The two teams have been confirmed for today.Bosingwa starts at left-back, Cahill makes his debut and Essien returns for first start of the season.
Chelsea:
Cech, Ivanovic, Cahill, Luiz, Bosingwa, Essien, Meireles, Malouda, Sturridge, Torres and Mata.
Subs: Turnbull, Ferreira, Bertrand, Hutchinson, Romeu, Piazon, Lukaku.

Last night Fernando Torres appeared on Chelsea TV's "Friday Night Live" programme where he answered questions from the fans. Chelsea have kindly uploaded some of the interview to their official channel on YouTube which I will feature for you here.
Torres was asked about how we is settling in at Chelsea and his relation ship with the fans below:
In the full interview featured on the official website, Torres said:

'Since I joined Chelsea it has been amazing.

As you all know by now, John Terry has this morning been stripped of the England Captaincy once again. The "Official statement" from the FA reads as follows:

"Following the decision to adjourn the court case against John Terry to July, The Football Association confirm he will not captain the England team until the allegations against him are resolved.

Well after signing Gary Cahill, it hasn't taken Chelsea long to get their business done before the game tonight as the Belgian side have announced that we have signed Belgian International Kevin De Bruyne on a five and a half year deal for a reported £7m. DeBruyne will remain with Genk on loan until the end of the season.

Today as expected, Alex signed for PSG and ex Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti after asking to leave the club towards the end of last year.
The Official Chelsea Website posted up confirmation this afternoon with a statement that reads:

"Chelsea Football Club can confirm we have agreed terms for the permanent transfer of Alex to Paris St Germain.

Josh McEachran has signed for Swansea on loan until the end of the season in what appears to be a cracking move for all parties concerned.
We all know the situation with getting first team football here at Chelsea and with Raul Meireles, Lampard and Ramires playing well and Michael Essien back, it's harder than ever for Josh to break into the side these days.

Photo courtesy Chelseafc.com
Gary Cahill has finally signed for Chelsea. He will wear the number 24 shirt.
The most drawn out transfer saga of this window has finally been concluded as personal terms were agreed and a medical passed on Saturday morning. Speaking of the deal Cahill is quoted on the official Chelsea website saying:

'Chelsea is a massive club, it is a club that looks to win trophies season in season out and it is a big opportunity for me to be a part of that.

Every single media outlet has now confirmed that Chelsea have agreed a fee with Bolton for the transfer of Gary Cahill. The fee is around £7m.
Bolton Boss Owen Coyle confirmed the deal was in place and said:

"There has been a fee agreed between the clubs and we have now given Gary's representatives permission to speak to Chelsea.

I asked you people earlier today who you think should play tomorrow. In the side I selected (Cech, Ivanovic, Luiz, Terry, Cole, Romeu, Meireles, Ramires, Mata, Torres and Sturridge) you will see I indicated that Luiz would play and Ivanovic would move to right back.
Well, this afternoon AVB has confirmed that David Luiz will miss the game through injury which leaves us with a problem!

Yesterday during the open training session at Stamford Bridge we had the news that John Terry had suffered an injury and at first was doubtful to face Spurs on Thursday night. Thank god that it seems as though we will now be OK for the game as I really believe he is one player we simply cannot afford to miss right now.

This morning Chelsea have been drawn against in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League. The rest of the draw is as follows:
Lyon v APOEL
Napoli v CHELSEA
Milan v Arsenal
Basel v Bayern
Leverkusen v Barcelona
CSKA Moscow v Real Madrid
Zenit v Benfica
Marseille v Inter
Now for me it's a tough draw but our experience should see us through.

My prediction was right! No Lampard or Torres again as Bosingwa comes in for Luiz:
TEAM:
Cech, Bosingwa, Ivanovic, Terry, Cole, Romeu, Ramires, Meireles, Sturridge, Drogba, Mata.
Your thoughts?
KTBFFH
Check out my blog posts on the Official Chelsea Website - http://bit.

Story featured today in The Sun
It's been confirmed that Nicolas Anelka has signed for Shanghei Shenhua on a reported £6m a year contract for two years. The club released an official statement on the Chelsea website here saying:

Chelsea Football Club and Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua have agreed terms for the permanent transfer of Nicolas Anelka in the January transfer window.

Chelsea's confirmed line up to take on Valencia tonight is as follows:
Chelsea Team: Cech, Ivanovic, Cole, David Luiz, Romeu, Ramires, Mata, Drogba, Meireles, Sturridge, Terry.
Chelsea subs: Turnbull, Lampard, Torres, Mikel, Malouda, Ferreira, Kalou
Your thoughts?
KTBFFH
Check out my blog posts on the Official Chelsea Website - http://bit.

Breaking news today on Official Chelsea. Nicolas Anelka and Alex have handed in transfer requests to the club and these have both been accepted!
To be honest it comes as no surprise as both players have been the subject of rumour and speculation lately.
Alex has been talking of moving to Italy since back in the summer and hasn't featured a great deal this season so far.

There has been one story that has cheered me up today about our beloved blues and that's confirmation that Sam Hutchison has earned himself a new contract to the end of next season. Not bad for someone who had to retire with injury a while ago!.
I posted on my blog before that Hutchison is an inspiration and this news confirms the case.

The confirmed Chelsea line up to face Liverpool tonight is:
Turnbull, Bosingwa, Alex, D Luiz, Bertrand; McEachran, Romeu, Lampard (c); Lukaku, Torres, Malouda. - subs: Hilario, Ferreira, Ivanovic, Ramires, Kalou, Mata, Anelka.
Liverpool XI vs Chelsea: Reina, Kelly, Carragher, Coates, Enrique, Henderson, Spearing, Lucas, Maxi, Bellamy, Carroll.

Speaking to the media today, Roberto Di Matteo explained the significance of the League Cup and just how important it can be before our quarter final clash with Liverpool tomorrow night. Back in the day, a certain Jose Mourinho, after winning the title in his first season, explained just how much of a part winning the league cup played in giving the side confidence.

Much of the focus of Bobby Di Matteo's appearance in front of the press before Liverpool tomorrow is about his future. There has been speculation of late that clubs had been interested in speaking to him with a view to becoming their manager (...and Leicester to mention one).
Di Matteo was keen to emphasise how happy he is here in the club he calls his home.

Chelsea: Cech, Ivanovic, Luiz, Terry, Bosingwa, Ramires, Meireles, Lampard, Mata, Sturridge, Drogba.
Only six subs named: Turnbull, Alex, Mikel, Malouda, McEachran, Torres. Presumably Ashley Cole was taken injured/ill late on.
Your thought's?
KTBFFH
I'm taking part in Movember this month, please donate!

Chelsea's team this afternoon against Liverpool has been confirmed and it is as follows:
Cech; Ivanovic, D Luiz, JT (c), Cole; Ramires, Mikel, Lampard; Mata, Drogba, Malouda - subs: Turnbull, Bosingwa, Romeu, Meireles, Sturridge, Anelka, Torres.
Your thoughts?
KTBFFH
I'm taking part in Movember this month, please donate!

Back on Friday, the FA confirmed that they have charged AVB for his comments made after our defeat at Loftus Road against QPR. The statement from the FA said:

Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas has been charged with improper conduct by The FA, following media comments he made about the match official after his side's match at Queens Park Rangers on 23 October 2011.

I guess with the club losing the vote against buying the freehold off of the CPO the other week, one way to get more money through our coffers would be to sell the naming rights of Stamford Bridge.
This has been mentioned before in passing but would have taken a massive step forward after the vote result.

Congratulations to Danny Sturridge who last night, was called into the full England squad for our two friendlies coming up against Spain and Sweden.
It has been coming and well deserved in my opinion. Sturridge has played well this season although in the last couple of games he hasn't been anywhere near as effective as he was at the start of the season.

Chelsea's team has been confirmed for Blackburn this afternoon with TWO BIG changes. Alex comes in next to JT and Sturridge starts through the middle!.
STARTING ELEVEN
Cech, Ivanovic, Alex, Terry, Cole, Ramires, Mikel, Lampard, Malouda, Sturridge, Mata
SUBS:
Turn, Bos, Romeu, Meirel, Kal, Lukaku, Torres
Your thoughts?

We have been waiting and wondering what the team will be. Here is our starting eleven tonight:
Cech, Bosingwa, Ivanovic, Luiz, Cole, Romeu, Ramires Meireles, Malouda, Torres, Anelka
...and on the bench:
Turnbull, Terry, Lampard, McEachran, Mata, Sturridge, Kalou.
What are your thoughts?

Great news for Chelsea Football Club and the CPO today with news that Hammersmith & Fulham Council have pledged to work with us to try and find ways to extend Stamford Bridge so that we do not have to move from what has been our home since 1905.
In a statement featured here, the a spokesperson for the Council said:

"In light of the recent decision by Chelsea Pitch Owners PLC to retain its freehold of the ground, we reaffirm our desire to see Chelsea FC remain in the Borough and our commitment to help the club to remain at its historic home of Stamford Bridge.

We had some welcome news from the club today with the news that Ramires is back and available for selection for the Arsenal game. We have missed Rammy lately. He has missed games against Everton at home, away, Genk at home and QPR and in especially his energy.
The little fella has been in great form this season, scoring goals and playing a big part in our season so far.

Today the CPO members will meet with the club officials to discuss the clubs offer to buy back their ownership of the freehold of the land Stamford Bridge sits on and Chelsea's future depends on what happens today.
Everyone has an opinion on this whether they are a CPO member or not and it has been a story that has been running in the media ever since the offer was made on October 3rd.

AVB has rang the changes and introduced three youngsters tonight starting against Everton with some big guns on the bench. JT didn't travel along with the suspended Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba and Jose Bosingwa. Ramires isn't ready to play.
The starting Chelsea team is as follows:
Turnbull, Ivanovic, Alex, Luiz, Bertrand, Romeu, McEachran, Malouda, Lukaku, Kalou, Anelka.

As we all know, there has been a story in the press surrounding a situation between John Terry and Anton Ferdinand after they had "handbags" with each other during our "heated" West London derby with QPR at the weekend.
As a result, QPR have asked the FA to investigate the situation along with the police also getting involved after a "member of the public" made a complaint against our Captain.

Andre Villas Boas confirmed in his press conference yesterday that there are deals offered and on the table for four of our first team players who's contracts are due to expire at the end of this season.
Jose Bosingwa, Nicolas Anelka, Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou have all had offers made to them by the club to extend their time here but I am just wondering who would sign an extended deal.

AVB today revealed that Chelsea have offered Salomon Kalou a new contract after all which is a big surprise in my book. I only posted the other day about Kalou being linked with the likes of Arsenal and Liverpool as they had been reportedly interested in signing him when his contract expires at the end of the season.

Everyone who is a Chelsea fan is well aware of the situation regarding the proposal the club has put to the CPO (Chelsea Pitch Owners) last week. If you missed it, check it out here and my take on things too.
Surprisingly enough, and to his credit he even says so himself, John Terry has decided to give his view on the situation rather than keep quiet and he raises some interesting points.

For a Chelsea supporter the football season is more than just a season, it's a story, a story that fills your mind and heart with passion.
So this season we're turning to you, the fans, to help capture the spirit of the 2011/12 season.
All season long adidas and Chelsea FC will be collecting your photos and videos, and tweets with the hashtag #allblues.

As you all know, Chelsea Football Club has put forward a proposal to Chelsea Pitch Owners to buy back the freehold to the land in a major move announced yesterday.
Snippets of the official statement released on the website explaining the move are as follows:

Chelsea Football Club today (Monday) made a proposal to buy back the freehold land on which the football stadium at Stamford Bridge sits.

Well after some speculation Chelsea have finally confirmed their team news for tonight and stick with a 4-2-3-1 formation!!. The starting eleven and substitutes are as below.
CHELSEA:
Team News - Cech, Bertrand, Luiz, Alex, Ferreira, Romeu, McEachran, Malouda, Sturridge, Lukaku, Kalou
Chelsea subs v Fulham: Turnbull, Bosingwa, Terry, Mikel, Lampard, Mata, Drogba
What do you think of the Chelsea team and formation for this one?

The transfer window closed last night and we all now know the players AVB will have at his disposal between now and January at least. After weeks of intense speculation about the club ever since AVB became our manager, our new signings have been confirmed. They are Courtious, Romeu, Meireles, Mata, Piazon, Davilla and Lukaku.

Raul Meireles has signed for Chelsea. Liverpool confirmed tonight that the midfielder had handed in a written transfer request and Chelsea wasted no time in signing the Portuguese midfielder.
The statement on the Official Chelsea Website reads:

Chelsea Football Club is delighted to announce the signing of Raul Meireles from Liverpool on a four-year contract.

Chelsea have been handed a decent draw in the Champions League this time round. Juan Mata will be more than interested to see we have been drawn against his old side Valencia. Michael Ballack will be happy to see that we have drawn his Leverkusen side and finally Genk of Belgium close out our group (see below)
I think we should be ok and go through with ease compared to a couple of the other groups.