Sunderland, but with better players? Sorry but I am kind of seeing similarities. Wenger at least consistently got his team in to the champions league.
Before you dismiss this as i understand you will feel the comparison to be extreme. I ask you to consider:-
There was something ‘rotten’ at Sunderland. They went through head coaches at a phenomenal rate, only playing for that head coach when it appeared that they would get relegated and pulling off the great escape. How many seasons? It seemed to become a regular thing.
Then the players effectively downed tools again the following season and the cycle began again. If I’m right in thinking, Alladyce was the only Manager the Sunderland players didn’t get the sack for before they got relegated?
Now I’m not suggesting we’re in danger of getting relegated. We've got too many resources for the relegation scenario. Although I do wonder what would’ve happened if Jose had not been sacked when he was………..
But imo there clearly is something rotten in our club. It seems to be in and around the first team squad. We “down tools" get the manager the sack do better initially for the next one. This seems to be a cycle the club gradually appear to have been getting in to these past few years.
Sunderland essentially maintained their squad, probably because they did not wanna lose their premier league level salaries and they plummeted.
This more than anything has overridden my fears I have about the man picking the team. What the heck it’s only another year out of our lives if we continue with Sarri. So at this time I hope Roman sides with him against the players who have perhaps “downed tools".
But I still think my fears about Sarri costing us Cho, potentially costing us Loftus-Cheek and gradually pushing Reece James et al out the door as well are very real and I hope he proves me wrong.
Will the fans forgive Sarri if that eventuality happens? From what I hear, they’re our most talented group of academy players since Tommy Docherty assembled his “diamonds".
Sarri is doing himself no favours this season as well. Repeating myself, his refusal to play the younger players…………He claims being unable to motivate players as a factor in our performances. Fair enough.
But how motivated would you feel you had to be if you knew your place in the team was not under threat no matter how poor you performed? Can you motivate a player who thinks he’s untouchable?
Forget Arsenal 2.0. Have we become....
posted on 13/2/19
Yawn
posted on 13/2/19
comment by King of the Bridge (U1319)
posted 11 hours, 19 minutes ago
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing again and again expecting a different result. The midfield against City was invisible. Jorginho cannot play DM in the PL and Alonso should be dropped. Alonso is good with 5 at the back but his lack of pace is killing us defensively as a 4.
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This was said about Wenger quite a few times towards the end of his reign
posted on 13/2/19
comment by NPE ⚽️ (U22020)
posted 14 hours, 10 minutes ago
Bates loved Chelsea so much he overspent, put us into the seriosu debt, sacked Gullit for no reason, spoke ill of one of our biggest benefactors Matthew Harding even after his death, oh and once petitioned to electrify the fence surrounding home stands.
Yeah what a guy.
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I never understood why he sacked Gullit, we were onto somat with that team, definitely would have won the league in 98-99, still bothers me that,
posted on 13/2/19
Although I do wonder what would’ve happened if Jose had not been sacked when he was………..
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A small part of me is still disappointed we didn't go down that season, and times like this make me wonder would it of really been a bad thing?
People like to think we'd have collapsed under the weight of ourselves with the wage bill and an entire squad overhaul happening, but the truth is we're simply too big a club now to fizzle away like a Blackburn, Leeds, Charlton, etc... it would've been a Juventus getting relegated scenario.
Yes 90% of the squad would've left, Hazard would've been tearing it up at Real, Barca or PSG the last few years and that would've hurt to watch, but we'd still have attracted a big name manager (for some reason Blanc is the guy I'd imagine us getting), we'd still have established young players on low enough wages to keep and build around - Zouma, Christensen, Ake, Terry would've stayed (probably having accepted a massive wage cut), Van Ginkel, Pasalic, RLC, Atsu, Kennedy, Traore - these are all phenomenal Championship players all of which could've been persuaded to stay and cement their places once we got promoted (which we would've first season, unquestionably).
We'd have to deal with ALOT of stick for the first two years, yes we'd be the ultimate banter club for quite a while, but really think about it could you imagine us being any worse off than we are now, two and a half years later? Something to think about.
posted on 13/2/19
comment by NPE ⚽️ (U22020)
posted 15 hours, 33 minutes ago
Bates loved Chelsea so much he overspent, put us into the seriosu debt, sacked Gullit for no reason, spoke ill of one of our biggest benefactors Matthew Harding even after his death, oh and once petitioned to electrify the fence surrounding home stands.
Yeah what a guy.
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We’ve all got the luxury of looking at Mathew Harding through blue tinted specs. And I get that.
But as much as most Chelsea fans don’t like to admit it, Batesy had a point of view too. He did not like how he came along after Bates did the hard work of fighting off the vultures and making himself appear as the saviour of Chelsea.
Batesy was entitled to ask, “where were you when we were on the edge of the abyss?” Speaking badly of him after he passed away wasn’t nice agreed.
I will always be grateful to Batesy. Yes his Chelsea Village was a disaster, but without him we would have free-fallen in the early 80s.
But i'm not going to convince you of this. What's the point? If i said for example...... "Today is Wednesday" you would disagree.
It's what i've come to expect from you. The ultimate low was when you 1d a tribute to Ray Wilkins based on assumption and looking to point score of the OP.
posted on 13/2/19
Comment Deleted by Site Moderator
posted on 13/2/19
Comment Deleted by Site Moderator
posted on 13/2/19
comment by NPE ⚽️ (U22020)
posted 1 minute ago
comment by The Noble Lord Flash (U8334)
posted 1 hour, 26 minutes ago
comment by NPE ⚽️ (U22020)
posted 15 hours, 33 minutes ago
Bates loved Chelsea so much he overspent, put us into the seriosu debt, sacked Gullit for no reason, spoke ill of one of our biggest benefactors Matthew Harding even after his death, oh and once petitioned to electrify the fence surrounding home stands.
Yeah what a guy.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
We’ve all got the luxury of looking at Mathew Harding through blue tinted specs. And I get that.
But as much as most Chelsea fans don’t like to admit it, Batesy had a point of view too. He did not like how he came along after Bates did the hard work of fighting off the vultures and making himself appear as the saviour of Chelsea.
Batesy was entitled to ask, “where were you when we were on the edge of the abyss?” Speaking badly of him after he passed away wasn’t nice agreed.
I will always be grateful to Batesy. Yes his Chelsea Village was a disaster, but without him we would have free-fallen in the early 80s.
But i'm not going to convince you of this. What's the point? If i said for example...... "Today is Wednesday" you would disagree.
It's what i've come to expect from you. The ultimate low was when you 1d a tribute to Ray Wilkins based on assumption and looking to point score of the OP.
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Bollux on all counts.
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Q.E.D
posted on 13/2/19
comment by Devil D.A. (U6522)
posted 3 hours, 39 minutes ago
Although I do wonder what would’ve happened if Jose had not been sacked when he was………..
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A small part of me is still disappointed we didn't go down that season, and times like this make me wonder would it of really been a bad thing?
People like to think we'd have collapsed under the weight of ourselves with the wage bill and an entire squad overhaul happening, but the truth is we're simply too big a club now to fizzle away like a Blackburn, Leeds, Charlton, etc... it would've been a Juventus getting relegated scenario.
Yes 90% of the squad would've left, Hazard would've been tearing it up at Real, Barca or PSG the last few years and that would've hurt to watch, but we'd still have attracted a big name manager (for some reason Blanc is the guy I'd imagine us getting), we'd still have established young players on low enough wages to keep and build around - Zouma, Christensen, Ake, Terry would've stayed (probably having accepted a massive wage cut), Van Ginkel, Pasalic, RLC, Atsu, Kennedy, Traore - these are all phenomenal Championship players all of which could've been persuaded to stay and cement their places once we got promoted (which we would've first season, unquestionably).
We'd have to deal with ALOT of stick for the first two years, yes we'd be the ultimate banter club for quite a while, but really think about it could you imagine us being any worse off than we are now, two and a half years later? Something to think about.
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I have read some nonsense in my time but this?!? This is special.
posted on 13/2/19
NPE & Cinciwolf
I don't mean to sound entitled but we've won more than enough trophies in my lifetime as a Chelsea fan. In the last 15 years we've done pretty much everything, experienced all the good emotions you can experience as a fan of a top level club. Call me crazy but the idea of us getting relegated and having to rebuild from stretch, knowing that we have the resources to not fade away into oblivion, would've been something quite appealing to watch as a fan. I've shared this "insanity" with other Chelsea fans in the past, about half of them are like you NPE, the other half disagree that we'd bounce back as quickly as I'm sure we would, but of that half all of them agree it would be an appealing ride if it all came together (i.e. we did replicate Juventus's rebirth).
The reason why I think about that scenario in times like this is because, IMO, by now we'd be around about the same level (maybe slightly lower) but we'd feel a sense of optimism that we're always on the up. Just my prospective, but hitting rock bottom and ascending upwards will always be more gratifying than the steady descension we're witnessing now.