Half way through the season and time to assess how players are performing.

Quite simply pick the three players who you think have impressed most since the start of the season and the three players who have disappointed the most.

I have not included players who have only made a very small number of appearances as that seemed pointless.

Reasons for you selections would be good.

(apologies to a few people who had already voted in this - I cocked something up in the poll and had to reset it)

To be honest very few have impressed. Any player that has been reasonable can do a lot more and few if any have been more than reasonable.

I've named Deco, Kalou and Malouda as the disappointments. No real surprises although I'm not over disappointed with either Kalou or Malouda as I've very little in the way of expectations anyway with those two. I also has big reservations about Deco too but still think he has been poor.

Got to be defensive players for me even after the catastrophe today,

1 Alex, always stepped in and looked like he had always been in, a natural replacement for JT but has played well as cover for Caevalho.

2 Ivanovich, Again has slotted in when called for no complaints and as good back up CB as there is.

3 Mikel, I thought Makalele was near irreplaceable but Mikel although not as defensively reliable (yet) has his own way of playing the DM that is pretty good also his improved temperement has really made him a better player...(again today maybe not the best example)

just gone back in and posted my most dissapointing which are

1 Deco, obvious ability but no obvious desire..is it a form thing or are his passes really going astray because he can't be bothered? jury still out but dissapointment yes.

2 Kalou, potential yes how long do we need to wait for end product to go with it, I fear he'll go somewhere else and flourish.

3 Malouda, I think he is a good player, frustrating as he never shows it often enough, I think he was does more than he gets credit for but..dissapointing.

Edited December 28, 200817 yr by Chippy

Mine are

Impressed

Mikel - for me our most consistent performer this season by a country mile and has come on leaps and bounds from the slightly reckless player he was in the past seasons. Being a week in week out regular has done him the world of good. Only concern I have is what will happen to him once Essien is back.

Cech - Probably still not playing at his very best but has improved dramatically on last season which I am sure he would admit was a poor time by his standards.

A Cole - One of the few players that has benefited from having Scolari in charge. We are now seeing the left back that Arsenal had rather than the one Jose created.

Disappointed

Deco - Too many slack passes and too many times where he just looks like he is waiting to go on holiday

Scolari - For me we are paying the price for appointing an international manager rather than a domestic game manager. Doesn't seem to be able to sort out more than one way of playing and you wonder what the team does every week in training.

Terry - Controversial one I know but I should say I am not saying he has been one of the worst two players but what I am saying is that compared to is ability and what we have come to expect from him he is falling very short.

Impressed -

Clint Dempsey.

For making your keeper look like a mug.

Liverpool.

Premier League champs 08/09

oh dear......wonder how long this idiot will last

Liverpool.

Premier League champs 08/09

:lol: Someone is going to be disappointed in May. I doubt we will be lifting the trophy and I also doubt Liverpool will either!

Loz

Ashley Cole..very good call, he has looked as you say the player he was at Arsenal and easily the best LB around.

Scolari...You knowI'm going to stick up for him while you also know I have dissagreed with his selections tactics subs as much as anybody,

in his defense I would just say I think everyone expects too much too soon,

Under Mourinho we had a great team that Ranieri done very well with, Jose came in at spot on the right time..A team on the up, an owner at the height of his interest and he took the opportunity well,

the last couple of seasons other teams had improved and Jose's signings were not great, Sometimes we never looked up for it unyet we managed a Domestic cup double although for me we got found out a lot with our style, Injuries never helped to be fair.

Grant came in and slightly changed the style, he got us back on course and we very nearly won the CL, 2nd in the league but again the odd bad performance crept in and motivation issues were raised, I feel he started to change things and then had the sense to see that with the availlable players keeping close to Jose's style may have suited them best, again Injuries were a big factor to our seasons lack of Trophies.

Scolari, Good start a few stutters and a few games where we blow teams away, motivation issues are raised unyet none of the top teams have really got anything consistent going,

Liverpool have undoubtably improved but are only 3 points ahead of us, UTD have a great strike force but have scored less even if you imagined 2 4-0 drubbings for their games in hand.

What I'm trying to say is any of our last 3 managers with this basic team has struggled a bit, Jose had them when they were younger and had (again for me) a few better players along with them.

We have to give this bloke a chance, everyone said Grant never had the experience and now we bring in a WC winner who has now not got the experience in the league..

It's far too early and if Abramovich was to have the attitude a lot on here have we will be like the mugs who rolled over for Liverpool today before long.

Chippy

I am not saying that Scolari shouldn't be giving more of a chance. If I thought what I perceived to be his failings were purely down to personnel available to him I would not have him in my top three as I don't think he inherited a great squad, just as I don't think Grant did, and I do think he needs time to get a better balance of players in.

However my disappointment, and why he is in my top three, is down to the fact he has failed to do the things he can affect immediately. When things have been iffy, as they have been for a while now, he has done little or nothing to change it - both in terms of during games and also team selection week in week out. We are probably the most predictable side in the league right now and are only getting away with it to a certain extent because we are predictable with a higher calibre of player that most other teams.

Chippy

I am not saying that Scolari shouldn't be giving more of a chance. If I thought what I perceived to be his failings were purely down to personnel available to him I would not have him in my top three as I don't think he inherited a great squad, just as I don't think Grant did, and I do think he needs time to get a better balance of players in.

However my disappointment, and why he is in my top three, is down to the fact he has failed to do the things he can affect immediately. When things have been iffy, as they have been for a while now, he has done little or nothing to change it - both in terms of during games and also team selection week in week out. We are probably the most predictable side in the league right now and are only getting away with it to a certain extent because we are predictable with a higher calibre of player that most other teams.

I see, I too am dissapointed he hasn't changed things mid game or brought on a sub that has turned a result for us but am willing to give him the benefit of doubt in that we dont have the players for him to do it,

It's ok for all of us (me included) to call for Drogba and Anelka to be paired together but they hardly set the world alight against the Baggies, It's ok for us to call for Deco to be subbed but when Kalou comes on again he does very little (although again I called for him to come on today), What I am trying to say is with this team there are very few systems that appear to suit and changing slightly with our personnel from one to another is unlikely to do anything more than lose any cohesion we are gradually building.

Maybe having Essien back will make a big difference as in recent seasons any tactical change that has really benefitted us noticably has involved Essien or Robben...two players Scolari has not got to choose from.

The other option banded about is bringing in youngsters and while I would like to see players like Stoch and Woods getting experience at a high level I dont really believe they are better equipped for the battle than our accomplished players.

What else can the manager do than keep us challenging while hoping he can get a player (pacey winger for me) one further (Ashley Young) and get Essien back?

I dont see any changes he could have made today that would have changed the outcome.

I think you are right about today - the only thing I didn't understand about today (as I stated elsewhere) was why he brought on Kalou before Lampard's free kick. There was always a chance (even if it was slim) that something may have come of the free kick and if it had (which it did) then there is no way that would then have been the right change to make.

If he had waited one more minute I don't think we would have seen that change - we might have seen Ballack on instead.

However today was really down to

1) Hopeless defending of set pieces - responsibility is shared between players and management for that

2. Hopeless finishing - purely down to the players

I think you are right about today - the only thing I didn't understand about today (as I stated elsewhere) was why he brought on Kalou before Lampard's free kick. There was always a chance (even if it was slim) that something may have come of the free kick and if it had (which it did) then there is no way that would then have been the right change to make.

If he had waited one more minute I don't think we would have seen that change - we might have seen Ballack on instead.

However today was really down to

1) Hopeless defending of set pieces - responsibility is shared between players and management for that

2. Hopeless finishing - purely down to the players

Thing is though Loz it's not just today its most of the time..

It's ok all of us saying Scolari has no plan B but he is the man who watches them train and tries things out with them, he likely thinks plan B's without the players he wants to implement them are not as good as plugging away with plan A.

The Sub timing was strange and on Joeys first half I thought Kalou would be on for the second, Ballack if Scolari had have waited till after the Goal would have been the better option.

Defending I really think is down to the different pairings we have had so far this sesaon and Carvalho just back in with Ivanovic may have left a few unsure who to pick up.

Finishing..2 goals away at Fulham is pretty good and although we could have and should have had more, I doubt many will create as many chances if Fulham keep up the standard they are playing at.

I think Drogba needs to get a bit of edge back, he done fairly well in possesion and got in decent positions but his shooting was pretty tame,

If he's interested it should only get better.

only 2 votes for Lamps, hmmm, not his best performance but kept the midfield attacks coming and got 2 goals. If not for him we would only have had about 5 attempts on target.

He got my vote anyway along with A Cole and Mikel (solid as always)

only 2 votes for Lamps, hmmm, not his best performance but kept the midfield attacks coming and got 2 goals. If not for him we would only have had about 5 attempts on target.

He got my vote anyway along with A Cole and Mikel (solid as always)

You have misunderstood mate - this is not for today's game but the season so far

pick the three players who you think have impressed most since the start of the season and the three players who have disappointed the most

Impressed.

Im not going to vote Lampard because its a given. His form for the first 2 months of the season was the best of his Chelsea career so far.

So im going Ashley Cole, Mikel and Anelka. Cole and Mikel for reasons already given but Anelka has done so well these past few months, he has single handedly carried our goal scoring threat and held that responsibility well. I dont think he is the answer long term but he deserves this vote, in particular because i was slagging him so bad in Aug and Sep!

Disappointed

Kalou and Malouda for obvious reasons but most of all Deco. One word springs to mind and that is coasting (could apply to Ballack right now as well)

sorry lads, miss-read the post. It's been a long day!

Can my 3 disappointed votes all go to Deco ??

It would have been very easy to put Malouda in my disappointments but I accept he's bobbins and as such as possibly exceeded my expectations of him. So the 3 disappointments for me are :- Deco ....over the hill, shows touches of skill but all too few times

Kalou..... has gone steadily backward

Joe Cole... very inconsistant

the 3 Impessed :- Mikel .... still has a bit to learn but could be on his was to being a Chelsea great

Lamps... still got the appetite at 30

Cech ...ever dependable

Kenyon should be on this list too..the failure to land Robinho is costing us every bit as much as we imagined.

Edited December 28, 200817 yr by charierre

Impressed: Bosingwa, Mikel and Lampard.

Bosingwa - signing of the summer. Has improved our wing to a huge degree. Would we be seeing Ferreira charging up the wing like he does? Err...no.

Mikel - definitely most improved of the season. Been solid all season other than against Roma and he's been key to so many of our wins.

Lampard - need I say more?

Disappointed: Deco, Scolari and JT.

Deco - Cuh.

Scolari - hasn't made enough good decisions for me. He did well today mind, did exactly what we would've liked.

JT - this season he hasn't looked comfortable for me.

Not easy, but here goes...

Impressed: -

John Obi Mikel - with the departure of Maka and the injury to Essien, Mikel has at last had a long run in the side - and taken this opportunity extremely well. There's been the odd blip, but generally he's looked very good.

Ashley Cole - finally looking like a Chelsea player, and for the first time I agree with him being selected ahead of Bridgey.

Ricci Carvalho - he's improved season by season since his first arrival, and is now easily our best central defender.

Disappointed: -

Scolari - he hasn't disappointed me as such, because I didn't want him in the first place and never had any faith in his ability to succeed at Chelsea. Since his arrival at the Bridge, he's actually managed to make Avram Grant look good, something I never thought possible (sorry Chippy :lol: ). He really has no clue when it comes to changing formation or tactics, nor has he managed to use substitutions to our advantage. He also plays his favourites no matter how sh*te their form is, always the sign of a crap manager, and has shown hardly any sign of blooding youngsters, even when we've been 3 or 4 goals up. I know he's not the only Chelsea manager guilty of that, but he could have earned himself a bit of credit by giving some of the younger players 30 or even 45 minutes, especially when we've been in cruise control. Sadly, I think the days of us winning by those margins under Scolari are now over.

Deco - I hate this stunted little turd, he'll never be worthy of the sacred blue of Chelsea. I'm surprised that he seems to have put a stop to his diving, that impressed me - but his passing is absolutely awful, and he's dropped us in the sh*t a few times this season. He should be the first out of the door come January, the nauseating little f*ckpig.

Malouda - no real surprise here, though I must admit I was hoping he'd come good this season. He doesn't seem to have the passion, ability or savvy to do well at Chelsea - though that could quite easily be down to the manager. To be honest my third choice was a very close run thing, with Malouda winning out marginally over Kalou & JT. Naturally I would have included Ferreira, but he hasn't been picked enough to be totally sh*te so far - give him time!

Bluebeard

As you guessed I have to..I have got to..No I can't, "stunted little Turd" has done me :P :lol: I can't reason anymore :D

No wait its got better "Nauseating little F*ckpig"

I've got to PM Jack

First time I've smiled since Dempseys second Goal

So about Deco Steve...do you think he'll come good?

Impressed

Cech - Getting back to his best.

A. Cole - Like Loz said, he's benefitting from the new regime.

Mikel - Looks at home in the Makelele role, just a shame he's inherited his shooting ability.

Disappointed

Deco - If only there was a returns policy for faulty players in football, he'd be on the first plane back to Barcelona with receipt in hand. Like receiving a Rolex only to find out it's a fake.

Malouda - Flatters to deceive on so many occassions it's a joke and nobody's laughing.

Kalou - Promises so much yet is he ever going to deliver on his supposed potential? All the more galling when you consider he's the same age as Ronaldo.

Edited December 29, 200817 yr by sweet waffle

Impressed:

Cech - Possibly his best season since that first season under Mourinho. He's been consistently excellent, and has been so quietly, having been stripped of his popular crown of 'Best Keeper in the World' due to a single error at the Euro 2008. He still has my vote...

Ashley Cole - The best left back in the world, imo. Works hard, defends well, and attacks just as skillfully as some of our useless wingers should...

Anelka - For sheer improvement.

Disappointed:

Ballack - Hasn't showed the hunger or the flair of last season and goes down too easily under challenges. I think he might finally have lost it.

Kalou - A single good game aside (against Man Ure) he's been even worse than his own poor standards this year, and I'm getting tired of him... Offers absolutely nothing when he's on the pitch. A massive disappointment considering his great promise.

Scolari - I think given the choice I would keep him at the moment. But some of his tactical decisions are just so damned stupid they make me pull my hair out. He doesn't drop players who have clearly been off form, and sticks to a broken formation, when we have a budding striking partnership between two of the best strikers in the world (Anelka and Drogba are excellent together... I don't care what he says) which he refuses to acknowledge, and instead plays losers like Deco, Ballack and Malouda week in, week out. If he had some brains and some balls, I'd be much happier...

3 of the best :

Mikel - really stepped up this season so far, among the top 3 players in just about every match. Once he start cutting out those silly fouls , he will be great.

Bosinwga - added a new dimension in our attack, although not really sound defensively, his attacking ability keeps opposition wingers at bay

Anelka - scored those goals, cant complain about that.

3 of the worst :

Deco - he looked the goods after first 2 goals, then had that injury and came back sh** house. Now he is out of form, out of confidence, and lost what remain in those little legs. The real problem is Scolari keeps playing him every match, I have the feeling Scolari would drop Mikel to keep Deco when Essein is available

JT - He is not the worst player for Chelsea, but as a captain we all expected a lot more from him. However we want to spin it, the tackle in Evertron match was just irresponsible, cost us the match and we all know what happened yesterday. The so called best defender in the world couldnt even handle Carlton Cole on the day, just terrible.

Drogba - moaned and bitc** when he was out injured and got paid in full, came back played 50 minutes and got suspended for acting like a spoiled kid. Same with JT, there are worse players than him, but he is supposed to be our saviour, but he has done f** all.

Impressed

A Cole although I still prefer Bridge

Bosingwa - exciting and effective

Anelka for his goals

Disappointed

Deco - generally gets the best out of Joe when they play together but on the whole not having an influence

Ballack - tiptoeing around the pitch

Cech - I love Petr Cech - he has made plenty of good saves, and we've conceded few goals, but you'd expect that. However he is not commanding his area and he doesn't intimidate the opposition like he used to. The back four are playing as if they've lost some confidence in him. He's still a brilliant keeper, and we wouldn't be able to get a better one, but if we had the version of 3 years ago we'd be a lot stronger

Half way through the season and time to assess how players are performing.

Quite simply pick the three players who you think have impressed most since the start of the season and the three players who have disappointed the most.

I have not included players who have only made a very small number of appearances as that seemed pointless.

Reasons for you selections would be good.

(apologies to a few people who had already voted in this - I cocked something up in the poll and had to reset it)

For me, the people who have underperformed are: Deco, Ballack and Kalou....mainly as I thought they would all be great. Impressed so far by Lampard, Mikel and really that is about it. Alex has performed well when called upon but the recent form and tattle-tailing to the press makes me wonder

Scott