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Football Thread 2017/18 |OT| Relegated to Community
- Thread starter Lunar FC
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A Serious Man
Member
Chelsea had a thin squad last year but were healthy throughout the season. Everyone they've bought has simply replaced someone who left and now they have injuries to Hazard, Bakayoko and Pedro. Plus Fabregas and Cahill are suspended for this Spurs match so they're really in a bad way today. The more concerning aspect of Chelsea right now is their mental state. Red cards in their last three games and they were totally disorganized for the first half of that Burnley match. They did gather themselves and gave Burnley a run for their money in the second half but imagine if they start that way against Spurs? It could be ugly today.
Not saying anyone can't win it. I'm saying when your main rivals have a minimum of 6 extra games to play and the travelling that ensues and with the hope of at least 2 extra matches if they pass the groups, it has to make a difference to those teams that don't have it.
In years gone by there were only a couple of teams strong enough to win the league and they were too good for the rest. Then City and Chelsea started splashing the cash, Spurs have done well with Poch and there's the perennial uncertainty that is Liverpool, and you now have 6 teams trying to win the league compared to 2 or 3 from days of old. Playing 6 or 8 games more than those rivals makes a difference.
Blackburn splashed the cash, won and flew too close to the sun, and Leicester got it bang on perfect in a year when Chelsea, United and City, 3 teams expected to challenge, were all shit.
Hazard might be on the bench, but he's nowhere near match fit.
I think we'll lose today, which im not that worried about tbh. Few suspensions, few injuries and Spurs away is a tough game anyway - just important not to panic or overreact if we do lose.
His Majesty
Banned
I only hope we escape without any more injuries, which I realize is a lot to ask for when playing Spurs.
Steverulez
Member
We've sold a lot of first team players and not really replaced them, the squad is probably ok to compete in the league again but we are in 3 other competitions.
We sold Mikel, Oscar and Ivanovic in January, netting £60m plus whatever in wages but didn't replace them, Conte made very few changes in the league last season, we basically only used about 15 players.
The squad is short, we also have a net spend of £20m this summer so far which will go negative if the Costa deal i've seen touted is legit.
We have no backup left wing back, 3 central midfielders, and 4 central defenders (bare in mind we play 3 at the back) if we get a mild injury crisis we have a lot of issues. Club should be buying when we're selling so much
Kill Your Masters
Member
City would be ready to pay Messi's 300 million release clause. This would be nuts haha.
Pep the fraud is in panic mode?
It really doesn't get more HSV than that. We should have sold him to WOB.
WhateverItTakes
Banned
I mean of course they're ready to, they have the money. I reckon Messi would rather fight to get a better board than fuck Barca by leaving though.
This comes down to an issue our club structure I think and our absolute short-termism:
Why are we being linked with Ryan Bertrand when we have Rahman out on loan? (Not to mention Bertrand used to be a Chelsea player...)
Why are we being linked with Van Dijk when we just sold Ake?
Why are we being linked with Danny Sideways-Pass Drinkwater when we just sold Chalobah and loaned out RLC and Lewis Baker?
It's like we're constantly treading water with the squad which makes no sense whatsoever given the size and success of our football club.
Damn Silly
Member
Podolski's been busy.
(saw it on Twitter, wouldn't go near Breitbart except to confirm whether or not that was real, and it was)
(saw it on Twitter, wouldn't go near Breitbart except to confirm whether or not that was real, and it was)
Well if you just take the defensive personell then yes we have some great names.
Problem is though, boateng has not playing well since 2015. he had some very bad injuries in that timeframe.
Hummels was great last season for us. Süle is just 21. martinez is a wild card. Plays 2 great games. Then gets injured for one month
But our defense is worse under ancelotti. Pep's and heynckes' were much superior even with a worse squad because of their tactics.
Heynckes had to work with dante lol
Pretty sure every club is ready to pay his releases clause.
WhateverItTakes
Banned
Only thing stopping us is getting the lad to Blackpool
GoldenCrow
Member
I have said it once and will say it again.
Messi to City is nonsense.
Messi to City is nonsense.
I really don't understand Chelsea loaning out their brightest young players (or seling them) when you are so short. Even Abraham looked like Swansea's best player v Man U.
I agree, it especially remains to be seen how well Boateng is going to do his work. That's why I don't believe that he will play more than Hummels.
Kimmich is a great right back, very variable and although I don't really think of him as highly as before Alaba is still a good player.
If you want to get conspiratorial you could argue it's a deliberate strategy to keep good players out of your rivals' hands and help smaller teams take points off them (note that unless something's changed most of these loans usually say "can't play against parent club")
Abraham being on loan I don't mind so much - still a very young guy with a lot to learn - and, given we only play one up front, he's not going to get in ahead of Morata or Batshy.
You're right, though, especially in positions where we're weaker.
I don't resent guys like Ake, Chalobah and Solanke wanting to move on - it's good for the sake of their careers and I really do hope they do well - because it'll be a lesson to the board that selling these guys (for 20m, 5m and nothing) was a bad decision.
Chalobah is the absolute mindblowing one for me. We sell Matic and Mikel, bring in Bakayoko (who is injured) - immediately one player down in that position, and even though we've got MORE games this season we then sell Chalobah for peanuts.
Now we have Kante, a suspended Fabregas and an injured Bakayoko for the game vs Spurs...
Captain Smirk
Member
MikeBison
Member
Really can't wait for Solanke to score the winner against Chelsea. He looks a real talent.
MikeBison
Member
Make up your mind and blast it.
WhateverItTakes
Banned
Studge assist for the bonus points
MikeBison
Member
Salah
Yeah, what is even the point of De Jong. :/
A Serious Man
Member
Hey, at least Christensen might stick around.
Yeah he does... EURGH
There's a great article floating around in this thread (or maybe the last) about Chelsea's youth policy in great detail from a fellow Chelsea fan. Super well researched, very in depth and very, very interesting.
And trust me - while the rest of the league/world mocks Chelsea's policy on loans and selling etc - NO ONE hates it more than the fans do. We would love to see Ake, Chalobah, Solanke, Christensen, RLC etc in the team.
Standard penalty where if it goes in the commentators fellate the taker for taking such a good penalty.
Lashley
Why does he wear the mask!?
Bargain
MikeBison
Member
Yeah the worst thing is that it's really successful. They have state of the art facilities and win bags of trophies at youth level.
Solanke just won the world cup and got player of the tournament. And by the time the tribunal is done, we'll probably owe like £3m.
All true - our youth team are now something like 42 games unbeaten, winning 31/32 of them I think.
Absolute madness - it's nice to see guys like Tomori, Christensen and Boga in the squad, though. I think if we had had an easier start to the season we'd see them get a bit of a chance - but losing the first game and probably the game today, with big tests to come, means we'll just spunk a load of cash on some average players to fill the gaps.
CHELSEA.
MrS
Banned
He was invisible during the Napoli game midweek. Is he that good really?
Hope Chelsea perform a miracle later.
Sun Bather
Member
I'm not very bothered about Ake. The club already has better players for the position, and with both Christensen and Zouma, that have a way bigger potential that Ake, it's not a big loss. I just really hope Zouma can have a injury free season now, and come back strong.
Chalobah however makes me sad. He is a solid player in a position that Chelsea are weak as fuck in right now. At least there is supposedly a buy back clause, but I have my doubts if that will ever be used anyway. It makes sense if he really wanted out though, which you can understand. At the end of the day, the fault for that is on Conte for not showing him very much trust last season, and the blame for that, can also partly be pointed at the board for.
Solanke I really have no clue about. But now that he went to Liverpool I hope he fails horribly.
With the addition of another central midfielder, and a full back, the squad looks pretty solid for CL and premier league.
Chalobah however makes me sad. He is a solid player in a position that Chelsea are weak as fuck in right now. At least there is supposedly a buy back clause, but I have my doubts if that will ever be used anyway. It makes sense if he really wanted out though, which you can understand. At the end of the day, the fault for that is on Conte for not showing him very much trust last season, and the blame for that, can also partly be pointed at the board for.
Solanke I really have no clue about. But now that he went to Liverpool I hope he fails horribly.
With the addition of another central midfielder, and a full back, the squad looks pretty solid for CL and premier league.
A Serious Man
Member
If this thread isn't buzzing over Huddersfield vs Newcastle then moving to community really has killed it off.
brokenbeans
Banned
Sun Bather
Member
I am here praying for another great Zanka performance.
Sun Bather
Member
Lashley
Why does he wear the mask!?
His Majesty
Banned
Isn't that a foul? don't know what the rules say about verbal trickery
Sun Bather
Member
Looking for that clip, I also found this photo of Podolski used by breitbart.
Lashley
Why does he wear the mask!?
It is, but its hilarious too
Agree to disagree on Ake - I think a long term back 3 of Ake - Zouma - Christensen could have been quality. But yeah, hope Zouma has a good year at Stoke - really deserves it after that shocking injury.
I don't lay much blame at Conte's door to be honest - he's seen the managerial merry go round at Chelsea before and knows that if you don't deliver immediate results you'll lose your job. How can he walk in and start offering games to guys like Chalobah when he knows what looms if results go south?
You need the board to back you - to give you the freedom to play youth, even if it doesn't breed immediate success.
I use to be a huge fan of Chelsea's policy with youth players, they were like a factory that bought up the brightest talent and loaned them out to develop and sold them at a relatively nice profit, good stuff from a financial prospective - worked quite well with FM too lol. The problem is that the board just doesn't know how to retain the best of those youth when they're about to reach that peak age and they're home-grown. Chalobah leaving is a bit of a shock, Ruben will probably be next when he returns next season. Bertrand Traore was also sold this season, he has bags of potential. Is Charly Musonda still at the club?
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