Socrates

A ridiculous fee but basically it's Lukaku plus 6 million. Considering we managed to get them to pay well over the odds for Lukaku, you can't blame Everton for trying to play hard ball over Stones.

Martin Samuel: Chelsea have gone backwards by not recruiting... that's why Jose's fuming “It did not take Saturday’s draw with Swansea for Jose Mourinho to know Chelsea have a difficult season ahead. He has been hinting at that for weeks now, dropping little messages of dissatisfaction into his briefings, chipping away at the idea that his team is unassailable and does not require improvement. “Chelsea have stood still this summer and, as Mourinho acknowledged, that means they have gone backwards, because others around them have upgraded. “Are Chelsea better in defence? No. Midfield? No? Attack? No. The team that started on Saturday could have been put out any weekend last season. Only Radamel Falcao’s arrival as a late substitute was new, and he is still in recovery from a lost year at Manchester United.” http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3191455/Chelsea-gone-backwards-not-recruiting-s-Jose-s-fuming.html

Can't complain about the result. They had the better chances and we were lucky Gomis was rusty first half. Thought it was a penalty. Silly foul by Courtois. 50-50 whether it was red as we had a man over. Take a point after going down to ten men. Biggest worry was how open we looked at the back. How poor Ivanovic was against Montero. How many times we got caught ball watching. Am really not sure about Matic and Fabregas as a defensive unit. I can see why we were in for Koke. Would like to see this addressed in the transfer window as well as a left back to allow Azpi to move to the right.

That's more than his release clause but apparently he didn't want to leave. http://weaintgotnohistory.sbnation.com/2015/8/7/9115975/chelsea-fc-transfer-rumor-koke-atletico-madrid-offer

Fifteen million for Charlie Austin seems like decent investment and a good alternative to an injured Costa. Can handle the physical side, will hassle defenders and is a good finisher. We could do a lot worse. Will create more problems for defenders than Remy or Falcao. All I can think is that being English somehow seems to count against him. Unless we sign Griezmann or Pedro then Austin might be worth considering.

We need a goal-scoring winger to help out Hazard on the other flank. We're toothless without Costa and his dodgy hamstring. And Hazard for all his great qualities is not a great goalscorer in the Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar league. Griezmann would be the perfect option but that just doesn't appear to be happening. Failing that, Pedro is available at a decent price or even Felipe Anderson although the latter might be too expensive. It's obvious we're going to struggle to score without someone to complement Hazard on the right. Whoever thought Cuarado could do that job, should be handed their p45. You never know, with Hazard and Griezmann on the wings they might even bring out the best in Falcao....

Starting eleven more or less picks itself. Only question is whether Oscar or Moses starts. Falcao to come on for Costa after 70 mins if we're a goal up or earlier if his hamstring goes. Mikel or Ramires to come on to hang onto a 1-0 lead. Or Falcao, Remy and Costa all on if we're a goal down and twenty minutes to go. Let no-one call us predictable.

There were two reports, one out of Italy by Gianluca Di Marzio about a five year deal: http://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/456931/Chelsea-18m-Abdul-Baba-Rahman-Augsburg-Arsenal-Community-Shield And another one quoting his agent in Germany’s Bild: http://www.sportscrusader.com/agent-reveals-baba-rahman-has-agreed-on-personal-terms-for-chelsea-move/

What changes the dynamic is Costa's hamstring. Don't think Jose sees Remy as anything other than a good sub option to have. Is Austin a better starting option than Remy? Not seen enough of him TBH but Remy has never impressed me as a starter. Otherwise we'd all better pray that Falcao discovers top form before it's too late.

Personal terms agreed by the sounds of things. Marina Granovskaia no doubt driving a hard bargain over the fee. I don't think you want to mess with her.

After Costa's hamstring issues resurfaced and Remy’s woeful display against Arsenal, don't be surprised if Austin to Chelsea rumours start to crop up. Also the bloke is desperate to play for us.... http://www.football.co.uk/chelsea/chelsea-close-in-on-left-back-charlie-austin-also-set-to-jo/6601497/

This is a big problem and has the potential to derail our season. If Costa is going to miss games then our back ups don't fill me with confidence. Remy is a great sub to have but he's not a starter and Falcao is a massive gamble. This is why Bamford would've been useful to have in the first team squad. Otherwise we're just going to have to go look for a striker as a panic buy. Jose must be concerned that his planning has just gone up in smoke. Because you can bet that he was counting on a fit Costa for most of the campaign.

Did he have an effort on goal? I mean he was on for the whole second half, wasn't he?

The problem is getting someone to stump up a transfer fee that allows us to save face. Sending out a 23m pound player on loan is lousy business even by our standards. But having him sit on the bench for most of the coming year isn't going to do much for his value either. It's just a terrible mess all round.

Just has to be better than Ramires or Mikel. How hard can that be?

Jose has no plan to play Loftus-Cheek other than in the occasional game. He will be training with the first team squad as part of his development. Jose has said as much.

With Costa's hamstring looking like it's still an issue we're going to find out just how smart it was to bring in Falcao on loan.

Bit worrying that Costa is injured already. It was his goals in the first part of last season that gave us the momentum to win the league. Without Costa we had to rely on Hazard and the odd defender chipping in. Our goal scoring threat from elsewhere is virtually non-existent. I'll be amazed if any of Oscar, Willian, Moses, Cuadrado get more than a handful of goals. Not sure if we can grind our way to the league over an entire season. But that's what it looks like we might have to do.

All this talk of Loftus-Cheek, Traore, Moses, Kenedy and despite spending 25 million on Cuadrado - and Jose starts with Ramires on the right! Old habits really do die hard. Why can't we just buy Pedro and put an end to all this nonsense?

Painful to watch. Thought we were an incoherent mess. Ramires on the right, Zouma at left-back. Falcao and Remy looking equally lost upfront. That was a pretty easy, comfortable win in the end. We really needed to upgrade our defensive midfield and attacking options. Instead we're thinking of splurging over 30m on a young centre back. With Costa facing injury problems we look actually in a worse position than last year. If we don't make any further changes its going to be a frustrating season.

Disappointing from us. We look very lethargic. Remy isn't helping getting caught constantly offside. Hazard looks disinterested. Which is a pity as it means we'll need a set-piece header from one of our defenders to score.

Good article on why Jose is confident Kenedy will get a work permit: http://weaintgotnohistory.sbnation.com/2015/8/2/9085083/kenedy-chelsea-work-permit

Source: http://weaintgotnohistory.sbnation.com/2015/7/31/9078347/chelsea-fc-tranfer-news-baba-rahman-augsburg-fee-agreed

Have to say this was my first thought too. Maybe showing Augsburg that we have an alternative as they are likely playing hardball over Baba Rahman. This guy does appear to have the best characteristics of a Brazilian left-back with all the weaknesses. Not sure he's a Mourinho-type player at all.

Well this one slipped under the radar: “Chelsea are on the verge of signing Galatasaray’s in-demand fullback Alex Telles according to the Sky Italia reporter Gianluca Di Marzio. The report states that negotiations are at an advanced stage and that Juventus and Inter are also in the race for the 22-year-old.” http://www.turkish-football.com/chelsea-on-the-verge-of-signing-galatasaray-left-back-alex-telles/?