I kind of like the three group division in the Premiership. It's like watching three different title races. Firsrt there's Chelsea and United going for the trophy. Then Arsenal and Liverpool are trying to gaing the 3rd and fourth Premiership spots. And there are all the teams like Spurs, Bolton, Everton, etc trying to find a UEFA cup spot.

By the way, Drogba and Robben are going to be fit for the Cup final but Saha and Neville are injured which is terrific because Rooney is a great forward but I don't think that he'll cause damage like Saha might against a team like us.

saha hasnt played in a while so that doesnt matter..

Not sure if it's been posted in here or not or if you guys have heard but according to some sections of the media you guys have contacted Capello....please do take him from us.

Just add him to the list that includes Hiddink, Hughes, Lippi, Klinsmann, Vialli and 8 other names that will never sit in Jose's chair.

I dont think a day has gone by in the last 3 years without the media writing one piece of crap after another concerning Chelsea. It has become so tedious. I don't think anyone really gets taken in by this rubbish anymore.

Anyway I thought Capello was beggining to get Real Madrid working well after all. Are Madrid not 2 points behind Barca in the league? I don't follow La Liga that closely but I gathered that Capello was doing ok.

Real Madrid are two points behind but it's really wierd because they're winning on luck and chance except for the game against Sevilla which was tremendous. It's like no matter what they do, they can't lose. Decisions go their way, etc and the players have more to do with getting the team back in shape than the coach. Capello gave up basically after the period where everyone thought he'd be fired and the players have done it themselves since then. I doubt that Roman would want Capello because I can understand the links to managers that play exciting football (not including Ericksson but I never saw him coach club) but guys like Capello probably aren't coming in. Anyways, the momentum is with Real while Barcelona are playing awful so everyone thinks that Real will win now and they've counted out Sevilla who are only four points behind with five games left.

Why does the FA schedule the promotion semi finals for 12:00 (I had to wake up before 7:00 am to watch them) but not schedule any matches for the rest of the day?

It seems that your first purchase for the new season is going to be Steve Sidwell

http://home.skysports.com/list.aspx?hlid=466292&CPID=8&clid=8&lid=4161&title=Sidwell+set+for+Blues+medical

Yup and he aint gonna cost us a penny in transfer fees. I wish him well at Chelsea.

i think he'll be good cover but im pretty sure hes not gonna play :S but hes good cover tho

incoming confirmed : Steve Sidwell (reading-free), Alex (PSV-free), Glen Johnson (portsmouth-free)

Boulharouz will also prolly be on his way out

Alex free? Holy crap, what a move that will be.

Alex free? Holy crap, what a move that will be.

yup the dude is an old school hard nosed center back, we bought him and sent him on loan to PSV because of the work permit problems but now chelsea very confident they'll be able to get him a work permit so he can play next term

Great news with the Alex signing as for Sidwell he is a hard working lad and if he worked hard enough he can get a regular spot on the team like Diarra did this season. I think Mourinho signed him keeping in mind that Essien will be gone for the Nations Cup next season. Having Glen Johnson back will be a plus that's for sure.

I wonder who will be leaving in the summer? I hear rumors that Makelele is not happy with the length of his new contract he wants a longer one. Also I hope Khalid is given another chance to prove himself, don't think he can really be judged on his performances this season because it was his first season in a different league and he wasn't given much playing time anyway, if he is on his way out wish him the best on which ever team he moves to.

Mourinho is saying that the squad size is not going to be larger, so he is not going to buy that many players in the summer, maybe a change or two,
but I think this is a mistake, because this season has proven that things could go the hard way,
so it is a good idea to buy players, so if in the next season happens something similar, we will be ready for the challenge.
Another issue is resting the players: If we have more options, we can rest more players.

What you guys think of this?

You're right. Seeing the amount of reserves on the bench and the amount playing lately is ridiculous. I understand it if we're some other team but with our balance, he should really be buying enough cover and not be stubborn with the thin squad idea. He's still whinging about how we're going to have 15 1st team guys ready in the FA Cup final but it's his own mistake.

I think Mourinho knows his job better than you do, if he thinks a thin squad is what’s best for Chelsea right now I say he stick with it, there is no need to have 31 regulars as Liverpool did this season and they still finished third.

Btw Maluda has told Lyon that he want to leave and im sure all the big clubs will be bidding for him, Im not sure if EPL is the best league for him but I wonder if Chelsea is interested in him.

One thing Jose has always wanted is a BIG squad, but its not enough to have 10 or 11 great players and the rest of the squad is pants is it?

When Jose first arrived he wanted to acumulate TWO squads, each one as strong as the other, and he was begginning to get there too. Then as will happen, certain important players could not live with the playing restictions that a squad ethic entailed. These players wanted guarranteed, regular first team football. When it was explained to them that at Chelsea, every player is as important as the next player to the club, and what it could achieve. These individuals didn't like the idea of being part of a squad. They wanted first team status. I understand quality players feeling that way. We are lucky at Chelsea to actually have as many quality players as we have, who do appreciate the concept of being part of a squad. There will always be those players who do not.

So they leave Chelsea for pastures new, with Chelsea actually making it very easy for them to go thanks to reduced transfer fee's for instance. That left the club short of QUALITY players. People always say that we have two great players for every position on the pitch. That might have been true for a very short time during Jose's first season, but since then it has definately not been the case.

Anyway....So Jose wants to fill the gaps and purchase some more players of quality to replace those players that have left. Roman says NO. Make do with what you have, he more or less tells him. What happens?....JT gets a serious injury. We have nobody of quality who can fill in for him, and our season begins to nosedive, (by our standards of course:mexican:).

I can understand Roman's attitude when I look at some of the players Jose has bought in the past though. Del Horno for one and the jury is still out on Khalid I think. Admittedly he has also made some wonderful buys too. Drog and Mikel to name two. Roman I think, just wanted to make a point to Jose that the money that he is willing to spend on Chelsea is not endless if it continues to be wasted.

The point is though, is that there is no point in buying players and having a big squad if a lot of that squad is made up of inferior players. Jose wants the best players on the market for Chelsea, and if Roman says "spend wisely, because I am not gonna be throwing money at you", then I understand why Jose has opted for sticking with who we have, and add one or two new quality players in the summer, plus anyone else within reason, who happens to be a free agent this summer.

You can't just lay the blame for anything squarely at Jose's feet. He would prefer a big squad. Obviously the "Powers that be", have told him that he must think carefully before making a move for a player.

Some of the unrest at Chelsea earlier in the season was because, Jose was actually told that because of a couple of "mistakes" he had made in the transfer market, that Frank Arnesen in future, would be helping Jose make any decisions regarding new players coming to the club. Jose wanted first and final say on playing staff but Roman had other ideas. Personally I'd go with Roman on this one.

Whatever way you want to look at it though, we have a very talented squad of players right now. We are short of a couple of positions and those are the gaps that Jose needs to fill in the summer. He certainly doesn't need to go mad and buy just for the sake of buying. That would be just silly.

I just found this article. Pretty relevent I thought
http://football.guardian.co.uk/breakingnews/feedstory/0,,-6636967,00.html

Drog wins the Golden Boot award.(H)
http://www.teamtalk.com/football/story/0,16368,2483_2130675,00.html

well, back from exams, and haven't been able to watch Chelsea play since that penalty loss to Liverpool....the season just ended and i have to say that this one has been the most exciting season for me....we were in it for the quadruple last month but it wasn't to be....looking forward to the Cup final and congrats to Utd on the Premiership, u guys won it in style too......too bad thats the only trophy you'll get this season...hehehehhe

transfer news: It seems like Crespo wants to stay at Inter, so we'll still be short on striking options unless someone else comes in....

Ballack to return to Bayern?!


Ballack has flattered to deceive at current employers Chelsea since signing last summer.

Some sources in the capital suggest there is resentment in the Blues camp given Ballack’s bank-busting salary.

Now the midfield star could be sacrificed by Jose Mourinho in the transfer window.

Bundesliga giants Bayern are ready to lure their former star player back to Germany – and Mourinho could give the green light for the shock switch to go through.

-------------------

Ballack to return to Bayern?!


Ballack has flattered to deceive at current employers Chelsea since signing last summer.

Some sources in the capital suggest there is resentment in the Blues camp given Ballack’s bank-busting salary.

Now the midfield star could be sacrificed by Jose Mourinho in the transfer window.

Bundesliga giants Bayern are ready to lure their former star player back to Germany – and Mourinho could give the green light for the shock switch to go through.

-------------------



meeee, actually i wouldnt mind, my preference in midfield has always been

Robben --Lamps-- Essien --Joe Cole

Riccy has signed a new deal. He deserves it too for his efforts this season. One of the players of the season for me.

http://au.setanta.com/portal/article/football?open&articleid=73f8ba5c4392ac22802572df0073c5fa

I have a travel tournament and have to leave pretty early in the morning so is this game going to be up on some torrent site any time soon?

YEAH!!!!! WE ARE FA CUP CHAMPIONS!!!!!
We were the last team to win at Wembley and now the first team to win at the New Wembley!!! Drogba again the hero after some neat play with Lamps!!!!
Bring on the 2007/2008 season!!!!

great WIN,first half was quite boring with both sides hesitant to attack first but mourinho did well to bring on robben and that made the game very interesting.
What a fitting end of the season for Drogba the best chelsea player this season along with Essien.....hats off to the Mighty Blues

Congratulations.

congratulations
you deserve the win

Pretty cagey game all in all. Anyone expecting anything different must live in fantasy land. I enjoyed it though. I enjoyed watching the two teams trying to break each other down. There was more at stake in this than just the F.A. Cup.

I thought the Chelsea defence dealt well with their attackers. They played the offside very well. Ronaldo was nowhere all the game, as was Giggs. I thought we worked harder and looked a little fitter than them, especially as the game went on, and Drogs goal was a beaut. A lovely passing move with a sharp one-two between Lamps and Drog who cooly chiped the ball past Van der Sar.

If you want a laugh, go to the match thread and read the posts from the Mancs. Very sore losers with a list of excuses and accusations that will make you wet yourselves laughing.

FA Cup winners 2006/2007. League Cup winners 2006/2007. Two trophy's. Thats one more trophy than anyone else in the EPL can win this season. The League title would have been nice too but hey, it's not fair to win it every year is it.:)

Thanks Chelsea for a great season. Makes me proud to be a supporter.(Y)

congratulations
you deserve the win

Thanks mate. It is appreciated.(Y)

Congrats on winning the FA Cup.

Although I cant say you deserve it, we pretty much cancel each other out.

We're takin the community shield this year, another game to look forward to.

Well done blues. Winning 2 out of the 3 domestic trophys is quite an accomplishment. Will a little luck you could have done the treble, but Man U had a rythm of their own this season. I still believe that Ballack and Sheva needed a year to adapt. This season if allowed to do their thing Chelsea will be on top again.

'Sheva and Ballack will stay'
http://soccernet-akamai.espn.go.com/design05/images/PH2/shevball.jpg GettyImages
Shevchenko and Ballack: Not exactly setting the Premiership on fire.

FA Cup winners Chelsea expect to sell three players in the close season but they will not include Andriy Shevchenko or Michael Ballack, the club's chief executive said on Sunday. Peter Kenyon said: 'It's not going to happen [selling Shevchenko and Ballack]. We brought both these players in for three, four years, we didn't bring them in for a season and we knew fully well what their capabilities are.' [+] (http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=431860&cc=%)

Puts an end to those rumours. I don't know about the ones with Robben though. If Arjen leaves, we'll have almost no width in attack for next year and wingers will be on the transfer list. Did anyone notice yesterday how sh it SWP's finishing was. I've played with guys who can pass and cross bettter than him.

Great season for Chelsea this one. 2 cups, 2nd place in league and Semi's in Champions, perhaps knocked out by the champions, as happened in the two previous years. I'm proud, too, of being a Chelsea supporter.

So, who do you think will be coming in and who out? Kenyon said that it'd be about 3 in either direction, so my bets are on Ben-Haim, Sidwell, and Tevez in. I have no idea on who to go out, because I can't think of someone who deserved to leave for whatever reason.

Geremi and Robben may well be two of the guys leaving. I heard that Bridge might but if he had, then he'd be gone by now so he's probably staying. I wouldn't be surprised if one of the RBs like Bhoularouz leaves.

Coming in, Alex (defender) and maybe another defender or right back. Probably one striker and hopefully a winger.

Well it looks like Sidwell is definately coming. As for 3 players moving out, I just don't know. I don't think one of them will be Arjen though. Kenyon said we want a central defender, a midfield player and a striker, no mention of a winger needed. Maybe Geremi or/and Khalid will move out or it could be a player on the fringes like Johnson. If any of the first team squad want out I would be very surprised.

Glad that Kenyon has stated that Sheva and Ballack are staying though. Next season I predict Sheva will rip every team in the EPL a new a.s.s hole. That will shut up the idiots once and for all. Although I suppose the media will find something else thats negative to write about Chelsea but thats become normal now. It must be very frustrating for them to see all their best efforts at destabilising the club come to nothing time after time. Fu<king scum.

Agree with the Shevchenko issue, Some players just take longer to adapt then others. I can see him being brilliant next year "Form is temporary class is permanent".

i think sheva will make damager but i dont know bout Ballack, hopefully im wrong bout ballack

of all the fu<king CB's in the world not Ben-Haim he is not world class or Chelsea material for that matter, Alex, Terry, Ricky, Boulla and maybe one more is enough. we need a striker and i hope we get Crespo back he has been a beast of a finisher lately.

Sidwell's come in, i wonder how he'll fit in knowing the likes of Mikel, Essien, Lampard, Ballack , Makelele ahead of him......Alex would provide brilliant backup in case either John or Riccy is injured....the striking department is that worries, we need a striker with pace and mobility as well as finishing, Sheva's past 30 and Drogba is the more robust type, someone like Torres or Villa would do perfect.

Btw, Shaun's done pretty well for us this season, if it weren't for him and his '$hitty' finishing, we wouldn't have been in the FA Cup final to begin with so give him break.....i thought he was decent in the final as well apart from the opening chance that he missed...

Alex to Chelsea isnt at all sure at the moment. Mourinho told him Terry and Carvalho will be the 1st choice (although I do think Alex is way better than Carvalho), and Alex isnt waiting to be a back-up. I think he'll be sold to another team, Milan or something.

[QUOTE=PSVFOREVER;2329931](although I do think Alex is way better than Carvalho), QUOTE]

Then you havent watched any Chelsea game this season, he was there best player alongside Drogba this year, i cant belive you would say Alex is WAY Better...

Then you havent watched any PSV games this season, he was our best player, and when he got injured, our defense collapsed. And yes, I have watched Chelsea quite some times this season, and still, I dont think Carvalho is of the same quality as Alex.

thats fine, mate.....every opinion counts, and should Alex come to Chelsea I hope he's as good as u say he is cuz I haven't really watched PSV games this season but I know that Chelsea do still own him and I think he stated himself that he wants to go to Chelsea....

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=426674&&cc=4716

Ben Haim is good and ok in Premiership but not the greatest of players so I'd agree. Signing Sidwell is going to be great and all but it confuses me that we'd buy another central sort of midfielder, maybe Makelele's retiring or something, I don't know.

I'm looking at who United is signing and Hargreaves seems to be the only name who is prominent while Liverpool are really pushing for Tevez, a player who we should be targeting but Torres is more attainable now and I hope that he realizes that he made a mistake by staying with Atletico so long.

Chelsea join Real in the race to sign £40m Tevez
By Jason Burt
Published: 21 May 2007

Chelsea have entered the bidding to sign Carlos Tevez although they are facing strong competition from Real Madrid. The two clubs are the only ones to have made serious inquiries about the 23-year-old Argentine, although West Ham United are hoping he will stay at Upton Park for at least one more season.


http://sport.independent.co.uk/football/premiership/article2565071.ece

I'd be a little surprised if its true that Chelsea are after Tevez. Don't get me wrong, he is a fantastic bundle of energy and skill that would grace any club and I like him a hell of a lot. I just don't see Roman wanting to cough up another 40 million for a player. I hope he does though because Tevez has earned the accollades he has recieved this season. It must have been tough for the guy but he has worked really hard and has been the saviour of West Ham. He also strikes me as a very likeable bloke too. It might prove difficult to get Tevez if Real Madrid are interested though. Playing for them just has to be very tempting for a Latino striker don't you think?

Alex is just great IMO, but he would not be first choice center back at Chelsea. After signing a new 5 year deal, I would think Riccy and JT are the first choice central pairing. Although if he understands about our "squad ethic", then there should not be a problem with him in that respect. If he wants a guarentee to play every game then he will be better off not coming at all. I don't know about him being way better than Carvalho though. Although it would be a close run race between the two of them I think.

Don't know enough about Ben Haim to have an opinion. Torres does not impress me at all I'm afraid. Maybe I've watched all the wrong games.

Then you havent watched any PSV games this season, he was our best player, and when he got injured, our defense collapsed. And yes, I have watched Chelsea quite some times this season, and still, I dont think Carvalho is of the same quality as Alex.

When Alex is an integral part of a team who won the Uefa Cup and the Champions League and one of the prime figures in a Nt that reaches the Final of the European Championship (this one he can´t since he is brazilian :p) and the Semi´s of a World Cup, i will call him better. So what he was an important player in Psv, Carvalho has been equally important in all the teams he has played. Just go to the CSR to see that the fans consider that he was the best defender in the club this year.

By a mile(Y)

Mind you i consider Alex a terrific defender and trully an asset for Chelsea, but Carvalho has been playing consistently well for Porto, our Nt and Chelsea (specially this last season, in the first two Terry was the best defender in the World). I doubt that Alex is superior to Carvalho by judging their carreers in Europe (although Alex was a rock at Santos, watched alot of games in Rede Record) but i can revise my opinion after watching an integral Alex season at Chelsea.

Alex is going to get plenty of action when we pick up injuries and if we're going for a quadruple or treble next year. Can he play full back?

I still think Carvalho is no competition for Alex. I have to admit, Alex is more the Terry type. So an Alex-Terry central defense maybe wouldnt work out. Alex as a full back would be a joke.

man this is gonna be interesting.... Alex is a personal fave for me, i just love the guy hes done some great sutff, same with Carvalhoo , Terry this year hasnt been as solid as years past. But dammnnn this gonna be something to watch. But hey with competition in the back i think this can make or Defence very strong

Taken from wikipedia.com
Alex has not been able to play for Chelsea due to his lack of caps for the Brazilian national team. Work permit rules in England requires that a non-EU (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EU) player must have played in 75% of his country's international games in the last two years. Until this is resolved, Alex's stay at PSV seems likely. PSV Eindhoven are currently looking for an option to sign the defender from Chelsea.

What kind of a dumb rule is this. If a top football club like Chelsea wants to sign a player like this, they should be allowed to without these sort of beuracratic problems. Anyways, Shev shouldn't have gone out to the media and talked of how he would like to play for an MLS side some day, specially now of all times.

Taken from wikipedia.com
Alex has not been able to play for Chelsea due to his lack of caps for the Brazilian national team. Work permit rules in England requires that a non-EU (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EU) player must have played in 75% of his country's international games in the last two years. Until this is resolved, Alex's stay at PSV seems likely. PSV Eindhoven are currently looking for an option to sign the defender from Chelsea.

What kind of a dumb rule is this. If a top football club like Chelsea wants to sign a player like this, they should be allowed to without these sort of beuracratic problems. Anyways, Shev shouldn't have gone out to the media and talked of how he would like to play for an MLS side some day, specially now of all times.

im think chelsea will be able to land alex , Alex himself said that his agent has talked to chelsea and assured him

as for the sheva thing ur right but he was asked that question if ever wanted to play for the MLS , and we kno sheva is a polite guy and so he answered that question with the best of intentions and im sure chelsea kno dat as well. :mexican::mexican:

yeah...typical of the media to ask questions that they know would unsettle Chelsea, they probably shoved the mic in his face and asked him!!!
About Torres, I know he's quality since I watched a lot of La Liga highlights over the years and he's a gifted player and a good finisher as well, but i doubt he'll come to Chelsea since he's strongly attached to Atletico.....Villa too i think....Most of these spanish players prefer playing in their own league, ask Del Horno & Reyes!!!

Arjen Robben close to signing a new 5 year deal

http://www.premiershiplatest.com/news/robben-close-to-signing-new-deal-with-bl-552824.html

and it looks like it might indeed be Maka thats leaving

http://www.chelsea.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=66586

sounds like you guys have signed ex gunner Sidwell


What are your thoughts on this?

i think sidwell is great for cover

I'm sure Chelsea fans will welcome him a lot, once Essien will be gone for the ANC.

listening to some of you guys talk about possible signings is hilarious,, some guy said "Carvalho, Terry, Alex, Boulahrouz and another centre back", maybe you can go for Nesta or Puyol,, just so you know that the carling cup is locked up again:nape:

Chelsea needs NOBODY, theyre the most stacked team in the world, if anything, you have too many quality players then you need. When a guy like Robben is deemed surplus to requirements, then you know your owner has gone a bit over board


by the way, I travelled to the future and uncovered this story from the january 08 transfer window...

'Sidwell loaned out to mid level English side'

well, this is a Chelsea thread and we're not the only team talking about potential transfers in the summer.....

Yeah Mikey, you're pretty dumb. Chelsea's a team that wants to win every trophy and it's near impossible with the current squad unless we don't have any injuries. Most teams have three or four CBs at the least while we only have two. They also have wingers but we only have two and one of them is always injured. We've been lucky with strikers but if Drogba and Schev get injured, we're in trouble. You can't have enough cover as you saw with Cech and Cudicini getting injured.
People think that our team is stacked and laugh when we lose, but you can't laughed yet because our squad isn't complete.

Maka likley to stay


Fri, 25th May 2007

Contrary to reports about Claude Makelele's future at Chelsea Football Club, both the player and the club have the following statements.


Makelele said: "I have one year to run on my contract with Chelsea FC and I am not looking to leave. The comments that have been made on my behalf have not been authorised by me and the individual making them is not my agent."


A Chelsea statement said: "We have not had any offers for Claude and we are not looking for any offers."

Yeah I saw that on the news tonight. Cool news indeed. I like ol' Maka.

I love how you're all Blue but your user name is Mannu. Anyways, I read that we now have an option to sign PSV defender de Costa and are looking into Chimbonda? He's proven himself in teh Prem and could break the team right away but I'm still not sure.

Steve Sidwell

WHY?

'cos he was free I guess.

Fair enough

I hope he enjoys the reserve league :)

lol steve will def be a sub no doubt... hes a quality cover but im sure he'll start a few games. Unless, thiers always the possibility of him playing amazingggg soo its gonna be cool

We all know that the real reason is that Man U wanted him and we just wanted to steal him :-)

Sidwell the new Lampard?
Former Reading midfielder Steve Sidwell will win Michael Ballack's Chelsea starting slot and then become a Chelsea legend, according to former Royals team-mate James Harper. (Sunday Mirror)

hahaha thats a little overboard.:junior:

their has been allot of rumors linking Claude to Villarreal good to hear it from the man him self, i hope he gets a contract extension i think he will be good till 2009/2010.

yeah Chelsea are willing to give him a two yr extension but thats only if he retires from international duties, and right now he doesnt want to retire because he has alot of pride about France. So he'l just get one yr

You gotta admire a player who doesn't turn his back on his country for his club I think. It shows character, which we all know Maka has plenty of. If he accepts a one year deal that will allow him to still play for France, then that has to be commended. At the end of next season Chelsea will most likely offer him another year anyway, once the powers that be see how he plays next season. Lets face it, nobody can doubt his ability on the pitch. OK he is getting older and has been critisized for being a little slower of late, but Maka never did need to run fast did he. He's still got what it takes as far as I am concerned.

Essien was bought as cover for Makelele, and we can always have someone doing the defensive duties. But until we have him, why not use him to p*ss od the likes of ronaldo...hehe

Hi jatin.......

anyone heard anything about Chelsea being interested in Pizzaro from Bayern? I heard he might come to Chelsea on a free transfer. Don't know how true it is though. I'm still trawling the net for info.

Hi jatin.......

anyone heard anything about Chelsea being interested in Pizzaro from Bayern? I heard he might come to Chelsea on a free transfer. Don't know how true it is though. I'm still trawling the net for info.

YES I heard that as well, i think Pizzaro would be great

No, trust me he wouldn't. He's not going to score a great amount of goals and we need a finishing striker right now, not the attacking midfield forward variety.

What do you think of Manchester's new signings? I'm hoping that those will be the only ones or you reckon they'll go for a defender?

Man Utd pulled off a crazzyyy double, i think they will be goin for another defender with big rumors on Heinze goin to Juve so they probably gonna replace him w/ someone btu dont know who,
I think the african cup of nations gonaa hurt US ALOT next season, United dont even have ne African players so they'll be good to go while we have to deal with Essien, Mikel, Drogba, Kalou, that WILL HURT BIG TIME. so thats why i think Pizzaro would be good he'' be decent cover.

African Nations Cup last only like what? a month? That's only 4 EPL games for you, i don't think it will be as bad as Mourinho tries to make it. You got Alex for defense, Sidwell for midfield and you'll get a forward and you won't feel a bite.

wasn't their doubt that Alex will be able to play for us next season or something.

Nah, I'm pretty sure he's able to play the coming season.

GREAT ALEX Compilation ..wow
http://youtube.com/watch?v=yCtajORU6Bo

I think he might start over Carvalho, its gonna be tough choice for Mourinho

Kezman looks amazing in a compilation..

Yeah, your mom would look good in a compilation vid so you can't judge players on them. Carvalho's consistent so I and Mourinho isn't the sort of guy that takes out a defender like that right away on the merit that someone in the same position is playing well. Alex is gonna have to prove himself, or wait for someone to get injured, the more likely scenario.

just heart reports that Pizarro will join the blues on a 50,000 week salary :S not sure and also we lookin to sign Benni McCarthy as well, so these are the rumors i heard today

Benni McCarthy sounds good but African Nations Cup! i would love to have him at Chelsea tho hes got a good never say die attitude and hes been banging in goals professionally and even at an international level since he was 17 so no problems with him not scoring but then again its only a rumor. but the Pizzaro situation is a puzzling one never heard anything about him joining Chelsea.

so the PIzzaro signing is confirmed, according to numerous reports, i think hes a quality cover, and will be a great addition , we def wont have the same injury problems next yr,
http://www.goal.com/en/articolo.aspx?contenutoid=317664
Also hear Bayern will get Boula for 3.5 million, so as expected he is on his way out .
3 PLAYERS to the Bridge so far --- PRICE: $0 , Chelsea are very close to breaking even on thier spending and thats great

Congrats to Chelsea then.

I dont' really know how I feel about that. If he's going to be a 3rd or 4th order striker then fine but I'd have more faith in Schev. This probably means though that we won't be making a big name striker signing this summer and Johnson should be coming back but he's a poor quality RB, even in comparison to Bhoularouz.

why are you always complaining? Pizzaro is a good enough striker who needs a big name signing this is not Madrid, i would rather have a Pizzaro rather than have our club spend a 100 mil on Villa. we already have Shev, Drog, Kalou and now Pizzaro thats good enough. any one know anything about Crespo's situation?

Crespo's staying at Inter for next season so his Blue career is pretty much over. And I honestly would have rather had him than Pizarro but he just didn't want to play with us.

I guess the management is still giving Sheva a Chance, hes a big signing, and getting another striker would be like a slap on his face, but if he doesnt perform till January, i guess we will need to search for alternatives.

And apart from defenders, i dont think we ever had any problems for cover, with the midfield we have- Lamps, ballack, essien, mikel, wright phillips, joe cole, robben and now sidwell..who else do we supposedly need??

i really think sheva will pull up his socks this season and play his best for the team
Our support will always be with him

Our team from last year is good enough to win all the competitions....all we have to do now is plug up the gaps due to injury and I think Jose is going in the right direction by bringing sidwell & Pizarro

rumors of Intermilan offering Adriano for Sheva ......... very very interesting considerin Adriano is also 6 yrs younger

I think thats a rumour for the bin.

I wish the media would just lay off the bulls.h.it Sheva stories though. It is tedious to say the least.

I know most would be disagreeing right now, but I'd honestly rather have Schev. I'm confident that he has it in him to perform in the Premiership. Adriano isn't consistent and Brazilian attackers don't fare well in the Premiership anyways. Adriano's lost it this year.

Adriano's a different type of Brasilian attacker, look how big he is, it would take him a little bit to adapt to the pace of the game, but I think he'd do better than Shevchenko did this year.

i agree with Kulixs, Adriano is not ur usual brazilian striker, hes like 6'3 and very built and very aggressive and would adapt to the prem much faster than sheva, he did bad this yr cuz of his fitness problems, but with mourinhos fitness plans he would be top notch and also hes 6 YEARS younger , Sheva has more quality thats without a doubt i just think Adrianos potential is stilll waiting to be tapped. Short term sheva would be the choice ... but definitley for the long term Adriano would be great choice

Looks like Real Madrid are trying sign Robben.....Still keeping faith in him since he said himself that he wanted to stay......

Chelsea have reported Real Madrid to Fifa for an illegal approach to Robben.

I think this is just Calderon talking big to back up his election promises. He wants Fabrigas, Robben and Kaka. It looks like he will be dissapointed on all three counts.

As for Sheva, he's staying with us. How he performs next season is more important than his performances last season. Saying that, I personally do not think he had as bad a season as some would like to make out. For his first season in the EPL after playing for so long in Italy, and playing to Jose's strict instructions, I thought he did pretty well considering. His goals were important goals and his all round contribution has gone pretty much unrecognised. I'm looking forward to watching him again next season.

I'd take Adriano over Sheva in a heartbeat Pete. But yet again i am not Russian and neither am i a billionaire. :(

Nah....me neither mate :)

Well lets have them both then. Problem solved:)

Please tell me that these rumours about us signing Marko Pantelic for 2.7 million are lies.

Please tell me that these rumours about us signing Marko Pantelic for 2.7 million are lies.

No idea at all. I saw that in the Times but nowhere else since. Pantelic has sure been around a bit, but I think Jose could see him as a striker who will be happy being part of the squad, and not someone who's gonna moan that he wants to play every game. He's pretty much played off the bench for the games that he's had for Herta. He averages about a goal every other game. Not bad really, and he is cheap. Ifits true then I guess Jose must see something in him that he likes. We'll have to wait and see.

Arjens Dad has stated that his son is going to sign for Chelsea for 5 more years........
http://sport.independent.co.uk/football/european/article2636193.ece

There's a bit in there regarding Malouda. He has to choose he says, between Chelsea and Liverpool and no other club. I heard tonight that he has turned down Liverpool. :)

I can understand why Chelsea would pick up Pizarro for free. He has CL experience, has potential and is used to not being a starter week in week out. But Pantelic? You're having a laugh.

Well if he is that bad, then I would expect the rumour to be.......just a rumour.:)

It looks like strong rumors of us chasing malouda, dont know, if he does come, does this mean a sign for Robben

SO WE GOT BEN HAIM, Solid defensive cover

SO WE GOT BEN HAIM, Solid defensive cover

AND he was free:mexican:

Yeah..just saw that on the Chelsea Website..short and sweet:
"Chelsea Football Club can confirm we have completed the signing of Tal Ben Haim."

i hope he will be used more often..especially in the carling cup and Fa cups...

And whats with the yellow away kit..if anyone just saw the pic on the Chelsea site, i bet i thought the person to the left of terry was Cambell!!..haha

The new Chelsea away jersey...looks pretty cool, reminds me of Barca. I wonder what color the shorts are going to be

http://site.worldsoccershophosting.com/tmp/launchsmall.jpg

So... No Alex?

Great to see that Ben-Haim signed for us, I've been waiting all year for this. Has anyone else noticed that although we've signed 4 players, we've not spent a dime?

So... No Alex?

yeah we still getting Alex, chelsea workin on gettin him a work permit, but he is for sure coming and i believe when Alex comes he'll be the last of them.

Well the pic on the site now shows them with the shorts..dey r black...

Great to see that Ben-Haim signed for us, I've been waiting all year for this. Has anyone else noticed that although we've signed 4 players, we've not spent a dime?

yes , 4 quality players for free , im gonna be really interested to see when the new football club total profit stat comes out, last year chelsea reduced thier expenses and this year for sure as well and i think we will reach the projected goal of Breaking even in the near future which is very good, when we can use the money of revenue instead of Abramovich pocket it shows great direction of the club in the future and Abramovich is very keen on this happenin (H)

Actually, the paperwork cost more than a fiver I bet plus all the money on transportation.

In all seriousness though, anyone else notice and think it strange that all three deals under investigation involving us occurred when we bought players from French clubs (Rennes, Marseille, Lyon) ?

The latest on Alex.
http://goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=330933

I heard this Serbian young defender or something who we bought a while back is gonna be loaned to PSV for this season, to cover Alex's departure, for me, that confirms that he's coming.

Sweet, our UEFA seeding just went up into the top 8.

Just what we've been waiting for. :sun:

Well well well - Chelski finally get a top seed in the champions league.....

"As the Stamford Bridge side had only qualified for the tournament once - in 1999 - before 2003, their ranking - which is based upon a team's results over five years, as well as the ranking of their national association - had kept them out of the elite group".

Ah the memories.

Distant though they might be huh?:wootman:

Good news for us. Looks like we won't lose Mikel for the African Nations Cup.
http://www.sportinglife.com/football/premiership/chelsea/news/story_get.dor?STORY_NAME=soccer/07/06/21/SOCCER_Mikel.html&TEAMHD=chelsea

Sounds like the Nigerian FA throwing their toys out of the pram again.

They're probably regretting that decision to suspend him now. I bet you that they were on their period while they decided to supsend him.

Any chance on Drogba and Essien being suspended, as well?

hopefully

Looks like we getting Alexandra Pato from Internacional, the "Duck" really good player 17 yrs old . impresssivvvee, but 18 million POUNDS, damnnn man thats messed ONLY for chelsea do they inflate the price.

Also just thot of this with Henry leaving GALLAS might be feelin like **** haha he said he wanted to go a club with a lot of oppertunity and boy did this move bite him on the back of the ass or what haha.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=JvgS7AM5e1M

Pato clip

noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo hes going to get ruined with out playing time

Pato is amazing from what I've heard. But the squad is huge . . .

Loan him to PSV? :p

Loan him to PSV? :p

hahah exactly

Nah, reports say if he' signed that he's going to stay at Internacional until December when the Brazilian league ends, or possibly till the start of next season.

Speaking of PSV, anymore news on Alex? Gone a bit quite since the move was first mooted a while back.

Nah, squad isn't huge. I can finally say that we have a complete team in terms of positions but it'd be nice to bring in a winger or two. SWP and Robben are the only real wingers we have and there's Joe Cole but he's more of a central player. Plus Robben and Cole are injury prone.