6 minutes ago, Ballanda said:

Keep quiet already mate, if you have no clue about the difference between signing 5 average defenders to add to our already sh*t defense and buying a proper one. Alonso is a WC for me until we see how he plays but Luiz is appreciated only by people like you who don't notice we need performers right now not players with passion. You can have all the passion in the world won't make up for the lack of skill.

But please, endow us with your stellar knowledge of the transfer market and these supposed performers. Clearly, you've identified far more options than Chelsea's multi-million pound scouting operation.

@Elliott Christensen is on a two-year loan and it can't be cut short by Chelsea. That was agreed last year.

3 minutes ago, ForeverCarefree said:

Want a slice a of lemon to go with that pint of bitter?

People put lemon in their bitter? 

 

I'm all for craft brewing but what the f**k?

7 minutes ago, Ballanda said:

Keep quiet already mate, if you have no clue about the difference between signing 5 average defenders to add to our already sh*t defense and buying a proper one. Alonso is a WC for me until we see how he plays but Luiz is appreciated only by people like you who don't notice we need performers right now not players with passion. You can have all the passion in the world won't make up for the lack of skill.

So you reckon the team's performances last season having just won the league the previous were down to a dramatic loss in technical ability?? It's pretty obvious there was a severe lack of passion/desire. I'd argue its exactly what we could use.

(And that's beside the point that Luiz improves the squad technically anyway)

Unbelievable. Omeruo and Cuevas are world class! Why the f**k did we sign Luiz and Alonso? Kante for Piazon and Bats for Remy, WTF!! It's a disgrace, disgrace!! Conte out!

Edited August 31, 20169 yr by the special one

1 hour ago, Davey Baby said:

He needed someone that can bring it out from the back, maybe someone that can hit a long diagonal, and we've finally got somebody who can shoot. He's also not afraid to mix it. These are the positives, there are plenty of negatives as you say. I would have waited and gone with who we've got but if he replaces Gary Cahill then that represents an upgrade of sorts, because I just don't think Gary Cahill is that good. Conte may want to go 3 at the back, at least some of the time, and that may also be behind this, because he may have felt he couldn't play that system without his Bonucci type. Now I'm not saying he's a Bonucci but you get my point. Remember, Bonucci was the first player we went after but Juve said no.

some good points. yes, he's got the ability and inclination to step into midfield with the ball. yes, he he's good with his left foot. yes, he can play long passes out and balls over the top when the game is short (i.e. when the two opposing defensive lines are close together). yes, he is familiar playing in wide positions and could, in theory play in any of the three positions in a back three. those are all things conte wants, they are all things our defenders can't really do. zouma and cahill are average with the ball, JT has no agility. luiz adds all of these attributes to the squad.

 

he can't defend though, can he?

he's a defender who actually can't defend. 

 

why have PSG, in this age of transfer fee inflation, taken a loss on one of their starters?  zlatan left, and yet they were happy to dispense with this supposed leader.

 

never mind, he's got a great social media presence...

 

1 minute ago, SydneyChelsea said:

But please, endow us with your stellar knowledge of the transfer market and these supposed performers. Clearly, you've identified far more options than Chelsea's multi-million pound scouting operation.

@Elliott Christensen is on a two-year loan and it can't be cut short by Chelsea. That was agreed last year.

Whats to suppose? We had a lot of targets above this guy but failed with each single one. I even lost the plot what happen with the presumable Maksimovic deal. Idea is why waste 35 mil on another stop gap who just barely improves our back line. Feels pointless. Anyway can't wait to see what the defense brigade will say when he starts costing us points. 

 

 

 

 

GEEZER

 

And on the pitch

 

Happy to welcome him back tbh

So that's six players who can cover centre-half for us: Terry, Cahill, Ivanovic, Zouma, Alonso and Luiz, not including Christianssen and the gazillion other young defenders who could surely have been used in an emergency. Meanwhile for the next four months we have two strikers, one of whom is new to this club/country and the other rarely goes long without being injured or suspended.

I'm surprised there's such enthusiam for Luiz' return. Sure he's wacky and likeable and all that, but he can't defend to save his life, and surely that's the bottom line. I wonder what feelings would be if he played the same way but looked like Wayne Rooney and had the charisma of Steven Gerrard?

 

I love it ! - feel with Conte and now Luiz a bit of fire in the belly we been sadly lacking since Drogba and Lamps left, despite his obvious failings (he is an incredible athelete mind) £30m to pump up the players and the crowd money well spent 

KTBFFH

 

As a personality, I'm delighted to have him back. Passion, leadership and keeps the morale high. As a player however, he is not the world class centre back we need. He DOES add strength in depth though, which we needed. And given the prices in the current market, to buy him for 30 mil is pretty damn good. Especially considering we sold him for 50 when the market was nowhere near as high as it is right now. So in that sense he's a bit of a bargain. Long-term we still need a world class centre back, but with Luiz we now have a mobile partner for JT until Zouma is back fit, and if we struggle to find a new cb in the next year or so he will will the gap alongside Zouma when JT goes.

It seemed like we hit desperation in this window and just wanted someone, anyone in who could play in our back line. And as far as panic buys go, this is a pretty good one.

Premier League experience, liked by the fans, knows his teammates, no issues settling in, speaks the language... all positives for a new signing. Also i think when we have the ball he is a huge asset to help our attacks from the back. Obviously when we don't have the ball is where the concerns are, but maybe he has progressed...

in short, WELCOME BACK, GEEZER!!!

Edited August 31, 20169 yr by Coxy15

3 minutes ago, Coxy15 said:

Obviously when we don't have the ball is where the concerns are, but maybe he has progressed...

this was on the weekend.

luckily refs aren't clamping down on this sort of thing in england...

2 minutes ago, g3.7 said:

this was on the weekend.

luckily refs aren't clamping down on this sort of thing in england...

Video is blocked for me, but yeah I'm not expecting any real change... just wishful thinking!!

We get the message g4! 

out of interest do you think we are stronger or weaker with David Luiz in the squad?

Oh well, i'm sure at least once this season we're going to lose points through some bizarre Luiz mistake, but at least it will be fun to watch.

27 minutes ago, g3.7 said:

some good points. yes, he's got the ability and inclination to step into midfield with the ball. yes, he he's good with his left foot. yes, he can play long passes out and balls over the top when the game is short (i.e. when the two opposing defensive lines are close together). yes, he is familiar playing in wide positions and could, in theory play in any of the three positions in a back three. those are all things conte wants, they are all things our defenders can't really do. zouma and cahill are average with the ball, JT has no agility. luiz adds all of these attributes to the squad.

 

he can't defend though, can he?

he's a defender who actually can't defend. 

 

why have PSG, in this age of transfer fee inflation, taken a loss on one of their starters?  zlatan left, and yet they were happy to dispense with this supposed leader.

 

never mind, he's got a great social media presence...

 

After the weekend I think PSG couldn't believe there luck

Deal done says Jim

The good, the bad, and the ugly ^^

10 minutes ago, bjd said:

We get the message g4! 

out of interest do you think we are stronger or weaker with David Luiz in the squad?

alright, alright. just can't emphasise how strongly I despair at this signing.

to answer your question: weaker.

Welcome back Geezer, just give us some good times....

I was happy when we sold Luiz, we got a lot of money for him, but now that he is back, i am ok with that too. We all know he isn't the best defender around, i also don't think he is terrible either. Also, if it's true that we only had to pay £10 million for him, then i think that this was a no brainer. 

I haven't forgotten David Luiz at his worst, and at his worst i hated seeing him in the team. He has an awful habit of charging out of position to make a tackle and it leaves us exposed. But at the same time he can play the ball around very easily from the back and has some positive aggressiveness in him. I also think he will have better midfielders protecting him this time around. In his time with us last time, we had Romeu, Mikel, Ramires, Meireles and a finished Essien protecting the defence, none of these are as good as a Kante and Matic partnership. 

He's a good defender that has a mistake in him, but as long as those mistakes are kept to a minimum, we should be able to cope. There doesn't seem to be a defence in Europe that is perfect these days. Defenders today ain't what they used to be.

8 minutes ago, g3.7 said:

alright, alright. just can't emphasise how strongly I despair at this signing.

to answer your question: weaker.

Fair enough. It's a bizarre signing no doubt about it, the weaknesses are glaring but he's got his qualities too. I'd argue that he brings benefits to the squad and makes us stronger, and I'm not just talking about the charisma character geezer side of things either. 

Lets agree to disagree. 

Glad It's over. Hate the transfer window and all its glamed up to be. We can all start proper now that we know who is playing for who.

Edited August 31, 20169 yr by bjd

The negativity around this is quite unbelievable really. Okay he is not the young up and coming central defender we would all like however he is no way near as bad as some are making out 

Add to that the personality makes sense to me. 

I know for sure when we played PSG twice in the champions league it wasn't ibrahimovic I feared

@g3.7

 

I agree with you, he's not a great defender. There are great defenders and he ain't one of them. It's a compromise signing, no doubt about it. Maybe Conte thinks JT's old, Cahill's not that good, Zouma will need time and may not ever fully recover and he's a bit cumbersome anyway, and Ivanovic is well past his sell-by date.

 

Is Luiz worse than what we have? He'll have asked himself that. Obviously he's worse than JT but other than him, he'll have asked himself that. 

 

Can he cope with the physicality of the Prem?

 

Does he give me the intensity and energy I require?

 

Is he a forward-thinking player, who can hit a long pass for Costa to run on to, in the absence of Fabregas?

 

Can the goalie pass the ball to him?

 

Was he a popular member of the dressing room?

 

Can he defend?

 

Okay okay, scrap that last question. Despite my misgivings about this signing, and I wouldn't have signed him, I'll be more confident with Luiz in the team going to Old Trafford and The Emptihad than I would be with one of our other defenders partnering Terry.

 

I don't go along with those who say this was done above the manager's head, that's just nonsense as far as I'm concerned. I am concerned he was easy to prise away. PSG didn't need too much persuasion, unlike those Italian clubs we tried to get defenders from, but I'm sure Conte has given his blessing and thinks he can improve the team. He couldn't get his top targets. He had to decide on somebody and this is who he plumped for. We'll have to give him the benefit of the doubt. He's looked at the pros and cons of everybody he could get and decided Luiz had more stacked in his favour, in terms of what he wants.

 

It's a curveball, sure, but it wouldn't be Chelsea without the odd curveball thrown in there now, would it?

https://www.chelseafc.com/news/latest-news/2016/08/david-luiz-returns.html?extcmp=SOCIA_TW_ENG_ARTICLES

 

confirmed!