I think the thing about AVB is that he was building for the future, whereas Di Matteo came in with the intention of winning now. I don't think AVB handled his position well, but I still think the older players were disgraceful throughout the whole saga. In the end I think removing Villa-Boas from his position was the only move left to make.
Villa-Boas to Villa!
The old players should have done better, no doubt; the problem is while AVB had some bright ideas, he was just so poor at key areas - and unfortunately, he wasn't getting results or the attacking football he promised to deliver. In fact, as the season went on, we got worse as a team. He had the chance to play his way against Napoli without the players he didn't believe in, and he failed spectacularly...I really wish he succeeded, but the truth is AVB gave Chelsea their worst ever season in the Abramovich era. It really is a miracle that Di Matteo brought them to this after what he was left with.
Still, Aston Villa Boas would be great to watch. McLeish FTL!
Yep. He was building for the future and that was probably the right thing to do, problem was he in the process managed to piss off most of the squad and no matter how big cunts some of the players might have been, is makes so much more sense to fire a manager than half of the team, especially when AVB also seemed to have slowly but surely lost his mind dealing with the old brigade in Chelsea.
Even if Di Matteo I have my doubt if he's the right manager for Chelsea in the next season, it's a team that does desperately need re building, even if they are doing great right now.
He was also horrible with the media and giving all the Chelsea-haters on GAF constant ammunition haha. Ushojax in particular had a blast watching his war with the media
Honestly though? I think Di Matteo is doing a balance. Sure, he is focusing on the "now" - but he tries to deliver the best "now" every day in a sense so "tomorrow" can always look good. The way he used a lot of the Chelsea players in different positions and the way he brought out the best in some players who sucked under AVB is a good step towards rebuilding. Here's hoping for some decent summer buys.
I like AVB and wish him well in his next job. I hope he returns to the PL one day.
Likewise! I think if he sorts himself out a bit he can be special himself.
I find it hard to get on board with this. Despite the fact that Chelsea is sitting higher in the table than Liverpool were this time last season, you're saying nearly identical things to what we were saying last year.
Liverpool fans were all saying how Kuyt, Maxi and co. were all great footballers and we shouldn't be looking to get rid, but now here we are a year later and Maxi, who scored two hat tricks in the tail end of last season while Kuyt bagged one too have been woeful every time they've been played.
Yes, the team spirit is there. The unity is there, but the players who weren't good enough for the previous manager aren't good enough for the current manager, either.
Drogba has had some incredible goals recently, though. No denying that.
I see what you're saying, and I agree. Unity alone is not enough. It was definitely lacking in a detrimental way before though. It seemed to affect morale and the performances. The thing about performances though, is that under Di Matteo, a good number of players are actually playing far better. Maybe it's temporary, but it's very different to the AVB days. Luiz, for instance, is a completely different player under RDM.
What are your thoughts on Dalglish?
A young Puyol, definitely
You, Fady and Yurt. You're the ones who get it.
<3
Even when you post all that City "PR" stuff haha, I completely understand and see nothing wrong with it. The way I see it, you're a passionate fan who enjoys the team beyond their matches on the pitch, plus, you show respect to other teams, and that's not very common among the football fans I know.
