On 28/04/2018 at 19:23, Valerie said:

We have a few new idiots in town.

And a lot of the long-term special-needs posters are still here :)

16 hours ago, Strider6003 said:

Not so sure, Willian is not consistent and Hazard is not a prolific striker, Zaha might become one though if we were to buy him I would not let any forward go except perhaps Pedro.

I've heard Bailey is good in spells and think both Barkley and RLC are injury prone so you would need other options to support Kante.

I just don't feel it's worth going after Zaha, he's going to cost a ton of money and there will probably be better players that are better or just as good for less. He's 25 now and has never scored more than 9 goals in a season in his career

I feel Bailey makes a lot of sense, he's left footed and is capable of playing on either side, he's only 20 years old and has been ripping some defences apart in Germany plus he's not likely to cost insane money if reports are true

From what I've seen he's also apparently a Chelsea fan which is always a bonus 

4 hours ago, Sparkz said:

I just don't feel it's worth going after Zaha, he's going to cost a ton of money and there will probably be better players that are better or just as good for less. He's 25 now and has never scored more than 9 goals in a season in his career

I feel Bailey makes a lot of sense, he's left footed and is capable of playing on either side, he's only 20 years old and has been ripping some defences apart in Germany plus he's not likely to cost insane money if reports are true

From what I've seen he's also apparently a Chelsea fan which is always a bonus 

He will cost more than he's worth, but he's shown a lot of improvement this season. Looks like he's just hitting his prime... Although Bailey might be doing well in Germany, Zaha is performing in the Prem and he's kready had a spell at a big club so should be well prepared for the pressure and demands this time around. 

Maybe loaning a couple of the brighter prospects could help lower the fee...?

Either way, he's still probably in a category that's a little below Willian right now... I think a Mahrez, Fekir or someone similar would be more the calibre of player required, someone you could hopefully rely on to carry a big part of the creative / goalscoring burden when Hazard isn't performing or out of the side...

Of course it's unlikely that there will be two quality wingers / Am's bought in... But Pedro is one that should really leave this summer. That leaves Hazard and Willian alone. At a stretch, Moses, who another manager might use in his old attacking role, or just keep for his versatility.

There's also Kenedy, who I've always liked as a left forward, Musonda (one who seems to rate himself higher than he really is) and Boga, who reminds me a bit of Willian in his ball carrying and ability to keep the ball. 

Hazard, Willian, Moses, Kenedy, Musonda, Boga... Any four of those still won't be up to scratch, imho. 

I can't really see too many goalscoring, am/wingers around, other than the ones mentioned at the top of this post. 

There is Traore who I believe the club has first option on, but again... Probably a step below what's required. 

 

Edited April 30, 20188 yr by Bluefog

i would be quite happy to see hazard go for the right price but abroad only. he is far to inconsistent. i would sacrifice a little of his flair for more consistency :)

3 hours ago, Unclezillion said:

i would be quite happy to see hazard go for the right price but abroad only. he is far to inconsistent. i would sacrifice a little of his flair for more consistency :)

But he is still our best player and if we get Sarri or Jardim there is no way we should let him go. If Conte stays or if the club doesn't make at least 1 ambitious signing...then we start to think about selling hazard. Ideally I think we should not go for anything less that what Barca payed for Coutinho, in fact it should be a bit more than that as we can exploit Madrid's desperation. All in all I would never want to see him go.... but if the scenario arises then we better be able to buy at least 2 up and coming world class players (Martial;Zaha;Bailey;Asensio;etc) with Hazards fee.

I think what we mustn’t do is just get rid of all our over 30s and replace them with youth. It’s very important to keep experienced players around. It’s why at Man U Fergi kept players like Scholes and Giggs around, they can come into a game and through experience can still do a job. With us I wouldn’t be so quick to ship out Cahil and Fabregas for example. They should definitely be replaced but not discarded. Having players like that around other players will learn from them and they will also come in when required putting a bit of pressure on the other players.

There's no 'right' price to sell Hazard, unless it's like 200M or some ridiculous figure. Let's say we sell him for 120M, the price of all our targets will inflate we will probably get Zaha for 80M and Drinkwater type of player for 40M. He's not consistent because we expected him to do something on his own every game, there were no easy games for him, of course had some bad games, but who hasn't?

I doubt anything will happen without discovering whether Conte stays or is relieved of his duties.....if he stays then we can only assume that the Board will back him and at least make a better effort of getting the players he wants rather than the sloppy seconds he ended up with.  If he stays I think we can say goodbye to Drinkwater, Moses, Zappacosta, Willian (unless this apparent falling out is fixed) possibly Barkley, Musonda, Abrahams as I can't see him making the first team squad if Bats comes back, if Bats is sold then maybe Abraham stays.  

Of course if Conte leaves then it will all depend on the style of the new manager, but we definitely need an upgrade on Zappacosta,Cahill and Moses for a start off.  I believe we should keep Morata, yes he had a rough start to English football, but he had been playing with a niggling back injury; he has pace, good in the air, his finishing needs to improve and his falling over needs to stop, but he links up well with Hazard and Willian and if both stay and all 3 play, they will be as good as Liverpool's front 3 with the assumption we stop playing this defensive dross style football. If Morata does stay then sadly it will be time to sell Bats, I can't see Chelsea keeping 4 strikers in the  first team squad (Bats, Giroud, Morata, Abraham) 

3 hours ago, Bobbywoodhogan said:

I think what we mustn’t do is just get rid of all our over 30s and replace them with youth. It’s very important to keep experienced players around. It’s why at Man U Fergi kept players like Scholes and Giggs around, they can come into a game and through experience can still do a job. With us I wouldn’t be so quick to ship out Cahil and Fabregas for example. They should definitely be replaced but not discarded. Having players like that around other players will learn from them and they will also come in when required putting a bit of pressure on the other players.

Was just about to write the same thing, I would defiantly keep Fab and either Luiz or Cahill in the squad. It's so important to have some experience in the dressing room.

2 hours ago, Ernie_blue said:

Was just about to write the same thing, I would defiantly keep Fab and either Luiz or Cahill in the squad. It's so important to have some experience in the dressing room.

100%

If JT retires I’d get him back in a coaching position too.

I do think when some fans talk of clearouts they’re essentially playing PlayStation football with the squad. 

 

Luiz can be extremely vital as a forward moving CB and his presence in the locker room is absolutely essential. Don't forget Luiz was considered one of the best CBs in the Prem last year. If he can recover from his injury then we have 5 CBs- 2 forward moving centre backs (Luiz and Rudiger) 2 centre backs that keep their ground (Cahill and Christensen) and 1 that can do both (Zouma). That combination of QUALITY experience and youth in both CB roles is something NONE of the other top 6 have. So I say we keep the CBs that we already have and not waste any of the already limited financial resources on a problem that doesn't exist.....well at least for this year.

 

4 hours ago, Bobbywoodhogan said:

100%

If JT retires I’d get him back in a coaching position too.

I do think when some fans talk of clearouts they’re essentially playing PlayStation football with the squad. 

 

Cesc and Cahill are hg too

Out - Pedro, Luiz, Willian, Zappacosta, 

In - Jorginho, Bailey, Zouma, RLC, CHO, A RWB/RB to push Moses and give him serious competition.

 

Cesc would be great as a super sub (We saw that 2016/2017.) Cahill I wouldn't get rid of him as he is a good leader and showed how valuable he is as the season went on (AC27 is definitely the future but he still has some growing to do but the future is definitely bright).  Bakayoko needs another season and I think he is going to be very good next year, the same goes for Morata (We can't just sell these guys bc they had a tough time adjusting to life in England. Now if they are terrible next season then that's a little different). They need a solid RWB as well and Jay DaSilva (I think I'm thinking of the right DaSilva) could be a solid option. I also don't know to many RWB available in Europe. All I know regarding Moses/Zappacosta, one of them has to go and if it was up to me it would be Zappacosta.  Moses' lack of ability to get a cross in is incredibly frustrating but I still think he offers more than Zappacosta. I would prefer Moses as the back up.

17 hours ago, Bobbywoodhogan said:

100%

If JT retires I’d get him back in a coaching position too.

I do think when some fans talk of clearouts they’re essentially playing PlayStation football with the squad. 

 

You're probably right in some cases - some fans do live in a fantasy world.

However, at times you do need and have to have a "clearout". You mentioned Fergie, and yes, there were players he kept as he knew they were still good and could do a job. But Fergie was also an expert in knowing when to let go of players, rather than just watch them decline and he got rid of many players who were still decent but he wanted to tweak and improve / refresh the squad. No room for sentiment in football and our squad certainly does need some refreshing. Cahill I would keep as I've been really impressed with how he bounced back towards the end of the season. Sure, he'll always have a gaff in him but what centre back doesn't and he is a good character to have around the squad. Fabregas on the other hand I would move on. By keeping him just because he has experience and can play the occasional killer pass, it's blocking the way for fresher, hungrier players who will hopefully offer a lot more. 

Our attack certainly is going to look so different next season! Willian looks like a goner sadly, Pedro surely won’t stay for another year. 

39 minutes ago, Nibs said:

You're probably right in some cases - some fans do live in a fantasy world.

However, at times you do need and have to have a "clearout". You mentioned Fergie, and yes, there were players he kept as he knew they were still good and could do a job. But Fergie was also an expert in knowing when to let go of players, rather than just watch them decline and he got rid of many players who were still decent but he wanted to tweak and improve / refresh the squad. No room for sentiment in football and our squad certainly does need some refreshing. Cahill I would keep as I've been really impressed with how he bounced back towards the end of the season. Sure, he'll always have a gaff in him but what centre back doesn't and he is a good character to have around the squad. Fabregas on the other hand I would move on. By keeping him just because he has experience and can play the occasional killer pass, it's blocking the way for fresher, hungrier players who will hopefully offer a lot more. 

Even though I would keep Fabregas for one more year but I don’t really disagree with anything you said. I guess if it came down to keeping Fabregas or not, I don’t think I’d be heartbroken if he did go. I totally get your point about potentially blocking a young player too.

35 minutes ago, dansubrosa said:

Our attack certainly is going to look so different next season! Willian looks like a goner sadly, Pedro surely won’t stay for another year. 

Yeah I think Pedro’s time is done probably head back to Spain. Tbh if we let Willian go I actually think we’ll miss what he does well in the squad. But given what he has done recently I think his time is rightly up. Plus if we can do a swap plus cash for a much younger Martial I’d do it. 

33 minutes ago, Bobbywoodhogan said:

Yeah I think Pedro’s time is done probably head back to Spain. Tbh if we let Willian go I actually think we’ll miss what he does well in the squad. But given what he has done recently I think his time is rightly up. Plus if we can do a swap plus cash for a much younger Martial I’d do it. 

Indeed, hopefully we’ll be much stronger as a result. A consistent winger would be amazing. I’m bored of speculating on who will be the replacements, I’ll just wait and see what we do this summer. 

Although im a big fan of Martial and think he would be a clever signing.

On 21/05/2018 at 04:34, Unclezillion said:

i would be quite happy to see hazard go for the right price but abroad only. he is far to inconsistent. i would sacrifice a little of his flair for more consistency :)

Far too inconsistent......a funny thing to say about somebody who has been one of our most consistent players this season. Kante, Rudiger, Hazard, Azpilicueta, those are our only consistent players this season. We won't just lose Hazard's flair if he goes, we lose our entire attack.

2 hours ago, Scott Harris said:

Far too inconsistent......a funny thing to say about somebody who has been one of our most consistent players this season. Kante, Rudiger, Hazard, Azpilicueta, those are our only consistent players this season. We won't just lose Hazard's flair if he goes, we lose our entire attack.

 

Couldn't agree more

almost embarrassing to call yourself a Chelsea fan if you go on about wanting to sell Hazard. Need to keep him at all costs, unless of course a massive money offer comes in. Could have also added Christensen to that list if the season was only up until March :(

1 hour ago, JJP said:

 

Couldn't agree more

almost embarrassing to call yourself a Chelsea fan if you go on about wanting to sell Hazard. Need to keep him at all costs, unless of course a massive money offer comes in. Could have also added Christensen to that list if the season was only up until March :(

I don’t think I’d accept any amount of money for Hazard. We’ll just waste the money on dross. Hazard must stay!

33 minutes ago, dansubrosa said:

I don’t think I’d accept any amount of money for Hazard. We’ll just waste the money on dross. Hazard must stay!

Can't fault your way of thinking when we spent 35m on drinkwater 

18 hours ago, Scott Harris said:

Far too inconsistent......a funny thing to say about somebody who has been one of our most consistent players this season. Kante, Rudiger, Hazard, Azpilicueta, those are our only consistent players this season. We won't just lose Hazard's flair if he goes, we lose our entire attack.

so we have never won a game when Hazard does not play? He along with the other Belgian idiot need to be shown that they do not run Chelsea Football Club!

Edited May 23, 20188 yr by Unclezillion

On 21/05/2018 at 04:34, Unclezillion said:

i would be quite happy to see hazard go for the right price but abroad only. he is far to inconsistent. i would sacrifice a little of his flair for more consistency :)

Show me a player anywhere near as good as Hazard, who is more consistent and who won't cost us upwards of £150M.

 

18 minutes ago, Nibs said:

Show me a player anywhere near as good as Hazard, who is more consistent and who won't cost us upwards of £150M.

 

I honestly think some people are delusional.

At his current level you just won't replace Hazard because the only other players at that level won't come here and are out of our reach.

Some folk are in for a shock when he does eventually leave.