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Champions of Europe 2012/13 Thread


Philip Rolfe

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This is such a stupid argument that goes on every year. Mikel is our best DM, even if we signed another Mikel would still have to be part of our squad as we have been short there recently (and had to even play Luiz there). I would like to Chalobah used in rotation with Mikel rather than signing a new player.

Our current strike force is a way larger concern than DM.

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Basically Mikel gets all his stick because nobody sees all the little things he does. Sometimes he makes some silly/sloppy passes and that is all some fans see.

sometimes it's difficult to judge the impact of a player on a team though as a supporter as you always follow the ball round the pitch

you don't always have eye for runs, positioning, marking, coaching, etc. which makes strikers and offensive players more and easier "popular" (well, except the hard-tackling, all-present-physical players / captains)

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Ugh so you are saying since they don't see enough of Mikel they don't know his qualities and are dumb to discount him. Thats simply untrue. Mikel is not good enough for a team like Chelsea. Defo not a starter. Lot better players as have been mentioned.

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You can think he's the best DM at the club (he is) whilst still thinking it's possible to get a decent upgrade on him at the same time. I don't think he's bad at all like some here do, but I do think it's the one position where it's obvious we can strengthen (we are obviously going to buy a striker or play Lukaku so I'm not worried about that position at all).

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Mikel just doesn't please the aesthetes because he's not very agile or dynamic, but for the majority of his Chelsea career he's done what he's been asked very well. He's primarily a simplifier; get the ball, decide what to do with it, do it. He's an excellent passer, he's strong and robust enough to retain possession in combative situations, and he's tactically sound. He's undoubtedly more suited to a different formation than the 4231 stuff we've been playing because the ideal men in that second band are more dynamic than he is, but let's not forget he's had some absolutely stupendous games in that team too, like the CL Final.

He's an undoubted top-tier asset to Chelsea, and has added value under Mourinho if for no other reason than familiarity with his concepts and demands. Yes, there's better players out there than him, but you could say that about most of the squad except Cech, Hazard and Mata probably, but that doesn't mean that your Oscars or your David Luizs or your Ivanovics need replacing either.

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Agree with jmr, the majority of us seem to think whilst he could be improved upon he is still a very good player and the best in his position at the club. If he really wasn't that good then I'm pretty sure he would have gone by now. In his 7 seasons here he has played in 22+ PL games a season.

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Agree with Phil and jmr, Mikel is a very good asset to have, but for the 2 men in a 4-2-3-1 he perhaps lacks the pace and dynamism you would want from the central two. He doesn't need 'replacing' but it's certainly an area we could look at adding to so that we have another option as well as Mikel

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Comparisons with Makelele are probably unfair. Other than in height Mikel is half the player Makelele was; but so are almost all "pure DM"s.

It's the pace of the game that sometimes passes Mikel by, and it's exacerbated by his own horrible lack of pace. I like that Mikel has good awareness of what's around him when he receives the ball (but not so much of his teammates), he shields the ball well and is tactically disciplined. But the reason he seems tactically fine is because he is tactically simple, and I believe instructions had to be simplified for him. e.g. he is unable to track the run of anyone not just in front of him. Makelele saved our asses many a time by being able to see and track the movement of the extra man running in, your Ljundbergs and Gerrards (yes I know, unfair). He is not a great tackler... well it's more the unwillingness to tackle that frustrates me. I know he "stays on his feet" but most times he merely runs alongside (or behind) the opponent. Look at Romeu and Ramires for great willingness to tackle in midfield.

I don't think we need to get rid, and he will have his uses, but I will be happier if we use Romeu and Mikel more equally than if we had Mikel as the regular starter.

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I don't think we need to get rid, and he will have his uses, but I will be happier if we use Romeu and Mikel more equally than if we had Mikel as the regular starter.

What state is Romeu in? As a neutral I thought he looked fantastic initially, before dipping then getting long-term injured.

Is he back to his former self?

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Comparisons with Makelele are probably unfair. Other than in height Mikel is half the player Makelele was; but so are almost all "pure DM"s.

It's the pace of the game that sometimes passes Mikel by, and it's exacerbated by his own horrible lack of pace. I like that Mikel has good awareness of what's around him when he receives the ball (but not so much of his teammates), he shields the ball well and is tactically disciplined. But the reason he seems tactically fine is because he is tactically simple, and I believe instructions had to be simplified for him. e.g. he is unable to track the run of anyone not just in front of him. Makelele saved our asses many a time by being able to see and track the movement of the extra man running in, your Ljundbergs and Gerrards (yes I know, unfair). He is not a great tackler... well it's more the unwillingness to tackle that frustrates me. I know he "stays on his feet" but most times he merely runs alongside (or behind) the opponent. Look at Romeu and Ramires for great willingness to tackle in midfield.

I don't think we need to get rid, and he will have his uses, but I will be happier if we use Romeu and Mikel more equally than if we had Mikel as the regular starter.

And give away needless fouls and get booked ;)

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Any truth to that rumour do you know? Would be sad to see him leave

From Nigerian journalist Colin Udoh:

Just got a call from Mikel re Galatasaray. Says he is aware of the interest, but has not agreed anything yet: 'Nothing like that.'

My take from that Mikel convo is that if Chelsea and Gala agree, he will not be averse to a move if the money is right

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And give away needless fouls and get booked ;)

They're not all needless. And wouldn't you rather that happens in midfield than nearer our penalty area?

I don't see how it would be? Who would replace him? Romeu off to Celta Vigo and Essien not like the way he used to be we'd be missing a good DM.

Is Romeu to Celta confirmed? How can any such move be already set without Jose seeing the squad in pre-season? Unless, of course, it's Romeu who is insisting on leaving.

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Romeu is clearly to get fitness back after last seasons terrible injury. Mikel going would be bad news and mean we need to spend a lot on a position we don't need to at the moment.

Positions we need to strengthen - striker and reserve goalie. I would try for a backup on loan or cheap as Cortez (!) will be hopefully in the frame next season (or season after, maybe a EPL loan next year). We just need a reliable cover for Cech in case of injury and for resting.

Until we see how Jose plans to line us up formation wise it is just speculation about needing another DM etc. I would like to see Chalobah (or Ake) used as backup to mikel if having the one holding.

Back 4 is solid in depth and starting at the moment IMO.

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Why would any of us, even me, have heard much about a 14yo at another club? This isn't me necessarily venting at you (apols if it seems as if I am :D) but I hate the way certain stuff gets picked up by the media and hyped beyond belief when it's just another 14yo moving clubs. For every Jay Da Silva or Jacob Maddox there's a Jonathan Babwana or a Jeffrey Gyamfi who join without any of the attention and have just as much chance as the supposed 'wonderkid'.

Remember this kid? http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/northampton_town/9092239.stm - he's gone now. Then again, this kid http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/beds/bucks/herts/4311163.stm has done fairly well for himself since then...

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I'm a Bristol City fan.. But like 99.9% of our fans I had no idea this guy existed until I read this news today. Apparently is a nice lad, has a season ticket and is related to one of the coaches at the club, but other than that I have no idea... Which is how it should be for a lad so young only just starting a potential career.

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I'd be fine if we just give Lukaku a proper chance at this point.

will they be willing to take that risk though or simply await preparation/friendlies and decide whether to buy in end of first transfer window

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Seen that the Dortmund sporting director reckons De Bruyne wants to go to them. Hope we keep him and give him a real chance next year. Also annoyed reading these reports that it could cost £38million to get back Matic who we used as a £4million make-weight. The Independent said we are interested in Kondogbia (sp?) from Sevilla. Never seen him play but looks like a bit of a tank.

Re the striker situation. I would like us to sign one world class striker and mainly use Lukaku as the rotating striker. Although I do think he would do a great job if he was a starter straight away.

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Probably tomorrow or the next day. The new fixtures come out tomorrow so will be anytime after that I suppose. Rolfe usually pretty quick with it as well.

come one Rolfe

Champions of Europe 2013/2014 - Return of the Special One

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