Davey Baby

I'm on strike so I'm not responding. But boy do I want to.

A year and a half, to be precise. I'm boycotting these boards until Josh plays. Something has to be done and I'm going on strike. If you want to see me back pester the manager. If you don't want to see me back, you better hope Josh keeps sitting out games. So long folks .. I hope to see you soon.

I'm going to bang this drum hard because I'm in a bad mood. I urge everyone to watch this clip of Josh playing DM away to Marseille, not even his preferable position I imagine. It was a year ago. A year in which he hasn't played. He has literally made zero progress, because he happens to be unfortunate enough to "play" for Chelsea. Shameful.

I've just watched it myself. Not more expansive and cutting? And check the defensive work. How the f**k does Mikel get a game?

Oh no mate, please don't say that or we are seriously going to fall out. First, he is a kid, so I don't expect him to come in and dominate games, and I don't expect him to avoid mistakes, but every time he plays, every single time, he stands out like a sore thumb, because he has more class in his little finger than most of his teammates. He needs games. Everyone needs games. How on earth do you progress without games? You think he hasn't done enough to warrant games? You think he hasn't been more expansive and more cutting than the players keeping him out? Are you serious? Last season we were sh*t for about three months, we're going through a similar spell now, which player is more expansive and more cutting out of interest? Here's a link to a game. I could choose any game, but I've chosen Marseille because it was in a hostile atmosphere. He was 17 years old. You can only play what's in front of you. He was playing DM, which isn't his natural position. He was easily the stand-out player and did more in that position than Mikel has done in his whole career. Next game Mikel was back in the side and we kept on losing. And losing and losing. Meanwhile Josh rots. Watch. Sit back, and watch .. http://josh-mceachra...p?vid=019dc5ce1

We've brought in loads of new players and spent a shedload. Mata, Luiz, Ramires, Torres, Mereiles. Those guys didn't come cheap. They cover every department. Defence, midfield and attack. What's that, about £130m worth? We also brought in three youngsters this summer at considerable cost. That's 7 players before I even think about it. If we need to embark on a rebuilding programme I think something is seriously wrong. And yes, I think something is seriously wrong. Sturridge didn't play last term even though Drogba and Anelka were sh*t. He had to go to Bolton to finally prove he was worth a place, and even then, by our own admission, we were going to send him on loan this season until he impressed in pre-season. That's how f**ked-up we are. He is by far our best attacker. The only people who couldn't see it were Ancelotti and everyone above him. We all want to see Josh and Oriol play, but we won't. Josh will go on loan, where he will impress, far more than the players representing us. We'll go and spend another £40m on a midfielder, just to force our youngsters even more down the pecking order. The whole thing's a joke. January will see big spending, I have no doubt about it. One because it's the last season before FFP kicks in, and two because we'll be in grave danger of missing out on top four. And then, in the summer, everyone will say we need to rebuild. Watch and see. Personally, I would like to see us keep our hand in our pocket, let Oriol, Bertrand, Bruma and Josh establish themselves, and bring in maximum one player, someone to replace Malouda, meaning we could give our best striker a shot up front, our best striker being Sturridge. A winger and that's it. We've done our rebuilding. How on earth are our youngsters ever going to get a game? How are we ever going to attract top youngsters? I wish our fans would stop clamouring for new signings. The whole thing's a joke. I would never send my son to Chelsea if he were any good. I firmly believe Josh is the best player at the club, potentially. It's a disgrace what's happened with him. We have stifled his development. We won the FA Youth Cup for the first time in decades the season before last. He was the star of the show. He was incredible. Since then he hasn't played. He has sat on the bench and rotted. Shameful. F**king shameful. I am absolutely spitting feathers about it. If he comes on against Wolves we will see the best Chelsea product since Terry. Since Wilkins. He will light up the crowd. He will ooze class. He will do things none of his teammates can do. They will all give him the ball, because he's the go-to guy. He's the guy you give it to because he's the guy who can do the most with it. He controls the tempo of a game. He doesn't even get a few minutes, and he is good enough. Every time we have seen him we have seen that. Our eyes are not kidding us. He is incredible. Eventually he'll play, for Swansea or someone, and the fans will all be proved right. It sickens me. We're not going to get many better than him, yet we still don't play him, and we don't have anyone else of his ilk. Incredible. This was going to be his breakthrough year. Instead, he hasn't got out of his tracksuit. Is this some kind of sick joke? I'm off to have a lie down ..

If Mikel is anywhere near this game I'm going to scream. Cech can consider himself lucky we don't have a decent back-up. He gets way too much praise. I was staggered he was our player of the year last year when Terry was the stand-out for me. Mikel shouldn't even make the bench. We can do plenty well without him. Ramires plays, personally I would be happy if that were alongside Romeu and Josh. Very happy. Mata and Sturridge play, so no funny bollocks, like trying to sneak in Malouda. It won't wash. Oh, and did I mention Mikel should be nowhere near this game ..?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/nov/24/chelsea-stadium-battersea-power-station

"Do you think Liverpool have spent their £50m well, and have they thanked you properly?"

I think he got in an argument ..

That's an incredible clip. For those that don't know, that's the goal that got them in the CL, on the last day of the season, I think.

The only reason he was holding his chest is because that's where he keeps his wages.

Oh sh*t. I hadn't even considered relegation. Thanks mate.

I got that from your moniker ;)

Neither did I. Regardless of how he was feeling, the manager should have kept him on, not only because he was playing well, but also because it's good psychology, showing a player his worth to the team, valuing him so highly you refuse to sub him, Luiz would have felt ten feet tall. Maybe I should write a book on it.

A player Chelsea and Utd rejected. Personally, I couldn't care less if we drop off and are unable to attract top players. It might do us some good. Van Persie cost £3m if I remember rightly .. The only player we've really discovered, i.e. bought under the radar, is Ivanovic. If we forced to make more of those sort of signings I'd be pleased, in one sense.

Funny how Spurs have attracted plenty of top players. Maybe it would do us good to try and discover a Bale or Modric rather than spend £50m on one.

Sorry to pick you up on this, but I have to. Managers are responsible for performances, that's what management is. Some managers makes their players perform above themselves, some below. Some make them believe they're superheroes and make them perform accordingly. Jose for instance. If players are switching off, that is the manager's fault, because it's his job to get inside their heads, i.e. to ensure they don't switch off. Players switch off more frequently with some managers than they do with others. Coincidence? Me thinks not. Not saying AVB should go, far from it, just saying he is responsible for the performances of his players, and let's not pretend he's not. There's been an awful lot of switching off lately. Too much.

Boswinga and Mereiles played well, as did Ramires. Sturridge was man of the match. There is no other contender. If only we had a back-up keeper .. Cech needs to sit out a few games. Edit: I want to see Josh and I want to see Romeu ..

I'm going to tell you something. Our season is in danger of imploding. We have a £50m striker who's not firing. Or playing. We have seasoned pros under-performing. Our manager is 34 years old. Guus Hiddink is available. He gets on very well with our owner. He did a tremendous job when with us. He got under-performing players playing. Malouda looked like a world-beater. All our players looked happy and we only lost one game. Roman might be sizing up which is the lesser humiliation .. Sacking a manager he paid £13m for .. Or watching his £50m investment blow up in his face. I suspect Hiddink will be on his way soon. The question is .. In what role will he arrive? If I was Roman I would hold fire. If I was a betting man .. Well, lose to Valencia and I fear AVB might be investing in suitcases. With his package, he'll be able to afford them.

Was he on the bench? Once we went in front, we came under the cosh, and it was crying out for someone who could keep the ball and who could do something with it as they poured forward. In the latter stages of games he would be perfect, especially in circumstances such as tonight's. It is totally inexplicable and reflects very poorly on AVB. When Josh is on the pitch all his teammates give him the ball, because he is the best person with it. End of.

Late goals conceded, winning positions squandered, drawing positions squandered, in crucial games, with very experienced players. This signals two problems .. 1. Our mentality is weak. 2. Our substitutions are not working. This reflects poorly on the manager. We need to keep a clean sheet and we need to keep a lead. In a big game.* We lack belief. *They won't come much bigger than Tuesday week. That could well be our biggest game of the season, especially if we get knocked out.

Firstly, I agree with the five you mention. I would love to see them gone. Their time has run out. At Chelsea at least. Regarding Drogba, he cannot run. It is that simple. We are fielding a player that cannot run, which is ridiculous. By "cannot run" I mean "cannot run". He has also lost all his strength. Malaria takes two years to leave the system. I fear the illness had a profound effect on him. He is 34 now (I think). AVB needs to have the balls to cast him aside. He offers us practically nothing. It's been the same for over a year. You get picked on merit, on what you're producing, or you should do. The manager needs to make the call. I'd still pick him over Anelka though, and therein lies our problem. We do not have strikers that can hurt you. Sturridge is the only one, and he's a long way off being the finished article. What chance do we have? If I was a defender, the only striker of ours I'd have any reservations about playing against is Sturridge. Problem indeed. Look at our competitors, in England and Europe, see what they have up front, then worry. Torres was a monumental misjudgement, and hopefully it's taught Roman a lesson. Where I don't agree with you is Lamps, JT and Ash. They need not be cast aside. They have a lot to offer still but perhaps not every week. Remember, the likes of Scholes, Giggs, Neville etc at Utd, still making a contribution well into their 30s. Passing on good habits and a winning mentality to the new breed. Players with the club in their heart. That's what we want. However it's clear we need replacements, as these players are not able to perform at their optimum every week, like before. They need rotating as they get older and they will have to accept it if they want to perform at the top level and compete for prizes. However their replacements must be of the requisite calibre. They need genuine competition for places, if only to up their game. Right now, they know they're playing most weeks, if not all. Drogba is a different story. His attitude dictates that he must leave. He has been a great player for us, a leader, a warrior, a big game player and a winner, but I don't see him playing second fiddle to Torres or anyone else for that matter. Not anymore. I think he can become a disruptive influence and I think he has a lot of influence over the African and French-speaking contingent, because he is such a big personality. There was a time when he would vie with Crespo or whoever for the top spot, but that was then, before he cemented his reputation, before he was a superstar, and I don't think he has the head for it anymore. I want him gone. Remember, it was Jose that would rotate him, and Jose had stature, he had authority, Drogba deferred to him, he was younger. I just don't see Drogba taking it on the chin under AVB. Just a hunch. At the moment, AVB is neither backing Torres or backing Drogba, and that's a problem, as without that backing, neither player is willing to die for him, both are moody in my opinion, and Torres has proven himself mentally weak. The manager needs to back Torres, for the simple reason we paid £50m for him, he is better than Drogba, and Sturridge is needed on the right because there is no-one else. I'm afraid AVB is forced in a corner on that one, for the moment at least. Torres is not his fault but he's stuck with him, and he must back him. It's our best option. The manager needs to be decisive. At least Torres will feel backed and try his best to vindicate that backing, wanting to repay the manager, which is what you need. It's a tough call because Drogba will not take to it kindly, hence you risk "losing" him, but that's the deal, and it's one that needs sorting in the summer, hopefully with the removal of Anelka, Drogba, possibly Torres and the introduction of a top-notch striker, which we are currently lacking and which we need. There are a few about. If we sign one however Torres must go, because we don't want the same problem we have with Drogba. It may be a case of cutting our losses. We have Sturridge and Lukaku, but we need a top-notch striker they can learn from, and one who deserves a place in the starting line-up. On another note, I can't believe Anelka, Drogba and Kalou will all leave on frees this summer. Bad planning or what? We should have dispensed last summer, as is becoming painfully obvious, and for which the manager must take responsibility. Jose came in and dispensed with the deadwood immediately, and that's what AVB should have done. As it is, we won't get any money for them.

AVB I support you all the way. You deserve this season, then the summer to mould the squad in your image, then the season after that. Let's see what you can do. However, you're not helping your cause (in my eyes at least) by giving Josh so little game-time. Josh is a gem. He has never looked out of place. Don't wory about his lack of size, after all, we are carrying a passenger in Mikel. Give this boy a chance. I assure you Torres and Mata will be pleased. He is potentially the best player in our squad .. If you give him the chance. I'm begging you AVB .. Your neck may hinge on it.

Essien.