many specific details, but I will admit this is one that has made me stop and think. It is the first actual link that I have seen between Roman and Putins war effort. I don't link it, I must admit. I would rather it wasn't there. That said, I would ask the question of whether, in itself, supplying steel represents any foul play on his part? When someone gets shot, you don't arrest the owner of the company who supplied the components to make the gun.  Regardless, how long has he been supplying this steel? 20 years or more?  Is supplying steel to the government of your home country in any way strange or wrong? If it was, why did we wait until now to intervene? Obviously, the answer is because of the invasion, however are we assuming he was complicit in the invasion of a country? A country that his mother was born in. A country that his own grandparents fled from during the Nazi invasion in 1942? I don't know the answer to that. Nobody does, I suspect. But it seems a hell of an assumption to make, and it's one the whole country seem to have decided is a closed book. What happened to innocent until proven guilty? I am not saying there is not a case for Roman to answer, there clearly is. I do however feel uncomfortable with how he has been scapegoated as some sort of war criminal, on the basis of really thread bare information. 
I understand that if Roman was in any way funding the Russian war machine, then it would be essential to freeze all UK assets to try and stem the flow of money to Russia, and ultimately Putin. But if Roman is selling steel to the Russian government, the the money is going in the other direction. Is there any evidence of Roman funding Putin in any way whatsoever? I am yet to see anything to support such a claim. 
Secondly, where the sanctions on Chelsea FC fair? Well as a life long Chelsea fan, naturally I think they were very harsh. They seem to be punishing all the wrong people. Ultimately, in the wider context, how football fans feel isn't important given what is happening in Ukraine. I fully get that. You can be fully with Ukraine, despise Putin, desperately want and end to the war, and still not want to see the football club you have followed for near on 40 years destroyed. That is allowed. Given that the government has granted a license to enable Chelsea fc to continue 'trading' it seems strange that they have effectively given us enough rope to hang ourselves with. As things stand, it is hard to see the business being even remotely sustainable, and therefore you ask why the license couldn't have been tweaked to enable fans to attend, at the very least. Surely there was a way to ensure that Roman was unable to extract any money from the club (has he ever made any profit from the club in 19 years? I believe he is owed £1.5B?) and enable business to continue with some sense of normality. I guess I am saying there could have been a pinch point whereby the club as a business was still effectively frozen, but not to the point where it is clearly just going to be starved into certain financial ruin. 
 
Finally, how are Chelsea fans supposed to feel? This is one that irks me. The whole nation seems to have decided that we, as Chelsea fans, deserve this. Why? Being a Chelsea fan doesn't make us any more or less compassionate about what is happening in Ukraine. I fully condemn those who sang Romans name during the minutes applause for Ukraine during the Burnley game. That was a really stupid thing to do. I respect peoples right to wish to support Roman, but the timing was crass. and But it doesn't mean that all Chelsea fans are 'Putin bots' as has been suggested in the media. Many, like me, are massively emotionally invested in what is happening in Ukraine, but wish to retain an open mind when it comes to Roman. He is an owner who has done amazing things for our football club. If I am presented with undeniable evidence of wrong doing in relation to the Russian invasion, I am entitled to change my opinion on him. And believe me I would. But I certainly won't be doing it because I am effectively told to by the media. The other stick we are being beaten with is the notion that we should never have supported Roman in the first place because of his 'dirty money'. I am not going to get into that, as we have had 19 years to talk about that (as have the government, who didn't have a problem with his money until now), but what I would say, is that it is completely ridiculous for rival fans and the media to have expected us to take some sort of action when Roman took over, on account of the uncertainty in relation to how his wealth was obtained. Do people actually think we should have walked away from the club we supported for decades on account of said uncertainty? Were we not supposed to celebrate the trophies? Get real. Rival fans have hated us for a reason for the last 19 years. Jealousy. Granted, they aren't jealous now, but let's not pretend that any other fan base would have acted any differently (see the comparable situations at Man City and Newcastle for reference). 
 
Ultimately, this is going to be a rough rider both in the short term, and quite possible the mid to long term. My advise would be to buckle up, avoid trolls on social media, and focus on the football (which we are still pretty good at). We are down, but not out. 

The points deduction for adminsitration is there to stop clubs running themselves into the ground. It would incredibly unfair to deduct us points because the government has literally hamstrung us and our ability to fund anything. 

Nick Candy still wants to buy our club. Considering he's a Chelsea fan like us, I rather have him take charge. I want the next owner to have passion for our club.
He will be attending the Newcastle game.

I've absolutely no unfulfilled wishes as a Chelsea fan. Between the ages of 9 and 18 we only spent 2 years in the top flight.
The football was a bit rank at times, however we had a hardcore support and had great times home and away.
The novelty of winning trophies waned for me a while back, and a by product of success unfortunately means you attract supporters who tend to be in it for reflected glory.
If it turns to pot I'd wager atmosphere and passion would return to the Bridge.
As long as I've still got a team to support that'll do for me

My request for compassionate leave from work is apparently being taken under consideration. 

Am sure a combination of Roman's people, Gov officials, club officials, league officials and the raine bank/bidders are locked in talks to get this sorted.
Don't panic people, there will still be a Chelsea football club.
Has been an amazing ride these past 20 years and we have won it all, seen some amazing players and teams and have many wonderful moments.
If it is our time to drop from the top then it is our time to do so. Never know, maybe the new owner helps us move to the next level.
KTBFFH

I got told this morning that I needed to 'get over it' and think about Ukraine not a football club.  I've supported Chelsea all my life, my family supported Chelsea, my dad took me to my first ever game and I've loved them ever since.  It's not just football, it's part of my life and part of my families life, we get together to watch matches and go to the Bridge, we've brought children into the world who are now doing the same thing we were doing 20 or 30 years ago.  It narks the hell out of me when people tell me to get a grip and think about the possibility of war, I'm a flipping military wife who's sat at home through 4 Iraq tours and 4 Afghan ones not knowing whether I'd get a knock on the door or not so don't try and preach to me about what war does to people.  

Chelsea will never be " over" mate.