deg0ey

:D Common misconception, it's actually the other way around; if anything Josh should look slimmer in his new kit. Hopefully the reason he looks bigger is that he's been down the gym and is starting to bulk up a bit - he doesn't look fat to me, but he does look bigger.

The rule is supposed to encourage clubs to develop English players by making it more difficult to fill a squad with foreigners. The loan thing helps with that because (generally) English players have been registered to a club from about 14 and therefore wouldn't be harmed by being loaned abroad (because they'd easily get the required 3 years). I think the FA would like to stipulate a minimum quote of English players, but they know that the EU would never allow it.

Leverkusen have supposedly valued him at £20m. Sounds like a decent prospect and even at that price might be worth considering; especially if we can't get Modric.

I always feel like I'm missing out on something when you guys get talking about the old days. I was born in the summer of '89, so we've (just about) been in the top division my entire life.

Not strictly on topic, but I thought this might be a good place to an interesting take on player wages: http://www.weaintgotnohistory.com/2011/7/11/2269306/football-would-be-better-if-players-made-more-money

Maybe I'm in the minority, but I think that Ancelotti actually got this one right - As far as I can see, Josh's talents mean he would be much better placed to play as a 'regista' (like Pirlo or Modric, for example) than as a more attacking midfielder/'trequartista'. For that reason I would rather we consider the other players that I indicated before.

I'm not suggesting that we throw Josh in at the deep end. But if we sign Modric, we'll probably offer him something in the region of a 5 year contract. Whilst Josh isn't ready to start every week right now, within the next couple of years he may well be but probably won't get the chance with Modric sat in front of him. Josh can learn from the coaches, he doesn't need Modric here to teach him. Parker, on the other hand, can fill a hole in our midfield right now and at 30 years old we're much less likely to sign him up for a long time meaning that he can be moved out of the way when Josh is ready to contribute more often. Would rather we pick up Parker on the cheap and then spend money on a midfielder that plays a more advanced role (Sneijder, Hazard, Pastore etc)

The issue for me is that Josh is shaping up to be the exact same player as Modric - if we buy the latter, then we could be seriously hindering Josh's development by reducing his game-time.

And add to that the fact that they can't actually afford either his transfer fee or wages, it's highly unlikely that they'll sign him.

Got a shiver down my spine watching that. Although it might have had something to do with the fact I've got all the windows open. Still a good video, though :)

I think I'd rather find a fiver in my wallet that I'd forgotten was there than see England win the World Cup...

Malouda - Just feel like we could do better on the left; it might not be Zhirkov, but it's certainly not Florent Bosingwa - Liability Essien - Hasn't been at his best lately, and with this latest injury he's unlikely to get back there Turnbull - See Bosingwa Drogba/Kalou - We need a striker that's happy to be an impact sub. Drogba would be the preferred choice, but I'm not sure he'd be happy to take a reduced role, in which case we'll have to stick with Kalou. If Kalou's not happy to do it either (because lets face it, with the exception of Liverpool, United, Arsenal and City he'd walk into pretty much any Premiership team and get 30 games a season) then let them both go.

He seems like he's got his head screwed on too: "It's wonderful that they [Chelsea] have such confidence in me and see me as the successor of Petr Cech. Chelsea has a great sporting level and I can grow at ease for a few years until I reach the first team. This will not happen in a year or two, but three, four or five years. I might as well develop myself quietly." I like him already. Link - also has some 'info' on Modric and Aguero.

"Villas-Boas said: ‘We have agreed a fee with Genk for Courtois but personal terms still have to be agreed with the player. But it is more about getting the best out of these players we have than making radical changes.'" They're suggesting the fee in question is £7.9m. I'm guessing the loan rumours are all bollocks if we haven't actually signed him yet, but I like the idea of loaning him to Atletico as a part-x on Aguero. Link

Especially when you're leaving it to have guys like this chasing you around all afternoon

Difficult to predict for next season (or ever, for that matter) but how about this for 3-4 years time?:

There's a school of thought that suggests Essien's injury could be worse for Josh rather than better. If Essien was still fit and well, there's a reasonable chance that Josh would have been loaned out to get some premiership experience (a la Sturridge at Bolton). Now with Essien being out 'til god knows when, I imagine Josh will be forced to stay as back-up in midfield. With any luck he'll be getting a lot more game time than he did last season, but I can't help but think it won't be as much as if he'd gone on loan.

Which one? As for the Drogba goal in the OP, There'll be some that suggest the skill there lay not in getting it in the goal, but keeping it far enough from Kalou that he couldn't f**k it up

I've got to think that there's a reason Kakuta barely got a game at Fulham last season and the only conclusion I can come up with is that having watched him in training they thought he wasn't really good enough. If he was likely up to the standard we're looking for here, I would have expected him to walk straight into that Fulham side and impress in the way that Sturridge did.

But at the same time, what does a director of football actually do? Do achievements in world football at club or national level actually make somebody a better candidate for the job? As far as I can see, one of his main roles will be to act as a messenger between owner and manager. If Roman and AVB have deemed him to be a man that they can trust to carry out this task effectively then his lack of football experience shouldn't be a problem. He's never going to provide the guidance role that many had hoped Hiddink would undertake, but to be completely honest, AVB doesn't really seem like he needs somebody looming over him offering advice.

You do have a valid point - I always liked Gronkjaer, even if he did have a few issues with his game. I think SWP is a more appropriate comparison for Walcott, but the conclusion (don't buy him) is still the same.

I often get the FA Cup Final on/near my birthday but they seem to have moved it this year for some reason.

I'd rather we bought Wright-Phillips back again... ...Okay, maybe I wouldn't go that far.

I find it interesting the large number of people who really want Drogba to stay and also the large number of people that want Sturridge to see more game time. I really don't see a way that we can manage to do both, and for that reason, it makes sense to let Drogba go for the good of the club.

I think I'm too youthful to remember that one. I'm not really one for writing songs, but something to the tune of ABC by The Jackson 5 would probably work quite well....