Chelsea Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread 2012/2013

GavRedKing

Sgt Pepper 64 wrote: »

We should ask for Suraz PLUS 15 million!

You're only allowed one racist per team.

duploelabs

can't believe it's only two managers til christmas

Tubbs4

Just saw the highlights. I think Luiz should be kept at cm as a defender he likes to get forward too much. The only problem is poor Ramires might not get in the squad unless they rotate Mikel or pay him instead of Oscar on the right.
Chelsea looking good in front of goal and when I saw Torres score I did not think it was for a shoot going off target.
Rafa not doing too bad so far and if he wins some cups even better.

GavRedKing

This made me laugh today. :pac:

MaroonAndGreen

Chelsea 4/5 (56%) to win in 90mins on Sunday.. (Paddy Power)

Brilliant odds I think, will be throwing alot on that!

Caveman1

MaroonAndGreen wrote: »

Chelsea 4/5 (56%) to win in 90mins on Sunday.. (Paddy Power)

Brilliant odds I think, will be throwing alot on that!

Chelsea could go out & beat Corinrhians easily, but I wouldn't go mad throwing money on it, its too unpredictable, especially given the fact that this is a huge competition in South America so they'll be a lot more up for it than Chelsea.

GavRedKing

Caveman1 wrote: »

Chelsea could go out & beat Corinrhians easily, but I wouldn't go mad throwing money on it, its too unpredictable, especially given the fact that this is a huge competition in South America so they'll be a lot more up for it than Chelsea.

Once the players take this mroe seriously then they did the European Super Cup final we should win.

Rafa will want to collect his first piece of silverware and this trophy is a good PR exercise for the club to be called World Champions so I hope he goes all out for and the players have the desire for it.

GavRedKing

http://www.espn.co.uk/football/sport/story/183813.html

Fernando Torres has pinpointed Rafa Benitez's management style as a key factor in his return to goalscoring form for Chelsea.

Torres, 28, has scored five goals in three games for Chelsea including a second half strike in the 3-1 Club World Cup win against Monterrey on Thursday. And he believes Benitez's arrival at Stamford Bridge is paying dividends for both him and his team-mates.

"As a team we are getting better and coming together as one unit," Torres said. "We're working better both defensively and offensively. It's about the team. This season we have a team made up of better quality players.

"We have had a hard time this season but since Rafa Benitez came in as a coach it is coming together and we are showing more determination.

"As a team we are getting better and individually I feel much better now and am scoring consistently. Hopefully I can keep this going and score again on Sunday."

Torres wants to continue his fine form into Sunday's Club World Cup final against Brazilian side Corinthians, and help Chelsea become both world and European champions.

Chelsea have a number of Brazilians within their ranks, including Oscar, Ramires and David Luiz who have helped convince the Spaniard of the importance of competing to win the trophy.

"It's a very important tournament, especially for the South Americans. It is their childhood dream and we Europeans must learn to treat the tournament in the same way.

"I could hear their fans calling my name and I am very flattered. This is my first time in Japan. They have been waiting a long time for me to come here. I want to show them another good performance on Sunday.
"I saw their semi-final. Their defence is very tight. I'd like to see the video again.
"They are hoping to win this title again but for us it would be the first title in this tournament and I would like to win it. It will be a very difficult game but I will do my best."

Caveman1

As good as it is to see Torres scoring , I just can't see him being prolific again, it's ok scoring against the lesser teams, but whenever we play the better teams he never seems to have a good game, hopefully that will change but IMO I dont think it will.

GavRedKing

As I've said before it doesnt matter what Torres does hes damned if he does and damned if he dont.

When he scores peope will say its agaisnt the lesser team and if he plays well and doesnt socre against the big teams its used as a stick to beat him.

Hes still our out right top scorer this season and you have to score goals to do it and hes doing just that.

Wait until the end of the season before finally judging him as it does seem, for whatever reaon the team and Torres, are finding a good medium where he gets invovled in the build up play but still gets on crosses and finishes.

I'm not saying its a total transformation but whatever Rafa is saying or doing seems to have turned Torres around somewhat.

Torres is well on course to score 25 + goals this season and nobody would have said that last month, I'm nearly convinced Rafa is magic....or doping Torres to the eyeballs. :pac:

grumpymunster

Torres is largely a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. Last season he was doing very well got sent off against Swansea and that seemed to finish his season, off and on he does well his goal against Arsenal this season was right out of the top drawer. He was very good in that game. I would agree with John Giles (agreeing with an ex Leeds player I need a dark room) he was never a great footballer but was a fantastic goal scorer so if he is not scoring goals he would not be contributing to the team so his confidence would drop.

He has been more cold than hot for ages but Giles does seem to think he can rediscover his form. However if he does not rediscover his form under our interim manager then you would have to wonder will he ever do it in the premier league again?

what a day

I have to agree with caveman, iv lost all faith in Torres. He seemed to have lost a burst of pace his first touch and a strikers instinct in front of goal. He seems to think too much rather than pop the shot off when he gets infront of goal.

Gav you mention that it dosent mater if Torres scores against the big teams or lesser teams he is still scoring but yet you critisized DiMatteo of doing the same with results.
If we want to be a big team we need big players that scores goals no matter who the oposition is and like wise wiith our manager. Im not saying Torres does not score against the big teams im saying he has hit a vein of form but i dont think he is the player he used to be and Liverpool got a great deal for the transfare.

If i was Roman and i got a good deal (i.e 20+m) id sell him on in a heart beat. Get in Falcao or even try get both Walcott and Shurrle in. I love Torres but im just being honest in what i see, Torres is no where near the player he once was.

grumpymunster

Ref for Sunday Cuneyt Cakir of Turkey, he of Juve 3 Us 0 and Barca 2 Us 2

GavRedKing

what a day wrote: »

I have to agree with caveman, iv lost all faith in Torres. He seemed to have lost a burst of pace his first touch and a strikers instinct in front of goal. He seems to think too much rather than pop the shot off when he gets infront of goal.

Gav you mention that it dosent mater if Torres scores against the big teams or lesser teams he is still scoring but yet you critisized DiMatteo of doing the same with results.
If we want to be a big team we need big players that scores goals no matter who the oposition is and like wise wiith our manager. Im not saying Torres does not score against the big teams im saying he has hit a vein of form but i dont think he is the player he used to be and Liverpool got a great deal for the transfare.

If i was Roman and i got a good deal (i.e 20+m) id sell him on in a heart beat. Get in Falcao or even try get both Walcott and Shurrle in. I love Torres but im just being honest in what i see, Torres is no where near the player he once was.

You've to be realistic aswell, Falcao has no reason to join though. With Atliteco doing very well and almost guarnteed to finsih at least 3rd, he'll be playing UCL next year regardless so he wont be joining in January.

Walcott is about as useful as Sturridge, over hyped drivel who happens to put in one or two good perfromances and the media seem to fawn all over him, in fact I'd rather keep Sturridge then spend money on Walcott.

Schurlle would be a gamble but one that would be more feasable then the other 2 we've mentioned the last few months.

A managers input is aways more important then one players performance. If RDM cant get the best from Torres thats ok, others have failed with him too, but RDM's other tactics and performances have rightly got him the sack, his consistency in results was a huge downfall.

I'm sure we'll sign another CF in the summer and Sturridge will be gone either in January or by the Summer but its very hard to pin point what we want when we cant even say with certainty who our manager will be come kick off in August.

Under Rafa Torres has taken less touches and his only job is to score, not to try beat 2, 3 men like he was trying to do under all previous managers, thats what Oscar/Mata/Hazard/Moses/Marin are for, Torres is to create space fro them with his movement and thats probably Rafa's biggest influence although hes also seemed to improve communication between the back 4.

Rafa can in 3 months have 2 trophies in the bag very easily and pushing for another 2, I think he's the best for the club right now, short of bringing in Pep/Jose which wasnt going to happen and if he focuses on working with the front players and solidify the back line and we finsih with silverware I'll be happy.

Nobody, even Roman can tell who's going to be at the club by the end of Janaury or even summer, so lets all sit back and enjoy the ride, this is a transisational period that AVB should of got and following him, RDM should have got but here we are, 18 months later and 2 managers past and we're doing ok, time will tell if Rafa and the squad can keep it up.

GavRedKing

grumpymunster wrote: »

Ref for Sunday Cuneyt Cakir of Turkey, he of Juve 3 Us 0 and Barca 2 Us 2

Did we have a penalty turned down in that Juve game or am I remembering wrongly?

Also the penalty he awarded to Barca for the one Messi missed was terrible, Cesc's dive was comical.

grumpymunster

There is always one reason Gav ..... Money

Remember this http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/international/figo-joins-real-madrid-in-record-pound37m-deal-709455.html

That season Barca finished 2nd and RM 5th, logic does not always apply

Crann na Beatha

This post has been deleted.

GavRedKing

grumpymunster wrote: »

There is always one reason Gav ..... Money

Remember this http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/international/figo-joins-real-madrid-in-record-pound37m-deal-709455.html

That season Barca finished 2nd and RM 5th, logic does not always apply

It's not always the deciding factor for some players and so far Falcao seems to fit that mould.

If it was about just money then surely Real will be favoruties to sign him with their apparent recent interest but I cant see Falcao swapping one half of Madrid for the other.

MaroonAndGreen

Whatever about Torres lads.. Mata's scoring has been incredible, Frank wasnt even scoring goals at this rate, and if he continues like this he will get 25+ like Fernando will.

Also I dont want Falcao in January, we are going alright now with Torres scoring, wouldnt like to see that disrupted.

Would anyone here be happy with finishing 4th, and winning the Club World Cup and League Cup? I would! League is so unrealistic now..

GavRedKing

MaroonAndGreen wrote: »

Whatever about Torres lads.. Mata's scoring has been incredible, Frank wasnt even scoring goals at this rate, and if he continues like this he will get 25+ like Fernando will.

Also I dont want Falcao in January, we are going alright now with Torres scoring, wouldnt like to see that disrupted.

Would anyone here be happy with finishing 4th, and winning the Club World Cup and League Cup? I would! League is so unrealistic now..

Mata is on fire the last few weeks and has carried his form from last year, also helping him is extra attackers, Oscar/Hazard to create and influence the game and its not all him.

The guy is one of the best on the EPL no doubt.

I'd want 3rd at a minimum and League Cup and Club World Cup but I also hope we can retain the FA cup.

Its all about the league this year and if we can catch both Manchester clubs and finsih up there with them I'd be delighted,truth be told we ahev the squad to compete and win the league but we need stability and consistency to do it.

grumpymunster

Agree we should be looking at 3rd as a minimum the Europa league would be nice if only to win in Europe for two consecutive years. So 3rd the Europa league and the world club would be a good return, feel we may struggle against Leeds due to the travel home from Japan and would not be too surprised to see us lose.

MaroonAndGreen

GavRedKing wrote: »

Mata is on fire the last few weeks and has carried his form from last year, also helping him is extra attackers, Oscar/Hazard to create and influence the game and its not all him.

The guy is one of the best on the EPL no doubt.

I'd want 3rd at a minimum and League Cup and Club World Cup but I also hope we can retain the FA cup.

Its all about the league this year and if we can catch both Manchester clubs and finsih up there with them I'd be delighted,truth be told we ahev the squad to compete and win the league but we need stability and consistency to do it.

Oscar was prolific in the UCL too, hope he can produce goalscoring form domestically now too..

FA Cup would be brilliant, but it aint easy to retain anything! We really really should win on Sunday and win the League Cup though.. Would be sickening blow to not win those first 2 trophies!

GavRedKing

Forgot about the Europa League. :rolleyes:

Should be in order of importance :

1) League
2) Europa League
3) FA Cup
4) League Cup

I'd agree, the Leeds game is going ot very tricky. The game is aplyed over there at 7:45 PM on Sunday and we've a league cup on Wednesday, realistically we'll have to hop straight on the plane after the game so be in the air about 12/1 AM Sunday night/Morning so we'll land sometime Monday in London.

The players will be shattered afte the flight so I wouldnt be surprised to see u struggling to play Leeds, especially as its an away game too.

grumpymunster

It is Oscar's first season but I really like the cut of his jib, has a serious work ethic too. That guy could well be an absolute legend for us in time. Mata well on his way there too I need my fantasy football captain back.....

grumpymunster

GavRedKing wrote: »

Forgot about the Europa League. :rolleyes:

Should be in order of importance :

1) League
2) Europa League
3) FA Cup
4) League Cup

I'd agree, the Leeds game is going ot very tricky. The game is aplyed over there at 7:45 PM on Sunday and we've a league cup on Wednesday, realistically we'll have to hop straight on the plane after the game so be in the air about 12/1 AM Sunday night/Morning so we'll land sometime Monday in London.

The players will be shattered afte the flight so I wouldnt be surprised to see u struggling to play Leeds, especially as its an away game too.

It's an easy one to forget oh God Thursday night football the grief I gave ManU supporters last season aaahhhhhh

MaroonAndGreen

GavRedKing wrote: »

Forgot about the Europa League. :rolleyes:

Should be in order of importance :

1) League
2) Europa League
3) FA Cup
4) League Cup

I'd agree, the Leeds game is going ot very tricky. The game is aplyed over there at 7:45 PM on Sunday and we've a league cup on Wednesday, realistically we'll have to hop straight on the plane after the game so be in the air about 12/1 AM Sunday night/Morning so we'll land sometime Monday in London.

The players will be shattered afte the flight so I wouldnt be surprised to see u struggling to play Leeds, especially as its an away game too.

Same :P

We would get more recognition for winning FA Cup id say! Europa League would be harder won though!

Are Leeds going well in the league?

It is the big game, we would be huge favourites against Villa, Swansea, or Bradford in a 2 legged tie so Leeds is the big one as far as the League Cup is concerned..

maximoose

MaroonAndGreen wrote: »

Same :P

Are Leeds going well in the league?

Very inconsistant and unpredictable. Went on a good run of beating 3 of the front runners there and then we get duffed by bloody Derby.

We have a habit of pulling out the performances in cups when we're up against the big teams, I'd imagine the team will be well up for this and it's going to be one very noisy night in Elland Road

Also, this is on Sky isn't it?

what a day

Ild like us to forget about the Europa league TBH, same as the League Cup. By forgetting it i mean play the fringe/younger players in both tournaments and see what happens. Our main target is the finish top four in the league, maybe push for the title and have a good go at retaining the F.A Cup.

grumpymunster

The worst thing if we lose to Leeds is not so much losing to Leeds (bad enough as that is at any time) as such it is having to listen to preening from Warnock. You could paraphrase Thomas á Beckett here.

Hope I have not spoiled too many weekends with that thought......

GavRedKing

maximoose wrote: »

Very inconsistant and unpredictable. Went on a good run of beating 3 of the front runners there and then we get duffed by bloody Derby.

We have a habit of pulling out the performances in cups when we're up against the big teams, I'd imagine the team will be well up for this and it's going to be one very noisy night in Elland Road

Also, this is on Sky isn't it?

Ya its on Sky.

I'm going to say it will be a very hard fought 2-1 win for Chelsea with Leeds leading at half time.

MaroonAndGreen

The more I think about it, winning the Europa League would be some achievement.

There is ourselves, Liverpool, Spurs, Lyon, Athletico, Newcastle, Napoli, Inter, Bayer Leverkusen, Benfica, Olympiakos and Ajax still in the competition.. They would all be tough teams to beat!

Crann na Beatha

This post has been deleted.

MaroonAndGreen

Phoenix wrote: »

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2247620/Radamel-Falcao-offered-200-000-week-Chelsea.html
Well lads what ye make of it :pac:

Cant see why Falcao would leave Athletico in January.. (other than the money of course :P)

Duck Soup

I don't think the DM article says that Falcao will leave in January, just that RA is wiling to throw a bucket of cash at him. Perhaps it would make more sense to leave Torres as the main striker for the rest of the season and bring in Falcao in the summer.

Crann na Beatha

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Dub XV

Why is the game posponed?

Crann na Beatha

This post has been deleted.

kev1.3s

Dub XV wrote: »

Why is the game posponed?

it would be a little difficult logistics wise with Chelsea being in Japan.

Crann na Beatha

This post has been deleted.

McDave

GavRedKing wrote: »

Mata is on fire the last few weeks and has carried his form from last year, also helping him is extra attackers, Oscar/Hazard to create and influence the game and its not all him.

The guy is one of the best on the EPL no doubt.

I'd want 3rd at a minimum and League Cup and Club World Cup but I also hope we can retain the FA cup.

Its all about the league this year and if we can catch both Manchester clubs and finsih up there with them I'd be delighted,truth be told we ahev the squad to compete and win the league but we need stability and consistency to do it.

I like the idea of a top-four finish and a haul of trophies in, this, a transitional year.

The World Club championship will help settle nerves, as will the League Cup (far less important, but if you can win it, why not), plus decent runs in the FA Cup and Europa Cup.

Who knows, if the Manchesters hit bad patches, we might find ourselves back in the premiership frame.

McDave

Phoenix wrote: »

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2247620/Radamel-Falcao-offered-200-000-week-Chelsea.html
Well lads what ye make of it :pac:

At this stage I'm kind of tired of all the rumours TBH. It's been such a turbulent season, I'd be happy with a bit of boring stability - like some minor trophies such as the WCC, the League Cup, the Europa Cup and the FA Cup.

But if we're looking at Guardiola + Falcao not so far down the line *for starters*, who am I to argue! :pac:

kev1.3s

Can't fricken wait till the morning! And lets hope that they play as well as we know they can and bring home some silverware to lift us all before we tuck into the turkey.

Dub XV

kev1.3s wrote: »

it would be a little difficult logistics wise with Chelsea being in Japan.

Haha sound!

Forgot. Not a fan of epl but was looking at soccer livescores and saw "posp" beside the Southampton fixture.

Caveman1

Is it being shown on BBC or BBC HD does anybody know?

Sgt Pepper 64

Caveman1 wrote: »

Is it being shown on BBC or BBC HD does anybody know?

Yep, 10am BBC 2 and BBC HD

Probably online on he BBC website as well

Sgt Pepper 64

Interesting article on whether or not Chelsea can afford Falcao

(The answer is yes, but............)!

http://www.weaintgotnohistory.com/2012/12/14/3767290/can-chelsea-fc-afford-to-sign-radamel-falcao

MaroonAndGreen

Dont think ive been as excited for a game all season!

Cant wait for tomorrow morning

Chelsea to win 2-1, Torres and Frank to get the goals!

The_Hustler

MaroonAndGreen wrote: »

Dont think ive been as excited for a game all season!

Sarcasm?

Compton

It's nearly here now! Come on Chelsea! We can become champions of the world today!

MUSEIST

Come on chelsea. Hopefully we put in a good performance today and get the win.