No mention of Ashley Young . . .

 

I usually avoid the Daily Mail like a plague but had to check out their list.

 

Yup, no United players but two for Chelsea.

 

No Gerrard or Suarez or perhaps most surprisingly (or not), no Gareth Bale.

How can they not have Suarez, Gerrard, Bale or Young? That Suarez one against stoke where he basically belly flopped was hilarious, and so was the Ronaldo one where Lampard just laughed at him.

How can they not have Suarez, Gerrard, Bale or Young? That Suarez one against stoke where he basically belly flopped was hilarious, and so was the Ronaldo one where Lampard just laughed at him.

All modern players dive. It just the way it is. All clubs do it and condone opposite players that do it but praise their own for doing it. Just the way it is.

All modern players dive. It just the way it is. All clubs do it and condone opposite players that do it but praise their own for doing it. Just the way it is.

Erm, not really the point I was making.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just saying....

Erm, not really the point I was making.

I know but i just thought i point out that media should not target one club or another. Just accept diving part of the game and just don,t give it the attention it does not deserve.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just saying....

He does dive a lot but so does suarez, bale, ronlado. even theo does a lot for us. Just way of modern football really.

According to dailyfail, his dive is among the top 10 WORST EVER IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD!

I can only assume it was because he had a clear goal scoring opportunity and still decided to go down.

 

I haven't seen the list though so could be wrong.

I can only assume it was because he had a clear goal scoring opportunity and still decided to go down.

 

I haven't seen the list though so could be wrong.

Strange thing if he stayed on his feet he might have gone on and scored. But still overeaction to the dive and people should move on

If anyone is puzzled by his celebration after he scored today he went on Instagram today to announce that he and his wife Ludmila are expecting their first child.

 

http://web.stagram.com/n/oscar_emboaba/

 

does that mean oscar junior will be able to play for England, being born in London?  

I can only assume it was because he had a clear goal scoring opportunity and still decided to go down.

 

I haven't seen the list though so could be wrong.

 

If that was the case youd think this would be at the top spot

 

Caroll probably didn't even dive,hes just so awful with the ball at his feet and so clumsy that he fell over his own feet.Most likely he was in panic mode that he might actually score a goal.

Caroll probably didn't even dive,hes just so awful with the ball at his feet and so clumsy that he fell over his own feet.Most likely he was in panic mode that he might actually score a goal.

I think he tried to cover face. Tried to score but so useless at trying that in rather bad attempt went down looking for pen. One of liverpool worst ever signings was that . Biggest waste of 35 million you will ever see in your life.

I think hes been incredibly lucky with at least half his goals this season

He deserves it,he works his socks off and gets rewarded.

Who was it that said the harder he worked the luckier he got?

Me

Saw him playing a role we'd like to see him play, picking the ball up from defence, and dictating play, if he can play there with Rami, Mata will be a regular again...

Edited January 5, 201412 yr by Ballack & Blu

Who was it that said the harder he worked the luckier he got?

Gary Player?

Who was it that said the harder he worked the luckier he got?

Not sure if you wanted an answer but Johnny wilkinson ... I know you don't like the union stuff. ;)

A quick check on google and it looks like originally it was thomas jefferson. But gary player is the one I was thinking of. Wilkinson can f**k right of........

:)

A quick check on google and it looks like originally it was thomas jefferson. But gary player is the one I was thinking of. Wilkinson can f**k right of........

:)

Thomas Jefferson is one of history's greatest men. My favorite founding father by a wide margin

Most complete AM in football. 

An interview with Oscar in The Sunday Times today:

Oscar's season

Chelsea’s Brazilian ace aims to punch above his weight today

NO, OSCAR says, he never gets tired. For a rare moment the barriers of diffidence drop, eyes rise to make contact and he risks a quip. “You can’t tire under Mourinho,” this shy Brazilian laughs. “He demands . . . a lot.” Our talk (through an interpreter) is strewn with words such as “team”, “pragmatic” and, especially, “winning”. A demanding business, modern football. Even wizards must be water-carriers.

Still wondering why Jose Mourinho shifted Juan Mata out of Chelsea’s No 10 role? It may be less to do with the Spaniard than with the manager’s dream who replaced him. Meet Oscar: Brazilian No 10, updated model. He gets on the ball and gets his goals. He also gets stuck in.

“The sight of dribbling in a match is something we saw a lot of from Ronaldinho. He put on a show,” says Oscar, reflecting on how his specialist position has changed. “But now football is more about winning games and it’s a lot more difficult to play like that.

“If you lose the ball in the wrong position that’s a very big error. I’m playing in England, where the game is so dynamic it can happen so easily — if you lose the ball the other team can score and that’s what we have to avoid.” Equally, “[pressing] is really important. If I can steal the ball, particularly in the opposition half, this is something I love to do. It’s a strong point of my game.” He says he doesn’t look at stats, but Mourinho does. There, in the numbers, is Oscar’s rarity value, his value to any team he graces. How many playmakers put in such shifts? No Chelsea footballer apart from Ramires has made more tackles in 2013-14 than Oscar. Mata challenges for the ball every 59.6 minutes he plays, Oscar every 24.6 minutes. Mata has made two clearances, the Brazilian 11.

Chelsea’s other attacking midfielders trail in his workaholic wake. Combined, the tackles total for Andre Schurrle, Willian and Eden Hazard only just creeps above Oscar’s tally. Yet he retains attacking and creative potency. Only Hazard has outscored him and had more dribbles. Only Mata makes more crosses.

In a Mourinho team, where flair must be balanced by effort, where transitions — when teams win the ball and counter — are all-important, an Oscar is invaluable. In person, he seems a spindly and awkward teenager, not a spiky harrier of opposing defensive players (witness a recent spat with a friend, Liverpool’s Lucas). His shoulders are the same width as one of Branislav Ivanovic’s thighs. He grins. “Everyone says I’m slim — but I can put myself about.”

What’s interesting is that he didn’t become The Good Team Man to compensate for lack of individual talent. He’s technically superb, a prodigy who scored the first hat-trick in an Under-20 World Cup final. His second goal versus Juventus, in his first Chelsea start 16 months ago, showcased exceptional ability: touch, turn, top corner, with Andrea Pirlo and Gigi Buffon left helpless. He’s only 10st 6lb and aged 22 but, for a home World Cup, Luiz Felipe Scolari trusts him in Brazil’s most iconic role.

“My colleagues in the Selecao say I play in the Brazilian style, but with a touch of English. Especially with regard to my tackling and marking,” Oscar says. “I was always someone who started with a high technical level but [in the Premier League] you need other qualities to succeed and I’ve been adapting my game. In Brazil, players love to do tricks. I arrived at Chelsea with that mentality — but you start to realise how important the more pragmatic side of the game is.”

Mourinho and Rafa Benitez, who loved him for similar reasons, have encouraged this mindset. It has also evolved from how Oscar sees the game. “I love to win. A match where I’ve scored two goals and lost, I don’t think it’s a success. For that reason I make sure I do my work and the individual aspect comes second.” He talks approvingly of Scolari reviving the Selecao by strengthening their “defensive commitment”. Most compatriots of his generation idolised Ronaldinho but he preferred Kaka, that most European of Brazil’s icons. Like Oscar, Kaka is from Sao Paulo state and places efficiency, not beauty, at the heart of his football. “He made it look easy,” Oscar says.

He is thought to be one of Roman Abramovich’s favourites. He’s certainly a model employee. Being the star is not his objective; he’s happy with supporting actor Oscar. Now Mourinho is using him centrally and not wide, or even deep, where he played under Benitez and Roberto Di Matteo. “I’m really enjoying having a similar role with Chelsea as with Brazil.

“I need to all the time be speaking with Hazard, Mata, Willian, Schurrle. These are great attacking players and maybe my defensive aspect has developed a bit more and can work in harmony with them.”

He agrees he needs to start scoring at Hazard’s rate, though he’s not jealous of the praise heaped on the Belgian. “Hazard has some incredible talents, especially his dribbling, but for me the most important thing is how we complement each other. Footballers are all different. Hazard can produce some amazing things on the counterattack but I can help him with that if it’s me who has won the ball for him.”

All this, of course, delights the Special One. “You always want to speak with Mourinho,” Oscar says. “He’s very good at knowing the talents of his players. I’m making sure I’m taking the very most I can out of my time with him.”

Today a different Chelsea face Manchester United from the uncertain side who were happy to draw 0-0 at Old Trafford in August. “Chelsea are a project that’s been developing a lot and growing. The time we played Man United it was still quite new. We have the personality of a Mourinho team now. We’re playing very well collectively, we’re not conceding and with that is coming victories. We’ve got difficult rivals but you have to remember we beat Manchester City at Stamford Bridge. So we’re going to keep fighting, regardless of whether we’re favourite [for the title]. We’re certainly in with a chance of winning it.”

He speaks of impending fatherhood — his wife, Ludmila, a Japanese-Brazilian, is pregnant. “It’s fantastic about the baby and I’m thinking that [added to the World Cup and Chelsea’s progress] this is a special year for me.” He admits being mature before his time, on and off the field, different from his extrovert friend David Luiz. “But everyone’s different to David Luiz,” he points out. “I’m more like Ramires — but we like to joke about, too.” Ramires predicts, one day, Oscar will win the Ballon D’Or. Kaka did it. Oscar may be quiet but his confidence is considerable and he’s unafraid to aim that high. “Right now, I’m playing for one of the biggest clubs, having a very good season and I’m sure if I continue winning things with Chelsea and win things for Brazil then one day such a prize might be within my grasp. Hazard’s, too.

“Who knows, if I keep developing and working hard?”

Oscar is supporting Right To Play’s 5k run in Battersea Park on May 16. Sign up to the run at www.righttoplay.com/kickoff5k

Posted this in the matchday thread but i feel this thread is more appropriate:

 

Im still unconvinced by him. He has only 2 assists this season, and most of his goals have been jammy, so i dont think he will maintain his goalscoring form

 

If you look past his defensive ability his not half the player Mata is. I really have a problem with our starting nr 10 being one of the worst passers in the team. His passing % in the CHL is below 80%. Thats shocking!

 

He constantly gives away the ball. Today he tried to nutmeg Young in our own half, and lost the ball without anyone covering. If Matic does end up shoring up our midfield then Mata should replace Oscar in the starting line up.

Edited January 19, 201412 yr by Lane