DaRick

Have I been spoiled? LOL.

I agree Stoke have looked fairly solid, but I'm not sure we were all that TBH. Doesn't matter now though. Let's keep on going!

Typical Chelsea. We look mediocre than grab a goal. Let's go for another.

Pretty good for Swansea, not City quality, has obviously suffered with lack of game time.

Evidently Conte thinks Stoke will park the bus, explaining Cesc instead of Matic. New Years is already in Brisbane - let's celebrate with a 13th straight win!

I would have just voted for Pedro if his second goal wasn't credited as an own goal to Steve Cook. Petty I know, but Hazard was still the driving force behind Chelsea's offensive moves and Pedro's single goal doesn't change that, brilliantly taken though it was.

Klopp's Liverpool reminds me of Rodgers' Liverpool - offensively brilliant but vulnerable defensively. There is a chance of them winning the title, but I'm not convinced that they will unless their defence tightens up. Losing Mane will also be a blow, as he has been excellent. City probably have the best squad on paper and ATM are at least as likely to win the title as Liverpool, but they've not been particularly convincing. Defensively they always give their opponents a chance and Pep seems too inflexible, doggedly trying to impose a style on City which they are just not accustomed to. They also have CL football to contend with. IMO Arsenal are the same old Arsenal, while Tottenham and Man U have basically no chance of winning the title. Tottenham are Tottenham, whereas Man U have IMO conceded too much ground and rely a great deal on two 35-year olds (Carrick and Zlatan) to patch them together. If one of them spends a spell on the sidelines, it's IMO curtains for Man U if it isn't already. We still have some potentially tricky games to negotiate (WHL, Anfield, Old Trafford) but the way we are playing it would not surprise me if Liverpool or Man City ultimately need 90 points to beat us - a big ask in any season. ATM we are on track for 97 points, higher than even 2004/05, which just goes to show what a good job Conte has done.

His sides look as they are unfamiliar with the concept of defending. Must sack.

Glenn Frey was younger than Bowie too. As for George Michael, he was a really soulful vocalist, even when doing lighter pop fare like WHAM. His life was troubled though, so I'm unfortunately not that surprised that he passed on before his time. RIP.

I didn't agree with his initial lineup but hey, 'Antonio knows best'.

...and the Chelsea express keeps on a-rollin-on! That was our most convincing performance since at least Man City IMO, if not since Everton. Bournemouth got some joy through the midfield, but Pedro was truly excellent and we upped the pace this time around.

Fine bit of tokenism from Conte here LOL. We'll likely miss Pedro vs Stoke, but at least we'll have Costa and Kante back.

We got...more than 1 goal?

I'm very surprised at this lineup. Is he trying for Pedro in a false 9 role or what? Bournemouth is not bad opposition to test Batshuayi against, after all. I also wouldn't personally have played Fabregas and Matic together either, nor do I think that Willian is particularly ideal in these situations. Bournemouth are more open than many sides around them, but I doubt they'll be as open at Stamford Bridge. However, in Conte we trust.

As I said, the deal of the century.

Damn, I meant Hazard NOT Pedro.

The thing about Pardew is that sometimes his sides look impressive, but when he gets found out he seems to lack answers. Sam Allardyce will very likely keep Crystal Palace up if he's appointed. That's pretty much his speciality (that, and running into conflicts of interest).

He's fond of Atletico, isn't he? I'd be a little surprised if he went to their hated rivals.

Be interesting to see how he goes against Bournemouth. Hopefully he'll do well, but he lacks Costa's all-round play and is more a pure poacher so we'll probably need to play Cesc somewhere to give him service. Bournemouth are more open than many sides around them, but I would expect them to be less so at Stamford Bridge. Personally, I'd shift to more of a 3-5-2, have Pedro and Batshuayi as the secondary and primary strikers, have Cesc in the hole with Chalobah and Matic offering a shield behind them. And no, I would not loan him. We have next to no cover then if Costa goes down.

I still think Liverpool are too vulnerable defensively and perhaps complacent at times (Bournemouth/West Ham) to win the title against Chelsea, at least as we are playing right now. Losing Sadio Mane in January will also hurt - he's popped up with crucial goals for them. I do not think the Chelsea side we've seen over the past 11 matches would have given Bournemouth or West Ham anything.

I actually think the Paulo Ferreira comparison is valid in Alonso's case, although IMO Alonso is a bit below Paulo's peak. Not so much in terms of their overall strengths - Alonso is better offensively whereas Paulo was better defensively, but in that both deliver consistently solid performances without ever really looking like superstars. Alonso has at times not looked completely convincing (Man City) but he's never been outright atrocious, unlike Ivanovic since 2015/16. However, besides his performance vs Everton, he has rarely stood out.

*sigh* No fairytale then.

Yeah I just checked and was shocked that Kashima Antlers managed to fight Real Madrid to extra time. They weren't even all that good in the J League for much of the season but they managed to steal a finals win from Urawa (who always choke) and have counter-attacked very well during the CWC. Gaku Shibasaki is a very talented playmaker. Japan tend to produce them a lot.

Well, at least they would be making PL history in the process.

Turning? He already was LOL.