[Ed de Goey]

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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[Ed de Goey]

I like Felix, I think it would be an error to let him go. The goals he did score were quality and we have a lot of games next season; we can’t field a 2nd XI as we did in the Conference League last season. I expect him to go, but I just think it’s a shame because he possesses quality.

As for Madueke, if the club get lowballed then we tell Arsenal where to go. He is under contract until June 30, 2031. No reason to accept a low price, especially as he is 23. I suspect we can extract a decent fee from Arsenal, they’ve gone to the trouble of settling personal terms with him already.

We don’t want to fall down the United rabbit hole of getting ripped off when we try to sell players, and to be fair to the management we’re well-positioned to avoid this as the players aren’t on crazy Sancho/Rashford style wages.

• This reply was modified 1 year, 3 months ago by Ed de Goey.
• This reply was modified 1 year, 3 months ago by Ed de Goey.
• This reply was modified 1 year, 3 months ago by Ed de Goey.

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[Ed de Goey]

Callum Wilson and Jordan Pickford would be good additions.

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[Ed de Goey]

I’ve never been convinced about Madueke, his decision making and final product always tends to leave a lot to be desired. If we can skin Arsenal then we should sell.

On another note, we have made about 65m from the CWC.

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[Ed de Goey]

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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[Ed de Goey]

I don’t want to be the new Chris451 (where is Chris by the way???) but we should be in the final given the route and opposition. We have to think and believe like a big team. Otherwise we fall into a doom spiral of ‘we’re in transition’ and then accept mediocrity each year, and chase the Conference League and Cup competitions.

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[Ed de Goey]

Alfie, it’s quite possible that these victims came forward some time after the alleged incidents. Partey may also have been arrested and let go within a short time frame on bail, and not been, obviously, under investigation as far as Arsenal are concerned. When you get arrested, your employer doesn’t get informed automatically. I’m more interested in him getting convicted than whether Arsenal had the bad fortune of hiring a deviant. And I’m Chelsea fan.

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[Ed de Goey]

From a Chelsea supporter, but more importantly a lifelong Football fan, my heart goes out to the Jota family with respect to Diogo and Andre’s untimely passing away. Diogo recently tied the knot with his wife; Diogo has 3 young children and it’s totally heartbreaking for this to happen. I wish their family peace, happiness, and health in the years to come. RIP Diogo and Andre.

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[Ed de Goey]

Killy – the fact you’d struggle to sell him for 50-60, isn’t Kudus fault. It’s the management at United’s fault, present and past sadly.

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[Ed de Goey]

A sound analogy, and thanks for the welcome.

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[Ed de Goey]

Aindro, Joao Pedro is less of a CF than Jackson is.

I agree mostly with your loan list, but I get a sense that Essugo, Santos and Sarr might be retained. A lot of games this season and with the CL you can’t afford to send out the 2nd XI as we did for most of the Conference league.

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[Ed de Goey]

By the way, a bit of a hello to the Chelsea posters. Over many years I dipped into the Teamtalk forum to gauge the discussion and mood without contributing myself. I tried to join the Teamtalk forum a few times over the last few years but the register process was broken and even in dialogue with the site admin, it wasn’t possible.

My first game – Chelsea/Forest in 1994 – Spencer got the winner in a 1-0 home victory. Dad surprised me with it all as we had been up in London visiting museums before he took me to the game. Dad was directly in front of Ted Drake when he lifted the 54/55 First Division trophy – and the newspaper clipping is safely stored.

I’ve been out in Hong Kong for almost 10 years so I don’t get to see all the games but stay up/wake up where I can.

Maresca – we looked great and I was excited after that Wolves game. We’ve looked ponderous since then but the team is filled with talent.

Hope to have a good debate with you all. CYOB.

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[Ed de Goey]

Nike – Brighton can book the headline sum straightaway and then spend it as if it were already in their bank account. PSR hasn’t been gamed out properly in the minds of the people who created it, but it could be argued that whilst Chelsea have to spread the cost of their spending over 5 years, the clubs who receive the transfer fee can spend as if they have all the funds available to them today.

How ‘sustainable’ that all is, is another question. The smaller club would still have to spread their payments over a longer period, even if by the book they have the fully received transfer fee available for spending, otherwise they would be illiquid.

The rules definitely aren’t perfect.

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[Ed de Goey]

Jackson flatters to deceive and his finishing is woefully inconsistent. He’s actually much better coming in off the left wing than he is as a centre forward; I also don’t see Joao Pedro as a proper centre forward, so that leaves us with Delap and Guiu (and I would much prefer to see Guiu go out on loan to get decent minutes). The team definitely needs another centre forward.

Asides from that, whichever centre back pairing we go with still lacks a mature and seasoned individual, notwithstanding the talent that some of our CBs have. Colwill could genuinely become world class, but he still needs a few years to mature and would benefit from having a seasoned CB partner. Terry had Desailly, Lebouef, Gallas and Carvalho all before he was 26. Fofana could also be good, but always comes across as rash, and of course often injured.

And it goes without saying that we need a top-class keeper. This is one position where the board should really relent on the whole buying a young keeper with ‘potential’. Keepers can be top class well into their 30s.

Outgoings – need to get rid of Sterling, Nkunku should probably go and Badiashile isn’t needed. I personally wouldn’t miss Madueke but I can’t see him leaving.

Loan outgoings – Guiu, Penders/Slonina, Kellyman, George, Anselmino, would all benefit from consistent game time.

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[Ed de Goey]

I don’t see what Pedro offers over the likes of Nkunku – I wouldn’t consider him an upgrade, nor is he an out and out centre forward. Weird signing. And we’re nowhere nearer getting a world class keeper which is pretty crucial if we’re to kick on this season.

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