Ibn Battuta

I agree with this. Like watching Daniel Alves in his pomp. He can be a tremendous weapon for us if he keeps it up. But Chilly won’t win us the league. It seems to me that we are living on a knife edge when you look at the ratio and quality of chances created and conceded atm. People talk about Lukaku not delivering but we can win the league if Lukaku plays like he has played so far. A quality player. But I can’t see us winning the league unless all our other attacking players step up.

Surely the runs were not a problem. There were plenty of runs but the final ball was so poor that it did not matter. Just awful passing quality in the final third. But the biggest lost opportunity we had was actually the pass that never came when a completely free Werner made a nice run down the middle, after a Lukaku dummy run but Chillwell never spotted it. That should have been game over. Just one example of several. We really really needed Jorginho for this game.

Jorginho almost certainly only on the bench to keep Brentford coaches guessing. He must be injured or knackered. If I ever saw a match that cried for Jorginho than this was it. People can talk about Brentford pressure all day but fact is that there were so many opportunities to destroy them in this game. Jorginho we win 3-0, Fabregas and we win 7-0.

Better than looking at the starting lineup, one should look at what the opposition is doing. Southampton had so little attacking intent that Chaloblah was for all intended purposes a midfielder. He was way too high up the pitch for the majority of the minutes to be classified as being a defender in this game imo. Regardless of the formation and shape we were in.

Starting a midfield of RLC, Chalobah and Kovacic right before the international break in a game that could leave you with three losses in a row and lots of pressure building till the next game... That is gutsy from TT! I think he wanted to send a message because this was not a time to rest players unless he wanted them fresh for their international break. To survive long term at a club like Chelsea you need to show strength through action. I do not think he is happy with how some players have executed the game plan the last few games.

Seriously eroding the credibility of the game. Obvious and clear? Phase of the attack? This is incredible.

Incredible from Rudiger.

Looking at Werner I am reminded how unique and incredible Henry was.

Yes, it is very subjective. My view is simple. Against Italian sides you always choose speed (Werner) over cleverness (Havertz), because they are masters at cleverness but rarely can handle dynamic speed. Bonucci and De Light would hate to face Werner. Throw at them what they ain’t used to. They are build to deal with the Girouds and Dzekos of the world, which is probably why they get eliminated so early in European games. My view against City is also simple. They have tremendous speed themselves. Doesn’t make sense to use Werner when his primary attribute is nullified. Also, against a team that gives you maybe two chances a game I will not choose to have Werner for those two chances. Juve would not concede lots of chances but after being run at for 70 minutes, we would have good chances at the end of games.

So it took 62 games before TT picked a team/tactic which you could really question was the best given the opposition and circumstances (in my humble opinion). Impressive that it took 62 games, but worrying he got it wrong two times in a row. Against City, Havertz should have started, but against Juve? Surely Werner was the much better solution. Especially when you pair them with marksman Ziyech who is excellent at hitting moving targets. What is the point of him if he is to play low probability passes to our slowest wing backs or precision passes to Havertz and Lukaku in positions where they can’t hurt the opposition? Baffling stuff honestly. Switch the team selection for these two games and I think our chances of winning or drawing go up considerably. But... this is relevant. We are not in a slump per say, just had some really tough games. Lads should just focus on the next task and not worry about what has passed. But 0-0 or worse going into 60 minutes, and I could see this team sweating a lot. I don't think we have the character yet to overcome those situations as easily as we probably should.

Not sure this was the game to put all your money on Werner saving the day. In a game of tiny margins, we put most of our money on a high impact, low probability playing strategy. Weird. Havertz should have started, that there is no doubt about. Pep more than happy to risk giving Werner a couple solid chances to score or chances to create goals, if it meant he could pack Lukaku like an Eskimo on the North Pole. Surprised TT went for this strategy. He mentioned that the players did play with the right courage (if I read him correctly) but I think it’s more a case of about midfielders being asked to squeeze water from cactuses and not about courage.

This was dull, grey and boring. Yet we won 3-0 and scored some really nice goals and had several decent chances. We never looked solid, which is rare under TT. Very strange game. Maybe because of Villa and their sudden change in formation? Mendy looks really good! I don't think people understand the importance of a world class keeper. We could easily have conceded. I see some people say "easy saves" "straight at him". Listen, this is a hallmark of a good keeper. Cech was Mr Easy Saves, or as I like to call it, Mr Always at the right place at the right time. Mount is crucial to this side. Havertz and Lukaku cannot play at the same time unless Mount is playing imo. We really need that quick and moveable object in between the lines when we play so heavy and big players like Havertz and Lukaku. Pulisic is doable, but he is too much of a wide player to make up for all the open space inside the pitch. Mount is very important for us.

Fully agree with this. As I said after the Arsenal game, Lukaku getting hit with this nonsense is guaranteed. He is just that kind of player. He had a tough task alone upfront yesterday. A thankless task. He was asked to play like a fish too close to land out of necessity. We will rarely (hopefully) see him play so isolated and with the ball at his feet so far from goal. It’s basically the worst way we can play him. I thought TT should have played Werner to give us more to counter them. Tuchel has made us a tremendous force defensively. But I thought Mendy was great. So important to have a good keeper like him. Very underrated. Alonso is also a solid player these days. The rest I care not to mention because we know they are elite at this point. We could have buried the game if only we were more focused or synced. Mount should have squared it. Obvious goal. And there were a couple with Havertz and Lukaku that should have resulted in clear goal scoring opportunities. Excited though once and if this clicks.

It’s a nice story for United and a gamble worth taking for the Glazers who will take any move that can take attention from them with both hands. The fan base will be galvanised by it. And I think it just (barely) might work out. I for one love it. He is a fantastic athlete and his dedication to the game is lovely to see. You have to enjoy having players like that in the league.

It might seem like we have proper football people working with proper business people working with proper accountants and financial planners, all working with a proper vision in mind. Lots of right decisions have been made. So many that even a disastrous mistake like paying 72m for Kepa has been rectified without much ado.