DaRick

ATM we look on track to win comfortably. I think Tottenham are a bit too far behind and Man City's fixture list will IMO take its toll. Also I don't think Tottenham have quite the consistency required to win the league, especially in attack. They can look brilliant sometimes but look toothless at other times. Things can change though - we must keep playing professionally.

Against Arsenal and West Ham we've conceded dumb last minute goals when the game was basically over. Doesn't much detract from an important win against potentially tricky opposition but it is annoying.

We go from looking in trouble to being in the lead. Great stuff.

There is a case for starting either Cesc or Matic against West Ham. Obviously Conte expects to dominate possession. 3 points here is important (but it often is).

Good to see Arsenal displaying their big-game mentality LOL. On a completely unrelated side note, the Watford/Southampton game looks like it was entertaining. I think I'll go watch highlights of that.

Who gets more credit? Leicester for uncovering his talent, or us buying us for what seems like a bargain? I bet Leicester are ruing selling him - he was important to their system than perhaps anyone realised and it is telling that two separate players (Mendy and Ndidi) have been unable to replicate his impact. IMO, Costa has been slightly better this season, but Kante is second place with Hazard. Beyond them, it is hard to pick between Luiz, Azpi, Cesc, Courtois and Moses. Pedro will be up there if he continues playing well too.

He's faded since his barnstorming run in October/November, but overall he has been impressive at WB and deserves his extension. What makes him more potent at WB than as a winger is his spirit, stamina and pace. He is not a natural defender but he has certainly been willing to put in a shift. Basically, he's what we wanted Cuadrado to be. As a winger I agree that he would have been no more than a super-sub to put on against tired legs.

If Andy Carroll is playing we need to press higher to reduce his aerial threat and keep possession. That means Cesc should start. I would actually be seriously tempted to replace one of Cahill or Azpi with Zouma to shut him down aerially but Conte may prefer to keep it safe. Also if Antonio is absent I'd focus attacks more down the left.

Damn Swansea gave us a fright and they defended redoubtably for periods but it seems that bringing in Cesc was the right call. Too bad it led us to be more vulnerable aerially for their goal. As I've said before it's interesting how Costa can grab a goal after looking so ineffective. The Australian cricket teams pasting of India in Pune automatically makes this the best weekend for me, but let's hope our rivals are frustrated nonetheless,

I was thinking previously that Cesc should replace Matic during these games. Not just because Matic played poorly against Burnley but because Swansea are much more likely to park the bus as Stamford Bridge. So we will need Cesc's play-making skills here. And lo-and-behold Cesc delivers. Not with an incisive pass but what this feet. He can finish really well when he wants to.

It's incredible how one manager and one team's fortunes can change so quickly nowadays. From a miracle title win to an ignominious sacking under 12 months later. Wow. As for harsh sackings, Carlo's wasn't as harsh as it looked. We got 71 points in the league and played very poorly for much of that season. In other seasons we wouldn't even have come 4th. The harshest ones I can think of were Chris Houghton at Newcastle (although Alan Pardew overperformed for a while) and Sam Allardyce at Blackburn. Both were doing respectably with fairly limited sides. The fact that Allardyce was replaced by a complete non-entity was an even bigger joke. Nigel Adkins at Southampton was a bit harsh, but justified with hindsight.

Whoa, let's not say things we can't take back. We weren't great, but our 'performance' vs Arsenal at the Emirates takes that price by a fair distance.

I think both Vardy and Mahrez thrived within a certain system, which Kante was an integral part of. Now that Kante is not there to bridge the gap between attack and defence, and the other teams have wisened up to their tactics, their performances have suffered accordingly. Ranieri has completely failed to adapt to this reality.

They played superbly against West Ham, but that's about it. The Swansea game was basically decided by Gabriel Jesus. I think offensively they are the most talented side in the league, but they're too vulnerable at the back and always give the opposition a chance. We really shouldn't be losing the title to them from here IMO, not with their added fixtures.

Yeah I have to admit Conte has really upped expectations.

I think this poor performance can be explained by a few things: 1) Indulgent officiating: a more strict referee would have come down much harder on Burnley than Kevin Friend did - I'm sure the incessant fouling affected Hazard's performance 2) An imperfect starting line-up: I would have started Cesc not Matic because Burnley are not as open or dangerous going forward as Arsenal and were likely to be more defensive 3) Costa not at his best: the Costa of November/December would probably have bagged a goal 4) A freak Burnley goal: let's face it, free kicks are very rarely scored like that Will be interesting to see what City do at Bournemouth. They still don't entirely convince and Bournemouth can be tricky at home. Winning by the skin of your teeth at home against a relegation candidate doesn't convince anyone.

Not our day, obviously... Burnley have a great record at Turf Moor and I can sort of see why - the officials have been very kind to them.

sh*t happens; let's just try and grab a 2nd.

There, see?

Both are pretty lightweight TBH.

He's better at opening up stubborn defences with his movement than Willian is. Willian's better against more open sides because he's faster and technically superior to Pedro.

Obviously Conte's looking for Matic to shore up the midfield early on and then bring on Fabregas to open Burnley up if necessary. I would have started Cesc, but I have no issue with this lineup.

Just like Liverpool to lift their game against the stronger sides. Also like Tottenham's attack to be inconsistent. When they click they can be lethal but they too often don't. This is why I'd be very surprised if anyone besides Chelsea won the PL this season.

Different cases though. While Gabriel Jesus could fade away, Robinho was significantly older and was known for being a prima-donna, having left Real Madrid under a cloud. Gabriel Jesus apparently has a much better attitude than Robinho did and would certainly have a higher upside.

Leicester are in real danger of going down. If they do, they can at least console themselves with having created yet more PL history, but I like Ranieri so it's disheartening to see.