Bob Singleton

Can't say they didn't play for the shirt tonight. Desperately unlucky not to win.

Chopsticks.... the ultimate proof that the Chinese never invented custard! 😉

Enzo has had surgery on his groin and will now be out for the rest of the season.

May I remind you that that "very small pond" includes the rest of the Premiership! He may be the best of a very small bunch at Chelsea by a country mile, but he's also equal top PL scorer with Haaland (and ahead of him on assists) and currently 6th overall in Europe

Might not be popular with some here, but as a Thiago Silva replacement I'd be looking at Varane. United look like they want to free up his wages, but he's been their best centre back this season. Like Silva he reads the game well. Not the quickest these days at 31, but that "nous" will see him shut down situations before they even happen. Error free? No, but who is? Close to 70 PL appearances. Has also won trophies (4 x CL at Madrid plus World Cup with France), so a player the younger ones can look up to. Main stumbling block will be the wages (supposedly on £300k at United. We know they tend to over-pay, but that's a lot for a centre back) Andersen, Varane, Colwill and Chalobah for me, with W Fofana retained to see if he ever recovers properly (doubt we'd get much for him in the summer anyway, given how long he's been out). Loans for Gilchrist and Humphreys. Sell the boys from Monaco if we can (along with Sarr, obviously)

Completely "left field" but a player I quite like is Joachim Andersen of Palace. 27 years old so reaching his peak. Over 100 games in the Prem, so knows the league well. Every time I've seen him, he's organising the defence (even when Guehi has worn the Captain's armband). Although right footed, is very comfortable on the left of a central defensive pairing, oh, and he's also 1m 92 (6ft 3). Contract runs out summer '26 so two years left. A 2024 equivalent of Gary Cahill, perhaps?

I was under the impression - now that all the English teams were out - that the 5th CL place was going to an Italian club?

I vaguely remember my mate saying his mate had a high wall running down one side between his garden and the ground, so either the one at the top (north) in the red box, or the one opposite.

If you mean Hilary Close, a friend of a friend bought a house there at the end of last year. Some 2½mill as I understand. If the club were buying those properties, you'd think they would have bought that one as a first step toward a possible "offer you can't refuse" to the others in that mews.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/68852174 ❝Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says Cole Palmer was asking to leave the club for two years before he eventually joined Chelsea.❞

Read somewhere that Enzo was "held back" yesterday with a view to the City game, after which the club will make a decision on whether he has some abdominal surgery and misses the remainder of the season (but back in time for a full pre-season) or they 'wait and see'.

Really? REALLY??? You're accusing Madueke of being a paedophile?

He probably is, actually. Pep strikes me as the sort of coach who takes delight in players he's nurtured coming good... even if they've come good elsewhere. With all the talent at his disposal, Pep was never going to be able to give Cole Palmer the minutes he's gotten at Chelsea. That Palmer has taken his opportunity to shine is a credit to his own self-belief, but also to a certain extent, to the coaching he's received from Pep. Having said that, he might be mighty p*ss*d off if Palmer repeats tonight's performance at the weekend. 😉

Have you EVER posted anything positive? If you have, I must have missed it! Did it not occur to you that Poch was giving Chilwell the opportunity of getting some much needed minutes into his legs ahead of an FA Cup semi final with City and a (on paper) reasonably arduous run-in by playing him in a position where he doesn't have to do too much hard defending (which could lay him open to a possible injury)?

Be careful of what you wish for. Qualification could result in a ban and hefty fines. ANY return to a UEFA competition next season could cause us much pain, given the new UEFA FSR rules brought in to replace FFP are even more restrictive than the FSR rules the Premier League have us operating under. We just about scraped through for the last PL accounting period. We'll probably just about scrape through for the next PL accounting period (though we will need to sell a fair few players if we want to strengthen in key areas). What is pretty much agreed upon by those in the know is that we would fail to comply with FSR under the new UEFA regulations in place. ❝Clubs are permitted to lose up to €80m (£68.5m; $86m) for the 2024-25 monitoring period — which will encompass the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons — provided they are deemed to be in good health and not subject to existing UEFA sanctions. That means £68.5m over the previous two years, not £105m over the previous three years, becomes the key loss threshold.❞ [The Athletic - Feb 22, 2024] Qualifying for the Champions League (not likely for a while), Europa League or even the Conference (an outside chance) is a double edged sword.

How does one become an agent? Asking for a 'friend' 😉 😉 😉 https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/68794902

Obviously not Chelsea specific, but it is the "media" thread. https://pressgazette.co.uk/news/henry-winter-times-redundant-mail-sports-restructuring/

Could Poch ask Louis Enrique what he said at half time? PSG went in 0-1 own having looked lethargic and devoid of ideas. 2 goals in the first 2 minutes of the second half have changed the game (still 43+ minutes to go, mind... PSG are well known for falling apart)

Designed by Thomas davenport in 1834, essentially the first EV 😉

Agreed. I don't get the hate toward Sterling, and certainly not the wholly unjustified name calling. Furthermore, Cole Palmer has said that Sterling was his mentor when both were at City, and that Sterling took him under his wing, introduced him to his new team-mates, helped him settle in London, invited him over for dinner, barbecues etc when he joined. If Cole Palmer has settled in to life at Chelsea so quickly and so easily, I'd say Sterling has played a fair part in that! And for that at least we should be thankful.

To count as an academy or "home grown" player, they will need to have been at the club for 3 years prior to when they turn 21 (though which side of 30 June/1 July also plays a part and I can't find the relevant clause at the moment). Essentially our looking at 16/17 year olds from South America, and possibly elsewhere, and getting them to sign pre-contracts (as they can't "work" here until they are 18) clearly falls into the "master plan" of churning out young players in their early twenties who can either contribute to the first team squad or else be sold for "pure profit" from a Profit & Sustainability Regulations perspective.

Alfie Gilchrist has extended his contract until 2026 with an option for a further year https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/article/i-cant-speak-highly-enough-of-him-chelsea-coaches-reflect-on-gilchrists

We should be so lucky!!! 😉

Playing Devil's Advocate here, as I'm no great fan of Poch, but not closing down players has been a Chelsea problem going back many, many seasons now. One example... Eriksen scoring from outside the area in his Spurs days. Poch is currently to blame because he's in charge now, but let's not pretend it hasn't been an on-going problem.

Two cracking games today. Two unexpected results.