Chelsea Banter 4

05 Sep 2026 08:40:01
So what we all expecting the line up to be tomorrow? That front 3 picks itself but a couple of questions elsewhere. Anyone going?

05 Sep 2026 11:34:56
I assume the midfield/double pivot will be James and Lavia. The wing-backs, I guess, are Hato and Gusto.

Sadly not going. Given the arrogance/confidence my Gooner mates are showing, I am not sure why we are turning up.

06 Sep 2026 10:17:32
Tom, we have fulfilled the Premier League fixtures. 😀

05 Sep 2026 07:39:16
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new article entitled, Liverpool v Nottingham Forest - A Quick Liverpool Perspective

04 Sep 2026 13:16:49
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new article entitled, Liverpool v Nottingham Forest - A Quick Liverpool Perspective

04 Sep 2026 09:45:45
Hi guys, the only subject discussed at the last 3/4 FAB meetings has been ticketing.
I have sent a request for an item to be put on the Agenda for the next board meeting.


For those like me who like to moan about many CFC issues can I suggest you send a request to the FAB and ask for your question/concerns to raised at their next board meeting.

04 Sep 2026 07:57:40
My memory isn’t what it was but didn’t our owners buy the club from RA/government for £4.25bn in total. Of that, £1.75bn was held in escrow for the stadium, women's football, the academy and I think Kingsmeadow.

So, I assume we still have £1.75bn ish still in an escrow account?

04 Sep 2026 09:05:30
Hi Guys, not to worry about the above post. I have found what I was looking for, like any normal person would, by searching online.

03 Sep 2026 19:35:47
Interesting article on The Athletic titled ‘What is Enzo Fernandez’s legacy at Chelsea?’

For me, on the pitch, he doesn’t have one. His legacy is one of money, a legacy of deadline day drama.

The first player in history to be bought for over £100m and sold for a profit. On the pitch, just part of some pretty disappointing times at the club, which won’t be remembered fondly.

03 Sep 2026 20:33:05
I rated him as a player, but with about 10/12 games of last to go for me, it was goodbye. My feelings are, Fernandez who?

04 Sep 2026 08:57:19
Decent player, but no Frank Lampard.

04 Sep 2026 09:44:25
I've never been a big fan of his and have often asked the question - what is his best position?
My worst memory is the Carling Cup Final versus Liverpool's B team, a game in which he should have stood up but instead was bossed by Endo. (I think it was him?)

Like Tomb, I'm glad he's gone and the soap opera surrounding him is over.

04 Sep 2026 11:25:30
I don't know if any of you saw George Benson's podcast interview with John Terry that featured quite a lot of discussion about Enzo Fernandez. JT really rated him both as a player and a 'warrior', who he thought gave 100% plus when playing for us, unlike perhaps several other players last season. I believe it was Greenaway who said that he was a favourite among away fans in this respect. I could see why, and tend to agree with JT.

JT believed EF was, in his words, a 'winner'. Having been watching the Mourinho documentary on Netflix the last couple of nights, I understand what JT is getting at, and that Mourinho would probably have loved EF for this! I think JT also quite liked him personally.

The fact is that most of us fans obviously don't like the way he has left us, and probably want to believe that he will be no great loss. Like Tom, I didn't want him to leave cos I rated him as a player and indeed as a warrior with a Mourinho-like will to win.

So, I think he was one of our best players when with us, but he has now gone, and we all hope he can be replaced by an even better player and/or one that can suit Alonso's system better.



I also am hoping, as am sure most of us are, that Alonso, who of course played under Mourinho at Real Madrid, did so well in his playing career and, as a manager in the Bundesliga, will bring a winner mentality to all in our squad. What the JM doccie suggests is that JM's superpower was just this, and helps explain how he won so many major trophies, including with unfancied teams like Porto or Inter, or even in resuscitating Real Madrid against Barca dominance in La Liga, before that relationship went sour. Oh, and of course he did win the league with us again in his second stint before that relationship went sour.

So, I would say that EF has a winner's mentality and was getting better with us the longer he stayed. I think he gave his best more than most for most matches with us. But he has now defected to be with the other treacherous Enzo, so his CFC legacy is tainted by the way he departed.

04 Sep 2026 11:54:21
I bet JT did like him personally.... Birds of a very specific feather flock together, spring to mind.

04 Sep 2026 12:07:41
JBS, I found the Jose documentary intriguing/interesting. What a totally focused and somewhat complex individual Jose is.

JT can say he likes EF as a warrior, but let me ask you this: after watching the Jose documentary, do you think Jose would have picked EF for any game after his "I want to leave" comments with 10/12 games of a season to go? Also, remember he was, in effect, our vice captain.


If I remember correctly, Jose refused to speak to JT when he was injured. That's when JT showed he was a playing warrior.

04 Sep 2026 13:36:30
Good point, Tome, and one well taken by me, so thanks for it about when Jose likely, in fact certainly you'd think, had turned against EF. As he did even with Casillas at Real Madrid, when he thought he was too friendly with Barca players!

Yes, JM is an extraordinarily focused and complex person, capable of humour, affection (care for player families etc), and inspiration for his players - so many testifying to this - but also of what can be seen as ruthless nastiness to get what he wanted, eg in that JT incident.

Then there is that moment when, leaving Inter to further his ambitions by managing Real Madrid, he breaks into uncontrollable tears when hugging an Inter player goodbye after their ECL final win.

The doccie reminded me of how much goes on behind the scenes with staff and players at clubs that we have no idea about. And, simply, that complex humans are involved who we think we know by seeing them so much on tv, yet we don't know the half of it/them.

03 Sep 2026 13:46:36
Back from Spain and was out last night with some mates, a section of whom are Gooners.
Their attitude to our game against them was broadly the same, “Why are we bothering turning up?”
I think it will be tough for us to get anything from the game but I would like to think we will cause them significant problems.

04 Sep 2026 11:29:02
Tom, I think most pundits would have us losing the game on Sunday, and it's hard to think that we could get a result. I do remember that game when we were three down there by half-time under Conte, who then changed the formation at half-time and, with wing-backs, won us the EPL that year.



So, my bottom line is that we go there and at least perform well. Even if we lose, Alonso can learn from the game and win us the EPL! Well, or at very least, get us ECL qualification.

04 Sep 2026 13:04:26
Understandably, Arsenal are favourites to win the title and beat us on Sunday. They are very effective and well organised. That said, they are nothing special. If we get a grip on midfield and organise our defensive unit, there is no reason why we shouldn't come away with something (says me nervously).

03 Sep 2026 10:22:16
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new video entitled entitled, C U Next Time - Transfer Window Edition}

03 Sep 2026 07:39:15
{Ed's Note - thefutureisoldgold3 has posted a new article entitled, Wolves Ratings at West Ham: Defence Below Standard

02 Sep 2026 21:40:40
MONACO HAD €55M. THEY CHOSE TO GAMBLE. CHELSEA HAD A REASON TO DO THE SAME — BUT DIDN'T.

What Monaco did with Camara is difficult to defend, not only as football business, but as a matter of principle.

Chelsea had agreed a €55m deal with Monaco.

Camara had completed his medical. His contract had been agreed. The paperwork was virtually finished. Everything was moving towards completion.

Then Everton came back for Folarin Balogun.

Monaco decided they preferred the possibility of selling Balogun instead.

That decision, by itself, is understandable. Circumstances change. Clubs are entitled to reconsider their options.

But Monaco then made the extraordinary decision to abandon the virtually completed €55m Camara deal to pursue the alternative.

They apparently wouldn't even agree to an extension deal sheet.

In business terms, Monaco looked at a deal worth €55m that was almost sitting in the bank and said:

"Let's cancel this and see if we can get something better. "

Then the other deal collapsed.

€55m became €0.

That is some deadline-day accounting.

But there is another side to this story that deserves attention.

Chelsea had just experienced exactly the kind of situation that can test a club's principles.

Manchester City had agreed a huge deal for Enzo Fernández.

Chelsea could have looked at the chaos surrounding the Camara situation and said:

"Fine. If agreements can suddenly become meaningless on deadline day, why should ours? "

They had reasons to be difficult.

They had every reason to be frustrated.

They could have tried to reopen the conversation, changed their position or used the circumstances to their advantage.

They didn't.

Chelsea honoured their agreement with Manchester City.

And that is the part I find interesting.

Chelsea did exactly what Monaco should have done.

They recognised that an agreement is worth something, especially when circumstances become difficult.

It is easy to honour your word when everything is going perfectly.

The real test comes when something better appears on the table.

Monaco had a €55m agreement and a new possibility.

Chelsea had an agreement with City and plenty of reasons to be tempted by the chaos around them.

One chose to gamble.

The other chose to honour its word.

Football is obviously a business. But business without trust becomes very difficult very quickly.

You can negotiate hard. You can change your plans before an agreement is reached. You can decide not to sell a player.

But once you have taken another party all the way through the process, there is something to be said for keeping your word.

Chelsea deserve credit for that.

Not because they had no reason to reconsider.

They had reasons. They simply chose integrity over convenience.

03 Sep 2026 10:09:33
AI summary of what happened? Anyway, I agree with it.

03 Sep 2026 10:09:54
Nice post. In my opinion, just about spot on.

03 Sep 2026 20:39:08
Using AI to write posts on a football blog for you - honestly, what's the point.

03 Sep 2026 21:43:07
I personally couldn't care less if AI helped generate a post. To my mind, it clarified the events and that is fine with me.

It's not an exam, it's just a bit of fun and banter.

04 Sep 2026 17:19:04
Between humans, Tom.