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.verse
"Injury crisis". Missing two players is hardly considered a "crisis".
It was also Pellegrini's choice to play Demichelis in midfield. He had other options like Milner and Rodwell fit and in the squad to pick from. Not to mention it's a position Demichelis had also played before. And if you really want to get picky, Chelsea had Luiz in midfield too, also a central defender.
Not that it really matters at the end of the day, at the time, Chelsea beat the most dominate side the in the league who were previously unstoppable. Hence the praise involved.
Anyway, Man City were far and away the better side this evening. Chelsea looked tired and were very sloppy with possession. Lacked any sort of notion of an idea going forward and I think Mourinho got it completely wrong with his line up. We've put too many miles into the legs of Hazard, Oscar and Willian and it's beginning to show. We also definitely miss the leadership of Terry down back. All in all, all credit goes to City.
bluemoon.
Never said it did. I mentioned them because they are probably our two most influential players apart from Vincent Kompany. We have no replacements for them. It was a crisis because we had García, Fernandinho, Aguero and Nasri out injured while Milner, Yaya, Dzeko and Negredo were all carrying knocks.
As already mentioned Milner wasn't fully fit (and realistically, can he even be called a central midfielder any more? He hasn't played there consistently since his Villa days, he's had 4 different managers decide he's a wide player) and Rodwell wasn't a viable option either. He's played 23 games (in all competitions) since August 2012, he was out of his depth against Watford and he hasn't played a full 90 minutes for I don't know how long.
True, Chelsea did play a central defender in midfield too. The difference is Mourinho could also have chosen Mikel or Frank Lampard (central midfielders) to play there, he wasn't forced into that situation by injuries. He made a tactical decision.
It does matter when the win is being attributed to 'tactical genius', Mourinho's tactics were good but they were hardly revolutionary. The win had far more to do with the players performances, in particular Hazard and Matic who were exceptional, than it did any tactical master-plan. (And if we're being picky, City had already been beaten 4 times in the league. Hardly unstoppable).
Slashman X
Suggesting Rodwell could've played against Chelsea
VP.
VP.
Number 1
VP.
Jenkinson, Mertesacker Koscielny Monreal
Arteta Flamini
Chamberlain Ozil Podolski
Sanogo
Subs: Viviano, Sagna, Gibbs, Wilshere, Cazorla, Gnabry, Giroud
Giroud on the bench \o/ and Sanogo starts
Would have preferred Cazorla/Wilshere for Arteta too as he's been shite most of the season too.
The Platypus
FM TIME
Telegram Sam
VP.
The only weakness is the fullbacks, but we should be much more direct going forward now.
VP.
VP.
bluemoon.
Arsenal or Liverpool v Everton
Brighton & Hove Albion or Hull City v Sunderland
Sheffield United or Nottingham Forest v Sheffield Wednesday or Charlton Athletic
Manchester City v Wigan Athletic
Uwe's coming home!
Carroll.
Carroll.
BR.
Telegram Sam
Yeah, Sterling should have been booked for being a petulant little cunt.
Carroll.
VP.
Carroll.
Carroll.
Carroll.
Telegram Sam
Carroll.
Telegram Sam
VP.
Carroll.
VP.
Jason
Brilliant comeback from us! Clough's tactical knowledge of the game is second to none. Really good manager, credit goes to him for us overcoming Villa, Fulham and now Forest, with his brilliant tactical changes and substitutes.