chelsea v city

[dkw]

right, to get away from last nights debacle lets start thinking ahead to the city game. a definite must win now. if only to get confidence back. hopefully cech will be back as the defence doesnt look as safe or organised with carlo in goal. we need to go on the attack so id play anelka up front after the garbage drogba played v fener. kalou for malouda and mikel or essien for maka. toss up between ferreira or belleti for rb, keep lamps and ballack together as it looks like its working nicely.

[Tim]

Agree with the Drog/Anelka switch for two reasons.

1. Last night's performance from Dider smacked of someone who is more concerned with his performance, rather than the teams. Ie, if he can score a wonder goal, or dominate the game it will help him engineer the move he wants in the summer.

Fair enough that he wants to give all interested parties a timely reminder of his obvious skills, but we are certainly not obliged to indulge this. He was poor last night, and should be dropped, just like anyone else who underperformed, namely Malouda and Maka, although the latter has rarely been poor when called upon, so mayube he deserves some slack. Florent on the other hand.....

2. Nico needs some love. He cost 15 mill and is world class on his day, yet he has hardly had a decent run in the team and has be fed 5 mins scraps, normally deployed as a winger/right-back goalkeeper/anywhere that is NOT his proper position.

City have slumped recently, but they are still a good team, and there is no way that 6-1 will happen again, so we need to be committed and 'up' for this one.

[dkw]

plus nicos an ex city player. the old returning player syndrome could be usefull.

[ethicalstrategy]

I think the time has come to stop messing around and get two strikers on the pitch.

I hope that Cech will be fit for the run in. Carlo hasn't looked too solid recently.

----------------Cech

Belletti-----Carvalho------JT------Bridge

---------------Mikel

-------Ballack----------Lampard

---------------Cole

------Anelka-----------Drogba

Subs: Carlo, Alex, Essien, Kalou, Sheva

[Chelsea FC Champions]

i would rest J.Cole....for SWP

----------------Cech------------------

Belletti-----Carvalho------JT------A.Cole

---------------Essien-------------------

-------Ballack------------Lampard-------

----------------SWP--------------------

------Anelka-----------Drogba-----------

Subs: Carlo, Alex,Mikel, Kalou, Sheva

3-0 Win

[MURDOCH_(8)]

----------Cudicini----------

Essien--Carvalho--Terry--Cole

----------Mikel----------

-----Lampard-Ballack-----

Kalou-----------------Cole

----------Anelka----------

Subs:Hilario,Alex,Makalele,SWP,Drogba

Makalele needs rested, and I feel Mikel plays the defensive role far better than Essien and I don't trust any of our right backs so I would play him there. Malouda is out for obvious reasons, so Kalou back in, Cole keeps his place because he is our best option even though he is out of form. Drogba's selfishness means he is dropped and it's about time Anelka got his chance either with Drogba or without him, he deserves it because he is a team player and is quality, I like his attitude also. City are not on the best of form so many people will be calling this an easy game but we have been terrible over the last two months with one or two exceptions so City will be confident of getting a result and will be fired up because of the result earlier in the season so I'm not totally confident for this game but I think we can do just about enough, which is all that is needed at this stage in the season.

[mad_mac]

Ok, the CL is now hanging by a thread, and we are probably NOT going to win the premiership. however, until it is totally out of the question, I don't think we should be fielding "half-ass" teams! Not saying that SWP is that bad, but I think there are other options. If Grant is set on playing Malouda, then I think we should give him a run in the team for this game. If he fails to show up, then he should NOT be allowed anywhere near the pitch on Tuesday

I also saw that Cech is back in light training, but that doesn't mean he will be fit

..................Carlo

Belletti......Jt.......Alex......Bridge

.................Mikel

.........Ballack......Lampard

J Cole..........................Malouda

.................Anelka

Scott

[just]

I think the time has come to stop messing around and get two strikers on the pitch.

I hope that Cech will be fit for the run in. Carlo hasn't looked too solid recently.

----------------Cech

Belletti-----Carvalho------JT------Bridge

--------------Mikel

-------Ballack----------Lampard

---------------Cole

--------Anelka-------Drogba

Subs: Carlo, Alex, Essien, Kalou, Sheva

That is the team, and the formation, that should be the starting line-up for most games. Never gonna happen with Grant though.

[evissy]

I think Grant has to leave DD out of the starting eleven. He needs to show who's the boss here. Didi's performance was so selfish that I'm amazed if either Terry, Lamps, Maka or Ballack didn't say anything to him after the game.

Anelka needs those goals now. I bet he's carrying a small monkey on his back at the moment. Has he ever been this long without a goal in his career??

If Anelka don't deliver let Drogs come in and finish city. Didi would like that scenario too I think.

Hope we get Petr back now. Cool game against City and then nice and easy shutout against the turks.

[just]

I think Grant has to leave DD out of the starting eleven. He needs to show who's the boss here. Didi's performance was so selfish that I'm amazed if either Terry, Lamps, Maka or Ballack didn't say anything to him after the game.

Anelka needs those goals now. I bet he's carrying a small monkey on his back at the moment. Has he ever been this long without a goal in his career??

If Anelka don't deliver let Drogs come in and finish city. Didi would like that scenario too I think.

Hope we get Petr back now. Cool game against City and then nice and easy shutout against the turks.

Sorry but I think you're 110% wrong. Leaving Drogba out is madness at this point in the season. The guy is the best centre-forward in the world, as he proved against Le Arse the other week. OK he should have scored against the Turks. IMO he played very well first half but then, like our most of players and more particularly, also our manager, he was sh*te the second half. The main reason for that was Grant failed to respond to Fenerbache's tactical switch and, as the Turks gradually gained more posession in midfield and our half, Drogba become more and more isolated and received less and less service other than hopeful punts up field.

If we want more goals and attacking threat we have to give him help up front. And that means Anelka played up front alongside him. Not out wide on the wing, but centrally. As I said though, with Grant, it's never gonna happen.

[Guest]

If we want more goals and attacking threat we have to give him help up front. And that means Anelka played up front alongside him. Not out wide on the wing, but centrally. As I said though, with Grant, it's never gonna happen.

You mean never as in 0% chance of happening against City or never as in 0% of it ever happening under Grant?, because I think if Grant is manager next season, he is likely to move the side towards a two striker formation.

As for this season, I think he knows full well the players understand the 4-3-3 formation the best and his not going to want to change that too much at this stage of the season when every match is a must win and to be honest, if I was in his position I wouldn't be making any big tactical changes either.

[valim]

we need to rest some player for tuesday like essien maka ballack carhvallo drogba and j.cole

go with this

---------cech

ferreira --- terry - alex - a.cole

---------mikel -----------

swp-----------lampard

kalou -----------malouda

------anelka------------

sub : hiliaro / ivanovic / sidwell / shevchenko /pizzaro

not easy but sometimes you need to rest

[ethicalstrategy]

If we want more goals and attacking threat we have to give him help up front. And that means Anelka played up front alongside him. Not out wide on the wing, but centrally. As I said though, with Grant, it's never gonna happen.

You mean never as in 0% chance of happening against City or never as in 0% of it ever happening under Grant?, because I think if Grant is manager next season, he is likely to move the side towards a two striker formation.

As for this season, I think he knows full well the players understand the 4-3-3 formation the best and his not going to want to change that too much at this stage of the season when every match is a must win and to be honest, if I was in his position I wouldn't be making any big tactical changes either.

If we keep playing 4-3-3 then I think the season will quickly peter out to nothing.

At the moment we have chances to win the two biggest prizes. The league may be a bit of a stretch but the CL is still very much on.

If we are going to go down I'd rather it was fighting. I could live with not succeeding as long as we give it a go. We saw how effective Anelka and Drogba can be together against Arsenal. Let's take it too them - City, Fenerbahce, Man U, the lot of them.

Remember Rodney, He Who Dares Wins!

[Nibs]

I think Grant has to leave DD out of the starting eleven. He needs to show who's the boss here. Didi's performance was so selfish that I'm amazed if either Terry, Lamps, Maka or Ballack didn't say anything to him after the game.

Anelka needs those goals now. I bet he's carrying a small monkey on his back at the moment. Has he ever been this long without a goal in his career??

If Anelka don't deliver let Drogs come in and finish city. Didi would like that scenario too I think.

Hope we get Petr back now. Cool game against City and then nice and easy shutout against the turks.

Sorry but I think you're 110% wrong. Leaving Drogba out is madness at this point in the season. The guy is the best centre-forward in the world, as he proved against Le Arse the other week. OK he should have scored against the Turks. IMO he played very well first half but then, like our most of players and more particularly, also our manager, he was sh*t the second half. The main reason for that was Grant failed to respond to Fenerbache's tactical switch and, as the Turks gradually gained more posession in midfield and our half, Drogba become more and more isolated and received less and less service other than hopeful punts up field.

If we want more goals and attacking threat we have to give him help up front. And that means Anelka played up front alongside him. Not out wide on the wing, but centrally. As I said though, with Grant, it's never gonna happen.

Thing is Just, it wasn't so much that Drogba was isolated. Okay, he might have been a bit. The problem on Wednesday was that every time he got the ball, he thought he would be the one man show. I haven't seen such a selfish performance since the great JFH in his heyday.

[Nibs]

I think the time has come to stop messing around and get two strikers on the pitch.

I hope that Cech will be fit for the run in. Carlo hasn't looked too solid recently.

----------------Cech

Belletti-----Carvalho------JT------Bridge

---------------Mikel

-------Ballack----------Lampard

---------------Cole

------Anelka-----------Drogba

Subs: Carlo, Alex, Essien, Kalou, Sheva

Like the look of that line up Ethical. That'll do for me.

[Tim]

Agreed re Drogs Nibs. Didier gets a huge amount of credit for normally being a team player, and rightly so, but on Wednesday night he was intent on it being the Didier Drogba show, and it didn't work.

[Killbill]

I hope we don’t drop any points against Man City, for the sake of the Champions League not the Premiership.

[Alan]

Carlo

Beletti

JT

Carv

A.Cole

Maka

Ballack

Lampard

Joe Cole

Drogba

Kalou

Subs: Hilario, Alex, Essien, Anelka, SWP.

2-1 Chels.

[coco]

I think the time has come to stop messing around and get two strikers on the pitch.

I hope that Cech will be fit for the run in. Carlo hasn't looked too solid recently.

----------------Cech

Belletti-----Carvalho------JT------Bridge

---------------Mikel

-------Ballack----------Lampard

---------------Cole

------Anelka-----------Drogba

Subs: Carlo, Alex, Essien, Kalou, Sheva

Wid u !

Could do with sticking with them for a few games now, this team should work well if given half a chance to work together from the kick off, especially away from home.

[Englishman]

I think the time has come to stop messing around and get two strikers on the pitch.

I hope that Cech will be fit for the run in. Carlo hasn't looked too solid recently.

----------------Cech

Belletti-----Carvalho------JT------Bridge

---------------Mikel

-------Ballack----------Lampard

---------------Cole

------Anelka-----------Drogba

Subs: Carlo, Alex, Essien, Kalou, Sheva

I agree with that. Despite his antics on Wednesday, we can't really afford to drop DD and a top class striker like Anelka is wasted out wide or on the bench. I really think they could gel, given the chance.

[clubhappy]

At home , playing a city side thats seen better days under Sven , mainly the start of the season so , it HAS to be 4-4-2 . If Essien is right back then theres no point in having 2 natural full backs in the squad, if Malouda starts then we definately know Grant is f**king clueless.

[TomP]

Not sure why anyone thinks that playing a 4-4-2 diamond formation is going to get us goals or attacking football. It just won't.

Its an ugly, defensive formation that is good at stifling attacking sides (Jose used to play it regularly against the likes of Barcelona and Arsenal etc.), but not a good idea to play it against the likes of City, where we need a wide, flowing game, not a narrow midfield battle.

I'm all for playing 2 up front - it is a obvious and positive move. But its no good playing with 2 strikers if the ball never leaves the middle of the pitch. We need to strech the play, get wide players in behind and get some decent balls into the box for the 2 strikers too feed off. This doesn't happen if you play with 4 central midfielders.

As someone said earlier - he who dares wins, and we need to play with 2 strikers and 2 wingers and play attacking football if we want to score goals and win games.

That means a sacrifice in central midfield. And that means one of either Essien or Maka, playing with one of either Lampard or Ballack.

.......................Cech..........................

Ferreira.......JT..........Carvalho.........Cole

Kalou........Lampard....Essien...........J Cole

...............Drogba.....Anelka...................

[blizeH]

All of the media (and the guys on the Chelsea podcast) seem to be absolutely loving the attacking triangle of Lampard just behind Drogba and Anelka, so I'd like to see that come into play today.

[Chelsea FC Champions]

Arsenal 1-0 behind loserfool a goal from crouch!

[Gem]

From the official site:

Chelsea will line-up in a 4-3-3 formation as follows:

23 Carlo Cudicini

35 Juliano Belletti

33 Alex

26 John Terry ©

3 Ashley Cole

5 Michael Essien

12 John Mikel Obi

8 Frank Lampard

24 Shaun Wright-Phillips

39 Nicolas Anelka

21 Salomon Kalou

Substitutes: 40 Hilario, 20 Paulo Ferreira, 13 Michael Ballack, 10 Joe Cole, 7 Andriy Shevchenko.