I can understand a young girl maybe buying a certain players kit because she has a crush on him or whatever but i'm not sure fans across Europe anyway follow players but follow their teams.

RVP is the biggest shirt seller this season, simply he's Utd's major signing and there very well supported and most fans buying their new kit have had his name on it. I think it was 25% of shirt sales or something on that list earlier. But i bet that doesn't mean Utd total shirt sales have gone up by that amount does it. He may sell a few in Holland but most dutch fans will be loyal to whichever team they support at home rather than RVP.

I know its not the same in the far east and someone like Kagawa is probably a money spinner because they dont have major leagues of their own and are more into European football and they do follow their own players out of national pride which i suppose you can understand, i just dont think it works that way across Europe.

But kit makers and sponsors are getting more and more powerful in the game, i remember us getting Ballack and the whole addidas  number 13 thing that went on at the time so maybe there is more to it. Ballack on a free though was a no-brainer it takes a lot of bloody shirts to touch the sides on £50m and £175k per week. 

This was the reason QPR signed Ji Sung Park - Fernandes thought signing a Korean player would help with Air Asia marketing and would appeal to a wider base

my sister is 15. but i think there are a impressio

also my sister is 15 - and i know a lot of her friends have began to support Spurs purely because of Gareth Bale. Granted none of them will be life time supporters but its worth considering when discussing shirt sales

Good goal for him tonight. 

Ivanovic has 5 Premier league goals this season. Torres has 7. And his only CL goal this season apart from the lucky one against Shakhtar, was against Nordsjaelland who we thrashed 6-1. Out of his seven premiership goals this season, only one came against a top half side (Arsenal). How on earth anyone can want him to stay with a record like that is beyond me. He has started to improve recently for his unbelievably low standards but don't let it fool you for the 45th time. Torres is done.

I know that little rant came out of nowhere, but that's because it seems a lot of people would like for him to stay at the club next season. Can you honestly say he has done enough to deserve it? I've been much happier with him over the past couple of weeks but that doesn't change the fact that he simply will never consistently be good enough for Chelsea.

He needs the mask.

Zorres > Torres

also my sister is 15 - and i know a lot of her friends have began to support Spurs purely because of Gareth Bale. Granted none of them will be life time supporters but its worth considering when discussing shirt sales

Bale???, blimey teenage girls ah i must be missing something with him and Torres. Back to the Torres debate and like i said earlier, out of form or low on confidence i can suffer as long as the effort is there and although the last couple of weeks as seen an improvement and 20 goals is a good return no matter who they are against we need a new top quality striker.

If Torres is happy to play second fiddle to him(and who knows it may take off the pressure a bit) then keep him. There is plenty of room at a club like Chelsea to have 2 big name players up front. But whats more likely is he gets even more moody(when Drogba was here he went even more into his shell) and becomes disruptive in the squad then he should go.

He looked good when he came on against Sunderland the weekend, took his goal well last night so credit were its due. If he gets a hat-trick against City the weekend i might put his poster on my wall  But Monkey head can do one

Great goal from him...good to see him playing well and finally getting some much needed goals. It will do his confidence a world of good.

Read that he's starting tomorrow. Is Ba injured cos i assumed since Torres played the full 90 on Thursday that Ba would be starting at Wembley. His goal got us there aswell.

Hope he starts today.

I know that little rant came out of nowhere, but that's because it seems a lot of people would like for him to stay at the club next season. Can you honestly say he has done enough to deserve it? I've been much happier with him over the past couple of weeks but that doesn't change the fact that he simply will never consistently be good enough for Chelsea.

what if he scores a hat trick against city today? (wishful thinking I lost far to much money for the 1st year he was at chelsea betting on a torres hat trick and my faith in him would be repaid sadly its only paid out once) if he does go he will still b a bit of a hero in my eyes for the barca goal and winning us the corner from wich the drog banged in the header on that o so beautiful day that was may 19th

I assumed Ba would be cos Torres played on Thursday and Rafa rotates.

Another good performance today, should have had a penalty off Kompany too.

 

If he can keep this up and with Ba hitting form and Lukaku to come back, I'm not sure we even need a new striker.

Are you being serious? if he keeps this up and it means getting an extra £5m or getting more sides interested in him in the transfer window, that would be an ideal scenario. Under no circumstances should we keep him considering his fragile nature, ask yourself this question; can you either trust him to lead our frontline or put two past Wigan in the league next season?

Another good performance today, should have had a penalty off Kompany too.

 

If he can keep this up and with Ba hitting form and Lukaku to come back, I'm not sure we even need a new striker.

 

 

Jonty, I normally agree with most of your posts but you are well wide there mate. Yes it was a foul by Kompany. It was a penalty. But imagine Drogba in that situation. 99% of the time Kompany would have finished in heap spitting his teeth out and DD would have slotted that chance. Therein lies the difference.

^ Bang on just and that's exactly what I thought as soon as the chance went begging. Torres lacked aggression and desire in that situation. He lacked that killer instinct. It cost us.

... and another thing the Aguero studs up lunge on Luiz's bum for which we all know he should have been sent off for. Tell me. When that happened and you got over the horror, did you not have a brief, fleeting moment of wishful thinking? A moment when you thought........ "ohhh nasty. But by Christ... I wish our no: 9 could get that fired up for once".

 

The foul, the goal, the movement, the control, the hunger. Delivering on the big occasion, (again).

 

Aguero showed today, once more, what a massive, massive mistake it was by Mr R. Abramovich to ignore him and go for Torres. Quite simply in a different class.

Edited April 14, 201313 yr by just

^ I think we all gave up having those thoughts long ago.

Sorry all, but the first 60 minutes cost us not Torres. And whether or not Didier would have knocked Kompany over in the tussle for that ball is irrelevant to me for a couple of reasons. Firstly it was a penalty shout for me, secondly if Vincent had fallen over Foy would have given them a free kick. Torres may not be the answer but he isn't the reason we failed today.

Sorry all, but the first 60 minutes cost us not Torres. And whether or not Didier would have knocked Kompany over in the tussle for that ball is irrelevant to me for a couple of reasons. Firstly it was a penalty shout for me, secondly if Vincent had fallen over Foy would have given them a free kick. Torres may not be the answer but he isn't the reason we failed today.

 

Absolutely. No argument Carlo. Don't get me wrong here, this is not a post to have a go at Nando. Torres came on and did what you now hope Torres does. He did OK.

 

 

No, the post is to illustrate, in Sergio Aguero's overall performance today, exactly what we should have had for the past two seasons.

 

 

And allowing Torres to stay after the end of the season doesn't and won't, meet that need.

 

Ever.

The impact Torres and Aguero have had respectively shouldn't even be in the same sentence that's for sure. We all had high hopes for Torres when he came and the support he has received has even surprised me, more power to our fans. You are horribly correct in saying he is not what we need going into the next season. Everytime we get a good shift out of him, which to be fair (IMHO) we have seen more of recently it goes sideways. 

 

What I'm against is the constant vitriol of him. I have seen him miss a hatful of chances, seem to be unable to play a 10 foot pass and be ineffective, we all have, but he is here and I honestly don't see him going anywhere. 

 

Just to be clear on this, I think he should move on for his and the club's sake, but he has taken flak for things that are not his fault and not within his control (like the ball!) yet still managed to score 20 goals this season.

... and another thing the Aguero studs up lunge on Luiz's bum for which we all know he should have been sent off for. Tell me. When that happened and you got over the horror, did you not have a brief, fleeting moment of wishful thinking? A moment when you thought........ "ohhh nasty. But by Christ... I wish our no: 9 could get that fired up for once".

The foul, the goal, the movement, the control, the hunger. Delivering on the big occasion, (again).

Aguero showed today, once more, what a massive, massive mistake it was by Mr R. Abramovich to ignore him and go for Torres. Quite simply in a different class.

I really like aguero but that tackle was disgusting, I want torres to be fired up, but not one part of me wished torres was so fired up, he puts in a challenge thats up there with roy Keane on haaland, possibly ending another pro's career, being sent off and getting a lengthy ban.

I know your a big aguero fan Just, but I dont you can make any excuses for that challenge. Even if it was on your favourite centre half! lol.

I am not even going to pretend I understand what you are blabbering on about in that post- you listed some games from last season as if I wasn't around for them, I was born in 83, that is a good 29 years worth pal, including all the ones you listed.

Anyway, I agree this conversation should end here, I have learnt everything I need to know about you.

Ok, after a long time and a game like today.

Time to shake our hands?And if you want ,have a meet before the next game we attend?

. We all had high hopes for Torres when he came.

All of us? I didn't. He's actually done better this season than I expected him to do when he signed.