Celery1989

Decent, illustrated article on why Torres is simply not the goal threat that we need. Granted the examples used are from the Liverpool game but they still point to a more general, recurring problem in Torres' game. http://www.weaintgotnohistory.com/2012/11/12/3634910/chelsea-fc-liverpool-width-fernando-torres

I definitely think RDM should rotate the team a little. Moses has been good off the bench and surely has earned a few starts. Oscar, Mata and Hazard could all do with being on the bench for the odd game. I'd also give Sturridge a few starts up front or on the right, whilst Marin needs a look in too. Maybe let Romeu start against West Brom.

A good start for me would be to have someone finally take responsibility when we are defending set pieces. When JT is there, he's barking out orders to the rest of the team on who should be marking who. However, when JT isn't there, I don't see Luiz/Cahill/Ivanovic doing this. One of them just has to man the f*ck up and get it sorted. Conceding goals on set pieces infuriates me because if the team is set up correctly and everybody does their job properly, it then becomes incredibly difficult for the opposition to score. Remember under Mourinho, we never conceded from set pieces. This was because Jose drilled the art of defending set pieces into the players relentlessly on the training ground. I can't help but feel that this particular rudiment of defending has been somewhat lost amid the new emphasis on creativity and attractive football, and to me that's a real shame.

Exactly, and we had enough chances to do exactly that today.

We really should have won that about 3-0, more than enough clear chances to put away an anaemic mid-table side like Liverpool. I really can't quite understand how that was 1-1, they had one chance in the entire match. I just cannot see this side winning the league. We lack a consistent threat up front, whereas United and City have quality strikers even on the bench. IMHO, Falcao can't come quickly enough. Also, without John Terry, we're just not good enough at the back, and noone seems to take responsibility in sorting out the marking on set pieces. Both today and the Swansea game exemplified these issues very vividly. On a positive note, I thought Mikel was excellent, I don't get what people are complaining about with him today. Also Azpilicueta looks very good to me.

One of Torres' better efforts, unlucky not to score today. It's still painfully clear that we are a Falcao away from being a genuine title contender.

Really not a good idea. If he signs up to Twitter all hell will break loose.

Love that video, makes me cry every time.

This is undoubtedly excellent news for us, especially with FFP looming on the horizon. However, I would view these financial results with a bit of caution. Without the victory in Munich we would have probably a loss similar to what we've seen in the previous years. So, unless we win the PL or CL this season, I'd expect us to make a loss this season, albeit one smaller than what we've seen so far under Abramovich due to the added revenue that Munich has given us. The only genuine way I can see us becoming profitable year after year is with a new stadium and with better youth developmen. Also, I feel its time they renegotiated a new sponsorship deal with Samsung as this is something that hasn't been done in a long time I believe.

This should be pinned up somewhere on this site. 100% spot on.

If this poll was to include Shaktar's players too then the overall MOTM for me was Fernandinho - fantastic player and one who would be great in our squad too.

That result was critical to maintaining our hopes of qualification. Without a win tonight I don't think we'd have had much of a chance to go through. Get in Victor! I thought the performance was ok all in all, we improved in the second half for sure in all areas. Hazard was really good, and at certain points in the game so were Oscar and to a lesser extent Mata. I thought Torres' linkup play was great in the first half, but then he totally disappeared in the second. Mikel was our best player and Ramires imposed himself more in the 2nd half. I'm really worried about our defending though, as an 11 we just don't look robust enough. As for the back four itself, they looked so shaky at times it was shocking. To me much of this stemmed from Luiz' lack of application and concentration, who I thought had one of his worst games for us I thought without actually being culpable for a goal. He was so erratic at times and it was as though his thoughts were elsewhere. I'd like to see Terry and Cahill (very good tonight) at the back for the foreseeable; a spell on on the bench might be good for Luiz. Finally I was surprised at how shaky Bertrand looked. Though he didn't get enough help from Hazard.

Well done Juan, thoroughly deserved. Incredible player.

I'm very skeptical of Marin, in fact I have a gut feeling he will flop. He'd done next to nothing in German for roughly 2 season when we signed him; apparently many of the German pundits were shocked when the transfer was announced. Granted he's cheaper, younger and a very similar player, but Willian's been playing in the CL for many years and in a team full of very good players.

Adding to what I said earlier, the only way he'll develop that consistency is through match practice which he won't get here for at least this season. I'd like Lukaku to remain on loan for this season and the next to hone his skill and talent properly. After that we should re-evaluate.

Whether we sign a striker or not in January, I want Lukaku to remain at WBA for the rest of the year. He needs regular football at the moment, and will do for at least another season in my opinion. He's still incredibly raw and rushing him back to Chelsea will only prolong his development, seeing as he'll be here as 3rd choice.

Anyone know anything about this Paulinho? I think we're gonna need another DM in Januay with JOM at the ACON.

I thought Willian was excellent against us, I can see why we were linked so heavily with him. I'd rather that we'd have signed him than Marin though. Unfortunately, there's simply no room in the squad for him at the moment.

Not against the idea of playing Moses down the middle at all, though I believe that he'll be best for us out wide in the long term. I would rather give Sturridge a fair crack first up front. I'm done with Torres.

Mediocre performance by us but I thought Azpilicueta looked very good as did Cahill. Romeu looked lost quite frankly.

Exactly. Ban him for life. I'm sick of this sub-section of scum within our fanbase which gives the rest of us a bad name. Also how on earth can some of you defend this guy? Its downright pathetic how some of you are trying to create some sort of fictitious microanalysis of the picture and how it supposedly isn't racist. It is. Get a grip and stop being so childishly partisan about an issue which stretches far beyond defending one's club.

Firstly, let me state that I'm a fan of Luiz and I think he will have a good future here. I was very happy to see him sign a new 5 year contract recently. For the most part I think his individual defensive abilities are sound, but he seems to make one massive mistake at least in every single game, whether that be in terms of marking or deciding when to charge upfield. This tendency is what he needs to iron out of his game and I believe that as he matures he will eventually be able to do so. We saw another palpable example of this tonight, and Luiz was also partly at fault to me in Nani's goal (which was itself fantastic football to be fair). As much as I like the attacking qualities Luiz brings and think that he will eventually be an excellent defender, I feel that he currently creates too much insecurity in our team's collective defending. For example when he charged up field tonight, I don't think any of the midfielders really saw it coming. Therefore Romeu wasn't able to drop back quickly enough, creating sufficient space for Hernandez. Also, even with Terry there, we look like a mess defending set pieces when Luiz is invovled, and I think the lackadaisical way in which we've started games recently definitely has something to do with Luiz' own demeanour at times. So, for now, perhaps a JT-Cahill partnership would be best. Also, I think this may ultimately benefit Luiz: It'll give him a good kick up the backside and in so doing force him to concentrate more when he plays.

Sturridge's quality is undeniable to me. He just has to make the right decisions more often.

I like how Sturridge had the confidence to take on a man there and shoot. Torres rarely does that. All about confidence!

How the F*** is that not a red card!? Clear goal scoring opportunity!!