I've got to say I feel 10 times more comfortable with Cahill on the ball(or bombing forward) than Luiz. Every time he's out of position I get nervous.

One minute he's the best CB in the world, the next minute he's an absolute brain dead cretin who goes on to make a mistake that costs a goal

Yes he's a bright lad who probably adds a lot of livelihood to the dressing room but the truth is, we need an imposing CB like a JT(in his prime) and the closest we have to that atm is Cahill.

I don't really know if the solution would be to try to make him focus on the game 100%(which he certainly doesn't if you've noticed) or to sit him some matches and hope for a good response from him when he does get back in the side. We're certainly not going to shell out some huge amount for an established centre half and I believe Robbie wants to give a chance to Chalobah/Bruma at some point.

What do you think can make Luiz release his full potential? He certainly has the potential to be a top 5 CB in the world if he's serious.

I'm not defending Luiz because I also think that he has been crap,but c'mon you can't say cahill is a big improvement over him... he has been just as poor in terms of mistakes.If you ask me I think all of your CBs are kind of meh.Honestly though,I don't think there is any team in the world who could say "We have 2 great CBs".

^Agreed Cahill has made some mistakes as well but not nearly as much as Luiz. I don't see Luiz as the type that can organise a back four(like a JT).

Of course he's not reliable. Not consistently, anyway.

History has shown that when we play a very defensive game and everyone sits deep, he's magnificent; looking back to last season, Valencia at home, latter stages of the CL, etc. He was supreme in those matches. But it seems when we try to play a normal, offense-based game - which is now the norm, obviously - he struggles. Gets caught out of position too much leaving wide gaps/far too much space for the opposition, and sometimes, although he's cut down considerably on it, tries to do stupid, overly-complicated tricks instead of taking the simpler [and safer] option and clearing his lines (still cringe when I think back to that 3rd goal in Naples ).
And don't even get me started on his long-balls.....

As far as the present is concerned, I still believe, as I have for months, that our starting center-half pairing should be JT and Cahill. We still have a year or two left of JT's services so it's not as if we'll be forced to use Luiz and Gazza immediately, but while we do have this advantage, we should start focusing on breeding a new, reliable CB in the time being before it's too late. As you said, there are a few options from within that are well worth pursuing, but them working out is dependant on Robbie's willingness to give them a chance. Bruma, Kalas, even Cholabah, are all viable options.

The simple answer is Luiz needs a partner who can control him.

He is not reliable. I wish he was, He showed true Captain material last night.

I think he is getting better though.

iNFINITY9910 wrote:The simple answer is Luiz needs a partner who can control him.

That is very true,luiz is twice the player he is at Chelsea with the nt alongside Thiago.

http://www.soccer-blogger.com/2012/10/28/chelsea-vs-manchester-united-goals-2-3-highlights-2012-luiz-og-van-persie-mata-hernandez-ramires-ivanovic-torres-red-card-video/

this is match highlights but the last five or so mins is commentary, and although i find the hands behind the back thing cringe-worthy they do make some good points about Luiz (and Coles) postioning in the game

also i do agree with Ganso saying no team in the world has two WC CBs atm, i thnk relative to the other big clubs atm, our CB parings arent too bad, although they are a long way from Terry-Carvahlo

sums him up

Forget comfort, when he moves up into midfield and starts passing it around it is ridiculously sexy.

should be new combo

Abramovich wrote:

sums him up

fml thats creepy

Damn... I think they should dress up like this for one match

luiz is good for us, him and cahill will be a good partnership

...tonight's game.

/thread

I don't get what the hell is wrong in his head, he has all the tools he has shown that he can do it yet he never wants to ever.

Absolute fukin clown don't want to see him in the lineup for a long time

Bertrands fault.

Note how much more organized and settled the defense looked today with Luiz not in it. With JT looking likely to be out for awhile, I wonder if Brana in the center is something we'll start seeing more of.

Azp-Ivan-Cahill-Bertrand?

Kick wrote:Azp-Ivan-Cahill-Bertrand?

That's what would be the most stable option for now IMO, at least until JT is back. Cole in for Bertie as well, as soon as he's back fit.

I was quite Impressed with Azpilicueta against liverpool tbh.

Kick wrote:I was quite Impressed with Azpilicueta against liverpool tbh.

He's a top player, I've got high hopes for him.