Chelsea post match thread

[Matty]

Today is a strange one. We've just been battered 5-1, thoroughly bounced out of the FA Cup, and witnessed some truly awful displays from certain players. We've suffered our heaviest defeat of the ADUG era, our biggest loss since the debacle of that 8-1 at Middlesbrough, yet I'm more positive than I have been after draws, and even some narrow wins! The decision to field 6 teenagers in the starting 11 yesterday, brought about by the FA and BBC deciding to screw City over in the scheduling, meant that before a ball was kicked we were destined for defeat, and most likely fairly heavily. I think because I'd accepted this pre kickoff, and blamed the FA and BBC for it, meant I wasn't as upset/angry when it actually happened. I think the performances of some of the youth players were quite surprising, I honestly feel if we'd been up against a lesser side than Chelsea, who played pretty well yesterday, we'd have more than held our own. Adarabioyo looks like he could well have a future, he's a big lad, looked very good at blocking shots and, wit a little more composure, looks like he's not bad with the ball at his feet, something Guardiola will be looking for. The two Garcia's really shone in central midfield, nice passing and moving, hard work and confident. Faupala played well before tiring, although I still think he'll probably not quite make it. Celina was disappointing, never really got involved. He wasn't in his natural position though so there were mitigating circumstances. Overall it's never good to go out of a competition, and certainly not so heavily, but we can definitely take some positives from the game. One thing we also learned, if we didn't know it already, is that Caballero, Demichelis and Kolarov must surely have no future at City once Guardiola gets here, their performances yesterday were seriously lacking in most areas.

 

[Peter Doherty]

The most striking thing about playing the kids yesterday was how much our work-rate as a team improved.

 

[Gorton_Tubster]

BBC moves the fixture to Sunday
City say no
BBC own the rights
City have to play it and field weakened team
BBC flex their media muscle to criticise City

I think that team we saw yesterday was a response to the BBC, we could have fielded a semi decent team but that selection was a C team, not even a B team. I have never seen us do that. City turned a high pressure game into a nothing game, which is what the FA cup should be compared to the CL.

 

[fathellensbellend]

as bravely and as well as the kids did, if i had known the team selection for yesterday, i wouldnt have bothered with norwich/villa or yesterday, i dont care about co-effiecients, and nor do i care about prize money. Pointless moaning about an eventuallity that had every chance of occuring, may as well have played that team yesterday at norwich and had the big guns fresher for leicester and spurs.

 

[Prestwich_Blue]

I generally like your posts on here, well thought out and very informative, particularly on the aspects of FFP etc. However this is one of the most depressing things I have read. The day I care more about this than my club winning a trophy is the day I start watching another sport.

Appreciate that but would even a full team have beaten Chelsea yesterday, they way we and they are playing at the moment? And what you've said is the difference between what you and I might want and what the club might want. Sad I know but that's modern football.

 

[Chippy_boy]

The most striking thing about playing the kids yesterday was how much our work-rate as a team improved.

Yeah I agree with that. In certain respects the team yesterday was better than our A team and effort and work-rate was definitely a step up.

 

[trevorriley]

Good to see the young players, they done great.. First half was i smiling and thinking im enjoying this.. Second half was a bit embarrassing for the club, I cant blame the young guys as chelsea where on song, but not good that we had to play so many young players, a club this size should have a big enough squad to be able to stop a thrashing like this.. Some bad buying over the last 2 years has given us a limited squad.

I hope that in 2 years if we play chelsea away in the cup we have a strong enough squad to put out a quality team with a couple of young players thrown in that could take the game on.

 

[Chippy_boy]

Appreciate that but would even a full team have beaten Chelsea yesterdayy?

They'd have had about the same chance of beating Chelsea as beating Dynamo Kiev away in Russia, I would reckon.

 

[YaYa's Left Peg]

What's worst playing a full strength side go through to the next round and possibly getting injuries to a key player which will impact on the rest of the season.

He didn't need to play a full strength side though did he? He could have played a much more balanced team of senior and youth, rather than throw our young lads to the wolves. We should have gone out there to win and send a message to the bastards that they can't grind us down. Instead we do the opposite and go out with a whimper.

We had a realistic chance of winning the FA Cup. Given that we haven't exactly got a trophy laden history, I'm not sure we have the luxury of picking and choosing which competitions we want to win!!

 

[Dribble]

Not in the circumstances mate no.

It's exactly what I have been saying about this bloke being proven true.

Some said he was 'protecting' the kids by not using them previously. I said that had already been proven not to be the case, by his use of Pozo last season, suddenly thrown into the team, playing out of position against top level, big, strong, players. The manager doesn't care, these kids are just pawns, to be used as he sees fit. Yesterday he was happy to chuck a whole bunch in, away from home vs the Champions. He hung them out to dry when it suited him, exactly as I said he would.

Some have argued previously, that the reason most of these have barely had 5 mins between them, is because it was 'too big a risk' to use any. I have argued that there is no risk at all. Yesterday a side containing mostly kids, held Chelsea until half time, despite being constanly let down by utterly shit 'experienced' players. The idea that one or two of these coming off the bench, over the past year or so, would have mortally wounded the first team, has been completely shattered & exposed for the utter nonsense many of us have always known it to be.

Then we compare these lads at their stage of development & think of all the kids who 'could' have played over the recent years, who were physically more suited to the task & have been discarded without even a trial run. Some written off as 'no hopers' because they allowed their standards & effort to slip during periods in the wilderness.

Then we consider the players picked, shoehorned into a 442 in order to suit his pathetic lack of tactical organisational skills, & as unbalanced in makeup, as many of his senior teams. It cried out for Kean Bryan to protect the awful, disgraceful Demichelis & Kolarov, but he picked a group of midfield kids who have barely made a decent tackle between them in their careers, to play against Hazard, Fabregas, Willian & Pedro & a totally inexperienced cb to play vs Diego Costa, next to two fucking clowns, in front of a shite goalkeeper.

The kids, I think, did themselves proud & nothing but positive can come of this from their perspective. This is not due to planning. It is due to their talent, & sheer luck that nothing happened to mentally scar them, as in the case of Boyata, when Mancini threw him into teams with similar disregard to his development & basically destroyed him.

Tosin was clearly shitting his pants & could barely kick the ball straight, but arguably defended better than the other 3. Well done lad. Barker was clearly nervous as fuck but still managed to skin a top fullback alive when given a decent pass. Those two will benefit from just getting on the pitch I think. Celina however, stuck out in no mans' land, didn't benefit. The two Spanish kids were getting used to it & particularly A Garcia looked like he's got a decent hour in him & was excellent at recovering the ball, very very promising.

Tbf to Pellegrini, he is probably the only person in the world who would have picked Faupala, who thouroughly doesn't deserve to be there on merit & totally unbalanced the team, but he put in a game effort. I suspect that will turn out to be his 'Macheda' moment, but well played to the lad & I hope I'm wrong. It is early days for him, tbf.

Fantastic that the kids have finally got started. I'm truly delighted for them, & we have a load more who could have done just as well or better.

Meanwhile, I'm counting the days for this con artist of a manager to leave & wish he had gone two seasons ago. He is completely unfit for the job & the luckiest man alive.

Top post, albeit I don't see Manuel as a 'con artist of a manager', I see him as a romantic dreamer who thinks if his system is played to the letter irrespective of which personnel he picks or who we play, that we'll get a result.

It staggered belief that he thought a team full of kids, with the slowest defence we could pick with Willy in nets and Fernando as our midfield lynchpin could go away to a full strength Chelsea, play 442 and not get smashed. It was to our kid's credit that they didn't record a double-digit loss. I just hope the kids concentrate on our future and not the present.......