13 minutes ago, 2211 said:

We could try and buy a player with skillset to do things off the cuff like Simmons or we could go for someone who generally has no success against defensive teams like Garnacho, I wonder which one we'll end up with...

As the saying goes it's the hope that kills you.

The squad has shown they are good enough to compete with the very best, we don’t need to keep buying players. We just need to use the ones we have to the best of their ability and stop this lethargic woke bait bo**ocks.

30 minutes ago, Sheva said:

I sound like a miserable bastard but football in 2025 is such a dreadful sport to watch at times. Coaches like Maresca just help that narrative.

We had it so good 20 years ago, big personalities and just big powerful players. This is not some reactionary take because I’ve moaned about it numerous times before but I don’t like the direction of this football club.

Spending an awful amount of money on players who wouldn’t even get a look in 5 years ago.

I sound old and jaded by my god I miss the days of just having a line up of Lampard, Essien and Ballack and a proper centre forward who doesn’t play multiple positions. I know football has moved on but as a sport it’s moved on in the wrong direction.

Sorry for the rant.

I wouldn’t call it a rant, I agree with it all. The worst part of watching that pathetic performance today was knowing that we can play attractive attacking football. So disappointed with the way maresca set us up.

I reckon Maresca played it safe today with Tosin being out and knowing how dangerous Palace, especially on the counter. That’s my hope anyway.

The attack looked completely blunted and offered nothing. I think they are scared of Palace.

2 hours ago, JM7 said:

I reckon Maresca played it safe today with Tosin being out and knowing how dangerous Palace, especially on the counter. That’s my hope anyway.

The attack looked completely blunted and offered nothing. I think they are scared of Palace.

I wonder what Marescas honest hopes/goals are for our season. At home to a likely mid table again side sitting back and you actually now have an actual striker on the pitch and the bench but you don't go for the win by using both for the last 25 minutes or so. Why?

8 hours ago, JM7 said:

I reckon Maresca played it safe today with Tosin being out and knowing how dangerous Palace, especially on the counter. That’s my hope anyway.

The attack looked completely blunted and offered nothing. I think they are scared of Palace.

If we are scared of Palace at home. What is the actual point of our whole billion pound so called project?

I'm resigned to us having another inconsistent season with moments of hope and of disappointment. Probably manage to cling on to fourth, but it'll be tight.

It's just about waiting it out in the hope the next manager will still have Palmer and Estavao and most of this squad to work with and have the ability to get the best out of it.

Frustrating as anything this though, we legitimately have the squad to be challenging for the title this season.

We have the Worlds best RB (RJ) the Prems best CM (Caicedo), Europes most entertaining player (Palmer) & the worlds next big thing (Estevao)

We are wasting their talent.

It shouldn’t be ‘oooh next season, oooh we’re building’. f**king load of codswallop that.

Liverpool are worse than they were last year, City are shifting - we don’t know what they’ll be, Arsenal are Arsenal.

If we just played to our strengths (We have some very good attackers) and stopped with this rigid bo**ocks passing possession sh*t, we might actually win something.

After watching yesterdays sorry effort I have no expectations for the season ,I feel its just the same as before but with new names .

Boring pointless passing back and across and back again. I'm in my 70's and if this is Chelsea at three best then all I can say is Fek!

17 hours ago, Sconnie Blue said:

A wise man once said…

“Adapt or die.”

Couldn't have been anyone around here.

Very hairless man with very few redeeming qualities.

2 minutes ago, Ukraine Bolt said:

Very hairless man with very few redeeming qualities.

Get your roof on before it rains.

We've got a good team this season, I think we still need some better goalkeeper and a senior CB, but this team with a better, more experienced coach, could be easily playing better football and comfortably getting top 3. As it is, the board has decided to go for inexperience in players and coaching staff, so we get this. Unfortunately, this is bad for the development of the players, who need a proper coach to achieve the top of their potential. With Maresca, they'll end up not reaching their very best.

5 minutes ago, dermott said:

Get your roof on before it rains.

trusses are erected, just need to felt and tile. Bare with me, its been a long weekend.

4 minutes ago, Ukraine Bolt said:

trusses are erected, just need to felt and tile. Bare with me, its been a long weekend.

I have the patience of Job.

1 hour ago, Snedger said:

I'm resigned to us having another inconsistent season with moments of hope and of disappointment. Probably manage to cling on to fourth, but it'll be tight.

It's just about waiting it out in the hope the next manager will still have Palmer and Estavao and most of this squad to work with and have the ability to get the best out of it.

People who were expecting us to actually challenge for the title need to give their heads a wobble. 4th is what should be expected, 3rd at most if we get lucky with other results going our way.

8 minutes ago, Remodez said:

People who were expecting us to actually challenge for the title need to give their heads a wobble. 4th is what should be expected, 3rd at most if we get lucky with other results going our way.

We finished 5 points behind second and strengthened where we needed to (ST/wingers/LB/midfield depth). In what world should our expectations be the same?

14 hours ago, Sheva said:

I sound like a miserable bastard but football in 2025 is such a dreadful sport to watch at times. Coaches like Maresca just help that narrative.

We had it so good 20 years ago, big personalities and just big powerful players. This is not some reactionary take because I’ve moaned about it numerous times before but I don’t like the direction of this football club.

Spending an awful amount of money on players who wouldn’t even get a look in 5 years ago.

I sound old and jaded by my god I miss the days of just having a line up of Lampard, Essien and Ballack and a proper centre forward who doesn’t play multiple positions. I know football has moved on but as a sport it’s moved on in the wrong direction.

Sorry for the rant.

It’s funny, I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. I’ve spent a lot more time watching my local team (Hibs) and have been back having a season ticket.

I still watch every Chelsea game I can when there’s not a clash obviously and the standard is far inferior in Scotland (as you’d expect given the monetary differences) but I do feel (possibly biased) that’s something the Scottish game still has. In large part likely down to not having the players to play the Pep style football 😂. In the PL & across Europe it feels like everyone plays the exact same style of football which is move it around the back four and constantly recycle the ball but without any penetration.

I long for the days of us playing under Ancelloti, Conte, Mourinho. I find our football quite boring to watch nowadays. I thought we looked much more direct in the Club World Cup - we got the ball forward fast and looked to get at teams. I was hoping that would carry into the league campaign, it’s only one game so I’m not going to write it off completely but I really hope this isn’t a sign of things to come as most teams will come to Stamford Bridge and sit deep.

We clearly didn’t have an answer for it yesterday and despite the changes, we didn’t look any more dangerous which is a worry for Maresca.

Football has definitely changed though and I blame Pep!

16 minutes ago, Remodez said:

People who were expecting us to actually challenge for the title need to give their heads a wobble. 4th is what should be expected, 3rd at most if we get lucky with other results going our way.

I didn't for a minute think we'd win the league this season, but doing exactly the same as last season is not an acceptable aim after another massive pile of investment. It's not purely the exact position we finish, it's more about how consistent we can be and importantly remaining closer to the top in terms of points and at least looking like we have an outside chance till near the end.

20 minutes ago, Ukraine Bolt said:

We finished 5 points behind second and strengthened where we needed to (ST/wingers/LB/midfield depth). In what world should our expectations be the same?

We finished 5 points cause Arsenal choked and City underperformed. We could easily have been as low as 6th or 7th if Newcastle, Forrest and Villa didn't drop points final games of the season. A lot of if's yes but my overall point is it was not a convincing 4th place. As it was not convincing, going into this season I would expect it to be a more comfortable 4th place or maybe even 3rd if we get lucky.

I don't think fighting for the title is a logically conclusion even after we strengthened as these better players are still going to be playing the same system that we did last season with all the same faults. The Palace game was literally the same as last season despite us having said better players. If Maresca shows he is able to adapt then I would be more willing to say we have a chance but that does not seem likely.

28 minutes ago, Remodez said:

We finished 5 points cause Arsenal choked and City underperformed. We could easily have been as low as 6th or 7th if Newcastle, Forrest and Villa didn't drop points final games of the season. A lot of if's yes but my overall point is it was not a convincing 4th place. As it was not convincing, going into this season I would expect it to be a more comfortable 4th place or maybe even 3rd if we get lucky.

I don't think fighting for the title is a logically conclusion even after we strengthened as these better players are still going to be playing the same system that we did last season with all the same faults. The Palace game was literally the same as last season despite us having said better players. If Maresca shows he is able to adapt then I would be more willing to say we have a chance but that does not seem likely.

i agree Maresca holds us back but the squad and players are good enough to be top 2. The only thing stopping us is the manager, but we shouldn't lower our expectations because of that. We should hold him/the club accountable for their poor decisions.

Pedro struggled yesterday... Im hopeful he'll come good but I would like to see Delap given a run, let the players with all the skill play off him and we can use Pedro as a super sub when space or guile is needed in a second half.

I just wonder how long we go before we start calling into question Maresca's system being a destroyer of all strikers if our front line continues to struggle to score. The stat about Palmer not scoring in open play since January alludes to this.

Anyhow. Lets see what happens away to West Ham Friday night. That. has to be a three point game given how theyve started.

45 minutes ago, bluelightening said:

I just wonder how long we go before we start calling into question Maresca's system being a destroyer of all strikers if our front line continues to struggle to score.

I hope for the sake of a few reputations on here LOL that somebody does better at CF this season than Nico Jackson did last season in the same system :-)

Personally, I think he has to play Delap up front, with Estevao, Palmer and Joao Pedro as the three behind him. Leave Neto and Gittens for the bench.

I think that Delap is a better option for teams sitting back than Pedro, and it was quite obvious when he made the sub yesterday. I enjoyed watching Delap, the way he physically dealt with Palace's defenders was good to see.

2 hours ago, Ukraine Bolt said:

i agree Maresca holds us back but the squad and players are good enough to be top 2. The only thing stopping us is the manager, but we shouldn't lower our expectations because of that. We should hold him/the club accountable for their poor decisions.

Glasner is a better manager then Maresca, i bet he would do better with our players, theres rumours if Legohead doesn't win anything this season he will be replaced by Glasner

54 minutes ago, RMH said:

I think that Delap is a better option for teams sitting back than Pedro, and it was quite obvious when he made the sub yesterday. I enjoyed watching Delap, the way he physically dealt with Palace's defenders was good to see.

Much like Drogba did. Use a battering ram to break down a wall.