Where will we finish in the league 25/26?

[C3blue]

I know there's a tendency on people these days to look at the negative in everything they love

But I have to ask. How was our pre season sh*t?

What I mean is for all the player juggling how much have we improved the team?

If you asked 50,000 Chelsea fans to write a list of 5 players they would like the club to sign this summer how many of our actual signings would be on it?

JP has started well but signing a 10-15 goal a season forward from Brighton is hardly sending chills down our rivals spines. Everything else has been like for like or more ones for the future.

We could have added a world class experienced spine for all our player trading and given this young team a chance to compete but they didn’t.

I feel this summer has seen us fall further behind our rivals not close the gap. Obviously it depends on how the signings work out but on paper our rivals squads have improved while ours was more sideways stepping.

The club refuse to sign players they feel they can’t make money on, this is their true colours. Money motivates their every move, if the player improves the team or not is irrelevant.

I’ve always felt the best way to build a squad is to improve the first team, the player forced out the side then becomes the back up. We don’t seem to do that.

 

[Valerie]

Stagnation: 4th

 

[Sexyfootball]

I’ve always felt the best way to build a squad is to improve the first team, the player forced out the side then becomes the back up. We don’t seem to do that.

^^^^ This in spades ^^^^

 

[Remodez]

A more comfortable 4th place. If we get really lucky with results elsewhere we could finish 3rd.

 

[bisright1]

What I mean is for all the player juggling how much have we improved the team?

If you asked 50,000 Chelsea fans to write a list of 5 players they would like the club to sign this summer how many of our actual signings would be on it?

JP has started well but signing a 10-15 goal a season forward from Brighton is hardly sending chills down our rivals spines. Everything else has been like for like or more ones for the future.

We could have added a world class experienced spine for all our player trading and given this young team a chance to compete but they didn’t.

I feel this summer has seen us fall further behind our rivals not close the gap. Obviously it depends on how the signings work out but on paper our rivals squads have improved while ours was more sideways stepping.

The club refuse to sign players they feel they can’t make money on, this is their true colours. Money motivates their every move, if the player improves the team or not is irrelevant.

I’ve always felt the best way to build a squad is to improve the first team, the player forced out the side then becomes the back up. We don’t seem to do that.

Thats one model but it's not ours. It's not going to change.

We're signing players who will become our spine. Caicedo, Palmer, Cucurella and Pedro are that spine. Colwill would be that if he hadn't been injured and I think Chalobah is severely underrated, I'd rather him than signing a 27 year old who might have done well in another league.

Who do you wish we had signed?

 

[charierre]

We will have a drop off due to our involvement in the CWC. Expecting it around Nov/ Dec, how long it lasts will determine the season plus keeping injury free to key players, CB being a particular worry. Hoping for better but realistically 4th, if it’s tight it could drop to 5/6th

 

[C3blue]

Thats one model but it's not ours. It's not going to change.

We're signing players who will become our spine. Caicedo, Palmer, Cucurella and Pedro are that spine. Colwill would be that if he hadn't been injured and I think Chalobah is severely underrated, I'd rather him than signing a 27 year old who might have done well in another league.

Who do you wish we had signed?

I wanted quality and experience. Guehi was available and cheap. A number of quality GK’s have been available. Osimhen went for the same money as Gittens, Rodrygo has been up for a move. Players who walk in the first team and immediately move the needle.

I know they don’t fit our ‘model’ but we imposed this model on ourselves nobody else.

I’d go for quality over quantity and they might be able to pay them a little more in order to be able to compete for the top players.

I also don’t buy the ‘this is our model and it’s not going to change’ attitude. It wasn’t the model when they first arrived so it has changed once….why not again? It certainly won’t change if nobody says anything.

I do think we have a good young team, I just think a few top quality older heads would have helped them no end.

 

[erskblue]

Fourth place.

I think we have a decent squad. However,I don’t think we are realistically going to win the League.

I do think we could win a domestic cup.

Not exactly ‘in depth analysis’ that I fully accept!

 

[bisright1]

I wanted quality and experience. Guehi was available and cheap. A number of quality GK’s have been available. Osimhen went for the same money as Gittens, Rodrygo has been up for a move. Players who walk in the first team and immediately move the needle.

I know they don’t fit our ‘model’ but we imposed this model on ourselves nobody else.

I’d go for quality over quantity and they might be able to pay them a little more in order to be able to compete for the top players.

I also don’t buy the ‘this is our model and it’s not going to change’ attitude. It wasn’t the model when they first arrived so it has changed once….why not again? It certainly won’t change if nobody says anything.

I do think we have a good young team, I just think a few top quality older heads would have helped them no end

Dont think Guehi would have joined

Osimhen was not the same price as Gittens. Wages count. And I have never been convinced he'd be successful here.

Rodrygo, we 100% cannot afford him.

This model is much better than what you're suggesting. The model you're suggesting leads to us having players like Sterling stinking out the joint. And it means we don't sign Palmer.

 

[C3blue]

They were just examples off the top of my head, the point being game changing signings were available. We know this because some of our rivals signed them.

It’s our choice to operate how we do, we don’t have to have a team of 20yr olds. We can easily afford the players mentioned.

Just because you sign a few players that improve your team today doesn’t mean you stop planning for the future.

Why do we not sign Palmer? We don’t stop looking for the next best thing, we just put them in a better environment to grow and improve when we do sign them.

It doesn’t have to be one way or the other. Other clubs do it all the time, build for today plan for tomorrow.

If we don’t start competing for the best players and big trophies Palmer and Caicedo will go before the rest of the team are ‘ready’ to compete, it’s not like we’re paying them top $ to stay.

 

[bisright1]

They were just examples off the top of my head, the point being game changing signings were available. We know this because some of our rivals signed them.

It’s our choice to operate how we do, we don’t have to have a team of 20yr olds. We can easily afford the players mentioned.

Just because you sign a few players that improve your team today doesn’t mean you stop planning for the future.

Why do we not sign Palmer? We don’t stop looking for the next best thing, we just put them in a better environment to grow and improve when we do sign them.

It doesn’t have to be one way or the other. Other clubs do it all the time, build for today plan for tomorrow.

If we don’t start competing for the best players and big trophies Palmer and Caicedo will go before the rest of the team are ‘ready’ to compete, it’s not like we’re paying them top $ to stay.

Palmer and Caicedo are locked in because of the model. Them, cucumber, colwill, Pedro, will be the players we build around. In 2-3 years time we will have the ability to sign game changers without it hurting the finances.

I find this model much more exciting than the alternative. Because the alternative scares me a lot.

 

[Sheva]

Palmer and Caicedo are locked in because of the model. Them, cucumber, colwill, Pedro, will be the players we build around. In 2-3 years time we will have the ability to sign game changers without it hurting the finances.

I find this model much more exciting than the alternative. Because the alternative scares me a lot.

In 2-3 years do you think Palmer and Caicedo will stick around on average wages if we're not challenging for trophies or winning them. They are both 23 now and Isak is 25 and he threw his toys out.

Won't be long before the clubs that will triple their wages come calling if we do not succeed with the model. I maybe wrong but I get the feeling if a club came in for Cole and put down 150m+It would not surprise me in the slightest if Clearlake sold him as they know they can reinvest that into younger players. Sell Cole Palmer and sign the next Estevao for a fraction of the price is good business and I don't see the conveyor belt of younger players ending anytime soon and every summer we'll keep on investing with the hope we can flip them later.

 

[C3blue]

In 2-3 years do you think Palmer and Caicedo will stick around on average wages if we're not challenging for trophies or winning them. They are both 23 now and Isak is 25 and he threw his toys out.

Won't be long before the clubs that will triple their wages come calling if we do not succeed with the model. I maybe wrong but I get the feeling if a club came in for Cole and put down 150m+It would not surprise me in the slightest if Clearlake sold him as they know they can reinvest that into younger players. Sell Cole Palmer and sign the next Estevao for a fraction of the price is good business and I don't see the conveyor belt of younger players ending anytime soon and every summer we'll keep on investing with the hope we can flip them later.

Exactly.

 

[C3blue]

Palmer and Caicedo are locked in because of the model. Them, cucumber, colwill, Pedro, will be the players we build around. In 2-3 years time we will have the ability to sign game changers without it hurting the finances.

I find this model much more exciting than the alternative. Because the alternative scares me a lot.

I’m not suggesting we spend anymore money than we are, just spend it slightly differently thats all.

I don’t see what’s scary about it, the club have racked up Millions in debt on this model why does that not scare you.

I must admit I’m very keen to see in 2-3yrs how much cucumber has grown

 

[bisright1]

I’m not suggesting we spend anymore money than we are, just spend it slightly differently thats all.

I don’t see what’s scary about it, the club have racked up Millions in debt on this model why does that not scare you.

I must admit I’m very keen to see in 2-3yrs how much cucumber has grown

I don't believe you are factoring in wages to your calculation of spending the same. What is scary to me is signing Osimhen on 300k a week and him not working out. I don't have the fear with Joao Pedro on 100 odd k.

In 2-3 years do you think Palmer and Caicedo will stick around on average wages if we're not challenging for trophies or winning them. They are both 23 now and Isak is 25 and he threw his toys out.

Won't be long before the clubs that will triple their wages come calling if we do not succeed with the model. I maybe wrong but I get the feeling if a club came in for Cole and put down 150m+It would not surprise me in the slightest if Clearlake sold him as they know they can reinvest that into younger players. Sell Cole Palmer and sign the next Estevao for a fraction of the price is good business and I don't see the conveyor belt of younger players ending anytime soon and every summer we'll keep on investing with the hope we can flip them later.

I don't think Palmer and Caicedo will be on average wages. Their wages will be tied to their performances.

However no it wouldn't surprise me either if the ownership did that. I don't think they will though, I think Palmer will be worth more to them here than whatever transfer fee might be offered.

 

[Sheva]

I don't believe you are factoring in wages to your calculation of spending the same. What is scary to me is signing Osimhen on 300k a week and him not working out. I don't have the fear with Joao Pedro on 100 odd k.

I don't think Palmer and Caicedo will be on average wages. Their wages will be tied to their performances.

However no it wouldn't surprise me either if the ownership did that. I don't think they will though, I think Palmer will be worth more to them here than whatever transfer fee might be offered.

I dont know how correct the wages are when there's reports out there from the media but Sterling is getting paid double what Cole is on. When Cole hits his prime, will the club be spending 300k+ a week to keep him because that's what clubs will offer.

 

[C3blue]

If you have 50 good players on 150k or 25 world class on 300k your wage bill is the same.

Quality over quantity.

Look these are just numbers we are throwing around but as other posters have said at some point if you want to be the best team you sign the best players and pay them top wages.

If you want to keep your best players again you have to pay them what others are willing otherwise they walk.

This model is not designed to make us the best it’s to make money. We can only hope on field success comes with it but it’s not what ultimately is behind the decision making.

It’s ok to acknowledge this.

 

[bisright1]

I dont know how correct the wages are when there's reports out there from the media but Sterling is getting paid double what Cole is on. When Cole hits his prime, will the club be spending 300k+ a week to keep him because that's what clubs will offer.

So my very basic understanding of our model is that Cole will be earning that in his prime

And if he's not playing he will earn less

Now when a player gets to 28/29 he starts to worry about the latter. Which is why players in their prime / latter stages of their career wouldn't join us.

At that point yeah maybe he wants to leave. But we're a way off that.

 

[Nibs]

Hmmm, might have to revise my original vote of 2nd.

As each week under Mareca goes by, the position is likely to drop & drop.

Wolves and Villa are both in desperate form currently - they must be checking the calendar to see when they get to play us and get some points.

 

[dansubrosa]

IMO it’s still too early to say.

The start to season have been pretty sh*t so far but we could pick up form and start getting results, even though that’s really hard to see happening with Palmer out.

I’ll give my verdict end of October.