Bailey

Im guessing when Neville and Osman are fit! ;p

Put it this way it was in Utd's hands and they threw it away. Man City may have had to win but for the main the pressure was off as the title was Utd's to lose.

Maybe instead of talking about who we want we should decide on what we want to see from a new manager? Personally I couldn't care less whether its Martinez or some bloke I have never heard of as long as he has the right qualities to take us forward. The main points for me would be: 1. Good at working with a small budget with previous experience of buying low and selling high. 2. Encourages youth players to develop whether it be within the first team set up or on loan. 3. A good man manager who is able to get the most out of his playing staff with a positive frame of mind. 4. Tactically astute, preferably pressing higher up the pitch and defending from the front and not afraid to get people into attacking areas. 5. Experience of managing the club and not just the playing squad ideally to be at Everton for a generation and not just a couple of years. There are probably some other key points that I have forgotten but generally a young, enthusiastic and ambitious manager is what we need to take us forward. We need a manager like that to keep up the good work that Moyes has done. The likes Benitez's and Mancini's of the management world would milk us dry and leave us when the going got really tough just so they didnt have a bad mark on their CV.

Not really. Wigan can actually be a good defensive team, especially when they play 5 at the back. They dont concede many goals because they are structurally unsound, they concede goals because they have idiots like Caldwell in the team. Not to mention not being able to keep the same back 3, 4 or 5 each week. I didnt see the game against Arsenal but they shut City down so they barely had a sniff, they would have kept a clean sheet at Swansea had it not been for a Caldwell howler, the midfielder play RB letting his man stay on side and then about 3 players failing to make a clearance before McArthur missed a simple header. We barely created a chance in the Cup at our and again at the end of last season they played all the big boys and for the most part restricted them to half chances. Some people obviously have very short memories of our own form when certain players couldn't stop making howlers and we were conceding silly goals and we were hoofing it clear at every opportunity and not trying to play! Dont forget these games are also ones in which they have dominated possession and created several good chances. His comments on Arsenal are also pretty stupid considering Arsenal have also won lots of trophies playing brilliant football. Arsenal arent not winning trophies because they play good football, they aren't winning trophies because they havent been good enough when push comes to shove. At the moment they aren't that great to watch and they still aren't winning anything!

Great header from Ivanovic. God knows what the Benfica defenders were doing... Clearly didnt fancy winning a header to keep them in the EL final! They didnt deserve to win but Benfica just couldnt put the ball away.

Unlucky pen but had to be given. You cant be jumping with your arms up there in the penalty box and expect to get away with it. Been really impressed with the 2 centre midfielders for Benfica. Perez and Matic have bossed the Chelsea midfield. The former looks very useful especially when he goes forward.

I would love to see Chelsea get beaten myself and see them end the season trophyless!

Exactly... Im actually surprised he was there as long as he was. Out of Europe at the first hurdle both seasons, gifted the title by United dropping points in the run in and only one (maybe two!?)cups in his reign. They have never looked like a team and some of his tactics are bizarre, especially when he switched to 3 at the back in Europe and half the players were looking round for confirmation of where they should be playing! These money men need to start realising that buying the best players doesnt guarentee success. If this years Premier League victory for Man Utd, Cup wins for Swansea & Wigan & the all German CL final doesnt make these people realise that the team is more important than the individual then nothing will!

As I have mentioned before, his points tally across those seasons averaged less than one point per season worse than the 3 years before he was at Wigan who at that point were spending much more on wages and transfers. His managerial record also has an FA Cup winner which isnt bad for an 'assistant' manager. This 'assistant' manager also took your beloved Moyes' team apart in our own back yard with a bucket load of injuries and far less resources. The same man who then executed the perfect game plan to beat City in the final itself. I don't deny that Martinez has some frailties but he has a lot of positives with the way he handles his players, his philosophy of how the game should be played and his ability to win big games. He may or may not build upon the foundations built by Moyes but he is the best domestic candidate that I can see alongside Laudrup who probably wouldn't come here anyway.

As I mentioned in a different thread. Before this season if you take the 3 years before Martinez turned up they only average less than 1pt more each season than the 3 years since Martinez arrived. Considering he has had to deal with a squad revamp, losing his best players each season and introducing a new style of play that isnt actually bad at all. This season is the disappointment but they have won the FA Cup and they have played better than the last 3 seasons IMO, especially when their keys players have been fit.

This is how whoever comes in will have to think and in all honesty it would be my one minor critism of Moyes in the transfer market (albeit he showed he was learning with Rodwell). We are always going to have to sell our best players on but we have to weigh up whether the price was worth it and sometimes I think Moyes either held on too long (mainly Arteta, Pienaar, Yobo etc) or risked unbalancing the team by being stubborn (Lescott). We have to sell these types of players when they are at their highest value taking into account their age and the possible replacements. Rodwell was the perfect example of this decision working well, even though I still believe he will be a top player if he can stay injury free. I dont think Fellaini is at the top of his value just yet but Baines probably is and in truth I would probably look at Vic the same way. I dont think his valuation will get any higher than it is now and if we are going to move forward I think we need a player with a bit more class.

Surely he proved that at the weekend and in last seasons relegation scrap? Sounds like they should also have Beausajour back which would be a big bonus because Espinoza just insnt a RB/RWB!

No fecking way... Cant believe people are seriously bringing both Mancini and Benitez into the equation! Finally someone with sense! People are slagging Moyes off for being tactically poor, sticking with out of form players and completely bizarre substitutions and yet you want to go for a guy that is just as bad at them very same things. He is arrogant and disrespectful and he would bring this club to its knees, like he almost did with Valencia. We arent just looking for somoene to manage the first team squad, we are looking for someone to lead us forward and be a figurehead for the club. He is the opposite of what we as a club stand for.

Dont be silly Peter!

Mirallas for me. Loved seeing Felli boss the middle as well, him and Gibson together in the middle seem to bring the best out of each other.

How random!? We are generally one of the fittest teams in the league!

I think a lot of Chelsea fans have been pissed off with his recent performances. One guy I follow on Twitter commented that the best thing he did all game was to get booked so that he would be suspended for us! I quite like him as a player. Not the most gifted but works hard and doesnt stop running. Every teams needs one of those players.

Oh Vic... Thats twice now where it has been easier to score than miss!

How on earth are we not in double figures!?

Jelavic for Vic and Barkley on for Pienaar please.

Class counter attacking goal.

A good half and we should be more ahead in all honesty. West Ham werent really at the races early doors but they are causing a threat on occasions when they get it into Carrol and Nolan. Osman and Pienaar have been their usual selfs though. Full of running and energy but their ability to not finish moves off is frustrating. I dont see any reason why we shouldnt have the likes of Barkley and Oviedo on the pitch. Something different in a game where they will have a good opportunity to show what they can offer.

Great stop from Howard... No idea how we are only 1 up though!

Lots of space in this game should be lots of goals! Osman was given no options there by Vic who made an awful run. Lovely flowing footy though!

Oh Pienaar! That was quite possibly the worst through ball attempt I have ever seen!