A file photo of a U21 game between Chelsea and Liverpool

Moving on with the end of season reviews at academy level, we come to the U21′s league. This is a brand new format for this year replacing the old Reserves league. It is the same format as the U18′s league – an initial group phase followed by a second phase with the groups split depending on where the club finishes, and then a playoff scenario for the winner of the league. As with the U18′s, Chelsea’s phase one group consisted of Liverpool, Wolves, Middlesbrough, Fulham, Man City and Crystal Palace.

Traditionally, this level of football is very tricky for Chelsea, apart from the 2010/11 season, where we won the league after a penalty shoot-out against Blackburn. With the combination of players going out on loan and players coming up from the U18′s, it proves to be a very unstable squad that changes on a regular basis. At the outset, it was thought that the idea of the new setup was to keep your better youngsters at the club and have them playing against the best youngsters from the other clubs to create a competitive atmosphere. Unfortunately, it seems that philosophy was not adhered to. Comments from Dermot Drummy near the end of the season seem to indicate that he feels a little let down by the fact this was not played out, and we will have to see if that philosophy changes at all next season.

The first game of the season saw the league start with a bang and a 5-0 thumping of Wolves. That proved to be a one-off though, as it took us until November to record another win. We then went on an impressive run of 6 wins from 7 which was almost enough to take us through to the Elite stage of the second phase. However, we just missed out on that spot and instead went through to Group stage. The best game of the first phase was indeed the 5 – 0 thrashing of Wolves. You can watch the highlights below:

The second phase of the league saw us drawn against Everton, Aston Villa, Fulham, Middlesbrough, Blackburn and Sunderland. This time of the season also saw more players depart on loan in the shape of Billy Clifford, Sam Walker, George Saville and Lucas Piazon. Also, the cup competitions at Academy level, the FA Youth Cup, and the NextGen series would also deplete the squad at times, leaving us very thin.

In the end, we managed to finish in the middle of Group 1, having picked up 5 wins from 12 games and losing 5 in the process. The pick of the games from this section was a 3-2 win over Middlesbrough at the Bridge, highlights of which are below. Obviously finishing in 4th place meant that there would be no place for us in the playoffs at this level, and the season would finish with a 1-0 win over Blackburn Rovers.

As far as appearances go, Lewis Baker made the most this season with 16 starts out of a possible 24 games played across the 2 group stages. Baker is followed by George Saville with 15 starts, and then Nathan Ake and Billy Clifford follow up with 14 starts. A total of 41 players played a part in this season’s league. Islam Feruz finished as the top scorer at U21′s level, with a total of 8 goals, followed by Lewis Baker with 6.

As I said, it will interesting to see how the new system will work, and if Chelsea approach it any differently next season with regards to what players get an opportunity to play.

I am referring to rumor and speculation of course this week but in the past few days, in addition all the speculation about players coming into the club, it’s seems that there is one particular player that could suffer as a consequence of Jose Mourinho’s impending return to our football club!

David Luiz has been linked with a move to Spain ever since he came to Chelsea and has himself, spoken of the attraction of playing over there.

So far, Chelsea have rebuffed any interest in Luiz and during the past season, Luiz happily signed an extension to his contract to keep him at the club for a while yet!

However, I have seen a couple of press reports this week asking questions of Luiz playing under Mourinho and what the future would hold for him here.

Reports claim that Mourinho likes to have proper defenders at the back, solid, strong and influential and he has cast doubts over the players ability in that position. There is even talk of Branislav Ivanovic reverting back to right back for the coming season.

We have all seen what Luiz can do in midfield when he has been pushed further forward and the options he gives us there. His range of passing is different class, he can read the game in front of him and most importantly of all, is two footed.

Now I personally believe that the reports are rubbish and Mourinho would love to work with someone like Luiz who can offer him cover in more than the one position. Remember how Jose used to utilise the likes of Michael Essien and Geremi back in the day? Luiz would be the same.

Luiz is a better player by far now than he was when he first came to the club and he IS getting better defensively. Working under Mourinho and his back room staff, he would improve even further as no one can forget the defensive record we had in those first two seasons at Chelsea.

Mourinho likes to build his teams on solid foundations and luckily Chelsea have plenty of defensive options. Gary Cahill will also improve leaps and bounds working with Jose and so would Ivanovic.

I just wonder if Mourinho would see David Luiz different to how the press believe he does and would transform him into another Xabi Alonso type player in midfield as he has utilised the ex-Liverpool man in Madrid?

One thing is for sure. David Luiz is a class act with the ball at his feet and has the potential to be World Class!

Surely Jose Mourinho can see that?

Carefree & KTBFFH!

With all the rumour and speculation doing the rounds at the moment about potential signings at Chelsea this summer, I wanted to concentrate on the players we do have and am asking the question of Romelu Lukaku. Do you think he should be heavily involved in the Chelsea first team next season under Mourinho or do you think he should have another season out on loan?

It will be very interesting to see the general opinion amongst Chelsea fans to this because we need to consider our playing style now and the way we could end up playing under Mourinho.

Think about it for a second – Lukaku wants to play as the main target man up front. He has pace to burn, he is strong and if anything, is another Didier Drogba in the making. Isn’t he?

Without question, he has proven himself under fantastic management by Stevie Clarke at West Brom and everyone at the Hawthorns has seen just what he could do. However, you need to look at and understand the way West Brom play their football. Would you say they play the same way as Chelsea?

I personally do not think they do and I just wonder if Lukaku would thrive or struggle to play as the man up top with Mata, Hazard and Oscar in behind.

Would he get the game time he so obviously deserves now and if he doesn’t, isn’t it best to give him his second full season on loan playing week in, week out in the Premier League? West Brom have said on record that they would love to have him back if that happened.

The problem we have with Lukaku, and it’s the same with Kevin De Bruyne, is that until we give them a go in a blue shirt for a sustained period of time, we will never know but that could be about to change.

As I posted yesterday, if reports are to be believed, Jose Mourinho’s remit for his second spell as Chelsea manager is to encourage and promote exciting youth at the club, including players such as Lukaku and KDB. Whether or not he does that immediately is another thing but surely anyone that has seen him this season will admit that Lukaku has done more than enough to earn a place in the squad and has put himself in serious contention for a start.

I am led to believe that Mourinho will want to bring in two or three of his own players, and a main striker is one of them. As each day passes, stories appear and rumours change but it now seems like we are going to miss out on Falcao and Lewandowski with Edinson Cavani being a realistic target instead.

With Fernando Torres, Demba Ba and Cavani, you would imagine Lukaku would be deemed as surplus to requirements next season and would be loaned out again.

If you ask me, I would have Lukaku over Demba Ba any day and we will have to wait until the summer to find out what happens.

So getting back to the whole point of this post I will ask YOU the Chelsea fan reading this the question:

Lukaku – Keep at Chelsea or loan out again next season?

Carefree & KTBFFH!

After his best goal return for a season in a Chelsea shirt, scoring 22 goals, the future of Fernando Torres at the club remains unclear. In light of the speculation that will build right up to the beginning of next season, I want to ask YOU, the Chelsea fan reading this, no matter where in the world you are, just one question:

Would you keep Fernando Torres at Chelsea?

We all know the problems Torres has had at the club in his two previous seasons. We all know that he had to live in the shadow of Didier Drogba even if the two of them championed them playing together more often.

We know that he had struggled with fitness and looked like he had lost that extra yard of pace he once had. We know that the team struggled to supply him with the service he needed, and as a result, he dropped deeper or moved out wide and that was not where we wanted him to be.

Finally, we also know that when he did have chances he snatched at them, had little confidence and at times looked nowhere near scoring (Old Trafford away last season for example).

However, and you do have to give Rafa Benitez credit for this, Torres has had a real change of fortune towards the latter part of this season and ever since he took a whack in the face that broke his nose at Stamford Bridge on our way to winning the Europa League, he has been a different player.

Compared to his previous record, Torres had done quite well up to that point scoring goals in all competitions but, in the Premier League he still struggled although his overall contribution to the team was still really good.

That’s the thing about Torres though, isn’t it? You can see how hard he works in games, his movement is still fantastic but he never got the rub of the green until the latter part of the season. His goal in the Europa League final was the Torres of old playing off the shoulder of the last defender (which is exactly where we want to see him!) and his pace and strength to get past the last defender, hold off the challenge and round the keeper to score was good.

He finished the season with his first Premier League goal in a long time on Sunday with the winner against Everton and it shows that his instincts as a striker and finisher are back as, without hesitation, he struck the ball low into the bottom corner. If he was in the same position a couple months ago, he would have tried to take a touch first!

I can’t help but wonder if the revitalised Torres we are seeing now would feature as part of Jose Mourinho’s plans. I keep reading differing reports. One says he is and Jose believes he can get the best out of him, another says he isn’t and he wants rid of him!

I personally would love to see Torres stay at our club. I want to see him work with Mourinho to see what happens.

What do you people think? Would you keep him at Chelsea?

Carefree & KTBFFH!

Last night, Jose Mourinho took a massive step towards his return “home” to Chelsea. He negotiated his exit from Real Madrid with President Perez. Perez confirmed that his exit is by “mutual consent”, meaning that Mourinho will be a free agent as of 2nd June. No compensation needs to be paid for his services.

This is massive because it would have been a major stumbling block for Roman Abramovich. If reports are to be believed, Chelsea would have had to pay around £12m in order to release Mourinho from his contract and after having paid him and his back room staff around £18m when his services were terminated in 2006, it’s something that could have been a real problem.

So everything looks as though it is falling into place for Jose Mourinho to be confirmed as Chelsea’s new man in charge by the middle of June, taking over on the 1st July.

According to press reports, even though he has two games remaining at Real Madrid, Mourinho has studied Chelsea’s recent games, the players and has already identified potential signings for next season.

However, this time Mourinho’s focus is different compared to his first stint at Chelsea. The focus this time will be on promoting exciting young talent, rather than spending big money on a whole host of players.

This is will be music to most Chelsea fans’ ears as it’s obvious the quality we have at the club and out on loan. Whether or not the likes of Romelu Lukaku, Josh McEachran and Kevin De Bruyne will get a a chance under him remains to be seen but it’s believed that Mourinho’s remit is to build a dynasty at the club, just as Sir Alex Ferguson did at United.

That’s the club’s long term goal with financial fair play in mind and if you look at our current first team squad, Roman and the Board have already worked hard to, slowly but surely, put a squad of exciting talent together.

The likes of Ramires, Luiz, Hazard, Oscar, Mata, Cahill, Moses and have all been brought in and have played their part this term. If you add our loan players to that squad with the likes of Ferreira, Malouda, Benayoun and possibly one or two others leaving, we have the basis of an amazing squad for Mourinho to work with.

I really hope that these reports are true and Mourinho will work to promote exciting talent. Chelsea now have fantastic players in our Academy and if anyone can man manage these youngsters, it’s him.

It’s going to be an exciting summer and I can’t wait to see him sitting at a Press Conference at the Bridge telling everyone he has come home!

What do you people think of his remit this time around? Do you think it’s about time the club had this vision and do you believe Mourinho is the man to make it work?

Carefree & KTBFFH!

Chelsea finished off their Premier League season strong with another win at the Bridge yesterday to finish a strong third place and automatically qualify for the Champions League group stages. Credit goes out to the players and also to Rafa Benitez.

It wasn’t the best performance we have ever seen and Chelsea weren’t exactly at their best, but at the end of the day, a win is a win and we delivered the three points when it was needed.

There is an argument that Chelsea under Benitez have turned into one half wonders of late and I can understand where people are coming from. Look at Villa last week, Benfica last Wednesday and other games I am sure you can all remember; Chelsea took a while to get going. The frustrating thing is, when we do get playing, I believe we can beat anyone.

But, in saying that, Chelsea have dug out results and you have to credit the players for that also. You can see that there is a fantastic spirit around the squad and everyone is together. It looks to have been that way ever since Jose Mourinho first took over and created that siege mentality. It’s still current and the likes of Petr Cech, John Terry, Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard have a lot to do with it.

I have been really pleased to see Fernando Torres get the plaudits he deserves finally and to his credit, he has worked hard to put things right. You may or may not know but Torres had been given his own personal training programme to work on his fitness, to get him sharp and to find that yard of pace he had been missing.

His goal on Wednesday night against Benfica took us all back to how we knew him from his time at Liverpool. Playing up on the shoulder, beating the defender for pace, having the strength to hold off the challenge and to take it round the keeper to score.

With his goal yesterday, I believe a couple of months ago he would have tried to take a touch first before trying to get his shot on goal. A striker never loses their instinct and he finished well yesterday to win the game for us. It’s so good to see Torres where he is now – confident and happy, scoring goals, working hard and playing well. I just hope these rumours of him being sold in the summer are not true.

There have been stand out performances from virtually everyone in the team of late that has won us games and we look at our squad and the potential we have here and can only be excited for the future.

Here’s looking forward to the Champions League next season. I can’t wait!.

Carefree & KTBFFH!

Another year comes to a close and it has been another very successful one for the Academy here at Chelsea. Only narrowly missing out on massive success at the last hurdles, it has still been a season full of promising young players and huge prospects. This will be the first of a four-part season review of the academy and the first part will be covering the U18′s league.

Usually the league tables never make for a  good reading for Chelsea, and this is down to the fact that the club has put much more emphasis on player development than results and, especially the second half of the U18′s leagues, usually results in lower rankings. This season, it seemed like that trend could have been stopped. For the first time, we have seen a new format in the U18′s with the season being split into two parts; the first part saw the teams split into three leagues – in Chelsea’s league was Fulham, Crystal Palace, Liverpool, Wolves, Man City and Middlesbrough.

Things could not have got off to a better start, as our first game was to be against Manchester City. It looked like a tough opener, but proved to be anything but as Chelsea ran out 6 – 1 winners. It was a perfect start and it set the tone of what was to come as Chelsea powered their way to the top of group 3, and that is where they stayed having won 9 of their 12 matches and only losing 1 in the last game to Fulham.

Highlight (6 – 1 win over Manchester City):

Phase 2 of the league saw Chelsea in the Elite group among the best teams from the other two leagues; these were  Fulham, Reading, Everton, Man Utd, Southampton, Bolton and Crystal Palace. This was going to be the interesting part as we would see how Chelsea would cope against the best in their age group and potentially fight it out all the way to the final, and be crowned U18′s league champions.

However, as previously mentioned, with players at this time of the year moving up to the U21′s squad, and their involvement in the U19′s NextGen series and U18′s Youth Cup as well, some players saw very little league action, which meant an even younger team. Inevitably, this affected the results with the only highlight coming in the shape of a 5-1 away win over Crystal Palace.

Highlight (5 – 1 win over Crystal Palace):

The league would finish with Chelsea in 6th place, having only won 4 of their 14 matches in this round, and missed out on being able to go to phase 3 for the right to try and be champions. Still, there were a lot of positives to be taken from the season as a lot of young players were once again used. Left-back Kevin Wright made the maximum appearances in the league this season, followed by Jonathan Muleba.

The top goalscorer for Chelsea was Alex Kiwomya with 10 goals, followed by Jeremie Boga and Connor Hunte with 5 each. A total of 39 players were used at U18′s level this season.

So, all in all, a mixed bag for the U18′s league season, but still a very positive one with some young players stepping up to show that they could be big talents in the future. Players like Boga, Hunte, Colkett, Wright, Loftus-Cheek and many more have proved that there is still plenty of quality waiting in the wings.

Here’s a quick reminder of why Oscar won the Award!

Super Frankie Lampard received a Special Recognition Award at the Annual Player of the Year awards last night and it’s also worth mentioning that he was on the shortlist of four players for the main award of the evening.

Just days after Lampard broke Bobby Tambling’s all time Chelsea goal record, Tambling himself presented Lampard with the award. Tambling described Lampard as “Chelsea’s best ever!”

Lampard spoke after receiving the award, of breaking the record and said:

Getting the equalising goal on the day and drawing level with the great man himself was a big deal for me. It was such a huge game for us, and I kind of felt it would be the day after scoring the first one.

‘I can’t really explain it. I thought it would be good when I done it, but I didn’t realise quite how good it would feel. To have the fans at Aston Villa and my team-mates celebrating with me at the end was quite emotional for me, so thanks to all the lads.’

Frank Lampard, Chelsea Legend and all time record goal scorer!

Chelsea are Champions of Europe again – Are you watching White Hart Lane!

It wasn’t a classic and to be honest, and apart from a Frank Lampard belter, Chelsea weren’t at the races in the first half! Chelsea turned the screw up a notch second half, got plenty of attacking possession and finally created decent chances. Thanks to Fernando Torres, Branislav Ivanovic and Gary Cahill, Chelsea lifted the Europa League and became the first club in history to hold both trophies at the same time!.

Of course, Benfica overall were the better side and looked much more dangerous than Chelsea did, but who cares! We are in a results business and it’s what goes in the record books that matters. Chelsea rode their luck at times as Benfica wasted their chances, but in big games such as these, you MUST take your chances when you get them.

Chelsea for the most part defended well. Gary Cahill was outstanding and his last ditch tackle at the feet of Cardozo, not once but twice, won us the trophy.

Fernando Torres’ goal took us back to days of watching him in his prime. He pounced on a long throw from Cech, flicked onto Torres by Juan Mata, and he was on his bike. As Luisao came over to close him down, he used his strength to hold him off, drew out the keeper, rounded him and slotted the ball into the net.

Cesar “Dave” Azpilicueta was penalised for handball just inside the box and rightly so. Cardozo scored the penalty as he blasted the ball past Cech down the middle to make it 1-1.

Interestingly enough, Benfica made all their substitutions during the game, but Rafa didn’t make a single one. The Chelsea players looked to have plenty left, with Ramires, although not having a great game, causing them problems down the right hand side for the whole of the second half.

Frank Lampard, once again late on, hit another 25 yarder onto the crossbar with a couple of minutes to go. He has a habit of doing that, doesn’t he?

So, we move into three minutes added time. Benfica have a corner that comes to nothing and an attack. Chelsea move the ball forward and again that man, Ramires, is played in down the line. He makes sure he wins a corner off the defender.

So here we are, just as in Munich, in the dying moments of the game, Chelsea have a corner. Juan Mata swings the ball into the box and Ivanovic moving towards the back post, only has eyes on the ball. Surprisingly, no defender tracks him or closes him down until its too late. He rises high and heads the ball back across goal towards the far post and the ball loops into the net with the keeper beaten. We’ve won it 2-1!!

Once again, it was a fantastic team effort to never give up, keep plugging away and to create some chances. Once again we took them and that was the difference.

Credit the players, credit Rafa and credit our football club for creating history!

Champions of Europe once again!

Benfica’s Paraguayan forward Oscar Cardozo reacts as Porto’s players celebrate after scoring the winning goal in a Portuguese league football match, at Dragao stadium in Porto on May 11, 2013.

How many of you watched the Porto-Benfica battle which would effectively decide the champion of the Portuguese league on Saturday? If you didn’t, I genuinely feel bad for you. It was an absolute cracking match.

As they had the advantage, and a win or draw would essentially see them winning the league, I expected Benfica to sit back, try to snag a goal, and park the bus. This wasn’t really the case, however.

Benfica scored off a (lucky) deflection to go up 1-0 before Porto equalized 7 minutes later. It looked headed for a draw, until the magic struck. Substitute Kelvin buried a beautiful half-volley into the bottom right corner of the net in the 94th minute to seal the victory (and effectively, the league) for Porto. As an aside, if you haven’t seen the highlights, you should check it out.

If the universal eruption of that stadium as the ball hits the back of the net isn’t enough to send chills down your spine, you are likely not human. In any case, it’s worth watching just to see Jorge Jesus drop to his knees, a broken man – as I hope he is again on Wednesday night.

1. A Massive fixture list. The players have obviously suffered from it, and often when some have said that they are playing with no passion or determination, I would reply that it’s been fatigue. It may be their profession, but they’re just humans and they get tired like all of us.
2. He’s been working with a small squad without much depth. When you combine this with our fixture list, I think it’s fair to cut him a little slack.
3. The fans have been loudly and publicly against him. We have every right and reason not to like him. I certainly don’t like him, but I don’t think that the public abuse was ever intelligent, even if it was justified; there are other ways to make our feelings clear that won’t hurt the team. Some people say they pay the money and so it’s their right to have their voice heard. Perhaps, but regardless of whether it was fair, it’s only ever going to be detrimental.

Tonight will see the end of what has been another impressive season at the Chelsea FC Academy. Not only have they made it to this final tonight, but they had also made it to the final of the NextGen Series which was a Under19′s Champions League style competition with Europe’s elite clubs.

Chelsea have been begun to dominate this competition, having won it last year and in 2010, and in between those years making it to the semi finals only to be knocked out by eventual winners Manchester United. The football that is on display by the Chelsea academy is of the highest quality and will certainly entertain today.

The final of the FA Youth cup is unusually a two legged affair, tonight is the second leg to be played at Stamford Bridge and the game currently stands at 1 – 0 to Norwich. The first leg at Carrow Road was dominated by the Chelsea youngsters who were unable to put away the chances that were presented to them on the night. Islam Feruz who is usually so lethal in front of goal missed a few very good chances to put Chelsea in the driving seat, and  in the end, it was a penalty to Norwich in the final minutes of the game, which decided the tie. Highlights of the first leg of the final can be seen here:

So what can we expect from tonight’s game? Norwich will look to sit back and make it hard for us and hit Chelesea on the counter. This team can thrive under pressure though and I would expect them to really be up for it.

There will have to be decisions made regarding the starting eleven with Adam Nditi and Andreas Christensen seemingly fully fit and will be  experienced options for the full back roles. In the midfield, there are options too with John Swift having impressed when brought on and Charlie Colkett also being in good form. However Viveash may decide to bring Boga back into the middle and either push Baker out wide or bring in Connor Hunte who has also had some good performances this season. I assume that Ake will be available to play tonight even though he is likely to be involved with the first team for Wednesday but we will have to wait and see on that one.

To add to the spectacle, there is a big crowd expected; there were 20 thousand people in at Norwich, and while we may not get that many in Stamford Bridge, it won’t be far off. Norwich themselves are expected to bring over two thousand.

Cesar Azpilicueta

I’ve included Dave by virtue of his growing performances and reliability as the season has progressed. When he first arrived at Chelsea, I thought he was a poor to average player going by some of his displays. However, he proved that he was simply just finding his feet in a new and physical league and has since gone on to become one of our most solid and consistent players.

I think the best example that proves how much he has improved is his performance against Spurs last week. Bale started playing from the left hand side of the pitch, but after spending the whole of that time in Dave’s back pocket, he quickly moved over to the other side. Nullifying Bale was the way to get a result against Spurs and Dave was a big part of that.

Romelu Lukaku

Wow, he has really turned some heads this season. He went into West Brom with virtually no Premier League experience or reputation, but is leaving with what is likely to be 33 appearances under his belt. He began life at West Brom, coming off of their bench to replace the likes of Long and Odemwingie, but after some impressive cameo performances he earned himself a few starts. He managed to impress in those starts and before we had reached the middle of the season he was a regular in the opening line-up.

He is currently on 14 goals for the season with two appearances still to make. A couple of weeks ago, he had the best goals-to-minute rate in the Premier League but after a recent goalless run he may not have that stat anymore. Nonetheless, he has performed above and beyond what was expected of him after a season of disappointment with Chelsea that he spent largely on the bench and in the reserves.

David Luiz

He has come on leaps and bounds, and is the one central defender to survive Benitez’s rotation policy. He may have only been with us for two and a half seasons but already it seems as if he lives and dies for Chelsea. He brings a passion and drive to the team that only the likes of Lampard, Terry and Drogba do/did, which has led many to dub him the future Chelsea captain.

It’s incredible to say for a centre back but he is one of our most technically gifted players, and it’s seen him provide a few spectacular goals and assists, as well as a new adapted role in midfield. He’s not everybody’s cup of tea but it would be difficult for any Chelsea fan to deny that you feel more confident in our defence when he’s playing, whereas last season you could arguably say the opposite.

Thibaut Courtois 

We already knew that Courtois was a good player, but perhaps we didn’t realise just how good. He has been absolutely extraordinary in La Liga while playing for Atletico Madrid, and he’s given us a horrible yet beautiful headache. What are you going to do when you have two fantastic goalkeepers like Cech and Courtois? For now, the solution is to loan out Courtois to get him as much experience as possible, but Cech is still young for a goalkeeper so we may well be faced with a difficult decision in the near future.

So far, he has 19 clean sheets from 34 for games (already a La Liga record before the season is over) which is four more than last season in 3 less games. Of course, this won him Goalkeeper of the year in Spain too. At the age of 20, he has now cemented his reputation as one of the best goalkeepers in the world. Perhaps even THE best.

Juan Mata 

He has taken his game to the next level, and he was already our best player. He won our player of the season last year, so you might be surprised that I’ve nominated him for our most improved player this time. However, the fact is he has gone from very good to world class. He has stepped up his game in every way that he could have and is very much the first name on the team sheet.

He has 18 goals and 38 assists (the assists stat changes depending on what is counted as an assist) which means he has been directly involved in 56 goals this season (!). That is a huge step up from 12 goals and 23 assists, which was already awesome, from last season. Let’s hope that Hazard and Oscar can replicate this level of self-improvement.

My Decision

For me, it has to be Luiz. He used to be frighteningly erratic, but he seems to have calmed down and is now far less likely to make rash decisions that cost us, although there is still room for improvement in this regard. He has become a leader in the frequent absences of Lampard and Terry and there aren’t many players that I love more than him.

I only wanted to make 5 nominations, but special mentions go to:

- Bertrand for some really impressive performances in the second half of the season in the absence of Ashley Cole.

- Nathaniel Chalobah for an excellent season with Watford.

- Kevin de Bruyne for advancing with his game in Germany.

- And Torres, for going from woeful to mediocre.

Follow on twitter: @cody_bound

Carefree & KTBFFH!

Managers

Let’s get real here – the number one issue on the docket (yes, above a striker) is locking down a top-class manager for next season. With the news that we will no longer have to endure Fergie-time, and the hype surrounding Moyes’ appointment, I can’t help but turn my attention to who we will see on the touchline next season.

Jose Mourinho – I have to believe, as does just about everyone the world over, that the biggest front-runner has been the Special One himself. His regular falling-outs with the Spanish media, half of the first-team (Saint Iker, primarily) and, as it seems, some of those in the front office suggests his decision may already be made up and he is on his way out. However, as recently as this week, he’s been quoted as saying that he wants to remain to see out his project at the Bernabeu.

Honestly, and this is all personal speculation, I don’t doubt these are nothing but his perfectly executed mind games, coolly manipulating the strings like a master puppeteer. His highly-publicized battles with some stars on the team, leading to an outcry by the media to see his head on the chopping block, may be an effort on his part to get Real Madrid President Florentino Perez to drop the guillotine, freeing him from his pricey release clause. Then Mou, knowing he’s heading for the axe, further entices Roman to dig a bit deeper into his (essentially bottomless) bank account to ensure Mourinho’s signature by suggesting he may want to stay at Madrid, after all. Regardless, he’s my (and just about every bookie’s) odds-on favourite for ending up at the helm next season.

I’d love to see Mou on the touchline, but I’m still not completely convinced. Without a doubt, he’s one of the greatest managers the world has seen, but some of the unhinged antics (attempted ‘Pai Mei’-style eye-snatch, anyone??) we’ve seen during his tenure at the Bernabeu make me think twice. His exile of Iker and ensuing derogatory comments were not helpful to team cohesiveness, leading even Pepe to speak out against Casillas’ treatment and Mourinho’s comments. To me, this is a very different Mourinho than had been seen at Chelsea and Inter, during which time his players couldn’t heap enough praise on him for the encouragement and team-oriented mentality he cultivated.

Manuel Pellegrini – Personally, I think Pellegrini is one of the more underrated gaffers in the game. He led Madrid to their highest-ever points total in La Liga, but unfortunately, Barca had a record season of their own. Then he was somewhat unfairly sacked to make room for none other than Jose Mourinho. What he has done with Malaga, as cash-strapped and doomed as they are, is incredibly impressive. He would have found himself facing down his former club if not for the absurdly unbelievable antics in the last 3 minutes of the Malaga-Dortmund quarterfinal of the Champions League. They executed a fairly fluid and fun style, which I think would appeal to the Roman Emperor. And needless to say, we’ve got quite a few attacking talents with a silky, fluid style that he might be able to bring the best out of.

Diego Simeone – Outside chance, little-to-none, if I’m not kidding myself, but I had to throw Simeone on here because I am personally a huge fan of what he’s done at Atletico as far as taking on the giants. Atletico is an absolute joy to watch, attacking with pace, precision passing, and deadly finishing (everything I’d love to see at the Bridge), and it’s all been masterminded by Simeone.

Michael Laudrup – A bit of an underdog, this one, but still a possibility. He’s worked wonders with Swansea (I’d never have put money on them lifting a trophy this season), and although I think he still might need another season of Premier League experience under his belt, his appointment wouldn’t completely surprise me. As I said, he’s done great this season, and has caught some attention with the swagger that he’s brought to Swansea.

Players

Now, turning focus to some of the player rumours, I’m going to run down some of the more popular ones being reported over the last few days.

Falcao – Chelsea have continued their flirtation with the Colombian wonder over the past few weeks, and the pressure is really starting to pile up. Multiple sources are reporting that both Atletico and Falcao have agreed to a switch to Monaco in a move worth €50-60 million, and possibly a salary for Falcao of €10 million per year. I’m not sure how much truth there is, but the cash-infused Monaco could certainly afford the purchase, and would do well to build their squad around such an incredible talent. To me, he’s the best no. 9 in the world right now, a born goalscorer and with the ability to create for himself; without a doubt, he’s worth every penny…for Monaco. For us, as much as I would relish the chance to see Falcao in Blue, I just don’t think it’s feasible or smart to shell out €50-60 million on a striker. For that kind of money, we could invest in a few promising younger talents.

Robert Lewandowski – Another striking option, although I’m not sold on the Polish striker. He looks like he could be brought in for around €30 million, but to me, he seems to be a bit of a one-trick-pony. He relies heavily on good service, and as we’ve seen with Torres, we need someone up top with more creativity, not someone who will need a the perfect ball to pounce on. I know I’ll take some stick for this, but for some reason, my gut tells me he wouldn’t be the answer to our problems. I may be forced to eat my words in all likelihood. In any case, there are indications that he might be following Goetze to Bayern.

Andre Schurrle – Honestly, I can’t speak much about him because I don’t know much. I know he’s a highly-rated German national who likes to play out wide, and I think if we could snag him for the right price, he might be worth the investment. I don’t know if I see him as a week-in-week-out player, but maybe he’s got the quality to do so. The only reservations I have about bringing him in is that it might mean losing De Bruyne, who I think is pure class. However, I wouldn’t mind seeing this deal go through, as long as it doesn’t mean permanently losing KDB.

Marouane Fellaini – To me, a square peg in a round hole. I don’t see him fitting our system well, as we’ve already got players who are too slow playing the ball up-field for my taste. He’s great at slowing the pace of the midfield down and managing the tempo, but I don’t think that’s what we need from a deep-lying midfielder behind Mazacar (subbing in Moses, KDB, Marin, etc.). Ramires would seem to be a direct competitor for Fellaini’s position, and I think he brings everything that the Belgian would, plus blistering pace and a knack for scoring huge goals in huge games. Coupled with Oscar, who I feel could slot back into a deeper midfield role in the mould of Pirlo, Fellaini is not worth the money in my book. I think that Gundogan would be a much better choice if we were going to make a move for a pivot-role player. (Also, there would just be way too much damn hair in our midfield if we partnered him with Luiz).

Wayne Rooney – No. Just please, no. There’s no spot in our squad for him, or his ego, and he’s just not worth shelling the money out on. We’ve got Mata, who is a far superior play-maker, and I don’t see Rooney returning to his glory days as a striker. I think Ferguson knew he was on the decline and that’s why he didn’t feature in too many big games this season. Way too much money for another player past his peak to play a position we’ve already got covered.

If we want to go after another player to sit behind our striker, I say we chase the Colombian wizard James Rodriguez. Although he’s been playing through the middle more often lately, he can naturally play out wide, and has the fantastic Hazard-like ability to cut inside and create with his vision and precision passing, or lace a shot on goal. There’s a reason the great Carlos Valderrama dubbed him “El Nuevo Pibe”.

Jackson Martinez – Yet another brilliant Colombian. This rumour has fizzled a bit in recent weeks, but anyone paying attention to the undefeated Porto team this season will recognize the name. He’s netted a fantastic 30 goals in all competitions in 35 appearances for Porto, and has scored almost 3 times as many as the next highest goalscorer (James Rodriguez). As it’s rumoured, his release clause sits somewhere around €30 million, which I think would be a fair enough price for a player of his quality.

Hulk – A player who we had our eye on since he was at Porto. He hasn’t exactly flourished since his transfer to Russia, but that’s not to say the Brazilian has lost a step. I think he’s had a rough time adjusting to life in Russia, and he doesn’t seem to be too happy. I read that there was some renewed interest on our part in bringing him back from the Tundra, but I’m not sure how much substance there is. Frankly, for the right price, he’d be a brilliant signing. His power and pace harken back to the Drogba days, and I think he could be a great target-man for our offense.

Bottomline, I’d like seeing a top striker come in and bringing Lukaku back for depth up front. On top of that, a central defender might be on the cards, especially if David Luiz is going to be playing a midfield role more often (which I hope he does). Maybe another deep-lying playmaking midfielder to take some of the responsibility off Ramires in that position, particularly if Lampard ends up leaving.

What do you guys think?

After a day  of drama at Old Trafford as Sir Alex Ferguson announced he will retire at the end of the season, the rumour mill went into overdrive late last night. Shortly after Chelsea had drawn at home to Tottenham, reports surfaced that Wayne Rooney had asked for a transfer for a second time from Manchester United, and it had been rejected by Sir Alex Ferguson two weeks ago.

Now, this has come out of the blue, but is believed to have substance as a “United Spokesperson” confirmed that this had actually happened. With Ferguson moving upstairs and David Moyes being rumoured to be all set to take over, it’s believed that Rooney still remains unsettled, believing that it’s time to move on.

Now, if this is true and Rooney does want a fresh start, it is being reported that Jose Mourinho has pin pointed Rooney as his main target this summer if as expected, he makes an emotional return to Stamford Bridge for his second stint as manager.

Roman Abramovich is rumoured to have already sanctioned a £30m move for Rooney, and although there will be a change of manager at United, Rooney will be allowed to leave as Cristiano Ronaldo is expected to re-sign for the Champions in the summer.

How do you feel about Rooney as a player? How do you feel about him being touted as Jose Mourinho’s main transfer target as he looks to build a squad to attack the Premiership and lead the Chelsea challenge next term? Do you feel that Rooney is someone who is past it? Or could he bring that additional quality we need instead?

Rooney to Chelsea?

Carefree & KTBFFH!

I cannot help but feel that Chelsea dropped two important points tonight against Tottenham, as they sat back and allowed them to dominate the final twenty minutes of the game and to get their equaliser. If anything, they looked the more dangerous team after Rafa’s substitutions left us scratching our heads once again.

A bright and positive start from Chelsea was needed and that was exactly what we had, and Tottenham were struggling to get to grips with us. I pointed out the weakness in their defence (defending corners). We took advantage early in the first half with a goal from a corner, headed towards goal by Gary Cahill and flicked into the net from two yards by Oscar.

We were dangerous, causing Tottenham all sorts of problems with Oscar, Juan Mata and the returning Eden Hazard on the ball. We created chances but never took them, got into good positions but it came to nothing, and then we were hit by a sucker punch.

Adebayor cleared a corner, heading the ball away and after Eden Hazard was caught out in midfield, Tottenham and Adebayor counter attacked us. For some reason, Chelsea’s defence dropped deeper and deeper towards goal and gave him time and space to place a peach of a strike into the top corner of the net from 25 yards, with Cech having no chance when 1 vs 1.

Back all square and game on, but once again Chelsea upped their game and took the lead for a second time, this time through Ramires. After some interplay down the line, Fernando Torres came inside and got the run on his man. Ramires made a run into the box, Torres found him and Ramires toe poked the ball into the far corner to make it 2-1 at half time.

In the second half, Tottenham had it all to do to keep their top four hopes alive, but once again, Chelsea continue to deal with their threats and create chances on the counter attack. Three or four times we got into decent positions, but never once capitalised on it.

As players seemed to tire, AVB made two changes and brought attacking options onto the pitch to go all out for a goal and to then kick on and win the game. Rafa never wavered.

Eden Hazard took a whack on the ankle and never recovered and was replaced by Victor Moses. Now, some people will argue that maybe right then, being a goal up, knowing Tottenham simply had to come out and attack us, we should have brought on JT to slot into the back line to sure things up or even Frank Lampard to bolster the middle of midfield. That never happened, as Moses came on in a like for like change.

Tottenham continued to press forced Chelsea backwards towards their own goal. Chelsea allowed them to do it, changing their focus to the counter attack, and it would have worked but for Ramires losing his footing in the box with the chance gone!

Once again Tottenham hit us with a sucker punch. The ball was played into Adebayor and his fantastic first touch was placed into the path of Sigurdsson, who struck the ball hard and low into the far corner to make it 2-2.

Rafa then decided to take off Oscar and replace him with Yossi Benayoun, to a chorus of boos from the Chelsea faithful, and rightly so. Too many times this season under Rafa we have lost points from leading positions, and we should have seen the game out. Too many times we have seen him miss a trick, rather than make a defensive change to protect a lead.

Tottenham were on the up and in the ascendancy and Chelsea looked tired and leggy, and still no third sub from Rafa. You can bet your life Jose Mourinho would have made three changes in the second half last night, and one of those would have been early in response to Tottenham’s attacking approach.

The game finishes 2-2 and it’s now out of Tottenham’s hands regarding a top four place, as they are now reliant on Chelsea or Arsenal losing one of their remaining games with Spurs winning. Chelsea extend the gap to Arsenal in fourth to two points, with a difficult trip to Villa on Saturday lunchtime ahead of us.

Chelsea need to get the players rested and prepared for that one, with the hope that one more win will see our qualification for the Champions League confirmed. It’s typical Chelsea, that we had the chance to do it last night and mucked it up. We never do anything easy, do we?

Credit Tottenham for their finish to the game, as a point is a fair result overall. In saying that, we keep seeing occasions where we need to be more ruthless and take our chances, not waste them.

It needs to come together on Saturday as Paul Lambert’s team is very different to the side that were hammered at the Bridge earlier in the season.

It’s just a shame it only came together for 70 minutes tonight, as it wasn’t enough!

Carefree & KTBFFH!

Ahead of the massive game tonight at Stamford Bridge, I decided to do something I haven’t done in a while and take a look at our opposition ahead of the game to try and pinpoint a potential weakness that Chelsea could exploit. Tottenham cannot defend corners and have conceded goals time and time again. Jan Vertonghen has been caught out numerous times as well.

I decided to have a look at four of Tottenham’s games in April against Wigan and Everton in the Premier League and the two games against FC Basel. In all of those games, Spurs conceded from corners, so I wanted to see where things went wrong and the potential for Chelsea to exploit those areas again.

Wigan away

As the ball is swung over, Tottenham seem to be looking OK. Everyone is covered and there are men to spare. However, two Wigan forwards make their move to the near post and THREE defenders go with them. Lloris in goal is left standing still as the goal scorer is about to make his run. He is being covered by Jan Vertonghen.

Now look! Lloris is stuck on his line. The three defenders who have moved towards the near post to cover the movement of the forwards have now realised the ball is sailing over their heads and Vertonghen is too late to realise that Boyce has made his move.

Another clearer angle. Lloris and the three defenders are all ball watching and Vertonghen and Boyce are at the back post.

As the ball comes over, we take a look what has happened. Loris is still stuck on his line. Four defenders have been taken out of the game as the ball was played to the back post and Vertonghen was too slow to react to the run of Boyce who he has leaped above him to head the ball down into the empty corner of the net. Notice no one on the posts for Spurs either.

Everton at home

The same thing happens again, this time at home to Everton. Tottenham get caught ball watching with plenty of defenders in the box to cover. The ball is played to the back post and Vertonghen gets caught out again.

As the corner comes in, Tottenham have a defender on the front post, one around the keeper, two at the near post  and two marking the attackers making a run towards near post. The goal scorer, Jagielka, is circled in blue. Also, notice that Spurs have three players towards the outside of the area marking literally no one.

I have scrolled forward to the moment Jagielka wins the header and scores. Just look at what has happened again. The three players towards the outside of the area haven’t moved. Three defenders made moves to the near post and have been taken out of the game and Lloris has hardly come off his line to punch or catch the ball and is out of position.

Again, Jagielka has out jumped Jan Vertonghen as he had the run on him again.

Basel at home

It doesn’t get any better in this game either. Again, people are getting caught out ball watching and moving to cover the near post as the goal scorer makes a move towards the far post and scores.

Now looking at the way Spurs have set up, it looks ok. Two men on the posts this time, three men on the edge of the six yard box, two marking the runners including Vertonghen. Once again though, the defenders on the edge of the area are just making up the numbers.

Look at what has happened as the ball is struck. For some reason, the defender has moved away from the front post. Two Basel forwards make their run towards the near post and Vertonghen makes his move to cover the run. The goal scorer first made a move forward and then checked his run and made a second move to the far post, and has left his man marker for dead as he is caught ball watching.

Vertonghen has been beaten in the air again at the near post. The three players who were on the six yard box are standing still as the ball is flicked over them. Adebayor, arguably the tallest player in their team, is beaten marking no one as the goal scorer hammers a free header into the bottom corner and scores.

Basel away

Final example, but once again a common trend. It’s the near post again as this time Vertonghen loses his man.

A familiar set up again. Men on the outside of the area doing nothing. Attackers about to make runs towards the near post. Tottenham defenders on the six yard box and covering the near post runs.

A better angle this time. The ball has been played in and three Basel attackers have made their move towards the near post. Three defenders are on the outside doing nothing. A defender is on the near post as three others try and cover the near post runs.

Vertonghen has been beaten as the attacker has gotten ahead of him, goal side, and has managed to head the ball towards the goal. Three other defenders are now in and around the goalkeeper in addition to the man on the front post.

The keeper makes a great save to deny the header but FIVE defenders have been taken out of the game, leaving one of the attackers unmarked to tap home the rebound. The man on the near post has not moved forward to close down the attacker and remains standing still.

Conclusions

• Chelsea must set themselves up to attack corners at the near post.
• Ivanovic, Luiz, Cahill, Terry, Torres – whoever starts must attack that area
• The likes of Ramires, Lampard, Mata, Hazard, Oscar to remain on the far post
• Vertonghen will pick up our biggest goal threat – expose his lack of ability in the air
• Take advantage of Lloris and his weakness of dealing with corners, coming off his line
• Expose the defenders literally doing nothing on the outside of the box with a late run.

Set pieces tonight are vital and hopefully, I have demonstrated a weakness in Tottenham. If we can deliver quality in the box from free kicks or corners, and expose their lack of organisation at the back, we can capitalise time and time again.

In what appears to be a tight game tonight with plenty at stake, these are two evenly matched sides. Chelsea CAN score from corners tonight and if we can keep Jan Vertonghen isolated, we will!

Rafa Benitez and the Chelsea players – please take note!

Carefree & KTBFFH!

Eden Hazard – He has suffered 133 fouls in all competitions this year. The second highest is Ramires at 90. The fact that he’s getting fouled so much means the defence is often resorting to doing so just to stop him, which attests to how dangerous defenders view him as. As a comparison, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have only been fouled 105 and 109 times, respectively, in all competitions. To me, this shows how great Hazard is at attacking the defence. He’s willing to take players on head-to-head (which we already know, just from watching him), and as the statistics show, he’s fouled a ridiculously high percentage of the time. I truly believe we have a genuine superstar on our hands here, and one who is about to explode. Defences are resorting to fouling him to stop him – we see this with some of the best in the world, and that’s where Hazard may be heading.

Juan Mata – 44 goals. He has had a direct hand, by way of goal or assist, in 44 goals this season. There’s no doubt how influential he’s been. Also, according to whoscored.com, he’s averaging 2.7 key passes per game, second only to David Silva in the league. There is no denying his influence on the control of the match. He imposes his presence the minute he steps onto the field. And, correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe he managed to do something in that match against United on Sunday too.

Fernando Torres – I’ve made my thought’s on Torres’s efficiency well-known over the past season. But, I must say, right now he’s sitting at 21 goals on the season. I know this isn’t stunning, nor is it breaking any records – yet, in all reality, it’s a relatively decent haul, given the struggles with inconsistency we’ve been privy to seeing from him since he signed. As of late, particularly, he’s been hitting a nice bit of form. Maybe it’s true – put a mask on a guy and he’ll turn into a superhero. I thought his performance in the Europa League game against Basel was fantastic. His work-rate up and down the pitch was great – he scored a goal, then set Moses up for another. I will even admit, I felt a bit of excitement seeing him strapping on the mask to come on alongside Ba against United.

Team scoring – We have 6 players sitting in double digits as far as scoring, and 3 more on the cusp. United? 3. City? 4. The collective effort of our squad is something that should be appreciated and lauded. No one can deny the team effort and involvement. We truly work as a whole team to put the ball in the back of the net, and that’s something I feel is underrated and much unappreciated. We have a whole crop of guys who can step up in games to make the big play. A (now converted to midfield?) defensive player stepped up and did it twice against Basel with two masterclass efforts; the second of which was a true wonderstrike, effectively ending all hope for the Swiss side.

So, what do you think? Is Torres maybe coming around and worth keeping? Do we need Hazard vs Tottenham on Wednesday? Assuming (God-willing) we qualify for CL and win the Europa league, how do you rate this season as far as the development of some of the future core of the squad?

Carefree & KTBFFH!