And where has that come from? They never even broke British transfer record and most of the players they bought were at reasonable prices, besides they've barely spent a penny in the last three years. They certainly do care about their finances.
Ramires to Chelsea for £20M
- Thread starter Uncle Junior
- Start date
And where has that come from? They never even broke British transfer record and most of the players they bought were at reasonable prices, besides they've barely spent a penny in the last three years. They certainly do care about their finances.
Yeah, Chelsea spent that £400M to win the two titles but they've lived off the fat of that since. They've spent little in the last 4 years and have been reluctant to sanction silly wages ( see Joe Cole). Interesting to see how they go on without cash injection.
Theyll be in the top 2 if they spend or not, theyve still got the strongest squad in the league in all honesty and when all fit undoutedly the best 11.
I think last year was their dead cat bounce. Without refresh they'll struggle to push City out of 4th.
I hope your right of course but i dont see it as even remotly realistic to expect this Chelsea squad to slip from deserved champions to 4th or 5th place in less than 12 months.
And you did predict similiar this time last year Peter.
And you did predict similiar this time last year Peter.
Yep, I'm always ahead of my time.
Im sure your wifes very understanding 
Out of interest whats your predicted top 6 next season Pete, im guesing i can predict whos number 1*.
Im sure your wifes very understanding
I'm not going to be premature about this (and if we don't buy a goalkeeper I'm not going to play).
Spoil sport.
I am Edson Arantes do Nascimento.
I've seen him play a few times and never been that impressed that I thought any of the big clubs would pay a substantial fee for him, hasn't he only had half a season at Benfica?
Still as a squad addition he'd be a solid signing if you overlook the price.
Still as a squad addition he'd be a solid signing if you overlook the price.
From karlsentk's (ex-scout/agent) twitter:
Funny signing. I think he's sort of rubbish, but he could do a pretty useful job for them I guess - far better than the languid Mikel.
Shevchenko.
He wasn't a transfer record if I remember correctly, it still belonged to Ferdinand at the time (broke by Robinho a couple of years later). Besides, £30m for Shevchenko was a very good price at the time, he was a proven goalscorer, possibly one of the best strikers in Europe and at a very good club too. The fact that he didn't perform to his abilities at Chelsea doesn't mean he wasn't signed at a decent price.
Looks like the deal was true, but for the slightly less price of £17mil:
BBC Sport - Football - Chelsea to sign Brazil midfielder Ramires for £17m
Could this pave the way for us to get Ozil!?
BBC Sport - Football - Chelsea to sign Brazil midfielder Ramires for £17m
Could this pave the way for us to get Ozil!?
Very very very good signing if this comes true
Yeah, excellent signing for them, would fit their system perfectly. With Ballack and Cole gone, and with Essiens injury problems, he should do well.
Still one of the worst players I have seen wearing a Brazil shirt.
How so? He's only 23 years old and hasn't started many games yet. In the games I saw him was certainly a bit of a hit and miss, but he's still very young and seems to have talent.
Will probably be a good signing; they certainly need to bolster their midfield.
This will give them options of: Lampard, Essien, Mikel, Ramires, (Malouda). They could do with at least one more unless they're relying on Kakuta or one of the other youngsters to be back-up.
This will give them options of: Lampard, Essien, Mikel, Ramires, (Malouda). They could do with at least one more unless they're relying on Kakuta or one of the other youngsters to be back-up.
Is Delfo good enough for Brazil Scholesy?
How's that Viagra working for you?
Still think Diouf is one of the top 100 footballers alive?
You obviously haven't seen too many players playing for Brazil.
Shit. If scholesy doesn't rate hm he must be the nuts.
Im going to bookmark this one.
The guy is quality.
feck knows why he didnt play every game for Brazil. He only played against Chile when Mello (or was it Gilberto) was suspended. Hes better than both of them.
Yes. Chelsea have the PL wrapped up now.
Your a disgrace to the good name of Paul Scholes. A mod should change your username
If you want to talk about crap Brazil players, take a look at Gilberto da Silva Melo.
That's pretty good options right there.
When have you watched him?
Still that's not enough if they're going to use a 3-men midfield and they probably are since they have no wingers for 4-4-2 formation.
Mainly in the UEFA cup last season. When Benfica smashed Everton 5-0 and then 2-0 at Goodison. Then again then Benfica played Liverpool, home and away.
Then in the World Cup when he played the whole game against Chile. I dont think its a coincidence that that was Brazils best performance of the competition. I thought he looked very good. Much better than the two donkeys who played the other games in midfield for Brazil - Gilberto Silva and Felipe Melo.
Ok, thanks.
Can't say I've any idea who he is meself but it's interesting to hear how highly you rate him.
Interesting and slightly depressing.
See this is exactly why i said a few weeks ago it was ridiculously premature to all those who were shouting from the rooftops how Chelsea are going to be weaker this season because they let a few out of contracts and deadwood go at the end of the last campaign, Ramires is a better player than Ballack a much better player who will also free up Essien, Benayoun will probably play a lot more than Joe Cole did last season and Bosingwa will be back at right full back for them, Chelsea will be stronger this season not weaker and still the strong favourites for the title in my eyes.
Their midfield options also look rather intimidating:
Essien
Lampard
Ramires
Mikel
Malouda (played in the 3 man central midfield in the run in for Chelsea last season)
Kakuta
Looks a lot stronger than anything we have to offer in there.
Their midfield options also look rather intimidating:
Essien
Lampard
Ramires
Mikel
Malouda (played in the 3 man central midfield in the run in for Chelsea last season)
Kakuta
Looks a lot stronger than anything we have to offer in there.
The problem is that those 2 donkeys are Brazil's first choice players and Ramires only played because of Melo's suspension. He played well but he's still their backup.
Their options in central midfield have been much stronger than ours on paper for the last four seasons in a row.
From what i have seen, i think hes good on the ball, can move well with it, can pick a pass, hes quick, good in the air and can make a tackle. Hes a box to box player. Unlike Mikel, he will break the lines and burst though. He covers ground so well, it looks like he is gliding over the pitch. Hes a dynamic player, like Essien. Hes a thinking player, you can tell he knows whats going on around him - he appears to have good vision. Oh, and he can score goals.
Hes really is that kind of player we should be looking at.
Im not claiming i have watched him for a long period of time, like the Chelsea scouts will have. But i have seen him as much as the muppets in the Ozil thread have seen Ozil.
Well, you do have a tendency to unervalue United players.
Carrick
Scholes
Fletcher
Anderson
Giggs
Park
Looks like a good number of options there...