One thing that has grabbed my attention this morning is the widespread reports in the press, stemmed from

the Alex Ferguson post match interview on Sky.

Let me say firstly, as I said after the Fulham game, Luiz has a lot to learn still, but with JT about he can only

improve, as my mate in Portugal said "Into the best defender in the World."

The fouls on Rooney and Hernandez were cheeky at worst and of a player confident and strong enough to

take on any forward in the game. In both cases he planted his feet and used his bodyweight, Rooney in fact

was pure and simply roughed up by hiim from the moment he scored what was a great finish.

What a stark contrast to Leboeuf when he played against Wimbledon all those years ago, the press were on his

case saying he would never be strong enough for English Football !

Both are cultured footballers with an eye for the pass, but here with Luiz we have a player with a bit of JT

and Paul Elliott mixed in with Carvalho!

This kid is going to be a cult figure on the terraces for certain. The way he celebrated his goal with Drogba,

other players and the fans reminded me of Joey Jones when he first came here.

Luiz has to be careful because ref's will be on the look out for his challenges - Jamie Redknapp calling them

assaults last night will not help ! What a daft statement that was, send him where Andy Gray went Sky !!

We have a right player on our hands here, make no mistake.

The coverage the Luiz 'non sending-off' is gettng is outrageous - youd actually think he was the first player to have got lucky with a ref, and after Rooney and Saturday the cries of bitter outrage from the Utd fans and employees is nothing short of amusing.

If i was a Utd fan id be more concerned how they stopped playing so suddenly and allowed themselves to be so overrun by us. Lets face it, at one stage in the first half they were taking us apart, but second half they didnt seem to have an answer and our subs were so much better than theirs. Thank God Giggs didnt come on and score in his 'big day', the drooling media present wouldve drowned in a collective ocean of its own sycophantic semen.

Anyway, back to Luiz. A star, and that is all. JT and in particular Alex will help him along and i think he is just going to get better and better.

Some good points, it is getting on my wick today.

Lets face it he has upset the apple cart by being a very good player. Fergie will be hacked off, he would love a defender like that at this moment in time.

It remainds me very much of when Essien came here. I think if you imagine coming from Portugese or French league, to the prem league, you are a good quality player however everyone telling you this is the most physical league so look after yourself, exactly what he is doing and what Essien did.

So he might get a red at some point and cost us a game maybe I personally dont want his spirit crushed and let him learn by that mistake. He has been a breath of fresh air as far as I am concerend and long may it continue

Cult hero already lets hope he goes on in this form for years to come ! I am already liking the thought of Alex-Luiz partnership with JT as their mentor.

One last thing, what was he doing as th emost advanced player for his goal !! ... Brilliant :-)

The press coverage of how Luiz should have been sent off, mostly neglecting to mention that Rooney shouldn't have been playing takes me back to the game where Drogba's offside goal made all the headlines, while there was no mention of United's handball goal which got them back into the game in the first place.

Face it, we're not going to get a fair go in the media on the whole.

Had a read of a United forum earlier for a bit of entertainment, and the way they are going on about how it shouldn't have been a penalty (admittedly you don't always see them given, but it was definitely a foul in the box) and that we must have bought the referee after his awarding a dodgy free kick last year (that in fairness I didn't think was that dodgy either).

Have to say though, Luiz was amazing for that whole game and the finish for his goal was superb - reminded me a bit of the one Gareth Bale scored against stoke earlier in the season (although not quite as impressive).

The best one I saw was some dumb manc asking if there will be a witch hunt against Luiz like there was for Rooney after he did something similar. Now I was slightly drunk but for the life of me all I can remember is Luiz committing some fouls, cant remember any elbows in the face.

Not sure why but the presence David Luiz emanates on the pitch reminds me of Ruud when he played for us. He absolutely oozes class and seems to have so much time when he's on the ball. Top, top player.

Agree the reporting of the non-sending off has been somewhat over the top but what has amused me today is reading what can only effectively be described as the press taking the piss out of SAF for his after match hypocritical outburst. For me this is quite a change in the direction of some of the press (some of whom even praised Carlo for his diginity) in that they saw his outburst for what it really was - covering up the shortcomings of Manures away form this season.

I have a co-worker who is a big Man U fan and he seems to think the refs always favour us in our matches. He did not like when I emailed him the following breakdown of last season.

-----

Verdict on who got the better of reffin "errors": Man U

Community Shield Match: Aug 9 2009.

Rooney scored goal in 91st minute to force extra time and penalties despite being offsides by yards. Chelsea goes on to win in penalties anyways.

Advantages:

Man U: Massively offside goal allowed

Chelsea: none

Verdict on who got the better of reffin "errors": Man U

-------

League Match: Stamford Bridge Nov 8 2009

Johnny Evans kicks Drogba in the ribs while in his own penalty box IN THE 72MINUTE. Instead of Evans receiving a red card and Chelsea being awarded penalty, Drogba receives a yellow....

Chelsea is awarded a "dodgy" free kick close to the half line than the Man U penalty box in the 75th min. Chelsea converts this into a goal, Man U blames ref instead of "dodgy" defence.

Advantages:

Man U: Player kept on pitch when sent off. Stonewall penalty against them ignored.

Chelsea: Receive a very long range free kick.

Verdict on who got the better of reffin "errors": Man U

------

League Match: Old Trafford April 3 2010

Chelsea denied penalty when Neville throws a hipcheck (that most NHLers would be proud of) on Anelka in their box first half, Chelsea 1-0 at the time and Neville also has a yellow card at 43 minutes meaning Man U would be down a man the whole second half.

Chelsea score an offside goal via Drogba.

Man U score a handball goal via Macheda.

Advantages:

Man U: Clear penalty and subsequent card ignored for a player who had a yellow in the first half already. Illegal goal given

Chelsea: Illegal goal given.

Verdict on who got the better of reffin "errors": Man U

-------

The difference? Chelsea gets the job done despite the refs.

Thought the press were quite fair with Luiz, he was awesome and they said so but they had to comment on the tackles because they were a talking point. Chelsea got their plaudits in the press today, hope it lasts.

Agree with comment about Luiz and Gullit, it's just an arrogance and class - from his very first sub appearance

The boy's gonna be a Chelsea legend for sure, not just because of his ball skills, but also his commitment (both in the tackle and in celebrations etc). It's gonna be a long, beautiful love affair!!

There's actually an excellent article about Luiz (if you put aside the little dig at Torres) in the Mail of all places:

Fernando who? After his brilliant goal against Manchester United it's... all hail King Luiz!

Chelsea fans looked through the transfer window and saw a difference-making goalscorer coming to Stamford Bridge on deadline day. What they didn't realise until Tuesday night was that he was called David Luiz, not Fernando Torres.

To describe the frizzy-haired Brazilian as a defender is to ignore the extraordinary range of talents which lurk within. Yes, he should have been sent off for wrestling Wayne Rooney to the ground, but the exquisite technique of his equalising volley against Manchester United masked the fact that he was the furthest Chelsea player forward in open play.

That is Luiz. A £25million international stopper with an inner belief that allowed him to overcome rejection in his teens. His bright mind allowed him to rationalise matters in his youth just as it does on the pitch.

In an interview given while he was at Benfica, Luiz said: 'Every day you need to be more intelligent. Football used to be slow and physical. Today, everyone must know their tactics. You have to think quickly.'

Benfica fans grew to love a player who gave away a goal within three minutes of his debut as a substitute in a UEFA Cup tie at Paris Saint-Germain in 2007, which left him so spooked that he spent the night in hospital feeling dizzy and sick.

Having arrived in Portugal with short hair, his legend grew with his curly locks. The look - a cross between Barcelona captain Carles Puyol and Kevin Keegan circa 1980 - became the haircut of choice for schoolboys in Lisbon.

Local journalists interviewing recent Benfica signings during the past three seasons have been struck by the constant which runs through all of their experiences. To a man they pay tribute to Luiz for making them feel a part of the club.

Ramires, who made the move from Benfica to Chelsea in August, confirmed: 'Everyone at Benfica loved him, not just because of his quality on the pitch. He likes to help people and I was one of those to benefit. He has everything he needs to succeed at Chelsea. He has a big heart, he's a nice man and he's a nice player to watch on the pitch as well.'

Heady testimony for a 23-year-old. And yet it is less than a decade ago that Luiz, having been released by the mighty Sao Paulo in Brazil, was told by Second Division club Vitoria Bahia that he would never be tall or strong enough to be a professional footballer.

It took the intervention of coach Ilderico Dias Peixoto, known as Tiu, to convince the club that they should persist with the skinny 14-year-old who could be converted from a holding midfield player into a central defender adept at reading a game.

Tiu said: 'David has always been grateful because he knows that if it were not for me, he would have been released. He was too scrawny and playing in the wrong position.

'I tried to believe in him. They almost released him twice. The second time, he called me, crying. I asked the youth-team manager to hold on to him.

'I instructed him how to play in defence, how to get the ball, his positioning, to try to have balance, never to lose control of his emotions but to play hard. With his high intelligence and great quality, he adjusted and became a regular. I'm very proud of him now.'

Luiz himself recalled, in an interview with this month's Chelsea magazine: 'When I was 14, I had to make a choice and I went to live somewhere that was a 40-hour drive from my parents when I signed for my first professional club, Vitoria. I knew then that I could change the reality of my family and give my parents the life they deserve. I had this dream and it has always been very present in my mind.

'I knew that life would be difficult at times and that I had to concentrate and focus to choose the right paths. In the beginning (at Vitoria), I had some difficulties adapting and at times it was difficult to see myself as a professional player.

'Some people didn't like my work very much but I always believed in myself and I tried to take advantage of every day to improve myself as a player.'

After Vitoria's decision to give him a go, Luiz started on a body-building course for six months during which he gained 10lb of muscle. He now boasts a toned 6ft 2in frame and no longer thinks about swapping to his other favourite sport, judo.

There was still no certainty about his eventual transition from promising youngster in the Brazilian lower leagues to European superstar. His agent Giuliano Bertolucci bought into the player - literally - paying Vitoria for half of his rights and convincing Benfica to take him, initially on loan.

That horrendous debut in Paris was quickly forgotten and the only real setback Luiz encountered in Portugal was a foot injury during the 2007-08 season that required two operations and a metal screw inserting into the little toe of his right foot.

Since then, it has been an upward curve towards stardom, though his determination to succeed can also be his downfall.

A Portuguese journalist told Sportsmail: 'He loves to dribble out of defence and sometimes he takes on one too many players and loses the ball. But he has so much confidence that he thinks he is Maradona.'

Meet the defender who is as watchable as Torres.

LINK

I have a co-worker who is a big Man U fan and he seems to think the refs always favour us in our matches. He did not like when I emailed him the following breakdown of last season.

-----

Verdict on who got the better of reffin "errors": Man U

Community Shield Match: Aug 9 2009.

Rooney scored goal in 91st minute to force extra time and penalties despite being offsides by yards. Chelsea goes on to win in penalties anyways.

Advantages:

Man U: Massively offside goal allowed

Chelsea: none

Verdict on who got the better of reffin "errors": Man U

-------

League Match: Stamford Bridge Nov 8 2009

Johnny Evans kicks Drogba in the ribs while in his own penalty box IN THE 72MINUTE. Instead of Evans receiving a red card and Chelsea being awarded penalty, Drogba receives a yellow....

Chelsea is awarded a "dodgy" free kick close to the half line than the Man U penalty box in the 75th min. Chelsea converts this into a goal, Man U blames ref instead of "dodgy" defence.

Advantages:

Man U: Player kept on pitch when sent off. Stonewall penalty against them ignored.

Chelsea: Receive a very long range free kick.

Verdict on who got the better of reffin "errors": Man U

------

League Match: Old Trafford April 3 2010

Chelsea denied penalty when Neville throws a hipcheck (that most NHLers would be proud of) on Anelka in their box first half, Chelsea 1-0 at the time and Neville also has a yellow card at 43 minutes meaning Man U would be down a man the whole second half.

Chelsea score an offside goal via Drogba.

Man U score a handball goal via Macheda.

Advantages:

Man U: Clear penalty and subsequent card ignored for a player who had a yellow in the first half already. Illegal goal given

Chelsea: Illegal goal given.

Verdict on who got the better of reffin "errors": Man U

-------

The difference? Chelsea gets the job done despite the refs.

Thata was fun to read. The press had managed to convince me that some of that United advantages never happened, and that they were all Chelsea advantages. This just sparked my actual memories lol

The best one I saw was some dumb manc asking if there will be a witch hunt against Luiz like there was for Rooney after he did something similar. Now I was slightly drunk but for the life of me all I can remember is Luiz committing some fouls, cant remember any elbows in the face.

Yeh I got this on another website

I respectfully disagree GK! If the referee includes in his report that he didn't see an "incident" involving something that the FA are looking into....then the FA can take action. Clattenburg "saw" the incident with Rooney at Wigan and awarded a free kick and mentioned in his report that he thought it only merited a free kick to Wigan.

Atkinson will mention nothing in his report about Luiz. Question is: will the FA investigate? If they do, then odds are Luiz could be banned. Not that it matters to us at this point, I grant you!

By the way, when it comes to these matches "evening" out over the course of a season - has anyone else noticed how the last THREE matches with Chelsea are NOT "even" at all?

Last season's match at the Bridge was decided by a goal from Terry from a free kick that was NOT a foul - even then if you give the free kick, Drogba MOLESTS Brown in the box as Terry scores! 1-0 loss.

Last season's match at OT was decided by a CLEAR offside goal by Drogba! Not even close! 2-1 loss.

Then today's match with the whole Luiz thing! How in the hell is that "even"?

My reply

I think your missing the point. Rooney elbowed another player in the head. Clear as day. If you do that on the street you are in the nick till some kind person posts bail or the judge wakes up.

Luiz barged Rooney. Was it a second yellow. Absolutely. But the FA takes retrospective action for violent conduct which could seriously injure another player (Rooney). Whether it did or not is not the point. It has the potential to which is why they (are supposed to) take retrospective action if it was missed or not properly dealt with. A barge on another player worthy of a second yellow is not an matter for a FA investigation, no matter how much that barge upsetted you or Red Nose. Sorry mate

I understand being upset after a loss, but the amount of f*cking whining I am hearing from Man U supporters right now is not f*ckin normal. Anyone's and EVERYONE'S fault but their own players

I'm quietly optimistic on Luiz. He has been great for the past games, but so was Boulahrouz!

Yes Manure fans always go over the board in their comments and all that will be anything but sense ...

This guy "David Luiz" Is going to be a football legend and it appears that he has already won over the press with his range of skills and some columnists and commentators want him to be cautious with the tackles .. Fair criticism is acceptable and Luiz has age on his side to learn the nuances of defending.

The sight of Luiz or just the mention of the name in articles makes me really cheerful and I believe it is the same with all you guys .. Wonder what magic has he done to keep us spell bound !

I'm quietly optimistic on Luiz. He has been great for the past games, but so was Boulahrouz!

That's a hundred liters of cold water poured on my enthusiasm that has been building for the last couple of weeks then.

Edited March 3, 201115 yr by rahul

I'm quietly optimistic on Luiz. He has been great for the past games, but so was Boulahrouz!

I bet your a massive Radiohead fan arent you.

I bet your a massive Radiohead fan arent you.

Nice

I bet your a massive Radiohead fan arent you.

"YOU'RE", "FAN," and "AREN'T"

Because Moi seems to be AWOL!

:lol:

I'm quietly optimistic on Luiz. He has been great for the past games, but so was Boulahrouz!

I don't think Boulahrouz had quite the effect as Luiz has already!

Thank God Giggs didnt come on and score in his 'big day', the drooling media present wouldve drowned in a collective ocean of its own sycophantic semen.

"YOU'RE", "FAN," and "AREN'T"

Because Moi seems to be AWOL!

Yeah but as moi is a lady I couldnt say anything back, but you been a rough arsed git I can easily tell you to piss off you pedantic sod.....

"BEING"

"BEING"

No, you once were, now your not.