Socrates

Cuadrado would be an upgrade on Salah at least. If we can get 12 million for Salah and use that to pay half the Cuadrado fee then it might be a decent bit of business.

Here's a good piece on Cuadrado by a Fiorentina supporter/blogger: http://giancarlorinaldi.tumblr.com/post/90741712042/juan-cuadrado-why-buy-fiorentinas-flying

If we were to buy Cuadrado, I don't think he'd be coming in as a direct replacement for Willian but for Salah as a squad player to rotate with Oscar/Willian when they need a break. That's why I don't think we're willing to pay more than 20m for him, if these reports are true. Salah looks like the only player that might be leaving in January. I'd be very surprised if we let Schurrle leave this window.

Reus for Schurrle and Cuadrado for Salah would be an upgrade to the squad in my opinion. And wouldn't inbolve a major hit on FFP.

“Today's edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport reiterates that Jose Mourinho is personally backing a move for the 26-year-old. Whilst the player is bound by a buy-out clause of €35m, the English club are apparently hoping to bring him home for less than that, as the publication reports a potential offer of €27m.” http://football-italia.net/61520/chelsea-ready-cuadrado-bid?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

If it wasn't for Hazard we'd have lost that game 5-0. It's not that we've become a bad team overnight. It just looked to me that the players were exhausted after a string of tough games and their concentration went. The simple fact is that Jose has played more or less the same players week in week out. He did the same last year and we know how that ended up. If Jose doesn't think that Schurrle, Remy, Salah, are good enough then the solution is not to bin Oscar and Willian. The solution is to bring in players who can challenge Willian and Oscar for a place in the first team. Right now, Jose gives the impression he doesn't trust half the players in the squad. How does Jose think we're going to get through the second half of the season when some of his main players look shattered already?

Got caught in a perfect storm. Defensive lapses combined with inept showings from Oscar and Willian. Maybe it's time Jose showed a bit more faith in some of the squad players. Schurrle and Remy deserve better than the odd Carling Cup game. Hazard was brilliant though.

Well it's easy to rotate at the back with Luis and Zouma. But our options in advanced midfield are limited and that's where the problem lies. Willian, Hazard and Oscar lacked their usual cut and thrust after around twenty minutes today. Clearly Jose only rates Schurrle as an impact sub and he doesn't rate Salah at all. So who else is there to play attacking midfield?

Not Jose's finest hour. We were good for the first 20 mins but ran out of energy and movement fairly quickly. Down to a small squad and lack of rotation. Jose starts Oscar, Willian and Hazard every game. No surprise they were all below their best. Jose is going to have to bite the bullet and start Schurrle occasionally. The pity is we have no other cover for our attacking midfielders except the woeful Salah. But Jose clearly can't just run the same 11 players into the ground game after game. Oscar didn't even get going today. Ten minutes in and he was playing as if stuck in treacle. Surprised it took Jose so long to take the poor kid off. Things picked up late second half when we had the fresh legs of Luis, Schurrle and a second striker. But it was too little, too late from Jose. Disappointing result but a wake up call to how vulnerable we can be. Desperately need more options in the AM area. Dare I say how useful Lampard would've been this season.

Costa was very good. Scored a good goal, a constant threat, ran his socks off, put himself about, held up play and ran at them with conviction. A steal at 32m.

I guess Jose was thinking we're 1-0 up with half an hour to go, time to shut up shop and hang on for the rest of the game. He could've brought on Schurrle sooner and gone for the second. But I guess Jose would never have forgiven himself if we'd gone and conceded on the counter attack.

They had Rafael on a yellow for most of the game and I don't recall us putting him under any pressure. Players just looked tired. Oscar, Fabregas and Willian were disappointing overall. Considering we were supposed to be playing on the counterattack for the last 25 mins we just seemed more comfortable sitting as deep as possible and hoping we could get enough bodies in the way. Ivanovic seemed to take it personal that he was targeted by them as our weak link. It turns out he was today.

Ref was poor but we didn't exactly help ourselves. Our fate was sealed once Jose tried to see the game out with 25 mins to go. Not so much playing on the counter attack as playing deep and hacking it away. Didn't help that Ivanovic had one of his rushes of blood at the end. Was pretty horrible to watch us messing it up at the end. Felt just too predictable.

What was that about? Why on earth didn't Jose start with Remy if he was going to give Costa a rest? We didn't deserve more than a draw. In fact our goal shouldn't have been allowed as Fabregas committed a blatant foul in the build up. Well played Schalke though. At least they showed some spirit. Unlike our lot who clearly thought this was a practice match and took their cue from the manager who saw it as an opportunity to give a rusty 36 year old striker a chance to run about and get fit!

Costa for the three goals. But Hazard and Fabregas were terrific. And Ramires made a difference when he came on.

Costa. Three chances. Two very cool goals. Great movement and hold up play. The striker we've been waiting for.

So two weeks into the new season and we're down to a 36-year old striker who can't play more than 30 minutes. Nice work by the Board. Good to see they've covered all scenarios.

Blimey. This might actually be happening. Milan 'confident' of Torres, Van Ginkel

Chelsea's Fernando Torres resisting transfer to AC Milan on loan and insists on permanent deal: http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/chelseas-fernando-torres-resisting-transfer-4106351#ixzz3BW2UXlv4

Only a few more days of this to go. Falcao on his way to Real or Chelsea... http://m.globoesporte.globo.com/futebol/futebol-internacional/noticia/2014/08/real-ou-chelsea-falcao-deve-acertar-saida-do-monaco-ainda-nesta-semana.html

He won't be taking a pay cut if we loan him out as we'll probably end up paying at least half of his wages as part of any deal. Then it becomes a question of whether he wants to move abroad and accept a new challenge or mope around the Bridge as third choice striker.

How it started.... The club also played a significant role in Attenborough's early film career. "After the war I made a film called Brighton Rock, and I was – not fat, I would say, but not skinny. And for the part that I played I needed to be very, very skinny indeed." The producers suggested that he trained with a football club, and Chelsea invited him along. "I went to Stamford Bridge and worked for several weeks with the gang, and became a friend of England's best-ever forward, Tommy Lawton. So I've been part of that club for a long time."

Great actor, great man. To me, he'll always be Pinkie in Brighton Rock. What a performance. Agree with those who say his dedication to CFC deserves recognition at the club.

Courtois. Crucial saves. Caught everything. Flawless.

Just as one rumour dies down.... AC Milan Consider Fernando Torres As Plan B To Replace Liverpool Bound Mario Balotelli http://www.insidefutbol.com/2014/08/21/ac-milan-consider-fernando-torres-as-plan-b-to-replace-liverpool-bound-mario-balotelli/156175/#ZJyBZsmXysj1vpGf.99