Squad composition heading into 2015/2016 - good enough?

[PedroMendez]

I think JM plan is to go after CL but I do t think team we have today won't even go to the semifinals.

We need to sign world class RW footballer. I think again Oscar will go downhill after Christmass as it already happened twice.

Oscar has played almost 200 games (150 for Chelsea) in the last 3 seasons no wonder he looked a little of the boil in the second half of the season hopefully an actual holiday and preseason will do him the world of good and i expect a much more consistent season 

[Michael440]

Sounds good I know he will be good at the beginning of the season but what I'm worring about is the 2nd half of the season. I don't think I has to do with his fitness and rest, for some reason it looks like he's lacking motivation.

[PedroMendez]

Edit: Accidentally posted the same thing twice do you know how to remove a post if it happens again in the future.

And I know it seems to be the trend with Oscar, I'm just hoping he can break that trend 

Edited July 23, 2015 by PedroMendez

[TheChelseaBlues]

Think I am probably the only person in the world that rates Moses, of course he's no Hazard but he is very direct and is a different option.

I rate him. Good pace, smart player, works hard for the team. Im with you.

What is the worry over Hazard? Beside the fact hes the most irreplaceable, why worry about him more than Dave or Matic? We have less depth behind them IMO

[Celery1989]

At the moment I just don't think that we have enough strength in depth to be able to challenge on all fronts. I think we have 15/16 very good-to-excellent players but after that there isn't enough quality to take on the PL, CL and the cups too. If you look at Barca, Real and Bayern, the current cream of European Football, their squads just have more quality back up players across the board. 

 

We still have the best team in England and, barring injury, stand a good chance of retaining our Title. But last season showed that we need to add 2/3 quality additions to the squad to take us to the next level. Stones would be a good start, but I don't see anything else materialising other than another backup (LB) to replace an outgoing player, and therefore simply maintaining the status quo. 

[chickenfluff]

Yeah but when was the last time an english club ever won pl,cl and cups too? man utd 16 years ago. very, very rare once in a life time stuff. Yes barca, real and bayern have done it but they have the luxury of having much weeker domestic leagues.

Our team and squad are still not the finished artical. We have the players but winning on the european stage takes a long time to get right. We would of learnt alot from the psg games and next year we will be better for it.

[PedroMendez]

TBH I don't want us to go for the domestic cups, I'd much rather we played our youth and fringe players, and gave the first team a rest. Hopefully we get an easy CL group so we can do the same, don't want to see the side as jaded as it was last season.

[Spiller86]

Depends on our ambitions. Can that squad go deep into the Champions League? No.

Can we reasonably expect to win the league looking at other squads? Of course. United still have a terrible back line. City are still heavily reliant on Aguero and Cech doesn't solve having a centre back pairing that involves Mertesacker.

The question is injuries. If one of Terry, Matic, Fabregas or Hazard go down for an extended period we can't win. We were lucky with injuries last season. We can't reasonably expect such luck again.

I take your point venom about waiting for the right player next summer and not making Cuadrado like buys. But for mine at the very least we need another player capable of some creative output preferably in midfield. Pedro would have been perfect.

[TheChelseaBlues]

Depends on our ambitions. Can that squad go deep into the Champions League? No.

Of all the clubs who have recently won the CL, we should know this is not true.

I dont think Mourinho has been given a mandate to win the CL. Ill try to find the link but he's said the league is our focus this season, along with youth.

[Spiller86]

Then I would say my point then is that means our squad is perfectly fine.

If we're comfortable being a tier two team in the CL and hope to maybe make the quarterfinals at best, sure. We can still challenge for the Premier League assuming no injuries.

And honestly would I accept a top 4 finish for having Traore and RLC develop into starters this time next year? I probably would.

[venom2011]

The question is injuries. If one of Terry, Matic, Fabregas or Hazard go down for an extended period we can't win. We were lucky with injuries last season. We can't reasonably expect such luck again.

I take your point venom about waiting for the right player next summer and not making Cuadrado like buys. But for mine at the very least we need another player capable of some creative output preferably in midfield. Pedro would have been perfect.

Matic and Fabregas are the real worries. More so because it will effect both the style and quality of our play. When Hazard dipped in the final quarter of last season, Willian was comfortably the best attacking midfielder of the lot. That's what we need from the others.

These talents - Willian Oscar Cuadrado must make the step up, and be given every chance to do it. Add Hazard, Traore and Moses and you have 6. 4 will be the main core with Traore and Moses as backup. That is perfect as it is in my opinion. The only way you improve that dynamic is by signing a significantly better player. i.e Bale. And Pedro does not fit that mould. Willian is our 2nd best AM. Oscar has immense potential. A2nd after 6 months it would be ridiculous to be rid of Cuadrado. The timing is just not right.

Now a signing to strengthen the deeper midfield area is a different case.

[enigma]

At the end of the day, it's over a course of a season that our rivals have to perform, not just during a pointless pre-season. I wouldn't care if we beat a full strength barca side tomorrow, it still would mean nothing. Our rivals have strengthened, sure, but they've signed players whom aren't experienced this league, the intensity it brings, the conditions they'll have to play under etc, whereas our young squad already have premier league winning experience and know what it's going to take to retain that title, so i am not worried what our rivals do.

 

I still think it's going to eventually take it's toll on the new signings, they will have to be strong mentally and physically over the 38 prem games (not including cup games and CL games) so it will certainly be interesting for the new guys coming to the league. We could use a couple more solid signings, preferably one of those being a CM, but we shouldn't be stressing on what we don't have, and be happy at what we do have and the experience they all have in this league already, which will stand them in good stead for next season. 

[Tea Bar Boy]

slow and steady will win the Premiership this year .....which is why I think we will retain it in the last two weeks, albeit by a slender margin.

Man Utd and Liverscum will come out the blocks flying and set the early pace but both be caught up by us and Le Arse just after Xmas when teams work out Man Utd have no defence and , as usual , Brenda has no plan B) or worked out how to breakdown a good defence .

[enigma]

forgot, also we have chalobah in the squad. he came on last night and made a decent enough showing of himself at cb, i wonder if he will stay or go? 

[TheChelseaBlues]

Then I would say my point then is that means our squad is perfectly fine.

If we're comfortable being a tier two team in the CL and hope to maybe make the quarterfinals at best, sure. We can still challenge for the Premier League assuming no injuries.

And honestly would I accept a top 4 finish for having Traore and RLC develop into starters this time next year? I probably would.

Second. If RLC and one of Zouma or Traore are starting next year I could live with a cup run and 3rd or 4th

[abramovich]

I'm not ready to sacrifice trophies for the sake of youngsters getting significant playing time. I'm not an agent for RLC or Traore, I'm a CFC supporter. They should play, if they deserve to play, and that's for the manager, who sees them regularly in training, to decide.

[Delnino]

The youths, if theyre good enough will play. Right now the squad is probably good enough to do what it done lastyear and win the league and maybe a domestic cup, we've one huge advantage over the rest of the teams, Mourinho.

 

No other manager in the league can come close to what Jose can offer a team.

 

If the club wants to go further in Europe we've to make big signings. Juventus have made a couple of signings, Barca are banned yet have added Turan, Real havent made any significant signing yet but could add De Gea, PSG look likely to add Di Maria and Bayern have added Vidal.

 

Meanwhile the EPL are happy with over priced English players like Sterling and Stones. If we want to win the UCL again we've to be shopping for quality to improve the squad and starting XI right now.

[PedroMendez]

I'm not ready to sacrifice trophies for the sake of youngsters getting significant playing time. I'm not an agent for RLC or Traore, I'm a CFC supporter. They should play, if they deserve to play, and that's for the manager, who sees them regularly in training, to decide.

Playing youngsters yes increases there value which is good for the club as well as the agents but it also aides their development allowing them to potential be the next Pogba in RLC case would that not be something to cheer as a Chelsea fan seeing us create such a great CM that can play for us for the next 12 years or so, yes trophies are brilliant and I would love and want us to win as many as possible but the BPL and CL are the ones I put as top priority and I would much rather losing out on the FA cup and CC because we gave some of the youngsters a chance than if we lost out on the BPL because we haven't rested our first team enough because we have been playing them in all in the cups like last year, we need to rotate a lot more this year as the BPL has got much stronger and I don't think we'd get away with performing lie we did in the 2nd half of last season.  

[abramovich]

Playing youngsters yes increases there value which is good for the club as well as the agents but it also aides their development allowing them to potential be the next Pogba in RLC case would that not be something to cheer as a Chelsea fan seeing us create such a great CM that can play for us for the next 12 years or so, yes trophies are brilliant and I would love and want us to win as many as possible but the BPL and CL are the ones I put as top priority and I would much rather losing out on the FA cup and CC because we gave some of the youngsters a chance than if we lost out on the BPL because we haven't rested our first team enough because we have been playing them in all in the cups like last year, we need to rotate a lot more this year as the BPL has got much stronger and I don't think we'd get away with performing lie we did in the 2nd half of last season.  

 

I was replying to TheChelseaBlues' post who said he'd be happy with a cup run and 3rd-4th spot, as long as we give youngsters a chance to play. I don't want to give up on the league title or a shot at the CL just to play the youngsters, that's my point.

 

Playing youngsters in the domestic cup competitions is absolutely fine with me. In fact, I'd be more than happy for them to feature as much as possible in the league games, I just want them to get their place on merit and not as some sort of principle.

[TheChelseaBlues]

I dont want to see them thrown out there for the sake of it either but if RLC and Traore, for example, could be given significant time this season at the expense of some extra points, which probably means no title, I wouldnt mind if that means they grow into starters for us next season.

Im not saying throw games at the expense of youth but instead of trotting out Willian or Ramires against Stoke in October Id rather see a young player given a start, assuming theyve somewhat earned it. If they are crap in training then by all means leave them out but I personally would like to see them given a chance and if it means we drop points, so be it.

Young players need game time, which if they get means we'll probably be weaker in those games. And I have no issue with that. We cant continue waiting until we have the title, or CL group wrapped up to give youngsters a chance. If that means we slip a couple places in the short term, so be it.

Edited July 30, 2015 by TheChelseaBlues

[PloKoon13]

Our squad is still relatively small; I know that is generally speaking José's preference but it's not as if we couldn't accommodate a couple more senior players. This begs the question of whether we are numerically few because that's how José wants it, or whether we still have a few holes. Of course last season our squad was also short of the numerical maximum in terms of foreign/domestic senior players, and we seemed to cope reasonably well.

 

In our first-team squad we only have 16 non-homegrown players (maximum 17), and 5 homegrown (maximum 8). In addition we have 3 under-21s (no maximum), although it remains to be seen how much they will be used.

 

So by my calculations:

 

17 Non-Homegrown Players

1) Ivanovic

2) Zouma

3) Rahman

4) Ramires

5) Oscar

6) Falcao

7) Hazard

8) Mikel

9) Courtois

10) Pedro

11) Rémy

12) Costa

13) Matic

14) Willian

15) Azpilicueta

16) Djilobodji

17)

 

8 Homegrown Players

 

18) Begovic

19) Fabregas

20) Cahill

21) Terry

22) Blackman (turns 22 in October)

23)

24)

25)

 

Unlimited Under-21s

 

Traoré

Kenedy

Loftus-Cheek

 

 

I'm not entirely sure what the point I was trying to make is, I just wanted to lend voice to my thoughts and have the list written in front of me.

[PedroMendez]

RLC can count as homegrown as well can't he

[PloKoon13]

Yes, although as he's under 21 it's irrelevant.

 

Also it might be worth pointing out that there isn't an eight-man maximum on homegrown players; theoretically you can fill your entire 25-man squad with them.

[MJB]

The sooner 6 o clock comes the better, we know one way or another. I would love to see RLC start playing games now, get Oscar back and let's get a run going. Come on Chels

[Scott Harris]

Our squad is still relatively small; I know that is generally speaking José's preference but it's not as if we couldn't accommodate a couple more senior players. This begs the question of whether we are numerically few because that's how José wants it, or whether we still have a few holes. Of course last season our squad was also short of the numerical maximum in terms of foreign/domestic senior players, and we seemed to cope reasonably well.

 

In our first-team squad we only have 16 non-homegrown players (maximum 17), and 5 homegrown (maximum 8). In addition we have 3 under-21s (no maximum), although it remains to be seen how much they will be used.

 

So by my calculations:

 

17 Non-Homegrown Players

1) Ivanovic

2) Zouma

3) Rahman

4) Ramires

5) Oscar

6) Falcao

7) Hazard

8) Mikel

9) Courtois

10) Pedro

11) Rémy

12) Costa

13) Matic

14) Willian

15) Azpilicueta

16) Djilobodji

17)

 

8 Homegrown Players

 

18) Begovic

19) Fabregas

20) Cahill

21) Terry

22) Blackman (turns 22 in October)

23)

24)

25)

 

Unlimited Under-21s

 

Traoré

Kenedy

Loftus-Cheek

 

 

I'm not entirely sure what the point I was trying to make is, I just wanted to lend voice to my thoughts and have the list written in front of me.

 

Zouma is still only 20 so doesn't count as a non homegrown player.