Make your choices... let's help Scolari weed out the crap. :angry:

Is this a bit too negative? :S

Sorry...

I'll stick my neck out and hazard a guess that a certain Mr Deco won't be getting many votes...

Double post sorry.

Edited November 30, 200817 yr by Alan

how does that work?

7 votes so far and Cech has 6 Cudicini has 0......someone here is a little bit attack minded

Hahaha, Alan's prediction on Deco holding so far.

My choices (for clarity)

-Cech (obvious)

-Bossie (possibly the best RB we have had in five years, and a tireless worker. No brainer)

-Ivan the Terrible (he has been absolutely brilliant thusfar, and we were stupid to leave him out of the bench the first six months)

-Riccy (also obvious, leads by example)

-Ash Cole (another tireless worker and marauding threat, he and Bossie add so much to our attack. I have come around to him, finally)

-Bridgey (obviously two left backs doesnt work, but on merit alone I want to pick him because of his patience and excellence when called upon)

-Mikel (he has been flawless, and imo didnt deserve to be taken off today)

-Lampard (shouldve been better today, but always fights for this team)

-Essien (the beating heart of this team and the best box-to-box mid since Roy Keane)

-J Cole (sometimes frustrating but he bleeds blue and always fights)

-Le Sulk (has been immense this year)

HM to Ballack, Kalou, Alex and the youngins Stoch and lil Franco

JT, for me, is not earning his keep and is second best at the back

Deco, if he cant get teh measure of a game when the chips are down, should be relegated to the bench and brought on the last thirty minutes when teams are tired and can be passed/finessed to death. When the fightback is on, he is invisible. When things are going well, he is critical

I haven’t voted because due to injuries and suspensions it’s not really a case of who deserves to play – it’s pretty much down to what we are left with.

I know on current form, JT might struggle to be selected – his form not good compared to the standard he has set in the past. Trouble is, we look an easy touch and are almost rolling over with him in the side. I dread to think how spineless we might be without him as I don’t see any leadership qualities in Alex, Ivanovic or Carvalho.

If no-one was injured and we could pick from a full squad then I would start with the following:

Cech

Bosingwa JT Carvalho A Cole

Mikel

Essien Lamps J Cole

Anelka Drogba/ Di Santo

That’s Drogba if he is prepared to be anything like the Drogba of old who destroyed Arsenal and Liverpool otherwise go with Di Santo and get him some experience and see if he and Anelka can form some kind of partnership.

For me, Ballack and Deco are looking past it and just aren’t producing when it matters. Brings a big question mark over the transfer policy of signing players already in their 30’s. Malouda never has been good enough and Kalou will never be anything more than a sub who might produce something if we’re lucky.

Edited December 1, 200817 yr by Nibs

As discussed in the motm thread in our next big match against a big team, i would start Ferreria at RB over Bos. In that respect why not play Bos further forward ?

Sack the lot and bring the youth team in.

In the spirit of tonight's embarrassing display, I resurrect this topic.

By the sounds of it, Petr the Great, Alexander the Great, and Ivan the Terrible.

just fill the rest from the youth. Or find someone who will actually play like they deserve 80-120k a week

On tonights form

Cech

Alex

Ivan

Ash

Mikel

Frank

then

Anelka

I would dearly like to see Drogba and Anelka together and think we shoulod have started the game with them but after watching Drogba tonight I still feel his mood is not right and I can half understand Scolaris reluctance if he see's that in training..however if that is the reason he should have left Anelka on.

Cech,

Ferreira, Ivanovic, Carvalho, Cole,

Belletti, Lampard, Mikel, Cole, Bridge,

Kalou.

Sub priority: Malouda, Scott Sinclair, Stotch.

I'm not even f**king kidding.

Cech,

Ferreira, Ivanovic, Carvalho, Cole,

Belletti, Lampard, Mikel, Cole, Bridge,

Kalou.

Sub priority: Malouda, Scott Sinclair, Stotch.

I'm not even f**king kidding.

On tonights form Joe Cole should be nowhere near the starting eleven.

I agree, but he's so very inconsistent and it's hard not to pick him purely on the basis that when he's on form he's often our best and most creative midfielder by quite some way

I agree, but he's so very inconsistent and it's hard not to pick him purely on the basis that when he's on form he's often our best and most creative midfielder by quite some way

Yeah true but that is like saying when Drogba's on form he's the best striker in the world...on tonights form he might aswell have thrown the scouse fans some change.

Considering JT is out and are playing WBA next week

Cech

Bosingwa Alex Ivanovic Cole

Mikel

Lampard, Belleti

Sinclair Drogba Anelka

I can't see how Sinclair can do any worse then Deco, of course Scolari will never give the youth any chance <_<

Carvalho will be back so I expect him to start

If we are going for the whole team,

----------Cech

Ferreira--Ricky--Alex--Ash

-----Mikel----Lampard------

Boswinga--------Malouda

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

Carlo

Bell

Bridge

Ballack

Deco

Kalou

Ivanovic

Edited December 22, 200817 yr by Chippy

Carvalho will be back so I expect him to start

You're probably right Loz but I like to see Alex Ivanovic start together.

I don't want Alex to play purely because of the stamp. Everyone was outraged by JT's silly, reckless and mistimed challenge, but Alex's stamp was well out of order

I agree re Joey Cole Chippy. We may all like him as a bloke, and he has delivered in the past, but I've yet to see anything from him this season that means he deserves a starting 11 spot. IMO the only reason he is even worth considering for the first team is the poor form of the other players who would take his position.

He was totally, utterly anonymous tonight, and unfortunately i've been saying that far too many times this season.

I know I'm always standing up for Joe and I'm gonna have to again. I think the problem is, very few managers / coaches know what Joe's best position is. Joe probably doesn't even know himself. But last night it looked like he was meant to be playing off the striker (Anelka). He saw little of the ball. A couple ot times he was able to make runs through the middle and did pretty well, but 90% of the time he was given the ball when he had his back to goal. That never has been or is ever gonna be Joe's game. We all know he is at his best when he has the ball at his feet runiing at the opposition and committing defenders. Complete waste of time playing like that last night and I just knew he would be sacrificed as soon as JT saw red. We needed someone like Joe (played in the right position) - he would have ofered more than Ballack or Deco. For me Deco just hasn't got it. Did little with the ball last night, despite playing in his favoured position and his corners and set pieces were abismal. A midfield of Deco, Ballack and Lamps is NEVER gonna work.

And my opinion on Drogba changes from week to week. Want to love the bloke but as one of the pundits commented last night, his body language was not good as soon as he came on. You get the feeling he is once again pining for Jose & Inter after Mourinho's recent comments.

We need wholesale changes and a coach that doesn't favour players who are just not good enough.

Cech

Ivanovic Carvalho Alex A.Cole

Bosingwa Lampard Mikel Bridge

Anelka Drogba*

*Drogba only gets in because there's no-one else (Kalou doesn't count).

I'd actually play Stoch & Sinclair on the wings, but that's never gonna happen under Scolari. In fact the above team will never be selected by Scolari, nowhere near enough Portugeuse speakers - plus of course his stunted pet tw*t Deco isn't there. I never really expected to see a manager who made Avram Grant look halfway competent, but Scolari has managed it in less than six months - brings back memories of Blanchflower, Hurst & Porterfield.

I'm gob-smacked, completely gob-smacked that anyone can criticise Drogba for his performance last night!! Jesus. H. Christ he came on with 10 men on the pitch, totally isolated up front, and yet popped up all over the pitch putting himself about as per usual. High balls pumped up to him were his only real service, with Lescott and Jagielka tugging at his shirt and practically in his pants but depsite that, as per usual, he won way more than his fair share. There was one occaision near the end of the game where he went in for a 60/40 ball with three Everton around players him hacking at the ball and yet he still came away with it and kept possession. He made one bad error last night where he rifled that 30 yard cross field ball straight to Lescott when he had other, simplier options available. But the amount of work he did defending, closing players down and holding the ball up was bloody excellent given the circumstances.

Incidentaly, I agree with all the criticism of Deco, Ballack and Cole for last night's showing but Frank was everybit as crap IMO.