Chelsea match

I was hoping you would let me know who they were ;D ;D I know a few names but not many on that list, so yes lets hope we can get some more information on them. Not the sort of line up, that would make it a game you would not want to miss.

Disappointing to see that even Chelsea reserves appear to be made up of about 50% foreign contingent (based on the names, not any inside information into their parentage I hasten to add). Echoes a debate in the ground on Saturday about the lack of English players coming through the system.

Was quite an interesting discussion as there are two extremes - firstly that the record numbers of foreign squad members of premiership sides weakens the national side, while on the flip side any limits on non-english players would likely mean that the standard of players at our level would be diluted as there would be a need for players to 'step-up' to a level higher than that at which they currently ply their trade.

gipsygull, it has always been my view, that we should go back to the days, when only four foreign players could play in a side, I know Merse will disagree, but I believe our England team is weakened because we have to many foreign players playing here.

When do you see 11 English men at the top level playing together in a team. Never except england games, so how do really expect them to even know how to play together, when they are needed too.

I hope the day will come when we go back to the four rule, it will help bring on English young players give them more of a chance to play higher, it will want to make them work harder on their skills etc, to achieve that goal.

You couldn't be more wrong there Dave, I thought I'd made my feelings perfectly clear on "the other side" how abhorrent I find the Premier League (not the real one) it's greedy self interested attitude and ruination of the national team.

For all but three of the "contestants" life consists not of challenging for the title, but mediocrity as they get a million pounds per final league placing thus anything but relegation rewards them. Now we've ended up with a plethora of nondescript foreigners cluttering up places in nondescript teams and the only exceptional "attraction" to the average punter is going along to watch the odd star opposition when either Manure, Chelski or the Arse come to town.

Even Arsenal are now losing their grip on the title challenge so in less than two decades OUR national league has denigrated into no better than the Rangers and Celtic dominated Scottish League where even they consider it judicious to pack their sides also with these "Mickey Mouse Internationals"

You'll not a find a single out of favour Chelsea first team squad member in that touring party because these "superstars" don't "do" reserve appearances......reserve games are just glorified youth pass and move exercises with no tackling and no excitement.

The poster who reckons that this Chelsea squad could reveal a few stars of other clubs in the future is spot on....................I was given a press brochure by Arsenal FC the other day which devotes a whole chapter on just how many professionals who started out at the Gooners now ply their trade at other Premier and Football League clubs as a riposte to those who don't want their kids to go there to be coached because they are perceived as being a graveyard for English talent.

Being in receipt of further material from Highbury House (their admin HQ) on the subject of explaining their youth policy, I note their insistence that the current rarity of over reliance on foreign talent is non sustainable (even for them!) and that they adopt a strict policy of "playing the Arsenal way" even from their most remote soccer schools (and they have one in South Devon) right up through their academy into the first team.

This is the REAL strength and individual forte of Arsene Wenger and it will stand Arsenal in good stead for many years to come, but it does not a stitch for England at present because even at schoolboy level, the club are recruiting from abroad - and Chelsea and Man Utd are now no different!

I've watched my little boy at his Arsenal sessions and the ratio of five coaches to a small group of just twenty players is impressive. The very short time span devoted to a particular skill like trapping or passing is ideal for a seven year old and even at this young age the above average will be invited to take things more seriously in a group drawn from many similar classes whilst the rest will be welcome to maintain the club link by going along for fun in the Football in the Community sessions near to their homes.

It's a long and painstaking process and thinking about the vandalising done to OUR youth set up in past years does nothing for my blood pressure. The initiatives pursued by the present club executive COULD have been pursued by the previous one - except they were small minded and unambitious. Now our club is light years behind even the Stevenages of this world and the current set up will need to be made sustainable for the future, after all we cannot rely on Sean to underwrite things for ever and it's really something I would like to see the Trust decide to focus on.

Im surprised Chelsea even bother having a reserve team. How many of those players listed in previous postings will ever get as far as the 1st team bench, let alone the first team. My guess in none of them.

Never mind a Chelsea XI. I should read more like a Chelsea 4th XI.

It's turned out rather badly really because Chelsea have just sold Sidwell who is one i thought may have played this game and their best reserve player (Ben Sahar) has just gone on loan to Pompey. I have to agree with many comments suggesting that the game will not be what many will think it will be simply because i've never heard of any of the players that played against Aldershot.

Ok Merse , for some reason I had in my my head, that you felt having all these foreign players, had not had any impact on the National team. So if you feel and ask the question are they really any better, than what we could produce here, I have to ask the question, just why are they here.

Do the big clubs feel that getting big foreign names, is what we really want to see, or is it really that they do believe they are much better players and they will not win cups and league titles without them.

We know why those players want to play here, because they will get paid better than anywhere else, also our league is considered the best, but is that because they are making it the best. Has our game and style of play changed, because of the foreign influence, or do they play the English game that we know.