What should be Chelsea's lineup against Juventus?

This Wednesday Chelsea start their defence of the Champions League against the Italian Champions Juventus and the question of what line up Chelsea should be playing against them has come up again after the teams failure beat QPR on the weekend and Torres outburst when being subbed off.

Knowing Di Matteo, I expect this to the be the line up he goes with. Employing Ramires on the right wing, playing Fernando Torres upfront and partnering Lampard and Obi Mikel in the middle again. I wouldn't say that this would be disastrous be any means however we have seen already this season that it isn't quite working at the moment and maybe a little change is in order to keep certain players on their toes.

I think that the time has come for Sturridge to get his chance to start up front. He is a young fearless character so I don't think he would find the tie against Juventus daunting, if anything I can only imagine he would just see it as challenge and raise his game accordingly. This would also help to refocus Torres and remind him he isn't the only striker in the team and hopeful give him that kick to start scoring again.

Ramires on the right wing is not a bad idea as his work rate and defensive capabilities could be affective in the game however I think they would be better suited to the middle of the park helping to close down Pirlo and stopping him from dictating the game, so I would look to play him in the double pivot with Lampard.

Against QPR in Chelsea's last match Di Matteo played Ryan Bertrand on the left wing which I really don't understand when we have so many better attacking options in the team. I think that Victor Moses should be playing on the wings from the beginning so that we take an attacking initiative in the match instead of having to react and bring players of the bench to try to win the game. 

What do you guys think? Have I got it wrong? What lineup would you go for? Leave a comment below

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Has the time finally come for Sturridge to start upfront?

After Torres' recent outburst on the weekend when substituted against QPR has the patience of the Chelsea fans finally started to wear thin? When Fernando Torres first signed for Chelsea for £50 million I don't think there was a Chelsea fan happier then me as we had just signed one of the best strikers in the world and I could only see great things in future for him at Chelsea.

However fate has had different idea and Torres' time at Chelsea hasn't been anything like expected with him struggling to find form or score goals regularly. I wouldn't say it has been down to a lack of desire or effort but with an in form Drogba in front him and his own confidence on the floor he has found it hard to find his scoring touch consistently like he was doing at Liverpool. Even though his form in front of the goal as been poor for Chelsea the fans have stuck behind him, showing great support when many others would have turned against him, but I think that it could be now time to give Daniel Sturridge more of starting opportunities he craves so much.

I know a lot of people say that Sturridge can be greedy and yes I would agree that it can be frustrating when he takes shots from distance when he could have been slipping someone threw, but you must remember he is a striker who was being played out of position on the wing and upfront his direct style and selfishness is something all top strikers have and we seem to be missing this with Torres upfront. To be honest I think that if Torres didn't have such a huge price tag hanging over his head Sturridge would most probably be starting a lot more games as a striker for Chelsea as his form over the last 2 years for both Bolton and Chelsea has been considerable better then Torres'.

Recently Torres has found signs of getting back to his best, winning the Golden Boot at the European Championships and scoring a couple of goals this season, but I think his Golden Boot was slightly tainted by the fact that for majority of the competition Spain played Fabregas, a midfielder, upfront instead of him which  I couldn't see happening if David Villa was fit, which definitely shows that Del Bosque had major doubts as to whether Torres could do the job. 

I hope Torres does return to his goalscoring form of his Liverpool days but at the moment I can't quite see it, so think that even though Torres will continue as are main striker this year Sturridge should be given more chances upfront to show us his quality.

What do you guys think? Did I get it wrong? Leave a comment below to share you thoughts.

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Torres storming down the tunnel when subbed?

Chelsea drew 0-0 with QPR on Saturday in which was a sub par performance from the blues. Both teams had their chances and Chelsea were denied two definite penalties however the team just didn't do enough to clinch the win.

In the 80th minute of the game Di Matteo decided a change upfront was needed and replaced Torres with Sturridge. Torres reacted by storming down the tunnel instead of sitting with his team mates and watching the rest of the match. Torres' performance wasn't awful by any stretch, however something different was needed as his movement off the ball was far to static, he couldn't hold the ball up and struggled to consistently put his stamp on the game. For me it was the right decision to take Torres off as he wasn't having much of an effect on the game in the second half and whenever Sturridge plays he always offers something with his movement, trickery and pace and is most definitely not afraid to shoot.  Torres' decision to storm down the tunnel was totally out of line. I understand he has been made promises that he will be the main man upfront this season now that Drogba has left however he must be able to understand that he isn't the only good option and if he isn't playing well he can't just play for his own selfish reasons. He needs to perform consistently because he has Sturridge right behind him in the pecking order who I think if Torres didn't have this £50 million price tag over his head would be starting ahead of him just on performances over the last year. I know he has found a little goalscoring form with a couple of goals this season so he might feel a little hard done by, but he should show a little more respect to the fans who have been 'extremely' loyal to him through his dry spells and remember he is a highly paid professional who should handle his emotions better.

I hope that this whole incident was just a heat of the moment thing and it doesn't have an effect on the team negatively but I truly think Sturridge should get a lot more starting opportunities this season as he does deserve the chance to prove himself especially if Torres isn't firing

What do you guys think? Did I get it right? Leave a comment below to share your thoughts.

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Malouda's treatment by Chelsea?

Malouda is currently seen as surplus to requirements at Chelsea and the club have made this clear by recently trying to sell him to Brazilian clubs Botafoga and Santos, this being his preferred destination as his wife is Brazilian. However his wage demands have caused the proposed deals to collapse and it now seems that he his going to see out the last year of deal out at Chelsea.

The Champions League squad was announced the other day and Malouda was completely omitted from the 25 man squad which just goes to show that if he thought he may still have a chance to prove him self this year  at the club then that chance just disappeared altogether. However Chelsea have now gone on to make him train with the under 21s and play reserve games for the remainder of his contract which to me just seems extremely petty and reminds me of exactly what happened last year with AVB in charge and the way he treated Anelka and Alex. I understand that you may not see him in your plans any more but to make him go to play with the under 21 squad just doesn't seem to be needed. I'm not going to sit here and say 'Oh Malouda has been one my favourite players since he has been at Chelsea', but at the same time you have to appreciate he has played an important role in are recent successes, whether that be in our Premier League winning season where we did the double and last season when we captured the Champions League and FA Cup so I feel he should be treated with a bit more respect then Chelsea are showing him currently.

At the end of the day Chelsea are still paying his wages so he might as well be training with the first team. Even though we seem to be pretty solid in attacking midfield and wide positions injuries do and can happen at any time so you just never now when someone could be needed to play so to totally disregard him like this could be a huge mistake. I can also imagine it may make people like Lampard and Ashley who are coming to  the end of their contracts think twice before agree new deals with the club as this could be them in a couple of years if I fall out the managers plans, so might thinkwhy should I stick around? Just a thought.

What do you guys think? Did I get this right? Leave a comment below

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What to make of Chelsea's Champions League group draw?

First glance at the group and immediately Juventus scream out as the team that will be the main danger, followed closely by Shakhtar Donestk. Juventus are the current Italian champions who went the whole season undefeated in the league last year and are looking to be a major player in Europe again and Shakhtar are the Ukrainian champions who have good European pedigree winning the Europa League only a few seasons ago. The last team in the group Nordsjaelland are also champions of their domestic league in Denmark but will definitely be considered as minnows with this being their first time in the competition.

So what should we expect from each team?

Against Juventus I expect a relatively tight clash in the home tie with Chelsea eventually prevailing in the end and getting the victory. I would also expect us to have too much for them attacking wise and win away from home even though a draw would be a very good point as it is a tough place to go. They have a very good squad with the likes of Pirlo, Buffon and Vidal however they have never beaten Chelsea in the Champions League before and I think that is a sign that our team know how to get a result against them. They shouldn't be taken lightly at all however I don't see them being a major problem for us and expect us to pick up at the very least 4 points from our two clashes against them.


Shakhtar Donestk I think will be equally as tricky as Juventus as the Chelsea team will have to make the long journey to the Ukraine where they have great support from their home fans and depending on the time of the fixture the weather conditions over there could be very harsh and could cause us problems. Other then the potential tricky weather conditions and hostile atmosphere Shakhtar posses some very talented young players like Willian and Douglas Costa as well as inspirational captain Srna who on their day can cause any defence problems so should be taken very seriously. However even though they do have talent in their squad I would still find it hard to look past Chelsea in the two clashes. I just think we will have to much in the locker for them.

To be honest I don't know to much about the Danish champions Nordsjaelland however they are obviously a decent outfit otherwise they wouldn't be in the competition. As this will be the first time for a lot of their players to be participating in the Champions League I am sure they will be very pumped up for their clashes against Chelsea 'the European Champions' so we will need to be wary of complacency as they could easily cause a shock just as Genk did last year if the game is not approached with right mind set. With all that said I can only see one winner and that is Chelsea.

I think that Chelsea will definitely qualify from the group in 1st place as even though the teams in the group are good and do posses a lot of quality we are a level ahead of all them all, especially with our experience in the competition being so strong.

Is Marko Marin really as good as everyone seems to think?

When I first heard about Marko Marin a few seasons ago he was dubbed the new 'German Messi' and was playing some great football alongside the like of Mesut Ozil in an attacking Werder Bremen team. Since then Marin has kinda disappeared off the radar,whereas Ozil has gone on to be one the major stars of world football at Real Madrid leaving Marin far behind. Previously seen as one on the 'best talents' in German football, he has seen that label given to more exciting players like Mario Goetze, Marco Reus, Andre Schurrle and Thomas Muller.

So I ask what is it that people see in Marko Marin that makes him a great acquistion for Chelsea? I know that he is a good dribbler with a good eye for a killer pass, so initially that makes him sound like he is exactly what we need because that type of player is what Chelsea has been missing since Robben left. However from what I've seen of him myself he seems very predictable and extremely weak physical on the ball. I know that there is quality there for sure but I'm not sure whether he will be able to reach the potential that he should and become a major player for us at Chelsea. In my own opinion Victor Moses is a much better option then Marin as I feel he is more suitable to the premier league with his pace and strength to go along with his dribbling abilities.

People may have also forgotten than Marin wasn't one of Di Matteo's signings he was signed by the club before the Champions League final, which was before he got offered the role as permanent manager so may not be held in as high regard by Di Matteo himself. And for all you that disagree with me and then point to his glamorised YouTube videos and say that I am chatting nonsense look at the dates of the videos and when he was actually playing well. You will find NO videos from recent seasons like all the other top stars or starlets in football.

All that said I would love him to prove me wrong and help lead us to loads of success in the future, especially as he was such a cheap signing but at this moment in time I just don't see it.

What do you guys think? Leave a Comment Below.

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What should we expect from Chelsea this season?

What should we as fans be looking for from Chelsea this season? Should would be challenging the two Manchester clubs for the title, Champions League qualification with a top 4 finish or complete domination of all competitions.


Looking at how we are trying to play this season, with a new change in playing style from being a more physical team to a more attractive and attacking team and the massive influx of new small creative players I think that from this season I'd be more than happy with a top four finish and anything on top of that 'like cup success' would just be a bonus. Even though we won the Champions League and the FA Cup last season we still finished 6th in the league last season and we all know as fans that we are lucky that we succeeded in the Europe, otherwise we could potentially HAVE turned into another Liverpool who are just mediocre in the league even though they are trying to make a fight back to the top with their new signings.

Taking our new style and signings into account and how bad we were last year in the league I think that a top 4 finish preferably 3rd would definitely be a successful season for us and would then act as the perfect platform for us to properly challenge the two Manchester clubs for the league next season as all of our new signings would have properly adjusted to the pace and quality of the league. Obviously if Chelsea are able to mount a challenge for the title or even win it this year I would be delighted but I think we have to remember how things where only a few months ago when AVB was sacked and how we were feeling and how bad we could have been feeling without the European success, so if things don't continue to go as swimmingly as they are currently just try be patient with Di Matteo and the team I'm certain next year will be Chelsea's.

What do you guys think leave a comment below.

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Do Chelsea need another striker?

After watching Chelsea start the season so well, winning their first 3 games well and seeing Torres start to find the back of the net and look like his old self, I've been thinking do Chelsea really need to but another striker as all football pundits seem to be saying.



Throughout the whole summer transfer window Chelsea has been constantly linked with forwards, most notably Cavani and Hulk who are both respectively great strikers however would they be causing more problems then solving if either arrived. If either was to sign they would come with a hefty price tag so would most probably have to play for that very fact and as we only play one upfront with Di Matteo's 4-2-3-1 formation Torres would find himself on the bench which to me just doesn't make any sense.

 Another problem that I see in signing another striker would be it getting in the way of Daniel Sturridge's development as well as Romelu Lukaku's when he comes back next season who was also signed for a sizeable fee. I personally think that Sturridge is good enough to play upfront for Chelsea this season whether its due to Torres being absent through injury or poor form. He has proved already in his short career he can score goals, doing so for Bolton on loan as well as for Chelsea last season reaching double figures from the right wing. I know there is the argument that he is to selfish on the ball and not a good enough team player, which I can definitely admit to it annoying me sometimes however he is a striker and if  he was to get the chance to play in that position I can only see that being an advantageous attribute, I just hope he is given a real chance there this season. Also the recent acquisition of Victor Moses could be a possible option to play upfront for us if we really needed to so I really don't think another striker is needed for Chelsea this season.

What do you guys think? Leave your comments below.

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Chelsea.... Typical Football Manager

If you have ever played football manager then you won't be new to the feeling of being on one of those bad runs of form and thinking everything is going against you. You decided to make some changes to make the team more solid and you finally see an improvement and your team puts in a good performance controlling the game for the most part. Then out of no where FM does what it does best and CHEATS!! From being in a dominant position you see it all crash before your eyes and the lead is gone. Then to take it that bit further they score again in the last minute and its at this very moment you dash your keyboard at your screen and end up breaking something, or if your one of those people who refuse to take it,quit with no remorse LMAO!!

Unfortunately for Chelsea yesterday there was no quit button and are terrible form of late continues. I must admit even though we lost there were some positives like Drogba getting back amongst with a great individual effort and Sturridge made some good bursting runs and picked out a great ball for the Drogba goal.

But although we looked relatively comfortable during the match its wasnt exactly a commanding performance with Ballack hitting the bar with a header in the first half and also forcing Cech to make two good saves later on in the match. It just seems that due to are slow build up play we don't seem to create enough chances in a game and I've also noticed this season how easy teams are finding it to counters us as we seem to lose the ball so cheaply around the opponents box and having over commited going forward we are left so open.

All I can say is that at least in 2 weeks we have the chance to rectify ourselves against a decent Valencia team and still qualify for the next round, I just hope its not too painful to watch cause these poor performances are starting to become emotional lool.

Lets talk, let me know what you thought about the game and how we are playing, am I right? Please leave a comment.

Is It Time to Change from 4-3-3

I've been watching Chelsea this season and I' starting to feel that maybe the 4-3-3 formation is just not right for us anymore. When we first introduced it under Jose Mourinho we had quick wingers like Robben and Duff and are midfield was solid and could control the game but now I dont really see any of those qualities.

At the moment we play Mata and Sturridge on the wings which I thought at first would be great but I dont think that this is eithers best or natural position and its not quite working. Mata to me is more of an attacking central midfielder just behind the striker and on the wing doesnt quite  have the pace to be a constant threat and Sturridge for me should be given the chance to play upfront cause to be honest  he looks the most lively of all are strikers.

I dunno maybe a change to 4-4-2 or maybe a 4-2-3-1 would be better suited to the players we have. Playing two up front would be what I prefer. We have Didier, Torres, Sturridge, Lukaku and Anelka I think that we need to start trying to get a partnership going upfront as the only point of having 3 in the middle is to try to dominate the middle of the park and we dont do that at all,so we might aswell just have 2 in there and try to get more goals. Man United are the perfect example. There central midlfield is nothing to shout out about. I dont think that I would take any of their players in the middle but the power of their strike force and good use of width gets them the results.

Lets talk, let me know what you think, am I just talkin kaka or I am I on the right track.