There's no disgrace in losing out to one of the alltime greatest club teams there's ever been!
Once the 'freak' that is Messi, has gone, lets see how dominant Barca remain.

Thought the best teams didn't plan for future?

Well he's here, and many fans were dubious, but you have to trust JM's judgement there. I can't help comparing him to Torres when he arrived, i.e. past his best. Two plus points though: 1. Torres scored some fantastic and crucial goals for the club, and 2. Falcao hasn't cost a penny in transfer fees (yet, and it won't be £50 million).

Torres before and after:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiU2RAufb0o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaS2JBd9x10

Falcao, before:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCmk96_Pfpg

After? Hope and pray..

At their prime, two of the best strikers world football has ever seen.

If he was replacing Remy I would agree but he replacing someone with a very simular record.

We have two players one with some recent major injuries and one without but have near enough the same game per goal record.

How as this " all time greatest club team" performed against us? Even with the "freak" Messi in the team? More so when we so far behind them?

Who has the better record?

They both scored a meagre 4 goals in 26 PL appearances, although Falcao spent considerably more minutes on the pitch. So are you saying that you'd be happy with a similar contribution this season?

We're already reliant enough as it is on Hazard and Costa for finding the back of the net, so I'd say it was actually quite an important thing to bring in another striker that is at least more likely to reach double figures in terms of goals.

We employed Bentiz (if that's not a sign of decline i don't know what is) we didn't even finish in top 4 etc if those are not signs of a team in serious decline or going nowhere i don't know what is. FFS we was messing about in the UEFA Cup, I would have put that after the league cup during the Bates years

Of course I rather sign a top class striker but at same time we need to be realistic

Criteria today is

Experienced Striker

Played in the premiership

Willing to sign for a year

Willing to be 3rd choice


Its a very short list of players who tick all the boxes

I would be very suspicious of any striker who matches all those criteria and has scored double figures. It would have to be for the silly wages, I rather sign a player who has a point to prove myself

Its a tough spot to fill .

Experienced striker - fair enough although there's plenty of those around.

As for having played in the Premier League Falcao may have done so but he didn't show any signs that he could adapt to it last season, so it's just as much of a punt that he'll come good as it is taking a chance on someone who's never played in the league. Your point would only really stand up if he had already proven himself over here.

Why does the person we bring in only have to be willing to sign for a year? Because of Bamford? Let's say we'd signed Player X on a permanent deal. If he'd come in and made a decent contribution, and Costa and Remy had continued to do well then bringing Bamford back wouldn't even be necessary. We'd be winning anyway.

I doubt anyone's coming in actually willing to be 3rd choice, even Falcao. He will think at the very least he can jostle ahead of Remy in the pecking order (even though he will have a lot to do to achieve even that if Mourinho's picking players on form and not reputation).

At least he has taken a massive cut in wages

Oh come on, you're being silly now and arguing just for the sake of it.
Along with league titles, Barca have won the CL four times over the last decade, while no other team has won it more than once.
Everyone, except you, would say they are up there alongside the greatest teams there's ever been.
The fact that we always give them trouble is meaningless!

He will still be making more than all but a handful of our squad, including some of our most trusted and important players. I guess if you look at it as being like a company brining in a freelance consultant on a short term contract, hopefully it shouldn't upset the locker room.
I keep telling myself that it won't be a problem, there's no risk for just one season etc. But I don't like going back to a situation that brings back memories of Torres, and all the desperate hopes we had of him making a recovery. It's all too soon to start going through that business again, even for just a season.

If Benitez is such a chump, why is he now the manager of the worlds biggest and most successful club

Unlike you, I have an open mind and am willing to change my opfor thon 100% if I think I am wrong. I was totally against him becoming our manager, but I changed my mind after seeing the way he dealt with the incredibly difficult job he was handed. Handed a team that was in decline with a centre forward not scoring, a half fit JT, Cole in decline, nobody like a Matic, Lamps legs starting to go, a fixture pile up with the Euro league and the unprecedented hostility of the clubs own supporters.
The target given to him was to qualify for the CL and win a trophy. He achieved both those targets along with getting the best out of Hazard, Oscar and Mata and also using Lamps to perfection.
Our style of play was going through a real transformation and one that I would have been more than happy to see continue. For some reason, Roman lost his nerve and went back to Jose, who's now taken our style back ten years. Yes, we won a title and will probably win another before he goes, but then what? Rip it all up again when a new manager comes in and wants to play a different way?
We've gone for short-term gain with Jose returning!

I always question why he chose to go to a club like Monaco at the peak of his career?
That must say something about his desire and hunger for success.

A style of play that would never win a title in England.

If Rafa showed any sign of putting a title winning team together then people would have given him a chance yet he failed to do so. Yes we would have got Champions League football every season and won the odd trophy but we would have been further from actually winning titles then we was during the last season of Bates.

He has continently failed to put title wining teams together. Something always happened

Any manager who has managed at a decent level for a number of years is going to be in for a chance for Real job, Someone else will have it next season and Rafa will be blaming someone else yet again.

Fitness was not JT's main problem during that season.

Roman is not the sort of person to lose his nerve. He looked at Rafa and saw this guy was a okish manager who always looks to blame anyone else for his shortcomings from owners or "being given the wrong job title"

Yep we have gone back 10 years, to a time when we won titles and have targets that are for mid table teams and mucking around with the UEFA cup.

When is Jose going? 2 years? Is this coming from the same people who was saying "What you going to do when Roman leaves"?

Jose could be gone in two years he could be gone in 10 years.

We don't know, Lets look at things we do know and not what might happen

Its more to do with he has already lived in England, knows the English game is use to how things are done here,knows what dressing rooms are like etc. There will be less of a settling in period for him then if we bought in from another county. He also knows the manager. Its more mental then what he brings onto the pitch, He will also bring something to the dressing room. Last season some players won their first title and first experienced of a proper title challenge, Defending the title is very different and someone like Falacho can help by just being around.

When sending Bamford out on loan we have to show him there is a place for him next season if he plays well. At the moment hopefully he is thinking right next season there is a spot available to me if I play well. Is he good enough to take that spot? I don't know but this is the season for him to proof it. Either way we have not really lost out, He good enough we have saved money,if not we go down the route of buying someone in. We have to give Bamford the chance to proof himself and it is worth the risk of keeping a spot open to him.

If the gamble works out its win win.

We have to stop buying players to the extent we have in the past, Making use of the loan system could help us

Sorry but I just don't remember this great style of play that Rafa introduced. I remember numerous very dull home games.
We have gone back 10 years ? Seriously you don't half talk out your backside sometimes Dixie.
And to think, if you had your way Brendan would be our manager. My oh my

You know what I meant when I say we have gone back to how we were ten years ago.
You say it was dull, yet neutrals and the media were loving watching us. This massive difference is all down to the blind hero worship of Jose from too many Chelsea fans!
You also know that Roman wanted us to change our style and that is why we went out and bought Hazard, Oscar and Mata. That change in style and direction was going to take time. Roman lost his nerve, so took the easy option and turned back the clock and went for Jose.

Are you saying Barca would not win the PL because of their style?

Rafa was hardly a failure at Liverpool!
He was unlucky in that his time there was slap bang in the middle of a top four being the strongest it's ever been! Four high quality teams who were all good enough to be very serious contenders for Champs of Europe!
That Liverpool team would have strolled to the title in this current, below par era!
He did lose his way towards the end though!

The more attractive football played that season was in the first few months when Di Matteo was still in charge. That was when people were waxing lyrical about 'the three amigos'. it wasn't after Rafa took over as I recall, there were plenty of dull games during his spell with us.

Media and neutrals can do what they want, their opinions are about as important what colour is the loo roll is. The media on the whole are a bunch of mindless lemmings who are more interested in keeping a job and being in the "entertainment business" then actuality reporting on a sport and like to use buzzwords like "parking the bus". Let them prattle on talkshite and wind up the idiots who have nothing better to do

How many titles did he win? That's the only measure of success for teams like Liverpool,Chelsea,Utd,City and Arsenal

Oh so he was unlucky? As I said excuse after excuse after excuse.

What they would or would not do now is totally irrelevant. It's what he did at the time. There was a couple of season he should have either won or got closer to title.

What about in his other jobs? More bad lucky?

What did he do? Run over a black cat as a kid?

Many in the media are ex pros and managers who've been there and done it. I'd say they know more about the game than you, me, or anyone else on this forum!

He did win the title in Spain, up against two of the geniune giants of Euro football.

Not for one minute am I saying Rafa is as good a msnager as Jose, because he clearly not!
The problem with Jose, apart from his style of play, is that he never builds anything. He's a short term fix who'll win you things, then off he goes.
Apart from Real Madrid, all the great clubs of the past had some important stability.
Liverpool had their famous bootroom.
Utd - Fergie.
Barca - style of play
AC Milan - style of play.
Way back, Ajax - style of play and youth system.
We are all over the place with no real indentity.

Being blind where a manager is concerned is a two way street, as much as some fans worship Jose there are the ones who will be against him no matter what, the media have put a ridiculous label on him and they refuse to see it for the childish nonsense it is.

I didn't want Jose to come back as it was walking into last chance saloon. We tried some many different managers and style of managers, We went young we went experienced we went promoting from within and all failed for a number of different reasons (some due to the board and some due the manager just not being good enough), If it had failed with Jose where would that have left us? Where would we go then?

Roman didn't lose his nerve at anytime, he could see what was and what was not working and at this level there is no time to wait and see what happens. Because if you don't act now you can bet another club will