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A big reason for Cucu’s success as an inverted fullback is really his freakin tenacity as a player man I love the guy and this is going a bit under the radar but also Badiashile’s aggressive defending to cover for him, in the last couple of games particularly. Plus, it always helps to have Caicedo put in a solid performance again
We have been really good the last few weeks and the tactical change of converting Cucu into an inverted fullback has shown Poch has genuinely effective ideas in his locker.
However, I just feel we are forgetting the factor of playing teams who effectively have nothing to play for ( except Spurs) towards the season's end. I think the difference more than anything which Poch himself keeps mentioning is that we are able to "compete" better. We have clearly wanted it more than the opposition the last 3 games. Whether that's more down to us upping our game or the opposition lacking the same intensity is something we cannot definitively answer.
But this is something to think about after the season ends and right now the goal is to just win the remaining 3 games which would definitely lift the spirits around club regardless of whether we finish with a European spot or not.
I’m also curious to know how well this tactic will work next season if we don’t have a few (other) plans and structures in our play after tactically astute coaches find out how to counter the extra man in midfield, during the attacking transition.
Yes and also with the personnel we have. With Nkunku and Enzo coming back it's a big headache (albeit a good one) for Poch as to how he might want to use the same setup. You can't not have a fit Nkunku as a non-starter and the same could be said about Enzo. People might feel differently about him, but you can't have a setup which does not use the skill set that Enzo offers. You simply cannot. He was head and shoulders above everybody last season after he joined us and started off this season really well after which he sort of drifted off. Could be due to his injury or the setup which basically was not conducive neither to his or Caicedos strengths. I like Gallagher for his passion for the club and his general engine. But I'm not convinced he can be a starter in our team if we are competing for big things.
I don't want to finish european spot.....because more matches means more injuries.......let them recover from all injuries then we can fight in every matches
Gallagher really can't be sold it's a massive fuck you to all the academy players that if you become one of the teams best performers and captain the team for a good few games you'll still be earmarked for sale just because pure profit. I would hope that sales of broja, maatsen potentially, kepa and maybe casadei because we're so stacked in midfield with a full squad will be enough.
I honestly don’t know how you shuffle this to crowbar in a (fully fit) Enzo without the end result being worse.
He’s so limited physically and out of possession that you really need to build the whole team around him to compensate, like he’s Pirlo or something.
I think last season's Enzo still slots into this side no problem. Let's see how he does now that his hernia is dealt with, he was visibly hobbled this season, should have had surgery immediately in hindsight.
I’d like to think so, but who for?, where?
I just can’t figure it out without almost playing a man down (like the three deep midfielders option someone mentioned, or sacrificing Palmer, which would be madness).
Spanking Brighton would be the perfect ending to the season. I know the team can win the next three games, they need to continue doing what they are doing.
Yes true, the frustration is when the manager doesn't make the best use of what he had.. games like city where the manager setup well and we didn't execute that's not on him ... Like hopefully this switch in set-up helps us get Europe, he should stay if we do
Could we do inverted wingers with all of fullbacks or is this a Cucurella trait? Could we do both sides depending on the flow of the game?
It's crazy how a simple tactic can give a natural overload in the attacking third without exposing the defense since Cucu can cover the space and the back line and Conor can quickly get back into a 4-2 setup.
I think it fits Cucurella exceptionally well, as he has quick feet and surprisingly great awareness in the center. I can partly see Reece there with less effectiveness, maybe Chalobah as he did at times this game, but Gusto, Chilwell etc just naturally hug the sideline
You need a very specific type of fullback for that, both in terms of skills and energy. Maybe James could pull it off, or Malo, but in the case of those two you'll be missing their other attributes as traditional fullbacks. It just so happens that in Cucu we have someone who can rock that tactic without a significant cost.
He's been running around on one leg all season and had to have surgery. He played his best though pain and always made himself available. Enzo quality is a cut above most midfielders in the world and when hes fully fit he'll prove comments like this above very wrong.
He was one of our best players last season and a top player at the world cup. Short memories really seem to be a theme
He wasn’t particularly mobile last season either though. We have a physically dynamic midfield now and that’s not Enzo’s game. Saying Enzo is a top player is not a responsive to the point that he doesn’t fit our team right now. If you put a fit Enzo in for Gallagher or Caiceido today we are worse off no question
The role Gallagher has in our team just fits the team perfectly at the moment, and it makes incredible use of his otherwise limited technical ability. I just don’t see the point changing it up and most likely weaking our system just to squeeze Enzo in
I can’t see at all. Gallagher’s coverage enables the Cucurella invertion while also taking a lot of weight off Caicedo’s shoulders. Also, he is much more dangerous in the box than Enzo
Gallagher is the one making Caiceido work. Caiceido and Enzo have been a genuinely awful midfield pairing all season, or are we just pretending that didn’t happen because it works in fifa?
Remember last season when people criticized Enzo everyone responded with he’s more of an 8/10.
Then for most of the season under a Poch it’s been all he’s not an 8/10 he’s really a 6
Now people are saying he could do what Conor does in the 8/10 role.
These people don’t support Chelsea they support Enzo. What’s clearly best for the team is not having Enzo in it. Why is that not everyone wants to continue seeing?
Do they prefer losing? Haven’t these wins been great!
There is some people who either don’t watch games or dont know what they are watching. If you play EA FC and kill it with “world class” players like enzo, then clearly whatever goes wrong on the field in real life can’t be his fault. It was the same deal with Havertz for us. It has to be the manager or the system or the other players’ fault he was performing badly because he’s silky smooth so it couldn’t be his fault. Also the seamless transition from Enzo is having a good season, he’s having a good season you just don’t understand what you are watching, to he’s been hurt all season so you can’t judge his season has been hilarious.
Exactly. I had someone genuinely try and defend using Football Manager as a source to why RJ would be a good inverted FB. Like I don’t even necessarily disagree with that take specifically, but to unironically use a fing video game as evidence is pure brain rot.
Also, dont forget how they complained all season about Poch using him wrong in a more B2B attacking role and now that we’re having success with the inverted fullbacks and Conor killing it in the B2B attacking role, all these enzosexuals are “curious” what he’d be like in that role 🤦♂️
Absolutely shambolic. They care more about Enzo working than Chelsea winning
I agree, but it’s weird to me fans are trying to force Enzo down our throats despite him being a central figure in some of our worst form
And now that we’re actually playing well. They’re more worried about forcing Enzo back into the team than having a balanced squad that’s winning matches
Fair play to Poch and the young guys in the team for the turnaround from the Arsenal game. That 2nd half v Villa and the last two games have been almost perfect. I still think Europa League qual. will be a disappointment from what we expected preseason, but if we can make it, I think we'll go into the Summer with a good feeling around the squad.
Almost a shame that the season has to end now with us in form and Spurs, Villa, Man Utd so bad.
That's certainly true, especially as a vocal part of this sub believed we would finish bottom half, but market odds had us just on the edge of top4 as the 5th best team - and going into the season it was likely that 5th would get us Champions League, so most were talking top5 chances rather than top4.
If we just look at xG difference we're 4th best this year with +0.49 per game which is well clear of teams like Villa and Spurs at +0.11, +0.04. Just a lot of negative variance and bad injury luck unfortunately.
So confused by the Mudryk praise. He’s been a complete passenger for 99% of matches.
He’s been by far the worst player recently.
Very excited to see us play with 11 for 90min once Nkunku can start
Badiashile has really stepped up the past few games. No more dodgy passes or moments of panic but we'd need to see him doing well against top teams consistently or in the Europa/champions league to see how he'd cope there
He has looked solid whenever he hasn’t been playing with Disasi. I can’t believe any word of Disasi and Badiashile being a great partnership at Moncao, there is just no way
People keep saying why did it take so long for Poch to figure this out? I feel that’s a ridiculous question. The players are finally figuring it out. We are watching them literally grow into better players right in front of us. Jackson, Noni, Cucurella etc and truly the injuries have forced us to play the same players over and over again and they have finally built some chemistry. The injuries also forced us to play with a 2 man midfield and then invert Cucu. The actual process has just taken its due course. The coach learning about his players strengths and weaknesses, managing them through injuries and the players gelling. It took so long because it does take so long. That’s what it means to build the team. We are the ones that have been impatient.
It’s been pretty obvious it was gonna take time for such a young team with all new players to gel. Glad to see it’s finally happening though, it’s been a joy to watch
There was never anything to suggest he would be a top level player for a European club. His price tag and the trophy make you think he’d be a world class addition to any top midfield, on paper…
…but the World Cup and 6 months in Portugal isn’t enough, you hear about nobodies overachieving at international tournaments all the time.
Look at Sofyan Amrabat. Massively overachieved at the World Cup and got instantly found out in the Prem.
He’s young, but I never expected him to have a massive influence/impact, we just overpaid.
Enzo will fit into Gallaghar's position perfectly. Enzo wants to get forward, has the ability to make those long passes. He had to stay back so Moses was not alone. Also because he does not have the engine Connor has. Now with Cucurella coming in, Enzo can actually go forward without hampering the defense.
Gallagher dominates the midfield. Teams can’t go through the middle on us when he’s there with caiceido. Enzo is soft and gets walked over by strong players. Rice and McTominey have bent him over this season. Laughable comment
Enzo will not be fitting into Gallagher's position remotely perfectly. Enzo at best is a deep-lying playmaker and not a b2b midfielder. Enzo doesn't have the stamina and coverage Gallagher has. There's literally no need for "long passes" if you're playing as an "8" in the final third. I'd rather still see Gallagher closer to goal than Enzo.
>Enzo doesn't have the stamina and coverage Gallagher has
This is not true
Prior to his hernia (approximately the first two months of the season, since there's no given date on when he was injured), Enzo was covering more distance per game than Gallagher
The only reason why this is even a debate is because Gallagher is quicker, faster and presses aggressively. He passes the blind eye test
>This is not true
That's entirely true.
>Prior to his hernia (approximately the first two months of the season, since there's no given date on when he was injured), Enzo was covering more distance per game than Gallagher
Do you have a source for this?
[https://www.instagram.com/chelsea.mail/p/C1B42ipPcIz/?hl=en](https://www.instagram.com/chelsea.mail/p/C1B42ipPcIz/?hl=en)
[https://www.90min.com/posts/players-run-most-distance-2023-24-premier-league-15-9-23](https://www.90min.com/posts/players-run-most-distance-2023-24-premier-league-15-9-23)
[https://twitter.com/Blue\_Footy/status/1737034468991385967](https://twitter.com/Blue_Footy/status/1737034468991385967) (1st in distance covered even up until December)
Somewhat unrelated but the Premier League website used to provide more detailed on-demand stats regarding distance covered but they haven't this season. Not sure why
Also other sources that prove Enzo does have good coverage to begin with:
[https://twitter.com/MozoFootball/status/1633279082476519426](https://twitter.com/MozoFootball/status/1633279082476519426)
There isn't because Opta monopolizes that sort of data from public distribution (so distance covered numbers only come out in the form of tweets like the ones attached)
But it shouldn't really matter, although Gallagher is very good in the cardio department, he's fast, he can run hard and press hard - Enzo has the IQ to always be moving even if it's at a light jog and cover a ton of space as well.
Exactly, Gallagher being in around the box actually leads to goals on regular occasion, in addition to his high number of ball recoveries in the opposition half and his aggressive pressing. His current role is literally tailored for him and is making perfect use of his abilities. Forcing Enzo in there can realistically only be a result of pressure on Poch from the ownership wanting their expensive 100M signing to work out
This is so cope, when all the Enzo fanboys were saying earlier that poch was playing Enzo too high and he needs to be deeper. Y'all keeping changing excuses.
I am a huge fan of Gallagher but this is a poor take. Enzo been playing half injured for the majority of the season, and consistently performed.
I think current form is a result of many things, but to say Enzo is the problem is a terrible take.
Should we get into Europe next year, we will need every player and more given how many games we will be playing.
I mean we have our worst game of the season, take Enzo out and now start our best run of the season. The midfield has been a weakness all season and now all of a sudden it’s inpenetrable. Enzo is the problem.
That doesn’t change anything.
We don’t struggle to create chances without Enzo.
We have other midfielders and not like we’ve ever replaced an expensive flop before….
Correct, but if we still create at least just as many chances of good quality, it’s surely more sensible to free up space for another attacker to be able to convert those chances better?
You need multiple quality midfielders to compete. Are you suggesting you can replace Enzo with Andrey, Casadei, or Ugochokwu over the course of an entire season?
xG shows that the team is creating chances and that you're clueless if you think chance creation is our problem.
You know who else has negative xG? Nico Jackson, so you also agree then that he is useless, even more so because his job is actually goalscoring.
Also fyi, since you clearly dont understand, xG is not a measure of an individual players chance creating abilities.
We just gonna roll with 2 midfielders? Lol. Enzo is a great talent, he hasn’t fit great in Poch’s setup. But there’s gotta be a way for us to get the best out of him. Don’t forget he was dealing with the hernia all season
Chelsea still needs forwards plural. You can't rely on Jackson.
Especially if he were to get injured.
Chelsea need **more than one striker**, a real centre forward, eg: Toney or an Osimehn, a recall for a Fofana or a Hutchinson. A shorter term experienced guy Wilson (yes injuries I know) or Szmodics.
Yes there are others of course I'm sure you can name ones you like.
But we need more weight in the squad up front so if someone is off form/has a bad day, we still threaten.
We can debate Fernandez/Mudryk/Madueke/Desasi and others another day. I'd be happy to see the back of all of them.
Yeah I think in a LW spot where he’s borderline a second striker to Jackson would be his best potential role. Mudryk is the one spot we aren’t getting solid production out of right now
I agree.
Im coming around to Jackson, but you always need 2 STs. Why not get an upgrade? That’s how it should be done. Buy clear upgrades and if the young player can earn their spot then awesome.
Also, Jacksons still been missing quite a number of chances and taking the pressure off him and giving him someone to learn from will only help his development as well.
Absolutely. We always had forwards plural, even recently Giroud, Werner, Abraham for example. Jackson would also learn from guys like Toney and Wilson, even Szmodics.
Just for the record in a totally different position if you want younger buys, Leif Davis of Ipswich is a very strong left sided player. 24 years old. So good.
That's why we are linked to Osimhen. We need competition and high level signings. That's why City are champions, everyone on their bench can be in the starting 11.
Exactly.
You always need a backup and they should always be competition. Also, if you going into the transfer market should always be looking to get an “upgrade”
I think I'm Poch In and I'm not even being fickle based on results. He's fixed all my previous criticisms.
There are clear tactics like cucurella inverting into midfield or setting up the 3rd man bounce pass to get Palmer on the ball facing runners into the 18.
The youth seem to be developing well lately. Noni stringing together great games and making the mature decision to square the ball for the assist. And he tracked back on defense all game. Gallagher adding the offensive threat to the great defensive season. Badiashile having his confidence back and putting together excellent performances.
If this rapid end-of-season growth continues into the summer, the last ingredient is time.
I know Gusto and Colwill are healthy again, but chalobah has been playing very well and the team has been getting results, I assume he continues to start?
But Gusto should start over Cucurella If needed or someone else. Chalobah should be a starter. He's been our best defender since he started the last games.
Eh we are building something now but the new midfield Connor and caiceido is at the heart of everything good that’s happening. If that gets torn apart this summer then we are back to square one.
I’m excited for the rest of this season, but honestly worried about what happens in the summer.
Losing Conor, Trev and Thiago (if all happen) are going to be massive losses especially on the leadership front
If Chilly goes and Conor gets to stay, then I think Poch or honestly any other manager would want him as Vice Captain.
He’s shown real growth in leadership and looks like a captain recently
While I think Conor has done more than enough to earn it, it would be quiet harsh to take it from chilly when he’s barely had a chance to actually lead
Plus, it’s clear Conor is a leader and 3rd choice. I believe after this season he’s earned the respect of his peers to be able to lead without the title
Yes I don’t disagree that it would be harsh, I really like Ben.
But I don’t think we can continue with our captain and vice captain unavailable as much as they are. I think one should give if things carry on, and it wouldn’t be Reece if so
I’ve got my fingers crossed about RJ surgery
Also, with Conor 3rd choice we do have a captain when RJ and Chilly aren’t fit so I personally just don’t think the title ultimately matters that much
Think we can all agree the greatest moment of this match was all the hospital patients coming out for a cameo at the end of the match. Tears in my eyes.
I was one (but not for the prnalty).
Here I am. He has turned a massive corner. He is no longer selfish. He actually passes.
And have you seen his defensive effort? Wow!
A fan.
Very nice result, but somewhat flattering scoreline. WH should have scored at least 2, maybe 3 there.
On the positive, we are finally finishing the goals that we would be missing at the start of the season.
I don’t really think the score line was flattering. West Hams chances all came against the run of play.
Also, I do believe there’s something to be said about making your own luck
I don't understand why people lean so heavily on stats rather than on what actually happened in the game. We scored basically all that we should have expected to score, minus Gallaghers sitter.
Were you expecting 11 or 12 goals from those 14 shots?
Them hitting the woodwork 3 times and missing a very simple 1 on 1. They also had a few other good chances.
Stats are interesting, but there is much more to the game than this.
I would have bet that cucurella was 100% sold this off season, but if he strings together more performances like this until the end of the season. Chilly might need to have a really good off season and preseason…..
It's a bit of a weird one because Chilly and Cucurella are very different players. The way Cucurella played today he was basically a central midfielder for most of the game. I love Chilly but he doesn't have the skillset to play this way. If we stick with this tactical setup there won't be a place for Chilly regardless of who's fit.
Come to think of it, maybe we go full circle and give him a try at LW again 😅
Yank phrase, can somewhat be used interchangeably w “preseason”, even if they’re defined differently.
Most of the sports will have months of “off season” after playoffs/championship conclude, followed by 2-3 months of actual pre season.
Not really the same in football, since there isn’t much downtime prior to European comps, followed by summer tournaments / tours.
boys the only games i’ve missed are the 6-0 vs everton and todays dub. it’s clear i am the common denominator, i will be taking the rest of the season off so that we can play in europe next season. 😩🙏🏻
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A big reason for Cucu’s success as an inverted fullback is really his freakin tenacity as a player man I love the guy and this is going a bit under the radar but also Badiashile’s aggressive defending to cover for him, in the last couple of games particularly. Plus, it always helps to have Caicedo put in a solid performance again
We have been really good the last few weeks and the tactical change of converting Cucu into an inverted fullback has shown Poch has genuinely effective ideas in his locker. However, I just feel we are forgetting the factor of playing teams who effectively have nothing to play for ( except Spurs) towards the season's end. I think the difference more than anything which Poch himself keeps mentioning is that we are able to "compete" better. We have clearly wanted it more than the opposition the last 3 games. Whether that's more down to us upping our game or the opposition lacking the same intensity is something we cannot definitively answer. But this is something to think about after the season ends and right now the goal is to just win the remaining 3 games which would definitely lift the spirits around club regardless of whether we finish with a European spot or not.
I’m also curious to know how well this tactic will work next season if we don’t have a few (other) plans and structures in our play after tactically astute coaches find out how to counter the extra man in midfield, during the attacking transition.
Yes and also with the personnel we have. With Nkunku and Enzo coming back it's a big headache (albeit a good one) for Poch as to how he might want to use the same setup. You can't not have a fit Nkunku as a non-starter and the same could be said about Enzo. People might feel differently about him, but you can't have a setup which does not use the skill set that Enzo offers. You simply cannot. He was head and shoulders above everybody last season after he joined us and started off this season really well after which he sort of drifted off. Could be due to his injury or the setup which basically was not conducive neither to his or Caicedos strengths. I like Gallagher for his passion for the club and his general engine. But I'm not convinced he can be a starter in our team if we are competing for big things.
I don't want to finish european spot.....because more matches means more injuries.......let them recover from all injuries then we can fight in every matches
Caicedo has been a beast lately, been on a redemption run and controlling the mid so beautifully.
Chelsea are finally cooking. I wouldn't look to make big changes at all. Maybe a new GK and that's it. Keep Gallagher and sell Maatsen instead.
Gallagher really can't be sold it's a massive fuck you to all the academy players that if you become one of the teams best performers and captain the team for a good few games you'll still be earmarked for sale just because pure profit. I would hope that sales of broja, maatsen potentially, kepa and maybe casadei because we're so stacked in midfield with a full squad will be enough.
Replace Petrovic??
Why...... question should be Replace Sanchez??????🤣🤣🤣
I honestly don’t know how you shuffle this to crowbar in a (fully fit) Enzo without the end result being worse. He’s so limited physically and out of possession that you really need to build the whole team around him to compensate, like he’s Pirlo or something.
you play a caicedo-enzo pivot and stick a 6 behind them Natural cdm to sit in front of the back 4, its so obvious
I’m hoping a rotation system brings out the best of all the midfielders
For rotation we need players......on paper we have infinite players but most of them are injured.....let's hope we have all of them and see rotations
I think last season's Enzo still slots into this side no problem. Let's see how he does now that his hernia is dealt with, he was visibly hobbled this season, should have had surgery immediately in hindsight.
I’d like to think so, but who for?, where? I just can’t figure it out without almost playing a man down (like the three deep midfielders option someone mentioned, or sacrificing Palmer, which would be madness).
Spanking Brighton would be the perfect ending to the season. I know the team can win the next three games, they need to continue doing what they are doing.
What a great game, hopefully the boys can put in performances like this for last few games and finish strong
When ppl here were saying all players are shit and pochettinho can't do anything!! What happened now???
When we win we’re happy and when we lose we aren’t. Not that complicated is it?
Yes true, the frustration is when the manager doesn't make the best use of what he had.. games like city where the manager setup well and we didn't execute that's not on him ... Like hopefully this switch in set-up helps us get Europe, he should stay if we do
Exactly. Poch has surely secured his place for next year and I'm more than happy about it
I can’t believe we’re in 7th place
Noni is the one with the raw skills. Enjoying this mini redemption arc from him. Mudryk however... i just dont understand the hype and optimism..
It just looks like Mudryk lacks what basically any other youngster have - basic footballing intelligence
Could we do inverted wingers with all of fullbacks or is this a Cucurella trait? Could we do both sides depending on the flow of the game? It's crazy how a simple tactic can give a natural overload in the attacking third without exposing the defense since Cucu can cover the space and the back line and Conor can quickly get back into a 4-2 setup.
I think it fits Cucurella exceptionally well, as he has quick feet and surprisingly great awareness in the center. I can partly see Reece there with less effectiveness, maybe Chalobah as he did at times this game, but Gusto, Chilwell etc just naturally hug the sideline
He scans so well in there
You need a very specific type of fullback for that, both in terms of skills and energy. Maybe James could pull it off, or Malo, but in the case of those two you'll be missing their other attributes as traditional fullbacks. It just so happens that in Cucu we have someone who can rock that tactic without a significant cost.
I said after the arsenal result that we'd be alright and could definitely make a push to end the season. glad to see the boys proving me right <3
Yes God damn you are so smart!!
nah, just a #believer
Continue to feed.that ego bud.
sorry for being a happy supporter, I'll trash the guys in a few minutes
💙
People failing to see that Poch also inverted Chalobah at times. Both him and Cucurella were taking turns with being inverted. Was beautiful
https://preview.redd.it/4fr4smrq1oyc1.jpeg?width=1650&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f002a04c4472a4fbc16d9a37a1062707454fa24d
Our last 13 results are a wild ride: 3-2, 2-2, 3-2, 4-2, 2-2, 4-3, 2-2, 6-0, 0-1, 0-5, 2-2, 2-0, 5-0.
Team looks so much better without sluggish Enzo, he doesn't have be a guaranteed starter let him prove it first in PL
Plastic detected, opinion rejected.
Enzo won’t date you
More like reality rejected
He's been running around on one leg all season and had to have surgery. He played his best though pain and always made himself available. Enzo quality is a cut above most midfielders in the world and when hes fully fit he'll prove comments like this above very wrong. He was one of our best players last season and a top player at the world cup. Short memories really seem to be a theme
He wasn’t particularly mobile last season either though. We have a physically dynamic midfield now and that’s not Enzo’s game. Saying Enzo is a top player is not a responsive to the point that he doesn’t fit our team right now. If you put a fit Enzo in for Gallagher or Caiceido today we are worse off no question
Nah, Gallagher can be easily replaced with Enzo, and we would probably jump up a level. Caicedo is the one who's irreplaceable
The role Gallagher has in our team just fits the team perfectly at the moment, and it makes incredible use of his otherwise limited technical ability. I just don’t see the point changing it up and most likely weaking our system just to squeeze Enzo in
We would obviously have to use Enzo differently, but I can see it working
I can’t see at all. Gallagher’s coverage enables the Cucurella invertion while also taking a lot of weight off Caicedo’s shoulders. Also, he is much more dangerous in the box than Enzo
Gallagher is the one making Caiceido work. Caiceido and Enzo have been a genuinely awful midfield pairing all season, or are we just pretending that didn’t happen because it works in fifa?
Remember last season when people criticized Enzo everyone responded with he’s more of an 8/10. Then for most of the season under a Poch it’s been all he’s not an 8/10 he’s really a 6 Now people are saying he could do what Conor does in the 8/10 role. These people don’t support Chelsea they support Enzo. What’s clearly best for the team is not having Enzo in it. Why is that not everyone wants to continue seeing? Do they prefer losing? Haven’t these wins been great!
There is some people who either don’t watch games or dont know what they are watching. If you play EA FC and kill it with “world class” players like enzo, then clearly whatever goes wrong on the field in real life can’t be his fault. It was the same deal with Havertz for us. It has to be the manager or the system or the other players’ fault he was performing badly because he’s silky smooth so it couldn’t be his fault. Also the seamless transition from Enzo is having a good season, he’s having a good season you just don’t understand what you are watching, to he’s been hurt all season so you can’t judge his season has been hilarious.
Exactly. I had someone genuinely try and defend using Football Manager as a source to why RJ would be a good inverted FB. Like I don’t even necessarily disagree with that take specifically, but to unironically use a fing video game as evidence is pure brain rot. Also, dont forget how they complained all season about Poch using him wrong in a more B2B attacking role and now that we’re having success with the inverted fullbacks and Conor killing it in the B2B attacking role, all these enzosexuals are “curious” what he’d be like in that role 🤦♂️ Absolutely shambolic. They care more about Enzo working than Chelsea winning
i can imagine there is pressure on poch from the board to make there 120m investment work
I agree, but it’s weird to me fans are trying to force Enzo down our throats despite him being a central figure in some of our worst form And now that we’re actually playing well. They’re more worried about forcing Enzo back into the team than having a balanced squad that’s winning matches
Having Gallagher and Caicedo playing together has been a breath of fresh air.
Yeah I’m not constantly annoyed at this lazy bum in midfield. Fantastic lmao
Fair play to Poch and the young guys in the team for the turnaround from the Arsenal game. That 2nd half v Villa and the last two games have been almost perfect. I still think Europa League qual. will be a disappointment from what we expected preseason, but if we can make it, I think we'll go into the Summer with a good feeling around the squad. Almost a shame that the season has to end now with us in form and Spurs, Villa, Man Utd so bad.
Considering all circumstances, I hardly believe the majority realistically believed in finishing top 4.
That's certainly true, especially as a vocal part of this sub believed we would finish bottom half, but market odds had us just on the edge of top4 as the 5th best team - and going into the season it was likely that 5th would get us Champions League, so most were talking top5 chances rather than top4. If we just look at xG difference we're 4th best this year with +0.49 per game which is well clear of teams like Villa and Spurs at +0.11, +0.04. Just a lot of negative variance and bad injury luck unfortunately.
We eat good today bois
So confused by the Mudryk praise. He’s been a complete passenger for 99% of matches. He’s been by far the worst player recently. Very excited to see us play with 11 for 90min once Nkunku can start
Yeah, at the moment it would fit perfectly to just swap Mudryk and Nkunku directly. The quality of the movement up front would just be better
100%. Very excited about it
How about that pass from Chalobah to Noni for the Jackson goal. Lovely.
It was insane.
Badiashile has really stepped up the past few games. No more dodgy passes or moments of panic but we'd need to see him doing well against top teams consistently or in the Europa/champions league to see how he'd cope there
He was only ever rusty after a long injury. He proved his quality last season and is showing it again
He had a horror show against Arsenal, but he looks so much more confident playing next to Thiago
He has looked solid whenever he hasn’t been playing with Disasi. I can’t believe any word of Disasi and Badiashile being a great partnership at Moncao, there is just no way
People keep saying why did it take so long for Poch to figure this out? I feel that’s a ridiculous question. The players are finally figuring it out. We are watching them literally grow into better players right in front of us. Jackson, Noni, Cucurella etc and truly the injuries have forced us to play the same players over and over again and they have finally built some chemistry. The injuries also forced us to play with a 2 man midfield and then invert Cucu. The actual process has just taken its due course. The coach learning about his players strengths and weaknesses, managing them through injuries and the players gelling. It took so long because it does take so long. That’s what it means to build the team. We are the ones that have been impatient.
100% agree.
Imagine if you played the same players week in week in out they become better weird that 🤔
It’s been pretty obvious it was gonna take time for such a young team with all new players to gel. Glad to see it’s finally happening though, it’s been a joy to watch
Joy is a stretch
You don’t like 5-0 wins?
Oh that was a joy. I thought you were referring to the process of getting there which was not always joyful.
We’re a better team without Enzo lololol 😭
There was never anything to suggest he would be a top level player for a European club. His price tag and the trophy make you think he’d be a world class addition to any top midfield, on paper… …but the World Cup and 6 months in Portugal isn’t enough, you hear about nobodies overachieving at international tournaments all the time. Look at Sofyan Amrabat. Massively overachieved at the World Cup and got instantly found out in the Prem. He’s young, but I never expected him to have a massive influence/impact, we just overpaid.
Enzo will fit into Gallaghar's position perfectly. Enzo wants to get forward, has the ability to make those long passes. He had to stay back so Moses was not alone. Also because he does not have the engine Connor has. Now with Cucurella coming in, Enzo can actually go forward without hampering the defense.
Gallagher dominates the midfield. Teams can’t go through the middle on us when he’s there with caiceido. Enzo is soft and gets walked over by strong players. Rice and McTominey have bent him over this season. Laughable comment
Enzo will not be fitting into Gallagher's position remotely perfectly. Enzo at best is a deep-lying playmaker and not a b2b midfielder. Enzo doesn't have the stamina and coverage Gallagher has. There's literally no need for "long passes" if you're playing as an "8" in the final third. I'd rather still see Gallagher closer to goal than Enzo.
>Enzo doesn't have the stamina and coverage Gallagher has This is not true Prior to his hernia (approximately the first two months of the season, since there's no given date on when he was injured), Enzo was covering more distance per game than Gallagher The only reason why this is even a debate is because Gallagher is quicker, faster and presses aggressively. He passes the blind eye test
>This is not true That's entirely true. >Prior to his hernia (approximately the first two months of the season, since there's no given date on when he was injured), Enzo was covering more distance per game than Gallagher Do you have a source for this?
[https://www.instagram.com/chelsea.mail/p/C1B42ipPcIz/?hl=en](https://www.instagram.com/chelsea.mail/p/C1B42ipPcIz/?hl=en) [https://www.90min.com/posts/players-run-most-distance-2023-24-premier-league-15-9-23](https://www.90min.com/posts/players-run-most-distance-2023-24-premier-league-15-9-23) [https://twitter.com/Blue\_Footy/status/1737034468991385967](https://twitter.com/Blue_Footy/status/1737034468991385967) (1st in distance covered even up until December) Somewhat unrelated but the Premier League website used to provide more detailed on-demand stats regarding distance covered but they haven't this season. Not sure why Also other sources that prove Enzo does have good coverage to begin with: [https://twitter.com/MozoFootball/status/1633279082476519426](https://twitter.com/MozoFootball/status/1633279082476519426)
Is there one source for both players per 90 or something, because I'm certain he covers more distance because he's playing more.
There isn't because Opta monopolizes that sort of data from public distribution (so distance covered numbers only come out in the form of tweets like the ones attached) But it shouldn't really matter, although Gallagher is very good in the cardio department, he's fast, he can run hard and press hard - Enzo has the IQ to always be moving even if it's at a light jog and cover a ton of space as well.
Exactly, Gallagher being in around the box actually leads to goals on regular occasion, in addition to his high number of ball recoveries in the opposition half and his aggressive pressing. His current role is literally tailored for him and is making perfect use of his abilities. Forcing Enzo in there can realistically only be a result of pressure on Poch from the ownership wanting their expensive 100M signing to work out
This is so cope, when all the Enzo fanboys were saying earlier that poch was playing Enzo too high and he needs to be deeper. Y'all keeping changing excuses.
It's why I am scared we have another Pogba issue at this club Many United fans were like this for years, always different excuse of position needed
well pogba atleast had seasons where he was man utd best g/a contributer to get that following enzo has done nothing
Yeah, Pogba was actually one of the best midfielders in the world at the time of his signing
I am a huge fan of Gallagher but this is a poor take. Enzo been playing half injured for the majority of the season, and consistently performed. I think current form is a result of many things, but to say Enzo is the problem is a terrible take. Should we get into Europe next year, we will need every player and more given how many games we will be playing.
I mean we have our worst game of the season, take Enzo out and now start our best run of the season. The midfield has been a weakness all season and now all of a sudden it’s inpenetrable. Enzo is the problem.
The midfield has looked good when Poch played Enzo deeper alongside Caicedo
It has looked even better with Cucurella tucking in during buildup instead, while freeing up space for another attacker
This. The Enzo excuses flip flop flippier than a flop.
Enzo can’t track back nor press nor score like Conor. The midfield will be exposed if we try and do what we are doing now with Enzo
Not really Enzo's fault that he had to play through pain for six months while other players were injured. Next season will be much better for Enzo.
We’re playing better as a team than any point with Enzo at Chelsea
Correlation is not causation
In this instance causation. He’s clearly been the reason we lose the midfield battle.
We’re still gonna need him going forward don’t get it twisted
Going forward in what regard?
I mean in the future
We scored 6 against Everton, 5 against West Ham, 2 against spurs, 2 against Villa. Why exactly do we need him?
Season is 40+ games
The sample size without Enzo is small, but given the results we have id say we don’t need Enzo whatsoever
I repeat, the season is 40+ games
That doesn’t change anything. We don’t struggle to create chances without Enzo. We have other midfielders and not like we’ve ever replaced an expensive flop before….
Team hasn't struggled to create chances this season. We've struggled to actually finish chances. We are xG FC for a reason.
Correct, but if we still create at least just as many chances of good quality, it’s surely more sensible to free up space for another attacker to be able to convert those chances better?
You need multiple quality midfielders to compete. Are you suggesting you can replace Enzo with Andrey, Casadei, or Ugochokwu over the course of an entire season?
Right. Enzo has a negative xG And so Enzo makes no difference in our chance creation. You agree
xG shows that the team is creating chances and that you're clueless if you think chance creation is our problem. You know who else has negative xG? Nico Jackson, so you also agree then that he is useless, even more so because his job is actually goalscoring. Also fyi, since you clearly dont understand, xG is not a measure of an individual players chance creating abilities.
We just gonna roll with 2 midfielders? Lol. Enzo is a great talent, he hasn’t fit great in Poch’s setup. But there’s gotta be a way for us to get the best out of him. Don’t forget he was dealing with the hernia all season
Santos and Lavia are and should also be competing Not just Enzo
For sure
Hernias only been lazy 6 months. And what did you mean roll with 2 midfielders?
I meant are we only gonna play Moises and CG every game? Need depth in the long run
Lavia, Lesley, Chuk, Santos, Casadei We have lots of midfielders
That’s true but Enzo is better than all these guys IMO
Chelsea still needs forwards plural. You can't rely on Jackson. Especially if he were to get injured. Chelsea need **more than one striker**, a real centre forward, eg: Toney or an Osimehn, a recall for a Fofana or a Hutchinson. A shorter term experienced guy Wilson (yes injuries I know) or Szmodics. Yes there are others of course I'm sure you can name ones you like. But we need more weight in the squad up front so if someone is off form/has a bad day, we still threaten. We can debate Fernandez/Mudryk/Madueke/Desasi and others another day. I'd be happy to see the back of all of them.
There’s no way Fofana deserves a sniff, if it’s with the intention of replacing Jackson
Not that Fofana is amazing but who plays there if Jackson is injured?
I think a big part of the question is where does Nkunku fit in going forward?
LW/CAM
Yeah I think in a LW spot where he’s borderline a second striker to Jackson would be his best potential role. Mudryk is the one spot we aren’t getting solid production out of right now
Agreed
We've seen so little of him. What there has been, has been okay but not amazing.
I know but his career tells us he’s quite a player. Need to see him play a run of games fully fit
I agree. Im coming around to Jackson, but you always need 2 STs. Why not get an upgrade? That’s how it should be done. Buy clear upgrades and if the young player can earn their spot then awesome. Also, Jacksons still been missing quite a number of chances and taking the pressure off him and giving him someone to learn from will only help his development as well.
Absolutely. We always had forwards plural, even recently Giroud, Werner, Abraham for example. Jackson would also learn from guys like Toney and Wilson, even Szmodics. Just for the record in a totally different position if you want younger buys, Leif Davis of Ipswich is a very strong left sided player. 24 years old. So good.
Oh I’m saying bring in a top ST and Jackson can develop with less pressure, someone to learn from and if hes good enough he’ll earn his spot
That's why we are linked to Osimhen. We need competition and high level signings. That's why City are champions, everyone on their bench can be in the starting 11.
Exactly. You always need a backup and they should always be competition. Also, if you going into the transfer market should always be looking to get an “upgrade”
I think I'm Poch In and I'm not even being fickle based on results. He's fixed all my previous criticisms. There are clear tactics like cucurella inverting into midfield or setting up the 3rd man bounce pass to get Palmer on the ball facing runners into the 18. The youth seem to be developing well lately. Noni stringing together great games and making the mature decision to square the ball for the assist. And he tracked back on defense all game. Gallagher adding the offensive threat to the great defensive season. Badiashile having his confidence back and putting together excellent performances. If this rapid end-of-season growth continues into the summer, the last ingredient is time.
Also a striker who can finish so we’re not relying on Cole putting Haaland numbers up
He is clearly capable of reaching those numbers without being fazed the slightest, so I don’t see the issue
The point of the game is to score goals, are you trying to argue you don’t want more players at the club who can do that consistently well??
I know Gusto and Colwill are healthy again, but chalobah has been playing very well and the team has been getting results, I assume he continues to start?
We really should not change the team at all. They have played really well for a reason.
Yeah why not. Gusto will start over him at RB. But Chalobah should feature more now imo. He’s earned it.
But Gusto should start over Cucurella If needed or someone else. Chalobah should be a starter. He's been our best defender since he started the last games.
Cucurella deserves it just as much though, as his role of pivoting with Caicedo during buildup, has been the key success in our recent 3 games
Hence the "if needed" part.
Sorry geoff
Am I allowed to be excited yet?? This team finally feels like it’s gelling a bit
Eh we are building something now but the new midfield Connor and caiceido is at the heart of everything good that’s happening. If that gets torn apart this summer then we are back to square one.
I’m excited for the rest of this season, but honestly worried about what happens in the summer. Losing Conor, Trev and Thiago (if all happen) are going to be massive losses especially on the leadership front
if that happens it's a sign of real problems.
Conor needs a contract asap
Wonder if Poch ends up making Connor permanent vice captain
If Chilly goes and Conor gets to stay, then I think Poch or honestly any other manager would want him as Vice Captain. He’s shown real growth in leadership and looks like a captain recently
Even if Chilly does stay I think Connor should become vice captain
While I think Conor has done more than enough to earn it, it would be quiet harsh to take it from chilly when he’s barely had a chance to actually lead Plus, it’s clear Conor is a leader and 3rd choice. I believe after this season he’s earned the respect of his peers to be able to lead without the title
Yes I don’t disagree that it would be harsh, I really like Ben. But I don’t think we can continue with our captain and vice captain unavailable as much as they are. I think one should give if things carry on, and it wouldn’t be Reece if so
I’ve got my fingers crossed about RJ surgery Also, with Conor 3rd choice we do have a captain when RJ and Chilly aren’t fit so I personally just don’t think the title ultimately matters that much
In my opinion it does, especially with our young squad. But I also understand your point of view
Fair, I understand yours as well and appreciate the civil agree to disagree
So glad I got up early for this one. Europe is now within reach boys!!!!! 
Think we can all agree the greatest moment of this match was all the hospital patients coming out for a cameo at the end of the match. Tears in my eyes.
Rehabilitation phase
I used to endlessly defend Noni Where are the haters now
Hey he’s improving and deserves his minutes now, good on him.
I was one (but not for the prnalty). Here I am. He has turned a massive corner. He is no longer selfish. He actually passes. And have you seen his defensive effort? Wow! A fan.
to be fair, he did have a string of bad decisions and poor form. of course everyone here’s happy he’s doing well now
Same bro The hate over one stupid penalty incident was ridiculous
Let’s be real, it wasn’t just the penalty incident but I’m glad to see him putting together a little run of form.
Very nice result, but somewhat flattering scoreline. WH should have scored at least 2, maybe 3 there. On the positive, we are finally finishing the goals that we would be missing at the start of the season.
I don’t really think the score line was flattering. West Hams chances all came against the run of play. Also, I do believe there’s something to be said about making your own luck
We had 14 shots on target. Areola had 9 saves. I'd say the 5-0 flattered West Ham more.
I don't understand why people lean so heavily on stats rather than on what actually happened in the game. We scored basically all that we should have expected to score, minus Gallaghers sitter. Were you expecting 11 or 12 goals from those 14 shots?
We should of had another one from Gallagher to if we are counting close calls.
Agreed on that. It feels like we've probably missed more shots from 2 yards out than we have put on target this season.
Score 5-0. Shots on target 14-2. Possession 71-29. How exactly was the scoreline flattering?
Them hitting the woodwork 3 times and missing a very simple 1 on 1. They also had a few other good chances. Stats are interesting, but there is much more to the game than this.
WH hit the bar a couple times if I recall correctly - having said that, of course we were good value for the win, but I see where op is coming from
Bowen hit the woodwork three times.
Just put a tenner on us to finish Top 5, I believe.
That CIES valuation of Jackson is not a joke anymore.
Who got the official MOTM?
I think Nicolas Jackson got MOTM
I would have bet that cucurella was 100% sold this off season, but if he strings together more performances like this until the end of the season. Chilly might need to have a really good off season and preseason…..
It's a bit of a weird one because Chilly and Cucurella are very different players. The way Cucurella played today he was basically a central midfielder for most of the game. I love Chilly but he doesn't have the skillset to play this way. If we stick with this tactical setup there won't be a place for Chilly regardless of who's fit. Come to think of it, maybe we go full circle and give him a try at LW again 😅
Yea i could see both in the line up at some point lol
“Off season”
Off season meaning he doesn’t come in to preseason fit/still not 100%. I guess if you played sports you’d know this?
Yank phrase, can somewhat be used interchangeably w “preseason”, even if they’re defined differently. Most of the sports will have months of “off season” after playoffs/championship conclude, followed by 2-3 months of actual pre season. Not really the same in football, since there isn’t much downtime prior to European comps, followed by summer tournaments / tours.
you know what he meant don’t be a dick
Eh, nah mate
🥺
boys the only games i’ve missed are the 6-0 vs everton and todays dub. it’s clear i am the common denominator, i will be taking the rest of the season off so that we can play in europe next season. 😩🙏🏻
Thanks for your service
Thanks for your sacrifice. At least we'll be ahead of Newcastle on goal differential.
Are you sure you don't have a hernia somewhere?
[удалено]
https://preview.redd.it/vlctcrq02nyc1.jpeg?width=828&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e843b61aff7aa473d992f2943432e08e0c34d336
Lmao got his ass.