Champions League: Chelsea 3 - 0 Olympiakos (agg 3 - 0)

Comprehensive performance... my earlier fears proven to be unfounded.

As your match ratings indicate very few players had a poor game, but before we get too carried away the Greeks were awful.

Ballack and Lampard continue to impress, and perhaps by making 'Der Kaiser' the central midfielder and pushing Frank out of the middle and onto the wider areas we might have found the solution to playing them both together.

I agree with the comments about Kalou, and I too am pleased to see him back in, even though his form pre- African Nations was patchy to say the least. I think what I like about him, is that good or bad, he just gets on with it and doesn't make a fuss... Didier please take note!

Drogba did seem to have the hump and perhaps a few of the statesmen in the group have decided it is time to pull him into line. Long overdue. (Incidentally, it was lucky for DD that Joe Cole was wrongly called offside right at the start, because his skied attempt to convert the shot that hit the post could have been seriously embarrassing!)

You are also right about Carlo and his distribution.... A friend has been slagging off Cech for months about his tendancy to hoof it long, but I hadn't really taken much notice until lately. With Cech not exactly covering himself in glory lately, it might be time to give Carlo an extended run and make him earn his 50 Grand a week!

Interesting to note the absence of Obi Mikel..... If the reasons for the fight between Terry and Ten Cate are right and they were rowing over Mikel, Perhaps he has fallen out of favour as a result. Shame if he has because he has been quite accomplished lately, but perhaps Maka was just prefered for the big occasion.

Summing up... An impressive display, and credit must go to Grant and the players for the way they have bounced back after Tottenham. Having said that, we need to be winning the big games before I will be convinced that Avram is the man for the job. Tonight, the Greeks didn't show up and he was not required to think on his feet, and alter the team mid-match. That is where he needs to improve.

TG, I saw that anguish glare from Ballack. That was scary. But I'd say Didier's heart is leaving Chelsea day by day. Given we will applaud his 4 years service here in SB, I'd say it won't be a big deal (afterall) if he leaves at the end of the season.

I was rather nervous to start with because Chelsea didn't have the away goal, but the so called "Greek Champions" just didn't have the stomach to fight considering they performed quite well in the group stage.

Now we have dealt with the Greeks, are we gonna face the Turks?... Welcome to Hell! :-)

Hey there, overall it is a good report and evaluation. I also saw that freaky incident between Ballack and Drogba. I didn't know what to make of it until I read your post.
I pretty much agree with you on most aspects of this game, except for one (very big african ONE) -- Drogba. Is it fair to give him a 4? I agree that he was not at his sharpest but he did contribute a lot to the team.
1) If you look at the first goal closely, it was Drogba who made the run towards the center of the goal, taking two defenders along with him, giving Ballack a free chance to head the ball home.
2) We know that he's a very good striker but he also offers something else that a normal striker would -- which is a good help in defense. And he still does that pretty well today. (If you look at other good strikers - Tevez, Torres, Henry, Messi...etc, the tackles that Drogba makes become more and more valuable.)
3)He scored a goal (offside, NOT!). Scored expertly like he always does at the difficult angle with real composure. Plus, the run the he made was perfect.
4)He took a good free kick. I know he is always trying to get on the free kicks, and he did kick it straight at the keeper, but it was still a good free kick.
These points show that, even if Drogba did not play a excellent game (not at his best), he deserves more than 4 points for the rating. May be a 7???
Bleed Blue!

Also, it is only fair that he gets a 7, since Malouda and Essien got 6 each (even SWP got a 5).
Surely, Drogba played better than all three of them.
PS: sorry for keep going at you for the rating. I will let it go now. :)

@Lamin
Agree that Drogba deserves better than 4. Still, it was a very below par performance from him. HIs passing was crap. Also, I would have removed more than half a point for the bookings JT and Paulo received. They were stupid in the extreme and will come back to haunt us. I feel for Frank over his "dive" but at least he has justly escaped his 3 match suspension.

I know that 3-0 is a walk-over, but we really took things too easily in the final 15 minutes resulting in lots of pressure from the Greeks (and the two yellow cards).

Who says that Ballack and Frank cannot play together? They totally dominated the mid-field together and MB was constantly getting forward. Having admired MB for years, it is truly a pleasure to see him finally playing in blue at his best.

I'm rather hoping we get Fenerbahce or Schalke in the quarters, but EUFA will probably rig it so we get Liverpool (supposing they beat Milan) or ManU. Incidentally, am I the only one who thought that the Gooners victory over AC Milan was one of the best CL games I've seen for a while? Ancellotti looks doomed. Any bets on TSO being there next season?

I really enjoyed watching this game and agree with Tony and the commenters above that it was a solid professional display albeit against a team that never looked like scoring the away goal until the last 10-15 minutes. The quarter finals will present a stronger test for sure, but on this performance I believe it will be more a test of AG's ability, given that no tactical input was really required once the match was under way.

I think there may be something in the notion that the African boys may be suffering a kind of hangover, and I'd say DD has one more move left to a major club at this point in his career, so if he seems distracted it may be because in his head he's already somewhere else. Be nice to see him go with a major honour as a reward for his commitment over the last couple of seasons.

Like Graham above I've been along time admirer of Herr Ballack and have commented before about my satisfaction in seeing him contribute what I always knew he could, but the pleasure in seeing him and Super Frank in the same line-up, not falling over each other's feet makes me question that old chestnut that Frank and Stevie Me couldn't play together. Not that I want that, it just makes me think that Frank was never the problem, which means it was either the system McCLaren played, or...? If Frank has one last big move too, and joins Claudio or TSO at his next appointment, then I'll wish him all the best, and feel comfortable knowing that Ballack is here.

Recently I've been bemoaning that our games are always tight, keeping me biting my fingernails till the last minute and how great it would be if we could establish a big lead so I could sit back and relax. Last night it happened and, surprisingly, it was rather boring. We all sat quietly in our seats and admired from afar with the only interruption being the two old women (men) behind me discussing their ticketing arrangements for the next month, which apparently is subject to a lot of variation depending on progress in the CL (now confirmed) and whether we draw at Barnsley (fat chance). Why can't they shut up and watch the game?

However I shouldn't have been too relaxed because we all know the Greeks like to come from behind so it was important we kept it tight at the back.

@Clive- was that your coach I saw as I left the Bridge last night? Turn left out the ground and just a few yards down on the right was Abbots Coaches from Newton Abbot?

Let Drogba go....no, do no let him go, but sell him and make some money for a change. He has had not a single good game since he come back from ANC and with his attitude and commentaries I will be glad to see him off. That will be the end of Cech long balls I guess. Cuduchini use to play ball to feet simply because he can not kick it Tony ;). May come out that CC did us word of good

I think Tony's rating of DD is fair. I thought he was awful last night. Looked like the player we questioned was worth £20m-whatever in the first season we had him. No first touch, couldn't pass, abysmal free-kicks. It angered me that Anelka didn't get a look in last night. That was the only bad decision AG made.

Decent performance, but as we've said, you can only beat what's in front of you. I doubt we'll ever have any easier Champions League knockout stages game than that.

I saw the Ballack / Drogba incident you mention Tony. Michael could double as a serious actor with that steely, ice-cold stare he gave Drogs.

Not sure if it was me, but I also noticed a complete lack of 'well-done-chap' between Ballack and Lamps for both their goals, which both were as a result of each other (still with me ??).

AG reckons we'll get Liverpool in the next round. Which is probably right. But there are still a few teams left that hardly set the World on fire. Fenerbahce would be a good draw, as would Roma and Schalke.

Finally, to anyone who has ever mentioned us buying Ricardo Quaresma (and I think I mentioned it once!) can I bring your attention to Porto vs Schalke last night. I watched extra-time on Sky, and can safely say I have never, ever, ever witnessed as bad a case of running up your own arse and losing the ball every time you're in possession as Quaresma demonstrated last night (and that includes SWP and Kalou). Was utterly woeful. And with about 5 minutes to go, he had a 1-on-1 chance to win the game and fluffed it big time. I never want to see him in a Chelsea shirt.

@Mark
Yes it was, and our comfortable win made our late night return go that little bit quicker. Talking about coaches, I think Olympiakos didn't get off theirs last night they were dreadful. It makes a bit of a mockery of stating that the best 16 teams in Europe are left in the competition... if that's the standard, well what can you say!

@Tony
Myself and a few others around me were also commenting on how Carlo was distributing the ball last night, rather than the Wimbledon-esque type of hoofing that Cech seems to employ.

Overall an enjoyable night albeit rather quiet crowd wise, although I did enjoy our banter with the Olympiakos supporters being in fairly close proximity. Credit to them for their support, and a lots of embarrassment to some of the xenophobic and racist type chants from some of our so called supporters.

Fifty I couldnt agree more with you - Anelka had to start - its these decisions that baffle me. If DD IS going then why not use him as a back up and that way he will want to change the game as a sub to showcase his talent to any prospective new club. Anelka is the future so bloody stick him in there - he also compliments the skillful nature of Cole and Kalou.

ZE GERMAN, all bloody hail the bavarian giant. Sorry lads but fook me he is just great. At a risk of being accused of all manner of things i have to say i bloody love this guy, he is really showing a loyalty and love for chels and that makes me very happy.

Also Tony - your man of the match is spot on.

Lolli - you agree??! LOL

little details that i caught:

Drogs congratulating CC with a brotherly gesture after the back-to-back saves that kept the sheet clean. shows it still matters to him. Or that Claudio must be the most popular lad in the pack, one of those who regardless how much they play, have great impact in keeping the dressing room together. or both things.

Is it just me or JT was going forward more than usual? a sign of tactical things to come?

JT does seem to be playing further forward with Carvalho covering. Perhaps that's a way of dealing with Terry's lack of pace on the turn.

Drogba was very poor, but took his 'offside' goal superbly. He does look disinterested.

I've never rated Querasma.

Kalou, Lampard and Ballack were all excellent.

Lots of games in quick concession now, so i'd expect big changes for Saturday - wouldn't be surprised to see starts for Bridge, Belletti, Alex, Mikel, SWP, Malouda and Anelka.

Further details

Drog's was not offside. goal disallowed
Raul was. goal given

Thoughts about our *political* weight anyone?

An observation on Joe Cole's return to form, I think dropping him for the Carling Cup has proved beneficial. I think his automatic selection recently made him a little complacement, and as most of us noticed he was reverting back to the show pony tricks that JM had knocked out of him.

So dropping him might have been the first shrewd thing AG has done in a while, unless of course it was an accident. ;-)

@ bluetone - Thoughts about our *political* weight anyone? – This is more JM legacy we inherited also the Drogba moaning and few other thimgs ;)

not only in CL but in the Premier as well

Nicely done - early goal really settled them down and there was very little from Olympiakos to speak of after that bar the end of the second half (they missed Galletti who was one of their better players in the first leg). Quite surprising given how compact they were at home. Barnsley will surely offer more of a threat. And the players' confidence is at least still intact, which is good news.

And please God not Liverpool again in the next round; aside of the indecent Indian sign Benitez has over us in Europe, can anyone really be arsed to watch another 180 minutes plus of football that bad again? Know it is all very healthy for the PL to have (potentially) four teams in the last eight, but I always feel a bit cheated when we end up playing another English side in Europe.

Presumably as the next round is just picked out of a hat, it is the luck of the draw whether we play at home or away first?

Surely our Joe must not be left to his own devices for too long.
Not sure leaving him out is the solution. subbing him after one too many useless tricks may be of better help. yet how many managers have the guts to do that?
Pato may be next in line for such treatment

One of my insiders (he's a physio), who is so in the mix at Chelsea that he managed to get the team completely wrong for yesterdays game (apologies chaps, first time he's got it wrong, first time I posted it. Brilliant) says that Drogba is physically knackered. Apparently he has got a chronic knee complaint which isn't going to go away however much it is operated upon. I think the club is going to sell him in the summer if they get upwards of £20 million. I would. He doesn't look very interested to me.

Anelka is faster, hungrier and younger and I think we have seen the best of the Drog at Chelsea. Benzema would be a suitable replacement, though not cheap...

If we can't get £20m + for DD then I say play him in the reserves with Sheva for the rest of his contract.

That should teach him to stop moaning to the press.

Is the draw like last year, we can't get Schalke but we'll know who we might play in the semis?

Interesting stuff on DD. Flog him to Milan and get revenge for the Shev!

Fingers crossed no English club next time. Hopefully United and Arsenal will get each other and Inter will come back from the dead against Pool.

Is the draw like last year, we can’t get Schalke but we’ll know who we might play in the semis?

I think that's it. We avoid previous group opponents but can get them in the semis depending on the draw.

JD,

As fas as I know, it's completely random now. If you're the first team drawn out, you're at home first.

Also, they pick which match winners play each other, so you can plot your route to the final. Or where you'll get knocked out.

@ Lamin

Drogba stays at 4/10. All players start from 6/10 and then gain or lose points. Drogba had a poor game last night and as much as I love him as a player, anyone playing like he did would get the same low mark.

I would let him go to Milan for £24 million based on a price we'd be expected to pay if the boot was on the other foot. Having said that, a knee injury that might never go away is not a good sign.

@ Peter - next weeks draw decides the quarters and the semi's so you'll know the prospective opponents should you be successful in the quarters. I'd live Inter to turn Livershite over, but can't see it somehow, in which case I desperately want them to meet Airline or Manure, as both would cane them I think, whereas such is the hex over us, like JD all I can see is 180 minutes of what we saw at SB a few weeks back. Football to kill yourself to.

Team performance as a whole was fantastic, (almost) flawless. Maybe the paintballing days out has had something to do with the boys finding their form! Just kidding!!
I really haven't got a bad thing to say about the match at all, it was fantasic,agree though that Didier wasn't up to his best, seems to have gone off the boil a bit. Hope he finds his form again soon, whether or not his mind is on pastures new as Tony says, remains to be seen in the next few weeks. Maybe we should play Anelka on his own instead of Drogs a little more, just in case he does leave. Just a thought...

Munkeyfeet
I thought my boy was MOTM, after all he did;
Set up 1
Score 1
Kalou got the other ( that incidently came from a beautiful corner)! Ha! Ha!

Not sure i should even be speaking to you anyway with all the slanderous gossip that seems to be surrounding us!

Bout Drogs

Shev's going back to Milan which fills the remaining striker's berth for them
Inter have Ibrahimovic + Cruz, rising youngster Balotelli, Adriano on loan and a wage bill the size of London's phone directory
Barcelona already need to rotate, with Henry himself unable to hold down a regular start.
Real are crap and RVN and Raul will always start ahead of him

Where next for him a ask you?

Milan surely need to replace Ronaldo and the ageing Inzaghe and useless Gilardino. As they showed against Arsenal, they've only really got Pato.

One more for the Real "cons" list: do they want another Robben to camp in their infirmary?

Milan do have a fairly sizeable rebuild on their hands, it seems. Will be interesting to see the movements in and out, especially as they're probably struggling for anything other than a UEFA Cup place now.

Peter

true, but they play one striker alone. My point is: is Drogs going where he's not guaranteed a start? Even when fit, Ronaldo is third in the pecking order

Not sure i should even be speaking to you anyway with all the slanderous gossip that seems to be surrounding us!

I'm sure there's nothing slanderous about what appears to be going on, there must be enough youtube evidence on the net to show that monkeys enjoy licking lollipops!

I don't think Drogs will go to AC Milan, besides why would they buy another player who is nearing his 30's when perhaps rebuilding with younger players might be the better option for them. It appears there might be a culling of a lot of the older dead wood come the end of the season.

JD's right, Milan are due an overhaul.

At the back as well. Maldini is retiring, Nesta is mid-30's. Serginho, Seedorf, Pirlo and Kaladze are hardly youngsters. If ever the time was right to test their resolve over Kaka, it must be this summer. UEFA cup awaits, the loss of many of their team would be of detrimental effect to them.

Sheva or DD and £20m for Kaka I say.

Go on Roman, do it.

@ peter - and kaka!!

But yup they do need a lot of work. If JM goes there then DD will take the centre forward role. If not then they have to be odds on favourites to take villa and/or benzema.

I hope we do start playing anelka more - kalou and j cole with him is a tricky front 3 to play against. Malouda, Sidwell, Ben Haim, Beletti, Pizza boy and shev to all go. A right back, a winger and a playmaker to come in.

Lolli - seriously you will start tongues wagging soon but in short:

No, No and No.

Great game, but it was all over by half time; the second half was all exhibition football. Drogs was poor but so was Ferreira. He's average, Belletti is old and not good defensively. We need a quality right back, perhaps Ivanovich will do. if not we need to get one. We have the tendency to take our foot off the gas and that could cost us as it did Milan in Istanbul.

Fifty

spot on. overhaul will come about, but it will be at the back, which will drain all available resources. and given that picture, a price-cut (fee AND wage!) Shevs will come in handy.
DD's staying put, locks, big mouth, moaning and all. Which makes me happy: i love the big lad

Also on the Essien front - i heard a rumour from a gent who knows a guy whos sister.....

No seriously i went to uni with a chap who went to the same school as many of those who were/are involved at Chelsea and still have strong ties. Apparently Essien is so unhappy with grant as his manager that his motivation has gone and in fact he secretly wants to leave. This is something i heard about 3 weeks ago - thought nothing of it as he is so loyal and normally dedicated but with recent performances i feel there be some truth to it. we all know that passionate individuals are ruled by their heart and as such fall into the "all or nothing" category!

There could be trouble ahead.......

kaka's not really a forward is he?

I can see them going for DD because while they need a rebuild they can't afford to totally gamble on youth like Wenger because they are Milan, with greater expectations and an egotistical owner, so an experience CL player would do them fine.

We need to make sure our squad doesn't get into that situation, because while there's youth there (Cech, Alex, Terry, Mikel, Essien, Kalou, Coles) the key players (Lampard, Maka, Ballack, Carvalho, Drogba) are all getting on.

Essien rumour doesn't surprise me. He's been dreadful since JM left.

OK Tony, let's start this again! lol There was a big reason that Carlo distributed the ball better from the back last night. No Olympiakos players came over the half way line. They didn't press our midfield, let alone the defence. So it was a no brainer to roll the ball out to feet. Watch on Saturday against Barnsley. I am assuming Carlo will be playing. I guarantee you he won't be rolling it out to Ricky much.

As for Drogba, the rating is fair. Not for lack of effort, but just because everything he did on the ball was poor.

Peter

it must be that the very thought of DD lavishing praise on the "egotistical owner" and (god forbid!) soon-to-be this country's prime minister makes me cringe.
The little hair-dyed scum is responsible for one of the most race-hating, fascist-minded and downright wrong acts ever voted this side of the planet. His allies are narrow-minded neanderthals, unable to string a sensible sentence together.

If there's a God, or whatever supernatural being, DD must not go there.

End of rant. Back to football

@ BLUETONE

Good Lord! Are you feeling ok?! Take a pill and go for a lie down!!

did it by any chance show i hate Berlusconi?

all right. what pill do you suggest? :)

all right. what pill do you suggest? :)

Certainly not those blue triangular shaped ones! ;-)

Certainly not those blue triangular shaped ones!

They're very useful. Certainly stop you rolling out of bed, that's for sure.

*ahem*

LINK

LOL - they stop me tripping over in the morning ;)

Okay this is interesting...No mention of Lampard in the good nor in the discussion thereafter...hmmmm??? Is it just me or did Lampard put in a display of brilliance...

Ballack was good but Lampard was the best player on the pitch yesterday IMO...

Can not fault the argument that Drogs was way off the pace and they did rob him of the goal but he was the worst player on the pitch for us...oh by worst he scores a 6/10 for me...

Fernabache would be nice...but I have a strong Barcelona feeling...will wait and see...

I am also seeing ManU play Arsenal in the next game...with Liverpool playing Fernabache......I feel it in my bones...

I am also dreaming of a final after beating Liverpool in the Semi-finals...waiting waiting...

NO - Ballack was the best on the pitch - saying he wasnt is fignting talk Mr Musumba :)

Or are you lolli in disguise

Mourinho eager to 'kill' Chelsea...

LINK

He can kill us with Drogba if he wants. I am fed up with Drogba's feigning injury and falling all over the place and whining and so on. Sell him for £20 million and replace him with somebody who wants to play for the club and is thankful for the opportunity to play for one of the world's best teams. Grant should play Anelka ahead of Drogba. This might force Drogba to pull his socks up and be a man on the pitch.

LINK

Kenyon: 'He (Drogba) is committed to Chelsea and there'll be no more comments, there'll be no more discussions about his future until the end of the season and again he needs to focus and we need to focus on picking up points.'

Until the end of the season. Looks like we're preparing for life without Drogba. I'm thankful for what he has done for the club but will not be upset when he leaves.

Bloody hell Jose, don't beat around the bush, tell it like it is :

LINK

We love you too.

JOSE MUSUMBA....I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!! XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

@ BLUETONE

A Chill pill of course...think that's it's name on the bottle anyways!!

in a strange way i wouldnt mind jose destroying us.. just for those who doubted his genius..

almost always blue..

@ Dylbo - wash your mouth out my son. Blasphemy.

munkeyfeet, i understand that no individual is bigger than the club. but i just think jose got a pretty raw deal.

maybe it would be better put this way, if we get knocked out of champs next year, i hope its by jose. and he is right, he has been most respectful since he left, in my humble opinion...

I agree he has been and yes if anyone was to knock us out then i would rather it was him too.

He could then walk around tapping his chin again! :)

He stated he wants to go to italy or spain, then england and then portuguese manager.

Will he come back to us or will he take the fergie hot seat?

I for one, never doubted T.S.O's genius. The whole "If i get Chelsea in the Champions, i want to kill them" speech just goes to show how pissed off he still is about leaving us. He wants to prove to R.A that he is the better manager but R.A was willing to let him go to make way for A.G. If Mourinho wants to crush us just to prove that point, i believe he will do it, it's sort of an "up yours", revenge gesture at the likes of Kenyon and co isn't it?..

"in a strange way i wouldnt mind jose destroying us.. just for those who doubted his genius.."

Yeah Dylbo, I'd feel no pain at all getting to the final next year only to be destroyed by a Mourinho side.

I don't care if José becomes manager of effing Wigan and proceeds to knock us out of every cup competition we are in next year -- just so long as we don't have to play Liverpoo in the Champions League this spring. Please, please God, not that.

Am trying to persuade myself that Inter can do it. Poo seem to have found a bit of form (or rather, Mad Rafa has had a stroke of incomparable tactical genius and realised that since young Torres is rather good at football it might be sensible if he played in the team sometimes) but you've got to think Inter are top of that league for a reason and really ought to be able to stick three past Steve Finnan et. al.

If our luck with draws holds it'll be Poo vs Barca, Man U vs Arse and us against Schalke followed by the winner of Roma-Fenerbahce.

(Must try and remember that defeats are the only way we'll get rid of Grant ... Must try ...)

I’d feel no pain at all getting to the final next year only to be destroyed by a Mourinho side.

Neither would Roman, I'm sure...!

C'mon guys, we could always get Rafa and knock TSO on the semis AGAIN ;). Poor Jose :)))

jiko

oh yeah, and treat ourselves to heroic battles for a uefa cup slot

thx for the pill advice lolly.

i took one i happened to have around: it's called "leave those papers alone tone"

Jose and Roman still in touch...
What's all that about then?..

@ BLUETONE

I've tried them...they didn't work!!!!

they do have one side effect: compulsion to scribbling bollocks on blogs

ok going to pick the kiddies. the younger one is tough, mean and gets away with a big smile on his mug. guess what i call him

Jose & roman in touch

yes. he's gonna get hired in case we get livpoo in the semis

"In case"?...You KNOW we will...sod's law!!

the younger one is tough, mean and gets away with a big smile on his mug. guess what i call him

CHRISTIANO?! Oh no wait..sorry...my mistake..you said tough and mean. Absolutely no idea, give us a clue..

makalele is my guess!!

I want liverpool - then Grant can beat them and we can all be happy!!

Yup i am fickle - come on GRANT :)

Ten Cate? No.. sorry, wrong again!..you said big smile on his mug.

RED ROM?! He's proved himself to be quite tough/mean when he feels the need to be-hence shoving T.S.O out of the door.
As for the big smile on his mug...well, he's got that permanent (albeit stupid looking) grin attached to his face hasn't he?
Am i right?

munkey's on the money: maka's the name

Well i knew it wasnt lampard!!

BLUETONE

Please don't encourage him!!!

MUNKEYFEET

If it were Lamps, it would read more like;
Good looking, mean and moody, great at football, especially at scoring goals!!

actually lampard is my nick. coz i'm greedy ;)

BLUETONE - fantastic - that should keep her quiet for 5 mins

:)

I think you 2 need to behave yourselves. I will not have a bad word spoken about my SuperFrank..

MUNKEY
Are you Musumba in disguise? It's crossed my mind more than once...

P.S missed out the "better than Ballack/Gerrard put together" on the end of my description..

3 mins - damn it

Ha! Ha! That's only because i was making myself a coffee, otherwise i would've got back at you sooner..

My sympathies go to Mrs MUNKEY... they do say patience is a virtue..

One would think that Jose would like to kill Lpoo! Yet this talk... he is like a rejected lover :))) in normal live he would need concealing, but hey, this is football and Chelsea we talking about...C'mon Jose let it all out

Couldn't agree more about the sentiments expressed in the review over Drogba's performance.

Really pleased to see Jose's comments about his time at the Bridge and his feelings for the club. I agree with Dylbo that if we do go out of the comp next year, it be to Jose's team. So long as that team isn't the scousers!

I found it interesting that he specifically said there is no clause to stop him coaching in the UK.... I have thought for a while now he would fancy the job at Liverpool as being a great chance to prove Roman wrong on a regular basis.

I watched the highlights again last night and have changed my opinion on Drogba. His joy at all of the goals was clear for all to see, and on more than 1 occasion he chased a long way back to defend. Perhaps people are being a little unfair to the big man.... Let's face it, he talks too much, but is a wonderful striker. There is no centre forward in the world I would rather have at Chelsea.

Ballack our player of the season?If he continues to play like that there will be no competition,IMO.

Arsenal next round please! :-D

I just heard that JM wants to "kill" us if he faces us with his new club, Spuds lose to PSV, I was impressed their young playmaker/winger Ibrahim Affelay, He looks very good, should we pick him up?

@greenlight
Drogba defended well as is his wont, and was all over the field chasing down balls. He seemed to spend a lot of time wide left or right. This may have been deliberate (though he has always played a little like this). His reaction to Frank's goal where he was the first across to congratulate him, and his reaction to Carlo's two fine saves near the end where he shook him around like a rag doll, surely indicate his pleasure at playing for the club. Fie on those who would see the back of him after a few lousy games. OK, maybe after a few more lousy games I'll change my opinion, but until then, Vive Drogba.

Personally, I'm a lot more worried about Essien who seems to have lost all desire to play. And what has happened to Mikel who was until recently our Maka-killer? That Sidwell and Pizza have disappeared down a large hole is hardly a surprise (indeed a relief), but I'm hoping that Mikel has not been dispatched along with them. Perhaps he and Essien will be trotted out together against Saturday's giant killers. I hope we take Barnsley seriously. A decent score against them will give us added bragging points when we inevitably have to play the Pool again in the CL. Sigh. Incidentally, I gather our last FA Cup game against Barnsley was something of a disaster. Can lightning strike twice?

Drogba's been like that all season, like he's starting to lose his pace.
Of course that could just be down to not being too bothered (despite the cudicini gesture comment).

On a random note though,

LINK


Came accross this while checking clips of CSKA strikers.
Wonder how many people were banned after that. Incredible...

The one with the number 2 shirt is our ivanovic right?

It is Drogba's feigning injury and the rolling on the floor and the limping and looks of anguish on his face when an opponent so much as brushes past him. It drives me crazy. Behave like a man a show the world the talent you quite obviously have, Drogs!!

He should be forced to sit down and watch Martin Taylor amputate Eduardo's foot - that's a fucking injury. No rolling around mock screaming from Eduardo. Perhaps it just might change Drogba's despicable play acting. Can you tell how much it annoys me?? ;)

@Karl
All you hate about Drogba is part of the package. You change that, you change everything about the man. Sure, it is annoying that he limps around holding his back, pleading with the bench and the crowd for sympathy he quite obviously never gets, but it is the way he is made. If he had been brought up in the UK rather than Ivory Coast, he would probably not react the way he does, but he also would probably be missing the spontaneity in his play that makes him a great player. For let's not forget, that when he is in the mood he is a great player, and for the last few years he has been in the mood more often than not.

I would also point out that Drogba has been injured quite a lot over the last three seasons, and from comments above is still not apparently 100% fit, so that unless it is self-inflicted, he really does suffer occasionally. OK, not in the Eduardo class but who would wish that even on one's worst enemy. It isn't all play acting. He works up front, giving and taking stick from a lot of tough hombres, so why don't you just cut him a bit of slack and enjoy the pure Drogba moments that only he can produce. There have been plenty of those.

When you look at some of the tackles he reacts to they are quite late and nasty on him so they must hurt. But as Graham said if you take his drama queen antics away, then it changes who he is. He had a poorish game by his standards the other night, but he's still the best striker of his type in the world, and will score goals in the big games.
As good as Torres is and the goals he's scored, how many of his goals are against the big teams, I think he's only scored one, and that was against us when we had Ben Haim in defence.
So if Drogs goes he'll be a hard act to follow for any striker coming in, so I would prefer to keep the man who is proven in our league; rather than speculate on someone else.

Interesting stats that I hadn't realised.

Most of our big players have played very few league games this year and their freshness could hold the key to success over the next few weeks:

From ' Chelsea Pies' website:

Lampard
Frank's played just 17 league games this season!

Drogba
Unbelievable Diddler has played just 11 times in the Premier League this year.

Carvalho
The ever important Ricardo has only featured 14 times in the league so far.

Ballack
It seems like he's been back forever, but Mickey has only made nine league appearances this year! He'll still be fresh as a daisies bottom come May.

Maybe the best it still to come for the Blues this season!

People have hit the nail on its proverbial head with Drogba. He's a theatrical person. He's got a thesp's temperament ("They love me! They hate me! I want to go! I want to stay! Something is broken! Everything is perfect!"). All the fist-pumping to the crowd, the limping and grimacing and hobbling when he falls badly, the exasperated shrugs ... he plays like someone who's thinking of himself as the hero of a one-man drama. No wonder Ballack gave him the eye (I missed that, sadly). Herr B. is obviously someone who's big on the concept of the Team, in a captain-of-Germany sort of way, and I doubt whether he's naturally sympathetic to Drogs's limelight attitude.

I still hope Drogs stays. He wasn't good on Wednesday but he's proven what he can do for us, and you have to give him a lot of credit for his desire to prove himself after how useless he was in his first year at the club. I think he's kidding himself if he thinks he'd be any happier anywhere else.

On that subject -- given that Robben fled to escape José's insistence that he defend sometimes, wouldn't it be hilarious if José took over at Real? Poor old Robben would need to find yet another club's treatment room to live in.

The Essien rumour is worrying because it seems plausible. His form has dropped so badly you sort of have to assume he's grumpy about something.

Greenlight - the player appearances thing is interesting, i had a look about a month ago and the players with the most Prem appearances were Alex and SWP. I bet if you compared with Arsenal or Man Utd you'd see they've been able to pick much more settled sides all season.

GREENLIGHT

I don't think the stats are that suprising once you take injuries etc into consideration. Pleased to hear (so far!) that only Cech is out of the match this weekend.

Although i'm more than confident of a win against Barnsley, we shouldn't forget what damage they inflicted on the scum..AT Anfield as well. Not many Prem teams can manage that, so we should show them respect.
They have a few key players, their Captain in particular, who's name escapes me, is one to watch out for.
We are currently something like 33 places above them at the mo and they're not that far off relegation in their own league but i don't think they're just gonna lie down and let us walk all over them. They want this as much as we do. The pressure's on us not to be defeated by a lower team after all.
Wasn't it the mid-90's the last time we went out of the FA Cup to a lower team? Millwall? At the Bridge on (God forbid..no!!) penalties?

If we keep up our current form, we have nothing to worry about.
I'm gonna say 3-0 Chels win, nonetheless

I am going with 4 - 0 chels with DD falling over 12 times and lamps being outshone totally by Herr ballack. sorry but its a friday and i cant miss the opportunity to wind up Lolli.

Also she isnt Mrs Munkey till sept and yes patience is a virtue that fortunately she has!!

Did you see JM saying he wants his Job back!! Come hither mr mourinho and take back your throne in Stamford Bridge.

@ Lolli

Their captain Brian Howard methinks, was a Chelsea Old Boy!!!

Oh, I just love what Jose Mourinho said, "I feel nothing for him (Avram Grant). I feel everything for the Club, but not for him personally."... Same here, Jose! :-)

Where is everyone?? I am pretending to work here and could do with some banter!

MUNKEYFEET

What do you mean it's a Friday?! You've been winding me up every day almost for ages!!!
I come on here, minding my own business, (trying) to enjoy my week's holiday from work and get you throwing abuse at me! I really do pity soon-to-be Mrs Munkey. September? My birthday month. i'll be..ahem..21!!

Don't know about anyone else but i've had a dodgy connection on my computer (not you Munkey!), that's why i haven't been on here hardly all day...

P.s I'd also roll out the red carpet for T.S.O. Don't think he'd come back if A.G was still a presence there though...keep saying it, i reckon we're stuck with him for at least 4 years. That's what he signed for. R.A's not just gonna kick his best mate out of a job and would anyone here give up £4 million a year? I think not.
He might get better as time goes on...

There go those pigs again..watch out!!!!

yeah that is true but on Fridays it deserves to be ramped up. My connection is slow too - thought work might be spying on me!

21!! well women half their age dont they so happy 42nd!

Deserves to be ramped up? Why's that then?
What sort of job have you got where you sit typing on blog sites all day?!!!
I'd love a job like that! Any going?

42????!!!!!
MUNKEY..As we're best banter buddies i'll let you off for that. Cheek!!!
Look half their age? That'll make me 17. Cheers xx

Should this site be re-named the Lollifeet or Munkeypop blog ;-)

One where delegation is empowering your staff to progress their careers - it also allows me to piss about on here :)

You are the same age as Mrs Munkey.

So who are you predicting as the scorers then?

@ clive LOL

with cameo clive.....

@ CLIVE

Everyone seems to of deserted us here, so Munkey and i have to just put up with each other!!..even though he's SUPPOSED to be working!!!

MUNKEY, you just sound like a skiver to me!!

Scorers?
Joe 2
Superfrank..ha! ha!

Seriously, i don't care who scores as long as we win..think Joe will def be on the scoresheet though. Maybe Drogs and/or Anelka maybe?..

Anyone travelling on the Chelsea train tomorrow. I've booked train 1 but the depart time is shown as 00:00 and Thomas Cook are now closed!

@ Mark, not really sure what you can do about the train fellow apart from checking the website once again later to see if the details have changed, perhaps it was just the Internet screwing up momentarily. Or you could get details from national rail enquiries, just ring them up and explain your story, they should know when you are departing!
Doubt your train is leaving at midnight but if it is, get to bed young man!
I reckon tomorrow should be quite an entertaining game, Barnsley will definitely be up for this one after what they did to Liverpool - many thanks to the Tykes for that one by the way! - ad we'll have to be on the top of our game to stop them!
However, saying that, my prediction is a Chelsea victory, 3-nil with Kalou, Joey Cole and Terry getting on the score sheet.
Alouette...

I think I can guarantee that Frank won't be among the scorers, as he did a half-time interview on the Stamford Bridge pitch some 90 minutes ago, while the rest of the team were holed up in Barnsley's finest hotel (wow, the mind boggles).

I just got back from watching the Yoof. Lots of fun and nice to see that someone's clearly insisted they play properly all the time -- no whacking it up to the big man up front like Arsenal do. Gael Kakuta has nifty skills but the real star looks to be Miroslav Stoch, flying winger in the Robben mould (but short, chunky and with classic terrible East European mullet). Also the no. 3 central defender looks good, I didn't catch his name and am too lazy to look it up on the website. The left back was impressive as well.

Kalou rocks. I greatly dislike this "Kalou-less" label.

Lampard getting booked for diving was a joke. As Henry Winter said, he can't exactly fight gravity.

@ EMMA

Regarding SuperFrank ..What exactly is it you are trying to say???!!!

@ LTB
SuperFrank will be there, no probs

@ lollipop: Oh God, reading it now, I realised that it sounded snide. I didn't mean it in that way at all, all I was saying was that the momentum of the collision meant that he HAD to go down.

To clarify: Frank is not fat. He actually has a really great bod.

@ EMMA

Was only joking...but yes, i do agree, VERY good bod, best legs in the prem! Ha! Ha!
Now if you were saying Dean Ashton and Wayne Rooney neede to lay off the pies a bit, i'd be inclined to agree with you!!!..

This is the problem allow women access to a keyboard and computer and a footballing blog ends up as a gossip site for how good looking players are.

(Ducks and hides somewhere safe from oncoming abuse)

Sry lads, I don't wanna come over as Mr.Know-it-all but I have the feeling that since u Englishman have realised what a great player Ballack is, u require a bit of cultural education. ^^ I always have to laugh when I see that Bavaria = Germany when infact its just a federal state.....the only one with leathershorts, wheatbeer and sausauges with sweet mustard. Basically he is from former East-Germany just like me i.e. a badass communist...I guess that's where u learn these scary stares he has been giving to not so comitted players. I do exactly the same in every 5-a-side match. ^^

Anyway....hope Barnsley will be easily beaten today and next FA round will be a home match again.

@ CLIVE

There's nothing wrong with us girlies appreciating the "finer" points of football.
I'm sure that if you or any of the guys here watch Chelsea Ladies or our women's England team, that you and your mates say "WOW! She's got a fair left peg on her!" Am i right?
Us girls are exactly the same as you...we're just more tactful about it..
Be honest Clive, admit it..he IS pretty isn't he? Ha! Ha!

Be honest Clive, admit it..he IS pretty isn’t he? Ha! Ha!

I'm not ready to come out yet!

LOL

Mad man!!!!

The Chels have said they're willing to let Drogs go in the summer. Crazy!! AC Milan are going to put in a bid for him.

Man-Ure are out of the FA Cup, Their keeper was sent off and Rio Ferdinand had to play in goal lol, Portsmouth scored a penalty, Lets just hope Grant doesnt make another carling cup final like blunder!

I'm still laughing my head off over events at Old Trafford!! To see Duck-Bill in goal was absolutely hilarious! Glad they're out. Should manage to keep McFergie quiet for a few hours anyways.

My Dad is livid and it's safe to say i'm taking great pleasure at tearing him to pieces..my Bro on the other hand is not answering his phone..funny that. They played well and didn't really deserve to lose but i ain't gonna say that to them!!

JK-Agree with your last comment. Hope i do't end up getting this incredibly wide grin wiped off my face later!!

Up the Chels xxx

Shrek Rooney, Mark Viduka, Yukuba etc are all fat pigs. I will never understand why Lampard is STILL called "Fat Frank" when there's Shrek to take the piss out of.

I LOVED hearing about Utd's loss! I was actually watching a movie when it was on, but my brother (a Utd fan) checked the score halfway through and I saw that Kuzcack (sp?) had been sent off and Portsmouth scored a penalty! Hahahaha!

Liverpool are playing quite well though, apparently. :S :S

Anyway, good luck Chelsea!

@ Clive.

Lollipop and I frequently contribute to the actual football-dicussion of this blog too, so we're allowed our moments of superficiality. :@)

@ Lollipop:
I quite like a bit of Petr Cech myself. He's not only a good player (OK, ignoring recent blunders) but he's one of the few players who seems like they're a diamond in real life too. Closer to my age, I also fancy a bit of Gareth Bale. But he's not a Blue, so I won't go on about that too much.

A 4-3-3 formation strong line up will hopefully do the job.

23 Carlo Cudicini
35 Juliano Belletti
6 Ricardo Carvalho
26 John Terry (c)
18 Wayne Bridge
24 Shaun Wright-Phillips
5 Michael Essien
13 Michael Ballack
10 Joe Cole
39 Nicolas Anelka
15 Florent Malouda

@ EMMA

Agree, Petr is tasty, Carlo's dishy as well. Joe's a cutie, J.T? Yup, another one that ticks all the right boxes..and Didier's eyes are soooo dreamy!! Ha! Ha!

What do you think of James McFadden? Ok, not one of us, so as you say above, won't linger too long. Rough and rugged,def something about him..

*collective yawn from male bloggers*

As expected McFergie's moaning about the usual "bad refereeing, Ronaldo should've had a (shock! horror!) penalty that wasn't given, everyone's out to destroy Ronaldo's career" Blah Blah Blah..
He's livid. His face/nose are getting redder the more he goes on about it.

Think a bottle of whiskey is in order, help calm the nerves!

Pratt...

first half = pants

first half = pants

I think pants don't come into it, more like going commando.

@ TONY

Agree totally, don't think Chelsea have bothered to turn up today. Take it you're doing the review then?

Pizzarro is coming on - you know its desperate.

Joe Cole - excellent - the rest are strolling round with no urgency!

Fucking Shambles!!!!!

What a bunch of cunts.

MY BEST REGARDS TO ALL GRANT'S LOVERS. WELCOME TO GRANT'S ERA!!!!

Malouda and SWP were shocking. Why Kalou wasn't on at half-time is a mystery to me. Though to be fair to AG his talk (*cough* Steve Clarke) at half-time gave them a kick up the back side.

Just unlucky with Carlo making a mistake and coinciding a goal leading to Barnsley going 11 men behind the ball.

Go on the Barnsley, F*ucking Avram Grant; The Future!!! Bull.

He's a snake and the sooner everyone (Ahem Abramovich) realises this toad is a fraud the better.

KTBFFH.

the wool has been pulled over the fans eyes for long enough.we have a wolf wearing managers clothing ...if we cant get any silverware this season how can people like peter kenyon and AG say we should be up there with barcelona and man utd?im tired of the lies AG tell us everyday. JM never ever lost against that type of opposition of the likes of barnsley. We use to play efficient football which got results .what has changed since AG took over. He never changed the formation . He never bought those flair players which are needed for ATTACKING FOOTBALL. He turned our efficient football wining team into a FAKE attacking team which has no attacking threat.Well done AG for promising something that you could not deliver.

bloody hell

gutted

SWP, Percy, Essien, Malouda, Pizzaro, Anelka, Bridge freakin terrible

Before you start on AG, how can you possibly blame him, Chelsea had 23 shots to 7, is it AG's fault no one can shoot, is it his fault that Cudicini is a moron, no. Please don't put this all on Grant

Yes Malouda and SWP should have been taken off at halftime, it just shows he doesn't have the balls or the tactical nous to make early changes.

OH.MY.GOD!!!

Totally gobsmacked.
Credit to Barnsley, no-one can say they didn't deserve it. They were all over us from the start and defended well.
Only Joe and J.T could be arsed, everyone else was crap!
£130k a week for that garbage, Barnsley players were told that if they won today they'd get a £1,000 bonus each in wages..makes you think don't it?
What happens to A.G now i wonder...

FFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Grant out.

just only one thing to say …. sack the fucker
now we are not only losing to big teams and in big games but we also lose to teams from lower leagues
we wasted our chance to wine another trophy while we could have been the only team from the big four to be left in the competition…!!!!!
now is he going to say that we have two other trophies to win as if he is capable of winning shit
this season is officially OVER

ManUre's result earlier today doesn't even put a sheen to the shit that is 1-0 to Barnsley. We're not Liverpool, ffs.

If I hear anyone saying... but we're still in two competitons and wait until the season is over before we decide if he's good enough, I'll f**king scream.

second half = soiled pants

Absolute fucking joke.

To the muppets on here claiming that we are better off without Drogba and Lampard in the side, take a look at what the future holds. They are the only players in our side regularly capable of sticking the ball in the net.

23 Shots..... If that is true, why the fuck did the keeper not have a save to make? Surely you would expect one of them to induce a save. Perhaps if AG had not ended the game with 6 strikers they wouldn't hav all been in each others way!

My initial thoughts about Anelka are rapidly coming true. When there is a need to be a target man, he goes missing and heads to the wings.

Despite the fact we would never have lost that game in the past, I don't really blame Grant today... Reality is that with a combined wage of 2 million quid plus a week, whatever side we put out today should have won that in a canter. If Grant is going to get slated at every opportunity,it is time for the players to stand up and be counted too!

Only Joe Cole emerged with any credit.

Welcome to A.G Era.I also welcome you to 'rotation policy' as it's been done at benitez's liverpool.How on earth can u explain the non inclusion of Drogba,Ashley cole,Makelele,Lampard in this game?It is absolute madness and I wish abrhamnovic and AG the best as they enjoy d 'sexy' football they desired of chelsea.This is definitely going to be a trophyless season for chelsea.

@ Greenlight

Your one of the only one's who knows what he's talking about, how can you possibly blame Grant, Chelsea is a team of supposed "world class" player's and they can't score against a championship side, that's not Grant's fault.

@ Lollipop - no, just for ocne JD gets the ...ahem...honour of writing a review after a bad result...which means it isn't just me then!

@ Clive - "If I hear anyone saying… but we’re still in two competitons and wait until the season is over before we decide if he’s good enough, I’ll f**king scream." I couldn't agree more, season over in my view.

@ Luca - don't be a prat. If you're the head coach, then you're the leader. You inspire, you drive, you motivate, you work out tactics, you make changes, .....you LEAD. AG patently doesn't do that, and lets be honest...do any of you really think Mourinho would have lost that with those players? And don't gove me the shots bollocks either...did we really test their keeper once? Nah....go away and think again.

The only thing I can think of is the players are subconsciously trying to get AG out as well by making fuck ups like that.

That was frankly, fucking humiliating. I'll need the skin of a rhino next week at work.

*picks up 12 bore and heads to the zoo*

Deep breath everyone.

Deeply embarrassing for us, huge credit to Barnsley, and now -- look on the bright side.

We are now 99% certain to win nothing this year. Which means we have a really really good chance of getting Teacher's Pet out of the dugout, getting in a competent manager who's respected by the players, and looking forward to next season.

As I said before, if we'd won the FA Cup on the last day of the season, RA wouldn't have had the guts to dismiss his toady.

Losing to a lower division outfit just makes it clearer.

Last game of the season will be 11th May. Cheer up, only two months and three days of AG to go.

How much humble pie would Abramovich have to eat to get Jose back at the Bridge by August?????

I think if Roman said, 'Jose, I was wrong, you were right, just get on with making us successful again,' he would be back in a flash, judging by his comments!

getting in a competent manager who's respected by the players...

we used to have one of them didn't we?...

@Tony
Yep season could well be confirmed over, by the end of March. I just hope the wankers who wear the suits who have been slapping themselves on the back thinking they got a genius in Grant, should have their heads smacked against a brick wall for having no idea about football, or what it takes to be a winning manager.

Let's also not understimate Maka's influence on this team!!
Why in the world did he not bring obi in for SWP after the first
substitution, ffs?!!!!

SWP and Malouda were shocking, imo...everyone else crap but Joey!
To let this chance at a trophy go with United out earlier is simply
unforgiving!

@ LIMETREEBOWER

Quite agree with you and the good news in this, sadly!!!

Well done Barnsley for a deserved victory.

Yes lets not to forget credit to Barnsley you throughly deserved it, and I hope you go on and get to the Final.

And just to remind people who need reminding, please click on the following link.
LINK

Fucking hell. We've got our Chelsea back.

Review here shortly(ish)

Fucking hell. We’ve got our Chelsea back.

Yes it's like being back in the days when we either flattered to deceive, or were just plain crap!

@ CLIVE

Regarding A.G, don't forget we're still in 2 competitions, let's wait until the season is over before we decide if he's good enough! LOL

*puts hands over ears to protect from oncoming scream*

@Lollipop
I think a spanking would be far better punishment for you, and it would make me feel a lot better. ;-)

Oh i say!! How rude!!!

I felt so sad for John Terry and Carvalho. Terry's face near the end said it all. What must he be thinking, Drogba, Lampard, Bridgey,? What a black day, I could not believe my eyes. Welcome to the laurel and Hardy show, oh sorry meant to say Roman and Grant show! F*&^&%$£ing wankers both of them. Ruined a world beating most feard team in Europe to this. Kenyon, Tenenbaum are also to blame, snakes all of them....

Gotta admit thought,he does at least show a modicum of class.... unlike Sir Red-Nose....


Avram Grant admitted it was one of his worst days since he became Chelsea manager in September.

"We started the game well then we conceded the goal and we couldn't score," he told Sky Sports News. "We didn't play well, especially in the first half, and all the credit to Barnsley.

"I am very, very disappointed and sad about this. It's an important competition. We had a chance to do something in this competition and we didn't do it so now we need to look forward for the league and Champions League."

Grant put aside his disappointment to pay tribute to Chelsea's conquerors.

"They won against Liverpool, they won against us. All credit to them and I congratulate them," he added

Yeah, he's better at accepting defeat than Sir Alice, but do we want a manager who takes defeat lying down?

Don't get me wrong, we deserved to lose, but he doesn't have the winner's mentality that TSO had.

>> but do we want a manager who takes defeat lying down?

Emma - just typed a few hundred words to report on the game, but you've summed it up in less than a dozen; enough said.

All I can say is HOLY SHIT, How can a team that won the premier league 2 years in a row lose to a team about 30 places below us??????? Our season has been a shambles, When players dont respond to what the manager says 100% then the club must act and make a decision I hope thats what happens now, What will rescue our season?

What will rescue our season?

Nothing is going to rescue it, the only hope is.. AG is gone at the end of the season.

Who could we get in though? AGs exit is not a matter of IF its a matter of when (hopefully soon)

FUCK

Dear Mr Abramovich
Could we please have our Jose back, we would be ever so grateful.
Yours sincerely
Clive

Don't say I did not tell you

LINK#comment-13545

fire AG now.
end the losing streak at one!