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I think we played fairly well. Delap was frustrated, he is too slow. Neto did not show up. Andrey Santos IMO isnβt yet fully integrated, but he did the job. Our substitutes Joao Pedro & Madueke were superb. I wasnβt sure about Pedro but he looked already comfortable. Good techniques, held the ball really well.
We are in the semifinal !!!!
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And Estevao looked really decent! A fantastic player, he was everywhere and what a goal
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I hadn’t watched much of Brighton’s football and didn’t realise that Joao Pedro predominantly a central striker who leads the line, and has also featured across the front three during his career, playing on either wing, as well as occasionally dropping deeper to play as a No10. Well he surely plays in place of Delap in the semi final. He was impressive when he came on as was, to be fair, Madueke. Just what we needed in that 2nd half.
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Must admit was never a Maresca fan but this guy is turning out to be a semi genuis even though I rarely agree with any of his starting lineups. But then again they there with the players almost 7 days a week so they should know better than us, having said that expect ups and downs as happens with all coaches/managers even the very best.
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I don’t think we can call Maresca genius (or semi genius) yet. He delivered what was demanded (UCL qualification + Conference League) but I think he still has long way to achieve genius status.
I have to say that I’m impressed by Fluminense. Their defense is composed by captain Thiago Silva (40 years old) & their GK (44 years old). Yet it’s just so solid, impenetrable. I expect us to win this semi-final but if they manage to score early: I think they will frustrate us and they will steal a second goal from a counter attack. The key for this match is really a good defense from our side. As long as we don’t concede, we are the younger team, we’ll find a way to score somehow. Like Gusto’s goal against Palmeiras for example. But I reckon it’s easier said than done with Levi Colwill suspended. Tosin + Chalobah IMO won’t form a solid partnership, Tosin is too slow and Chalobah doesn’t have Colwill’s technical attributes. Not sure if Badiashile if available for this match, but I prefer Tosin + Chalobah than him.
Reece James should be back from injury I think. Not sure about Lavia, any news? And Caicedo is back from suspension. We’ll miss Delap to suspension but we have Jackson & Joao Pedro. I would prefer Joao Pedro as he looks better equipped to unlock a defensive Fluminense but my feeling is that Maresca will start Jackson
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Tbh not expecting a win today, those high forecasted temperatures will seriously favour Fluminese plus people underestimate them, they are a very good team in more recent times. Didn’t really expect us to even make the semi finals although losing one game in the league stage actually favoured us. Also think we have a couple of key players out in Colwill and Delap. Juan Pedro is not a striker so unfortunately Jackson will probably start. Tosin is more than an able replacement for Colwill. He should be starting ahead of all the other centre halves.
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Jackson should be converted back into a left wing/left inside forward role which is what he played at Villareal. He’s actually quite effective cutting in from the left and dribbling. He’s never going to be a target man/back to the goal type of CF which is what we’ve missed for a long time now.
We should beat Fluminense – we shouldn’t be losing to any South American club but I share the same concerns as Blueisbest; we’ve been hopeless at unlocking defences and I’ve seen no improvement in the last 6 months in this regard. A low block is all you need to be in with a chance against us.
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Blueisbest, I don’t think we can escape of being the favorite here. Not a chance Fluminense with a much smaller bugdet would be more favorite than us for this match. But agreed, it will be a very difficult match. Their defense IMO is incredibly tight. And their coach already said that it would be a game of chess. Maresca being a fairly young manager would probably be outsmarted by a more senior tactician like their coach.
More I think, more I intend to start Jackson to evaluate how he has learned from his red cards, and also how he will fare against a strong defense. We can always play Joao Pedro as an impact substitute. He just came from holiday and I don’t think he is ready yet to play 90 min under the heat (it will be 3 PM here, so it will be very hot). Their players are not young, so Pedro coming in fresh at 55th min would give us a lot of boost. I am not convinced with Tosin against this kind of technical opposition. I think he will be exposed, you’ll see. Their players are accustomed to the heat, and they are quick and skillful. Colwill & Chalobah would have been the better pairing, but Colwill is suspended. And any news about Wesley Fofana??
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Maresca is a 1 trick pony from what I have seen, so a game of chess doesn’t suit him. Having a young, fit and hungry squad does suit us in this game though. With increased numbers of substitutions allowed these days, having a larger squad gives us an edge because we can send on a legion of young, fast and fit players.
Fofana – let him rest. He’ll get injured if we play him; the plan was never for him to return in the CWC.
Anyway, we need the money that getting into the final provides, for PSR. Annoying though, that PSR features in our minds nearly as much as other things in football these days.
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Indeed we need the money. And this cash-cow tournament IMO works well for our needs. In case we win, playing the final will get us +USD 30.0 million. (from FIFA website, so it’s official). It’s a handsome amount for a club battling with PSR. Not sure how many substitutes allowed, I think 6? Hence my idea to start Jackson first. He can run, he will tire Thiago Silva. And 55th -60th min: introduce Joao Pedro to unlock their defense. As long as we keep a clean sheet, I am optimistic we’ll score from somewhere. Maresca can be a one trick pony but his strategy to unleash Joao Pedro & Madueke proved successful in the quarter final. So I hope that this time he will have a strategy too to face Fluminense. Fluminense coach said that they would play possession, IMO it’s b**lsh*t. They will play defensive and counter. Maresca needs to anticipate their counter attacks
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Starting to resemble Rugby a bit – allowing teams to substitute half your entire starting XI with people who are fresh in the last 20 minutes has changed Rugby altogether. ‘Finishers’ they get called in Rugby. I don’t think it’s a bad thing but it’s interesting to observe and recognise.
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Confirmed starting 11: Chelsea: Sanchez; Gusto, Tosin, Chalobah, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Pedro Neto, Nkunku, Palmer; Joao Pedro
So Joao Pedro starts. I don’t understand about playing Nkunku. We want to sell him, don’t we? Why keep starting him? He did not even start that often in the league. Why didn’t Maresca select Madueke instead and playing Palmer as no:10? Or even better, start Jackson as no:9 and Pedro as no:10 behind him if we really want an attacking formation. I think with suspensions and injuries, apart Nkunku, other starting players are kinda self explanatory.
Personal preference, I would have preferred a more defensive approach as their counter attacks are lethal. Caicedo can defend but Enzo not so much. Probably we could have played Andrey Santos and Caicedo as DM and Enzo would occupy the no:10 with Palmer on the right & Neto on the left.
I still don’t understand Nkunku’s selection.
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Caicedo looks injured. It doesnβt look good IMO. I itβs not that bad. Palmer is frustrated. Joao Pedro was fantastic. 2 goals basically individual efforts
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Congratulations guys in reaching the Final; Super Stuff. Real or PSG; Gonna be a cracking one Tomorrow Night.
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Great financially and also has other rewards even though some don’t rate the competition. Don’t expect us to beat either RM or PSG in the final but nevertheless still a very successful and rewarding tournament for the club. Just take care with the injuries.
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I have a feeling that they are playing Nkunku hoping to put him in the shop window on a good performance and get a few quid for him. Can’t think of any other reason. Pedro, just wow, what a way to introduce oneself to the fans of his new club. We have a gem. Once he, Neto and Palmer start working together over a period of time it is going to be exciting. We need something special to happen to win this thing because PSG and Real Madrid are both a level or two above us right now. Not withstanding, it is vital Caicedo is fit just so we can avoid a healthy beating. That mid-field without him is a scary thought.
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Nkunku did nothing of any significance while Jacksons cameo was a small disaster, need to offload both, don’t know though who will want them.
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Can’t understand why they upload so many players. They making losses on all of them. Someone asked do those SD’S really know what they doing? Wonder myself.
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If I could choose, Iβd prefer PSG in the final. Champions League winner vs Conference League winner. A winner against another winner in the final.
And no, I am under no illusion that we can win. Both of them are class above us. But stranger things happened.
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Aindro, I’m pleased we made the final. I said earlier that with the draw we had it was a minimum (especially with City going out), though of course I had all the same sinking feelings we’re accustomed to with our performances during the last season.
However, we delivered, and we have a set of players that seem to be building affinity and developing a character at the squad level.
Even if we lose, we can go into the new season with optimism.
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