8 hours ago, just said:

You've been saying that for the past 3 or 4 seasons and yet whenever Kante does play he virtually always delivers and is the best player on the pitch. His performance levels are so consistently high it's unreal.

Yes his injury record has been poor, so have James and Chilwells. But like them he still has a value for us moving forwards. Especially with so many young players. Is there a more model professional and world class player they could learn from? I don't think so.

The problem is Just is that Kante is 32, with pace being a big part of his game. How long do you reckon he has? We won't even be able to find out really with his injury record alone. I saw a huge decline in Essien once he lost his pace. After his knee injury in 2010 he was almost unrecognisable when he came back. 

James and Chilwell have worrying injury records, James especially but they are still younger players. However, I think we're even starting to get replacements for them at the minute because the pair of them are unreliable. 

We need to get the perfect partner for Enzo next season, for me it's the biggest priority if we want to build on a good season, otherwise, we're going to run in a boatload of problems if we're playing Kovacic/RLC/Gallagher there for the majority of the season, heavens forbid. 

3 hours ago, Gol15 said:

I still believe that if we get 2 new key signings that in turn work out well, that we could be a top 4 team pretty fast with Pochettino.

It's impossible to replace Kante, it's hard to find a proper striker, it's hard to keep some key players healthy... But that's just life, some things simply need to go our way and it's possible.

More important than signings is Pochettino being able to quickly establish who wants to be here, who wants to fight for the shirt, and Winstanley and co getting rid of the rest very quickly regardless of the losses we take, as the poisonous bunch dragged us to our worst ever PL season.

Hope Pochettino. is a hard arse, this needs sorting.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-12131111/How-standards-slipped-Chelsea-disastrous-season.html

 

Last thing we need is a manager all the players 'like', need one players respect and fear in a way. Train them until they find the extra gear in the pre-season, boss!

It’s been as clear as day there is more to this bad form than meets the eye. Lampard has taken on an impossible job, trying to motivate players who know the manager is only there as long as they are. Hopefully the bad eggs are bounced out of the club pronto and the new boss will whip the rest quickly into shape. This season will also hopefully show our new owners that owning a football club is more than having a lot of money, they really have made a pigs ear out of their first year in tenure.

4 hours ago, Victor90 said:

The problem is Just is that Kante is 32, with pace being a big part of his game. How long do you reckon he has? We won't even be able to find out really with his injury record alone. I saw a huge decline in Essien once he lost his pace. After his knee injury in 2010 he was almost unrecognisable when he came back. 

James and Chilwell have worrying injury records, James especially but they are still younger players. However, I think we're even starting to get replacements for them at the minute because the pair of them are unreliable. 

We need to get the perfect partner for Enzo next season, for me it's the biggest priority if we want to build on a good season, otherwise, we're going to run in a boatload of problems if we're playing Kovacic/RLC/Gallagher there for the majority of the season, heavens forbid. 

No completely wrong Victor. Pace isn't his prime asset and never has been. His stamina and athleticism are his prime assets. Particularly that backwards, forward, metronomic ground covering that he does game after game. I don't think I have EVER seen a better a recovery ball winner than Kante.

You're also wrong about Essien too. He never had genuine pace either. His prime assets were power and physicality. He was an absolute Bull. He could batter opponents into submission with his power and work rate. You are right that the knee injury meant Essien was not the same player physically. But Kante is totally different. He comes back after an injury and invariably still plays at the same top class level he always has done. The guy is an absolute freak and it doesn't matter if he is 16 or 36 he is still easily and inarguably one of the best players we have.

4 hours ago, Kev56 said:

Hope Pochettino. is a hard arse, this needs sorting.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-12131111/How-standards-slipped-Chelsea-disastrous-season.html

All the money we pay them and they don't won't to bother training or running. The disrespect to a club legend who is trying to help the as well. Shameful.

Whoever they are send them one way to the Sudan.

3 hours ago, charierre said:

It’s been as clear as day there is more to this bad form than meets the eye. Lampard has taken on an impossible job, trying to motivate players who know the manager is only there as long as they are. Hopefully the bad eggs are bounced out of the club pronto and the new boss will whip the rest quickly into shape. This season will also hopefully show our new owners that owning a football club is more than having a lot of money, they really have made a pigs ear out of their first year in tenure.

Motivation is a problem but lamp's complaint about player physical condition is the biggest problem (most will ignore this because it does not suit their agenda ) but this is far more important than any tactic. 

21 hours ago, just said:

You've been saying that for the past 3 or 4 seasons and yet whenever Kante does play he virtually always delivers and is the best player on the pitch. His performance levels are so consistently high it's unreal.

Yes his injury record has been poor, so have James and Chilwells. But like them he still has a value for us moving forwards. Especially with so many young players. Is there a more model professional and world class player they could learn from? I don't think so.

The key word here is “when” which is a very occurrence, and he can’t be trusted to stay fit. There is a Pep saying that he’d rather have a fit player giving him “6 out of 10” regularly than a brilliant one giving “9 out of 10” & can’t stay fit. James Milner was kept around by Klopp because he was always available & reliable, that has earned him a further year at Brighton. Kante’s contract expires in a month’s time & you don’t have any top teams trying to sign him because he can’t stay fit. Even Deschamps & France have moved on.
Have a look at his injury history in the attached image and ask yourself if at 32 that is a player you want to keep at £250k/w. Mind you there is a Page 2 not included.

We really do need a big clear out of ' bad attitude' players as well as those that are not needed or technically up to it. This lazy / couldn't give a toss attitude in my mind is the biggest issue that Pochettino needs to address. Just f**k them off from the club, if it's not possible keep them away from the dressing room and training pitch.

Edited May 28, 20233 yr by Kev56

2 hours ago, ducavis said:

The key word here is “when” which is a very occurrence, and he can’t be trusted to stay fit. There is a Pep saying that he’d rather have a fit player giving him “6 out of 10” regularly than a brilliant one giving “9 out of 10” & can’t stay fit. James Milner was kept around by Klopp because he was always available & reliable, that has earned him a further year at Brighton. Kante’s contract expires in a month’s time & you don’t have any top teams trying to sign him because he can’t stay fit. Even Deschamps & France have moved on.
Have a look at his injury history in the attached image and ask yourself if at 32 that is a player you want to keep at £250k/w. Mind you there is a Page 2 not included.

Moving on from kante is not a problem. But that mean another position where we need to sign a ready player. No murdyk, no madueke, no Enzo. 

If we can't get one then we are going to be screwed for next season. 

 

All the new players with bad attitudes and I suspect they are the tenured ones need to be let go. These are the ones who been here a while and think they run the place maybe because they won a CL. 

Weren’t there rumours that some of this squad didn’t like Tuchel intense training and strict team discipline?? So they were happy when he got sacked !! 
 

Uncle Graham with is arm around them and cuddling them is not what is needed. 

15 minutes ago, El regreso said:

All the new players with bad attitudes and I suspect they are the tenured ones need to be let go. These are the ones who been here a while and think they run the place maybe because they won a CL. 

Weren’t there rumours that some of this squad didn’t like Tuchel intense training and strict team discipline?? So they were happy when he got sacked !! 
 

Uncle Graham with is arm around them and cuddling them is not what is needed. 

Pochettino will cuddle when need be and not when need be. It's man management. He's good at it.

13 minutes ago, El regreso said:

All the new players with bad attitudes and I suspect they are the tenured ones need to be let go. These are the ones who been here a while and think they run the place maybe because they won a CL. 

Weren’t there rumours that some of this squad didn’t like Tuchel intense training and strict team discipline?? So they were happy when he got sacked !! 
 

Uncle Graham with is arm around them and cuddling them is not what is needed. 

Always a balance, I recall Hazard was allowed a pass on some training, currently we don't have a Hazard though for me that was interesting.

Pre-season is key as you can push the players without fear fatigue won't affect match performance which you can't do in season.

That is the key time to improve fitness for me.

 

 

 

On 27/05/2023 at 18:58, just said:

You've been saying that for the past 3 or 4 seasons and yet whenever Kante does play he virtually always delivers and is the best player on the pitch. His performance levels are so consistently high it's unreal.

Yes his injury record has been poor, so have James and Chilwells. But like them he still has a value for us moving forwards. Especially with so many young players. Is there a more model professional and world class player they could learn from? I don't think so.

Not 3-4 seasons. The past 2 maybe 2.5  seasons. And your right, of course your are. When he does play he's terrific.  But its less and less. Sure keep him on as a role model but he isn't going to be playing regularly.  On the one hand every complains about the team not being fit like Matt Law says in the Telegraph and the next you want to keep all the injured players. 

When Kante came from Leicester it was the best thing that happened to Chels in years but we really do have to forge a new team, a new identity develop some new heroes.
We are going to be carrying some injury prone starters James, Chilwell and Fofana. How many injured role models do you want.

The reality is we have to find a way to win the Premier League with the players we put on the pitch. Those players have to bond and form a battle hardened and battle ready unit that is more than the sum of the parts. To me this means that its going to be like 15-16 players that are going to get most of the minutes in the 38 game league season.  

Kante, Fofana, Chilwell and James are on paper 4 nailed on starters. But we will spend most of the season making excuses for everyone else just waiting for the stars to rescue us but they wont. Because they will be injured. Isn't it just like an old car? Every time you spend some money to  fix that last problem only to find a month later there's another one and at some point you just have to throw it out.

The only way that isn't true for those 4 is if there is clear evidence that some procedure or other thing will make a real difference. Or if there is some clear evidnence that better training and fitness regime will prevent the soft tissue injuries.

As far as I recall there was some official statement either last season or the season before that Reece need an operation on his knee. Don't know whether he had it. But then there are all these hamstring issues as well. He's missed 25 games this year not including the world cup and had 4 hamstring issues in two years.

Chillwell didn't have any recorded hamstring injuries prior to rupturing his cruciate ligament but has had two since. Of course that could just be poor chelsea conditioning and training. 

Fofana has had four knee injuries (including the two this season) as well as the fibula fracture. He was given a very thorough examination in the USA before Chelsea signed him up but that still hasn't stopped him getting those two injuries this season. So it wouldn't be a bad bet that his knee will restrict his professional career quite a bit.

Cucurella hardly had a senior injury until he joins us and now he has  a "muscle" injury and misses 7 games.

So my guess is that James's hamstrings are going to restrict his career fairly severely. Or at least that's the worry and that we should plan next season's team assuming he won't be there.

Chillwell may play half the games I suppose if he is managed properly

Kante won't be playing very often

So out of those four starters i won't be suprised if only Chilwell gets a decent career from here on in. Fofana I guess might make it if the medical guys examination was correct.

When you add that up, it unfortunately means we still need a completely new defence and in particular a new right footed central defender unless  you think Chalobah is that person.

In our 37 PL games so far this season, 3,330 minutes if you take them all as "90" , the most anyone in our squad has played is Havertz at 2,521. In other words, our most selected player has still missed 25% of the season. Most have not even featured for 50% (only Havertz, Kepa, Silva, KK and Sterling are over 50%)

When Pochettino does come in, I really hope he is able to dial down to a core of players that are reliable enough to start/play most games. 

It's no wonder there is no cohesion in our play and we look like a load of individuals rather than a team.

 

48 hours perhaps?

 

39 minutes ago, ozboy said:

As far as I recall there was some official statement either last season or the season before that Reece need an operation on his knee. Don't know whether he had it. But then there are all these hamstring issues as well. He's missed 25 games this year not including the world cup and had 4 hamstring issues in two years.
 

It was around WC time, I think. Club talked about surgery, specialist surgeon(s) said surgery wasn't necessary. I ain't no medico but I'd've thought protecting a knee, consciously or  subconsciously, could stress other parts of the leg. 

13 hours ago, just said:

No completely wrong Victor. Pace isn't his prime asset and never has been. His stamina and athleticism are his prime assets. Particularly that backwards, forward, metronomic ground covering that he does game after game. I don't think I have EVER seen a better a recovery ball winner than Kante.

You're also wrong about Essien too. He never had genuine pace either. His prime assets were power and physicality. He was an absolute Bull. He could batter opponents into submission with his power and work rate. You are right that the knee injury meant Essien was not the same player physically. But Kante is totally different. He comes back after an injury and invariably still plays at the same top class level he always has done. The guy is an absolute freak and it doesn't matter if he is 16 or 36 he is still easily and inarguably one of the best players we have.

I'm not using pace as a synonym for acceleration, I'm saying his all round game relies on being quick and getting to the ball, and covering ground. How are they not his best attributes? That's what he's excellent at. And those attributes are going to fade with injuries and being in his 30's. Essien was a different player once he started to lose his physicality, and that was at the age of 28. 

Reliable Journo’s all saying he has signed and will start work next week. I reckon it’s all been kept quiet until the end of the season. 

Done. 
 

 

Hope the club doesn't regret it, but all things point to him being a decent solution.

1 hour ago, Gol15 said:

Hope the club doesn't regret it, but all things point to him being a decent solution.

Given the state of the situation, I can't think of anyone better equipped to rebuild. Put another way: if he can't, no one can.