larride:


You should know they will post what goes with their narrative. They have lost 2 nil to Liverpool and 3-2 to Spurs in the league. Both at their homeground.

I checked. Very true. But they're giving top 6 clubs a serious headache

Both Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have dominated world stage over the last decade winning five Ballons d'Ors each.Hazard told HLN that: "Two G.O.A.T.s (Greatest of All Time) you say? No way. There is only one G.O.A.T: Him, Lionel Messi!""Those two games against Barcelona were not my best memories of 2018. I was happy to play against Barcelona and Messi, but I didn’t deliver what I expected. I was disillusioned."My three sons were there for the home match at Stamford Bridge. The eldest is a big Messi fan - all of us are Messi fans, actually. He wanted to see Messi that day, because Messi is a special player."The 28-year-old had an amazing 2018 - helping Belgium win bronze medal at the FIFA World Cup in Russia.He continued:“That was something that came naturally. I didn’t think about it when we crossed each other. I just put myself in his place,""Everyone expected him to become the best player of the World Cup. It had to be Neymar. Lionel Messi was out of the tournament. Cristiano Ronaldo as well. The pressure on his shoulders must have been immense.
'"I know the feeling. But tens of thousands of times bigger than in Belgium, when they expected a lot from me in 2014. Thenation, the fans, the journalists. It was Neymar, Neymar, Neymar. It was all about Neymar, Neymar, Neymar."It was exaggerated hysteria. Have we won? Then it’s thanks to Neymar. Have we lost? Then it’s Neymar’s fault. As if those 22 others in the Brazil squad didn’t even participate."We did not speak - his English isn’t that good. It was all aboutthe gesture, not about the words. In a difficult moment I wanted to make him feel respected. To comfort him. He is a top player. His moment will come. Maybe at the next World Cup.“

hensben:
That’s humility. Hazard is class habeg.

Na university him be

Unlimited22:

I checked. Very true. But they're giving top 6 clubs a serious headache

Serious headache bro. They might surprise City again tonight.

nihilistjnr:


imagine such talk.

Sarri talking about our defensive performance against a team in the relegation zone

Looks like Sarri is just a Sicilian Mourinho that plays attacking football.

Lana1:
Looks like Sarri is just a Sicilian Mourinho that plays attacking football.

The words Mourinho and Attacking Football don't compute

Unlimited22:

The words Mourinho and Attacking Football don't compute

Sarri dey reason like Mourinho is what i meant.

Only that Sarri is more conservative in attack(hold possession even if you dont know what to do with it) while Mourinho is conservative in defence(park the bus)

Lana1:
Sarri dey reason like Mourinho is what i meant.

Only that Sarri is more conservative in attack(hold possession even if you dont know what to do with it) while Mourinho is conservative in defence(park the bus)

Thing is, his forward options are limited.

larride:

Serious headache bro. They might surprise City again tonight.

with the way city have been scoring lately I don't think so

BlueAngel444:
Let me ask a question Hazard's difficulty in receiving the ball as a striker is it down to his positioning or a general lack of creativity and intent by the players surrounding him. to create opportunities and put him through on goal.

If Hazard's positioning as a false nine is all bad, why not try Pedro or someone else. Are we sure a striker in this team won't still struggle because all strikers miss opportunities.

are our wingers and full backs and the midfielder with the attacking role creating as much opportunities as they should. getting the ball into the box.

If it's Hazard's fault then the technical department should get a striker

but if it's not, getting better wingers and midfielders would be better.

City and Liverpool play a similar way but the difference I see isn't in their strikers but the way the others attack especially full backs and wingers.

Hazard positioning as a false nine is good, he is not getting the ball due to the lack of creativity by his teammates and pedro cant be used as a false nine because he and willian protects the defence by tracking back more than Hazard just as jose said it in 2015

airmark:


Without injury, no.

Morata was not playing with injury?

Llorente would have done worst.

drisham:

with the way city have been scoring lately I don't think so

Because they beat one league 2 team 9-0?

timbros:


Morata was not playing with injury?

Llorente would have done worst.

No. That's the most unfortunate thing, he refused to get injured. Many prayed for him to get a ligament damage or metatarsal fracture. I almost joined them.

airmark:


No. That's the most unfortunate thing, he refused to get injured. Many prayed for him to get a ligament damage or metatarsal fracture. I almost joined them.

Or even ACL

Unlimited22:

Or even ACL

that's someone's father man! But why is he no longer making the bench? That dude is the most useless expensive player ever

BikeMan:
that's someone's father man! But why is he no longer making the bench? That dude is the most useless expensive player ever

His father.

airmark:


No. That's the most unfortunate thing, he refused to get injured. Many prayed for him to get a ligament damage or metatarsal fracture. I almost joined them.

Is ligament damage or metatarsal fracture the only injury in football?

Llorente would have done worst.

iamrosheed:

Hazard positioning as a false nine is good, he is not getting the ball due to the lack of creativity by his teammates and pedro cant be used as a false nine because he and willian protects the defence by tracking back more than Hazard just as jose said it in 2015

Well glad we finally have a winger beating United and Liverpool to Pulisic, we haven't had a flesh player on our flanks in years.

timbros:


Is ligament damage or metatarsal fracture the only injury in football?

Llorente would have done worst.

Maurizio Sarri is waiting to discover the extent of Alvaro Morata's knee injury after the striker was substituted in Chelsea's 2-2 Europa League Group L draw at Vidi in Budapest.

Morata was taken off in the first half, with his replacement Olivier Giroud scoring the equaliser which spared Chelsea from an embarrassing defeat at the Groupama Arena.

https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11668/11580364/chelsea-boss-maurizio-sarri-sweating-over-alvaro-morata-injury

Airmark which injury do you keep making excuses here for Bellotti sef?

I just took time to investigate this injury and this is what I see below.

One one month knee injuries? Chai.....

Oya follow this link feed yours eyes on players who rediscover their form after long injury layoff...

http://www.squawka.com/en/news/nine-world-class-players-who-rediscovered-their-form-after-suffering-an-acl-injury/832822?amp-on

If I hear say na injury make Bellotti loose form again...

timbros:
Airmark which injury do you keep making excuses here for Bellotti sef?

I just took time to investigate this injury and this is what I see below.

One one month knee injuries? Chai.....

Oya follow this link feed yours eyes on players who rediscover their form after long injury layoff...

http://www.squawka.com/en/news/nine-world-class-players-who-rediscovered-their-form-after-suffering-an-acl-injury/832822?amp-on

If I hear say na injury make Bellotti loose form again...

That was why I kept asking him how many months and games did Belotti relapsti miss as a result of injury

raumdeuter:


That was why I kept asking him how many months and games did Belotti relapsti miss as a result of injury

If person dey hear injury injury injury e go think say Bellotti miss one full season...

timbros:
Airmark which injury do you keep making excuses here for Bellotti sef?

I just took time to investigate this injury and this is what I see below.

One one month knee injuries? Chai.....

Oya follow this link feed yours eyes on players who rediscover their form after long injury layoff...

http://www.squawka.com/en/news/nine-world-class-players-who-rediscovered-their-form-after-suffering-an-acl-injury/832822?amp-on

If I hear say na injury make Bellotti loose form again...

that's what you get from the citadel of football knowledge

timbros:


Is ligament damage or metatarsal fracture the only injury in football?

Llorente would have done worst.

Not the only injury, but i won't wish him a mere knock on his back, that he could get over within days and return to serve me sh1t as usual.

airmark:


Not the only injury, but i won't wish him a mere knock on his back, that he could get over within days and return to serve me sh1t as usual.

Bellotti would have served us worse than Morata is doing now.

timbros:
Airmark which injury do you keep making excuses here for Bellotti sef?

I just took time to investigate this injury and this is what I see below.

One one month knee injuries? Chai.....

Oya follow this link feed yours eyes on players who rediscover their form after long injury layoff...

http://www.squawka.com/en/news/nine-world-class-players-who-rediscovered-their-form-after-suffering-an-acl-injury/832822?amp-on

If I hear say na injury make Bellotti loose form again...

Don't lemme believe you are operating on the same low IQ level of lordfalcao and his shameless mentor. Should i start reminding you of players that were rushed back from injury and have themselves to blame for taking that fast lane into career destruction?

Must someone be repeating the same thing over and over again before it sinks in? No time for that this year bro.

timbros:


Bellotti would have served us worse than Morata is doing now.

You can't back it, cos you don't know if he would have got injured like he did. An unriped Belotti, outscored Morata in serie a, playing for Torino. Morata in Torino, might not score up to 7 goals in 34 matches.

timbros:


Bellotti would have served us worse than Morata is doing now.

How is this a fact Sir Tim?
How would you prove this sir?

Don't see it as barging in, me just wan know

I love this thread. The advice, the fights, the camaraderie, the trolling.

We've successfully renamed players (Ukaku, Amba, Relapsti).

We've made new CEOs (ApariSports, Citadel of Football Knowledge).

We grow daily

Eden Hazard remains Chelsea's star man but does playing him as a striker really get the best from him? Adam Bate was at Stamford Bridge to witness Hazard’s latest display in the role in the 2-1 win over Newcastle and takes a look at the evidence here…
Ultimately, it was the decisive moment of the game. Hazard dropped the shoulder and twisted and turned away from the Newcastle defence, drawing four opponents towards him before spreading the play out wide to his left. Willian had the time and space to cut inside and curl the ball into the far corner of the net, winning the match for Chelsea. No problem.
And yet, that did not tell the full story from an evening in which Maurizio Sarri's side were once again far from their fluent best. With Olivier Giroud among the substitutes and Alvaro Morata not even considered worthy of a place on the bench, it was up to Hazard to play as the striker. He did his bit but it was still a struggle to get him involved in the game.
Highlights from Chelsea's 2-1 win over Newcastle in the Premier League
The assist to Willian was the only chance that Hazard created and he did not have a single shot on target either. That combined tally of one is his worst return in any Premier League game at Stamford Bridge this season, including his second-half substitute appearances in the wins over Arsenal and Crystal Palace. Seldom has he been so quiet.
Contrast that with his first start under Sarri, which came against Newcastle in August. Hazard was man of the match that day at St James' Park, having 135 touches of the ball and completing 91 passes. It was a masterclass but he was operating in his more familiar left-wing role. Such involvement is much more difficult when asked to play as the striker.
This time around, his first meaningful involvement came in the 14th minute when he drifted out wide to win his team a corner. Prior to that there had been only four touches of the ball. At that stage, every other Chelsea outfield player had enjoyed at least twice as many touches. The boy who loves the ball at his feet was being starved of it. And so it continued.
Chelsea vs Tottenham
January 24, 2019, 7:00pm
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Prior to Saturday, only Manchester City had denied Hazard at least 70 touches in each of his Premier League starts at Stamford Bridge this season. There were 97 against Cardiff and 88 against Bournemouth, but both times he was on the left. Here, he touched the ball only 59 times and most of those came in the second half when he went searching for it.
Isaac Hayden and Sean Longstaff did a good screening job in the first half and when the ball did make it through, the first-time flicks didn't come off. There were even a few groans. He did get a warm ovation when withdrawn late on but the supporters were as aware as Hazard that there's more chance of the magic happening when he sees more of the ball.
"On the wing I feel more comfortable, that's my place," said Hazard himself in February when he was enduring life under Antonio Conte. But he was more open-minded when discussing it last month. "It is good not just to be a target man, but also as a false nine where I can move, I can drop, I can go deep, I can go on the wing," he explained.
Hazard drifted outside of the box in search of the ball against Newcastle
Sarri knows that Hazard will never be a fixed reference point up front. He admitted as much in the press room after the game. "It is impossible for Eden to stay in the box," he said with a smile. "He goes to the direction of the ball. We need to learn to attack spaces. It was better today from the wingers. We scored after 10 minutes by attacking the space."
For Sarri, that is part of the explanation for his decision. Pedro's movement in behind for his goal was the sort of speculative run from out to in that he has made a career out of. The ball does not always reach him but on this occasion it did - and, with Hazard having drifted to the other flank, it vacated the space that allowed the Spaniard to run through to score.
Chelsea have options out wide. Sarri was careful to mention Callum Hudson-Odoi alongside Pedro and Willian when discussing the need to keep his wingers at the club. That is one of the things encouraging him to deploy Hazard elsewhere but it was also interesting that he referenced the improved defensive structure when the Belgian is used centrally.
Sarri has urged Willian to stay following his winner against Newcastle
"It's a case of being more balanced," he pointed out when discussing Hazard's current role in the team. "In the last six matches, we have conceded only three goals and one was a penalty. So I think at the moment in the defensive phase we are doing very well and one of the reasons, in my opinion, is that Eden is playing in that position."
Again, this is a familiar trope for Chelsea. Jose Mourinho became increasingly frustrated with the way that Hazard's unwillingness to track back defensively left the team exposed. Sarri has a reputation for being a much more attack-minded coach but even he appears conscious that his defence has more protection when Hazard is relieved of those duties.
"I think he needs to be let free on the pitch," he said recently, and in some ways it's worked. Hazard is now into double figures for goals and assists in the Premier League this season, only the second player after Lionel Messi in Europe's major leagues to achieve that feat. He has been directly involved in 20 goals, only three shy of his best ever season for Chelsea.
Hazard is on course for his most productive Premier League season
Maybe Sarri's much discussed transformation of Dries Mertens at Napoli can be repeated, after all. But don't count on it. "Dries is more of a striker than me," Hazard has said. "I am more like a playmaker. I like to come and touch the ball. Dries is not like this, he just wants to stay in the box. That's why he scores a lot of goals. We are different."
Hazard turned 28 this week so he is unlikely to change that attitude now - and why should he? It has got him this far and while Chelsea may have deficiencies in attack, it is a pity that their greatest entertainer is currently being asked to compromise his own game in order to help mask them. It is a solution of sorts for Sarri. But it is surely only a temporary one.

SkimpleD:

How is this a fact Sir Tim?
How would you prove this sir?

Don't see it as barging in, me just wan know

Belotti in a familiar setting of Torino is currently serving 1 open play goal every 9hrs. Has Morata ever served you that?

raumdeuter:


Belotti in a familiar setting of Torino is currently serving 1 open play goal every 9hrs. Has Morata ever served you that?

Naso. What of every 15hrs? or every 3 weeks?

Egbon Dayo, abeg na new year be this.

Use number of seasons bar injuries and prove Bellotti would have been worse in Chelsea.

PS: I don't like either of them.