Chelsea have ‘little boy band wannabes’ and three massive holes | OneFootball

Chelsea have an ‘immature bunch’ of players and that showed v Arsenal, who might well be on for the Quad.

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The more things change at Chelsea…

I wrote in a mail 16 months ago that all Chelsea needed was a world class #9, a world class manager and a world class goalkeeper. Obviously a lot has changed since then and now all Chelsea really need is a world class #9, a world class manager and a world class goalkeeper. Ben Teacher

Chelsea v Arsenal: Some conclusions

Good game last night. Some observations from an Arsenal fan’s point of view.

Zubimendi is Arsenal’s signing of the season without a doubt. Whether he’s one of the league’s best is up for debate among others. I’m just happy we have him and not Partey.

Arteta mentioned a year or two back that Raya stops things before they even happen. Neither of those goals happen if Raya is in net imo. He’s so dominant in the air. Kepa is fine, but an understudy is all he’ll ever be at Arsenal.

MLS clearly not trusted at the moment. He’s got this habit of inviting pressure and gets dangerously close to being caught. It’s one of his strengths when he wriggles out, but also a weakness. That and his positioning hasn’t been great this season. Expect he’ll be stronger next year. We need Calafiori back asap. He’s got elite qualities that are unmatched. Hincapie not dynamic enough but a good defender.

Saka has some goal contributions this season but he doesn’t seem to be quite on it, hoping he really hits his stride coming into the final months. We’re gonna need more goals from him if we’re serious about winning titles. I like Madueke but he reminds me of a fly who just keeps banging into a window over and over but eventually finds way through on occasion.

Estevao could be a world beater in a couple of years. The problem Chelsea have is they’re aren’t really enough what you’d call “top senior pros who have won it all”, the type that would be helpful to learn off in terms of mentality and attitude for some of these young and promising players. Instead you’ve got tw*ts like Garnacho, Enzo and Cucurella. Neto too. Some of them look like little boy band wannabees. It really is an immature bunch.

He may have won with Spain but Cucurella just doesn’t get near enough flak for me. Instead of getting ready after conceding the throw in, he cries foul, lets Saka run off him for the Arsenal second goal from White to Gyokeres. It’s pathetic gamesmanship which you’ve come to expect from the annoying little tw*t.

Also, Cucurella should definitely have had a second yellow for a pathetic dive when conceding another corner to Saka.

One of the reasons Arsenal fans get frustrated with refs is we have rarely got the benefit of the doubt, if that was Michael Oliver and AN Arsenal player, you can guarantee that’s a second yellow. That said, contradiction here, we’ve benefited from some decisions this season. I felt the last couple of seasons we got punished for anything and everything.

Cucurella also got his customary yellow for hacking Saka down. He’s a good player, but compared to James (who was obviously missed), his petulance and attitude costs him.

We played Chelsea at both a good and bad time. New manager bounce, but also, missing some key players. That game should have been out of reach, but as usual, our decisions/finishing let us down. Should have enough for the second leg but if they score first… game on. Strevs, AFC, Canada

Is the Quad on?

Only 30mins in the the match tonight but I’m already hearing “quadruple” nonsense in my head…

Every man, dog, podcaster has been talking about the depth in this Arsenal squad.

Could this be the year? If it is are they the greatest team ever? If it isn’t is it a big old choke fest? Brian (Time will tell) BRFC

PS. When did three paragraphs stop being a thing?

A reffing question

It’s half time and I’m sure there’ll be loads of VAR e-mails (it’s a goal, as was City’s), but I have a different question.

If a foul is committed and the referee deems it worthy of a yellow card but the player fouled waves an imaginary card, why should they receive a card also? They’re only agreeing with the referee’s reading of the situation, something they probably wish happened for the whole 90 minutes? Howard (Sanchez just settled the tie) Jones

Yer Chelsea man out

This is a disgrace.. Liam (is it) Rosen.. Ronsein.. any whatever his name is out. Too many changes .. just because he was good at Copenha… no wait Rosenbrg no Stradsdenbrourg.. or whatever club it is or what ever his name is let’s be honest he is no Arvam Grant…

Half-time reaction Iain, Dublin, Chelsea

Daylight robbery

I have been reading a lot about ‘Arsene Wenger’s offside law proposal’ recently. Essentially it entails changing the offside law to require a gap (or clear daylight) between attacker and defender before offside is given.

Fundamentally, I am not against trialing this to see what the impact is, and perhaps it may get rid of those ridiculous marginal calls (although does it just shift the margins?). Nevertheless, am I making this up or was clear daylight between players for offsides suggested years ago? Like, a decade or more ago? In my head it was even trialled for a bit and scrapped.

If so, why is Arsene being anointed king of the daylight rule, to the point where it feels like it might even be called the Wenger rule? If not, then it’s very possible I foresaw the future in a past dream, and I might have to challenge Wenger to a game of Mario Kart for the title. Garey Vance, MUFC

The only option for Spurs: Xabi Alonso

I’m not sure if many here have seen the Marvel Avengers movies but in the Avengers Infinity War film a few years back, there’s a moment where the good guys are in absolute dire straits. One of the good guys makes one last crazy move – because he’d seen 14 million versions of the future… and only one version where they win.

For Spurs at the minute, it feels as though we’re in a similar state of dire straits. The football is dull, the results are bleak, and every game now seems to end in a fight between some mix of fans, managers and players. Grim.

It feels like a very dangerous moment for Spurs. The risk of falling into the obscurity of mid table (or below) while former Big 6 rivals rush off ahead, and the likes of Villa and Newcastle leapfrog. The risk of losing Van de Ven or Romero and struggling to replace their quality.

I feel like Spurs have their own Avengers moment right now: One move they can make to get back to brighter days: Break the bank for Xabi Alonso.

Yes, yes, laugh, ridicule, why would he go to Spurs, etc., etc. Yawn.

Mourinho came. Conte came after Nuno Espirito Santo. With the right money and the right persuasion: the newly out-of-a-job Xabi Alonso would come to Spurs. Is he going to wait for an Arne Slot sacking that might never come? A Man City job offer that might not materialise?

But why is he the right one?

Under Frank, Spurs have lost their belief and their identity. Ange, for all his flaws, had a beautiful exciting vision: “We’re not aiming for 5th, mate.” He wanted Spurs to be a protagonist. We’d go toe-to-toe with big teams, and we’d win playing exciting, attacking football. And to an extent, he achieved it!

His volatile league form meant he was replaced with the uber-sensible, pragmatic Thomas Frank, and while I like and respect Frank, I fear he’s brought his Brentford ‘underdog’ mentality to Spurs. We set up to ‘stop’ good teams, not to be a good team. We’re a plucky underdog trying to nick a win from a set piece, and not get our ass handed to us. This has not only resulted in dull, lifeless football, it’s resulted in a set of disillusioned players and fans who don’t know what Spurs are? What exciting vision is Thomas Frank building towards?

Spurs need someone who can come in, inspire the team with *his* way of playing and winning football matches. Someone who commands respect. Someone who’s won before.

Xabi Alonso ticks those boxes.

Xabi’s mistake at Real Madrid was that he had the audacity to think he could coach that team. Real Madrid don’t need coaches. They need a CEO. Someone with the ego and authority to command all those other egos. Not the right fit for a team builder like Xabi.

At Spurs? Not only does he have the raw materials of an enviable bright young squad with talent like Xavi Simons, Van de Ven, Bergvall, Romero, Udogie, Gray, Vuskovic, but he would be picking them up off the floor right now in terms of form, confidence and belief. They are putty he can mould with his hands.

My apologies to Thomas Frank; who I believe will do well at Fulham or Bournemouth or wherever next year, but Spurs need to take a swing for the fences here.

Go and get Xabi Alonso. It’s the only way we can win. Andy, THFC, Eire

With the latest coverage of the manager merry-go-round circa early 2026, there does seem genuine cause for concern, for Man United fans in particular, that, if Xabi Alonso takes over at Liverpool, and Pep Guardiola steps down from Man City, the next few years could be a return to sustained Liverpool league dominance, the like of which last seen in the 1980s. They might even “do a Guardiola” and win the league several seasons in a row.

Meanwhile United will likely spend that time continuing their run through a catalogue of disastrous, misguided or simply ill-timed manager appointments that may include one or more (probably several) of the following: Thomas Tuchel, Enzo Maresca, Andoni Iraola, Ange Postecoglou (what a match made in hell that would be), Gabriel Heinze (because every random Fergie player must get a chance), Jose Mourinho again (why not, ffs) and Sean Dyche. In that time they’ll probably be an ominous lingering presence somewhere in the 7th – 10th region, achieving and subsequently losing the occasional Europa Conference League play-off round here and there. And Jim Ratcliffe will probably still be there too, sadly. Guy

…There’s only one ex player currently making any impact as a coach and that’s Cesc Fabregas.

There would be any change for at least three years I would think so we accept it and move on.

Honourable future options for the club could include Cazorla and someone like Laurent Koscielny as sporting director. Nick, Kent (something)

The Israeli correction

I wrote in October 25 following the news that the West Midlands Police had banned Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending the Europa match against Aston Villa on safety concerns, that it was clearly antisemitic.

Inbox responders and the comments section broadly shut down this opinion.

It has now become clear the chief of police lied about the evidence including making up reports from the Dutch police that pointed to intelligence against the Israeli fans and farcically using AI/Google to create a fictious match between West Ham and Maccabi Tel Aviv. They lied about consulting with Jewish groups before the game and a host of other comprising actions.

The police have since admitted that local Islamists were arming themselves and preparing to attack because of their hatred of Israelis. Rather than protect the vulnerable minority and do their job, they spun a pack of lies and victim shamed.

I only ask this readership to think twice before dismissing allegations of antisemitism as out of hand. If the police, as the guardians of law and order feel able to fabricate evidence, just think about what is happening in other institutions.