***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

[KG]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

Except Moses is considerably stronger than Willian

I do agree that Willian joining would probably mean somebody is on the way out, likely Moses. Which is sad because I like Moses.

Same although there are reports now that Eto is coming along with Willian as part of the deal and he's reducing his wages down to 6mil a year.

Surely that means that Ba & Moses are likely gone.

[Brahvocado]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

If Moses is gone I honestly think it would just be a loan. He didn't have the best year he could have had with Chelsea but he's still a very talented player that would probably be worth holding on to.

[KG]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

I don't know about you guys but the first thing that jumped out at me about tonight's match is how narrow we were/are. Oscar, Mata, and Eden all want to play centrally and it's great when we're interchanging positions and we can mix-in some counter-attacking but when we're trying to break down 8 behind be the ball it gets stagnant. That's why I think Moses played well in the preseason and Schurrle has looked pretty solid so far. Moses would pretty much get 1-on-1's all game because of Mata/Hazard/Oscar occupying multiple defenders. Same with Schurrle who has looked lively and full of energy. I think Jose is going to start him vs United. He gives us width and also tracks back. We might lose some quality of one of the #10s sit but we'd give our FBs more protection.

I'd be OK with Ba going off to Roma and only rolling with 2 ST's this year. He mistimed so many runs today and can't stay on his feet at all. If you're gonna play a ST like that, play Lukaku.

I'm not a big fan of Ramires in a MF of 2. I like him wide in a MF of 3. With the double pivot he rarely gets the chance to burst through the middle on a trademark goal. I was hoping to see Van Ginkel in the pivot during one of these 2 games. I think Mourinho saw the Villa-Arsenal and decided to go all-out for this one since the pressure to win at United won't be as high.

I think Mata sits for United since he's missed a lot of the preseason with us. It will come down to Schurrle and KDB IMO.

A HUGE test. I'm OK with a draw.

Well, I thought Schurrle would start this match but not up-top, lol. I love his energy but he's not built for playing with his back to goal holding up play in this league. Eden was dreadful today. So slow and indecisive with his actions.

Defensively we looked really solid. JT looks like he's back in 2004. Cahill is a monster at blocking shots and Bran was his solid self. If I had to nitpick I'd say Cole was the weak-link but even he had a solid game. Once I saw Valencia starting out wide for United I wasn't worried about him. Ramires & Lampard vs Carrick & Cleverly was pretty much a boring stalemate.

Not sure how serious Jose will take the Super Cup on Friday but I'd like to see Lukaku up top for a good amount of minutes.

[~LiverpoolRed~]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

If Moses is gone I honestly think it would just be a loan. He didn't have the best year he could have had with Chelsea but he's still a very talented player that would probably be worth holding on to.

A lot of the tabloids are linking Moses with us for a season long loan.

[~LiverpoolRed~]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

Sky is reporting you are close to signing Porto winger Christian Atsu. Holy midfield options! You must be letting a few go before Monday's deadline?

[Bezzey]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

Sky is reporting you are close to signing Porto winger Christian Atsu. Holy midfield options! You must be letting a few go before Monday's deadline?

If true, it's a move for the future and he will most likely be loaned back to Porto for this year and maybe next. Don't see it happening though.

[gopher_guy]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

Any ideas on when Mata will find his way back into the starting lineup regularly?

[~LiverpoolRed~]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

Any ideas on when Mata will find his way back into the starting lineup regularly?

Mourinho has denied that he is looking to move him on, he just says he needs rest. He pretty much had no break over the summer as he was with Spain at the Confederations Cup.

[KG]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

Going with 3 past their prime ST's.

Fun

[Bezzey]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

Stupid, Stupid, Stupid

I don't understand how everyone can see this is wrong except for the people that actually make the decisions. We'll be relying on our attacking midfield yet again and hopefully it doesn't screw us.

[ImTellinTim]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

You know Lukaku is going to fire in 15+ goals for Everton too. Damn you for loaning him to them of all teams.

[Brahvocado]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

Guys need to remember, even with Drogba, our midfielders were the main source of our goals. In his entire career at Chelsea he only had 2 seasons where he scored 20+ goals.

Let's just wait and see what Eto'o does before we get all up in arms. He averaged 1 goal per 2.5 games playing as a midfielder, not even a striker, for Anzi. He's averaged a goal every other game for just about the entirety of his career, is one of the best strikers of the last 15-20 years, and we should at least give him a chance before getting all pissed.

I posted in the transfer thread that I was sad about our striker situation but mostly as a joke and 100% because of Ba/Torres, not Eto'o.

Also, keep in mind that with Schurrle and Willian in the squad, it seems possible and even likely that Jose does some experimenting with a 4-3-3 false 9 style formation where Hazard and Schurrle could drop into the false 9 role.

Let's just see what happens

[KG]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

Oh, don't get me wrong. 7 pts from 3 matches with 0 goals coming from our ST's AND our best player has only played 60 mins has me very optimistic.

Not only that but we should have beaten the reigning European champs who played their full lineup.

We have almost everything, at WC levels too except for ST. Bayern has proven that you just need one that fits your system (Manduzic) if your MF can get you goals so we'll see. I've always like Eto'o as a player and he came relatively cheap so we'll see if he can fill the role

Hmmm...

Will we lose Eto'o and Ba to the ANC?

Also, I watched the 2011-12 Season Review this afternoon. What an emotional roller coaster that was. Now it's on to some old UCL classics with Liverpool.

[Ozil]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

I'm looking forward to Eto'o. At 32 I think he still has a lot to offer and as mentioned above he didn't even play in a striking role at Anji. He'll be better than Torres who continues to look disinterested. Lukaku going on loan to me is a good thing. I think if he has a good season at Everton he will be knocking to be 1st choice next season.

I agree. I think we can definitely have a great year. I'm excited to see how De Bruyne and Schurrle continue their improvement. I also have my new Hazard kit on its way. Figuring out who to get for the away and third kits though

[Bezzey]

Re: ***The Official Chelsea FC Thread***

http://www.fanatix.com/news/chelsea-...o-move/144486/

Makes me feel a little bit better about the move, if true. Still don't like it though.