25 Jan 2018 08:51:32
Yes, they were two unlucky goals to concede but after we scored we were dreadful. The defence is so disorganised and we seriously lack a captain. I thought Azi was a future leader but I no longer think so. Midfield was over run and I am completely baffled by the inclusion week in and week out of Bayakoko who looks like an athlete learning to play football. Alonso has proved me wrong in his usefulness but his serious lack of pace in defence and overlap is making him a liability at times. As hard as we try we have no serious firepower and this short passing in front of packed defences, going absolutely nowhere is a disgrace. We have an element of pace with Hazard, Pedro and Willian but rarely use it unless we get a huge amount of space which few clubs give us, we should be creating space. I still insist Bats was an absolute waste of money, I am a huge Morata fan BUT I am wondering is we have another Dean Sturridge on our hands, someone who won't play if his toe nail aches! An Italian friend had said when we bought him that he was 'fragile'. We then come to Conte who I think is an inspirational manager but tactically flawed and I have no doubt he will be gone before or at season end which when you look at the stellar managers, lie them or not, we have had and the ease in which they have been let go, there is a problem at the club and managers attract players so we could be hit doubly in the summer with the manager and two or three players saying enough is enough and going. Carroll, Slimani, Dzeko and Crouch and a gamble on another Rahman type with Palmieri, I thought we were bigger than that.
25 Jan 2018 09:16:11
C1955, yes, yes, yes - agree with all you say (except I don't know who Dean Sturridge is! ) . Luiz, a leader on and off the field and a huge player for us last season, questions Conte's tactics once and is relegated to back benches seemingly for good. I have posted before and been shot down - Conte is tactically inept and also a little Napoleon.
25 Jan 2018 10:17:11
1st half was all about possession but we seem to have lost the cutting edge. I am of the opinion that our play general play needs to speed up a lot more. All of this side to side passing gives the opposition enough time to get back into prime positions time and time again especially when we drag them out. Everytime we create space, there is a general tendancy for the ball to be passed backwards or side by side again. Useless!
The 2nd half was a shocker. Even at the point where we were chasing the game, it felt more like arsenal would score. We were not able to get the ball back from them at all and our players were not able to press arsenal to get them to make a mistake. Not even a snif made to come back into the game. That donkey aka Batshuyai did nothing, absolutely zero. Its fair to say that the other players lookes jaded. The squad needs a revamp.
Moses and Alonso have been performing their duties in a lethargic way for a while. The latter is scoring goals but he isn't a striker and that shouldn't be his saving grace. He has not got any pace and is not able to conduct any take ons etc. Moses is slighly better with possession, atleast he can do a couple of take ons here and there. If our wing backs had chipped in then it eases the burden on the rest of the team and more space is created. As for pedro he is a shadow of what he was last year.
Credit to Baka, he has inproved slightly last 2 games but i thought he was a box to box player. He seems to be a poor version of kante. Why do we need 8 defensively minded players in our team if you inc keeper. Slowly beginning to question Conte myself, he doesn't learn from mistakes.
25 Jan 2018 10:20:33
Massive massive agreement mate about the lack of a true leader. We haven’t got ONE player who should be captain, who fully deserves it. Not even Luiz. We lack the JT effect. We need someone who is willing to put a strong challenge in and set the level of the game. We miss that.
Very well said on all the other parts too. ðŸ‘ðŸ‘ðŸ‘.
25 Jan 2018 10:29:38
Miss Darren wood, your comments are good and they sure point out some deficiency in the team but please be patient and don't seriously give Conte all the blame, at least not when more than 80% of the players that Chelsea have brought in between last summer and now have serious question marks over their heads.
Imagine letting Diego Costa and Matic leave after winning EPL sure leaves a lot to be admired and will affect any team. Barkley, Drinkwater, Bakayoko all came in with injuries (and they have been far from their best) ; this is Morata's first season playing as the main striker for a team since the beginning of his career; there have been diverse injuries to certain key players at certain important points in the season that have affected the squad negatively (like Kante, Hazard, Moses, Luiz and now Fabregas, Willian etc) . Willian and Pedro have not been at their best this season (Willian virtually came alive from the last 3-4 matches) .
The players we have brought in aren't so bad (but they are not as good as the ones that our rivals have brought in- coupled with the fact that they also have good managers) .
It will take our new recruits some time to hit their peek again, so let's be patient with Conte cos you only judge a person based on resources available to him/ her and the ability of his competitors (ManU, ManCity, Liverpool, Tottenham and Arsenal[whom will soon add Mkhitaryan and Aubameyang to their squad]) .
25 Jan 2018 11:02:00
MissDarrenWood: My error. In my frustration with a game we should have won, I meant Daniel Sturridge who cannot play if the winds blowing in the wrong direction!
25 Jan 2018 18:03:59
Remember Robben refusing to play in the CL semi-final at Anfield because 'I only like to play when I feel 100% fit'!
25 Jan 2018 19:26:56
MissDW: That wasn't the only time he played that card BUT on his day almost unplayable if not somewhat greedy.