But hear me out.

I want you to take a look at two Chelsea peformances this season: the 0-0 draw with CFR Cluj and the subsequent 2-0 win against Aston Villa.

Drogba started up front against Cluj, flanked by Florent Malouda on the left and Salomon Kalou to the right. The result was a stagnant performance, littered with a lack of service or real creativity. Much of the display can be linked to the lack of attacking play from fullbacks Bosingwa and Wayne Bridge. Cluj, dangerous on the counter and deep-lying, kept both in check. WIthout the overlapping runs, Kalou and Malouda had trouble unlocking the defense — mostly because of a lack of imagination.

BUT, with Drogba in the frame, it presents Chelsea with what appears to be an easy target — a bailout if you will. With Drogs, you can play direct. Chelsea can send long balls into the Ivorian in hopes that he’ll hold the ball up, then either go to work on his own or find the open teammate. And, with Drogba being one of the finest point men in the game today, it usually comes off.

That hasn’t been the case thus far this season, however. And it wasn’t the case against Cluj. It was tried; it failed. Drogs has missed time due to injury this year and, when in the lineup, has clearly looked off the pace.

Now, let’s look at the Villa performance. With Drogba injured, Nicolas Anelka regained his place up top. This time he was flanked by Flo on the left and Joey Cole to the right. The result was a fantastically lethal performance from the Blues.

Force to go through Villa rather than over, Chelsea ripped the visitors apart — from the flanks, the middle, wherever need be. Ashley Cole ravaged opposition on the left side, linking up with a reborn Malouda to cause havoc at almost every occasion. Even with a knock, Anelka showed much to those of us who doubt his abilities (see me). This kind of incisive passing and movement hasn’t been seen at Chelsea for years. Not even Mourinho could call on this kind of style; well, except for maybe a spell in 04 when Arjen Robben was fully healthy. The midfield can lay large claim to the success, with Lampard, Ballack and the always-improving Mikel overrunning what Villa had to offer. Sorry, but Nigel Reo-Coker is no match for this kind of class. Still, it all starts with having to pass rather than hit and hope. It all starts without the safety valve aka Drogba.

So, without alienating Drogs or ze Drogs lovers, I think right now we’re a better team without him as the fulcrum. As results have shown — with the exception of Tottenham at the Bridge — we’ve been a much better side without him. The aggressiveness, the movement, the flair; it’s all there without him. There’s no doubt we’ll need him eventually, I won’t dispute that. But, right now, we’re just fine without the large Ivorian tantrum unleasher.

Among the 23-man squad are four Chelsea players: defenders John Terry, Ashley Cole and Wayne Bridge as well as midfielder Frank Lampard. For some reason, there was no room for Joe Cole, fresh off scoring at the weekend against Aston Villa. Joey picked up a knock in the match but, as said by Uncle Phil, only needs a couple days rest before returning to full fitness. So, explain that one to me Capello.

More bemusing for me is the absence of Ashley Young and Micah Richards. Hasn’t Ashley done enough to warrant a spot? And Micah, he’s infinitely better than Matthew Upson(?!). Also, I see Jermain Jenas has made the cut once again. For what reason exactly?

Full Squad
Goalkeepers: James (Portsmouth), Green (West Ham), Carson (West Bromwich)

Defenders: Bridge (Chelsea), A Cole, Terry (both Chelsea), Brown, Ferdinand (Man United), Johnson (Portsmouth), Lescott (Everton), Upson (West Ham)

Midfielders: Barry (Aston Villa), Gerrard (Liverpool), Jenas (Tottenham), Wright-Phillips (Man City), Lampard (Chelsea), Downing (Middlesbrough), Beckham (LA Galaxy)

Forwards: Rooney (Man United), Defoe (Portsmouth), Walcott (Arsenal), Heskey (Wigan), Crouch (Portsmouth)

After a day of undergoing medical diagnosis, it appears as if the Ivorian maniac will in fact only miss a few weeks. This according to the Chelsea Web site:

“Didier Drogba has had two forceful rotations in his knee and ankle. Fortunately, he has avoided any significant ligamentus rupture. He will not be requiring surgery. We will keep him under observation for the next two or three days before putting an estimate on how long he’ll be out, but we’re certainly looking at weeks, not months.”

Thank God. But, with Ricky and Deco still out, and JT, Alex and Cashley carrying knocks the question still lingers: Is this squad too thin?

At the back, we should be fine — that is if Ivanovic is finally given a chance to glimmer like Cheryl’s wedding band. Up front, I’m not so sure.

Before the season, you readers should remember me pushing for the club to not only sign a winger but a striker as well.  We got neither. Now, it’s not even a question of whether we need more numbers; it’s a necessity.

Regardless of how you feel about Anelka, I’d think you would be logical enough to agree that he simply cannot lead the line for an entire season. The man, despite finding the net a few times already this season, has confidence — and emotional — issues. How many sitters has he blown this year? More to the point, who thinks he can actually thrive consistently in our current system/formation? He can’t, it’s that simple.

That leaves the club, as of right now, with two striking options: Salomon Kalou and Franco Di Santo. I’m leaving Scott Sinclair off this list because, really, I haven’t seen any indication that he’s in the mix for a run in the team. I’ve also heard loan rumors, particularly with Swansea.

Anyway, on with Kalou. Who’s seen enough from this kid to think he can provide consistent goals for Chelsea? I haven’t. More so, he’s primarily used as a winger anyway.

So that leaves Di Santo. The 19-year-old Argentinian. Untried, untested. Does he have the tools? It certainly looks so. Is he up to the challenge? The way he attacked that first ball hit toward him in Transylvania, I’d say hell yeah. But he’s got no experience at the top level, and that my friends is worth its weight in Roman yachts.

Of course, there are plenty of you that will say I’m overreacting. And you would have a point. Drogba has yet to score for the club this season — and we’re undefeated. Of course I agree. But seriously, how long do you think we can survive without solid production from the front line? Me thinks not very long. Furthermore, even a non-scoring Drogba is a major asset, seeing as his stength and on-the-ball ability make him ideal for our system. Don’t forget his work defending set pieces.

So, what’s my point? It’s quite simple really: Fat Ronaldo. Get the man with an overhang to London asap.

Chelsea scout Guy Hillion confirmed that the club inked 12-year-old Jeremy Boga from ASPTT Marseille.

The Blues beat out Lyon, Bordeaux and big Marseille for the young one’s signature. More to the point, his father has been working in London for a couple of years, leading to Boga’s decision to join Chelsea.

“That is not a transfer, as the rules forbid it,” Hillion told Les Dessous du Sport. “We couldn’t have signed Jeremy if Mr. Boga hadn’t been in London.  Chelsea took him because he has the talent to play at the highest level. He’s an excellent number 10.”

The new Frank Lampard, eh? We shall see.

On how not winning a trophy last season aided in his decision to stay in London:
‘In November when I made an article saying I wanted to leave, I had my reasons when I was saying that,’ Drogba recalled during the interview. It didn’t change anything in terms of the way I was playing. It was a boost for me to speak and say what I was feeling because I needed to do it and I think everybody understood what I was trying to say, and respected me for what I said.

‘After that I gave everything I could, because playing injured is not easy and I did it, so nobody can say this guy was not part of the club’s future or life. Then came the end of the season and a lot of speculation, and because of this article everybody said I was going to leave.

‘It was in my head but at the same time, to lose the Champions League Final, to leave the club without winning anything [that season], and since I am here I created a fantastic relationship with some players. My family is happy here, I am happy in London.

‘From the Champions League Final, maybe before, I knew what I was doing the year after. I didn’t need to speak because I have two more years [on my contract], I didn’t need to speak to say I was staying or leaving. When you have a contract you have to respect it, I signed two years ago and am really happy with it.

‘It has been two years when we don’t touch the [Premier League] trophy. You realise what we did two years before was fantastic and amazing and you want to win the League again. But the Champions League is I think for this season one of the main objectives.’

On the Champions League final, hitting the post and the infamous red card that followed:
‘When it hit the post I was really down because I didn’t have a lot of chances so if I can call it a chance, that was a good try,’ he said. ‘The second half was fantastic. Manchester United played well and when they scored, we started to play and equalised with fantastic movement. The second half was Chelsea. We dominated the game but couldn’t score.’

‘I think I was frustrated because of the way the game was going and I was emotional,’ he admits about the flick at Nemanja Vidic that precipitated the red card. ‘How can you not be emotional in this kind of game? Of course this is something I shouldn’t have done but I think it was made more than it was. I don’t think it was a red card, maybe a yellow. I went to the dressing room, praying my friends could do it.’

‘I was really disappointed, maybe some people didn’t understand. I was disappointed not to be in the penalty shootout. It is more difficult than seeing the red card, to leave the pitch like this, especially in front of our fans. That was for me a big chance to win the Champions League.’

On his troublesome first year in England:
‘First of all I think I did well because when you are like a king in a club and you have to leave it to go to another team where there is 21 kings, it is difficult because everybody has an ego and you are proud,’ he further reflected during the Chelsea TV interview.

‘Your ego is affected, and that’s normal, that’s life and how you improve in life. Only people that don’t want to see the truth stay behind and then they don’t progress.

‘I said in the book I wasn’t happy when I first came, I was thinking the fans didn’t know me, and now I understand I maybe wasn’t giving the best of what they were expecting. You have to be open for the critics and learn from it, and take the best out of it.

‘This guy [Mourinho] believed in me and with Roman [Abramovich], they did everything to make me come here to Chelsea. When a manager comes and says this is the player I want, not another striker and when you have difficulties like I had, he was always protecting me.

‘If you have a little bit of respect and emotion and heart, you would be sad if he leaves.

‘People say I was shocked like the world was ended, and it was really difficult because when you adapt to a certain way of training with people and see them every day for four years, you get close to them, know their family, that’s all it was. It was sad.

‘The most difficult time was at first, because I was still injured and it was difficult for me to start again. The players helped me a lot, saying to me they need me to play. I say thanks to them, that’s why I am a team player. In this kind of moment I really say thank you.’

On the ongoing knee problem that has plagued him for more than a year:
‘Last year was more difficult because I didn’t take the normal time to recover from the operation,’ he admitted, ‘but when I went for the Cup in Ghana I felt good, no swelling, so I said I was fit again.

‘Then I came back here and my knee started to swell like I have never seen, and I played three months like this, try to reduce the swelling, play, rest.

‘That’s why I didn’t go for pre-season, I really wanted to take my time, think about rebuilding the muscles, getting fit and starting again.’

On new manager Luiz Felipe Scolari:
‘He has got personality, he is a leader, and this is what Chelsea always need and what we have had in the past. I think we lost a little bit during a certain period because some managers have more personality than the others.

‘To win titles you need a leader and the leader has to be the manager because the teams always follow him. Mourinho, Ranieri, Gullit, Chelsea always had a leader, that’s what we have now and we are back on our winning track.

‘The team is good, we started winning so I think we can go far.

‘I think everybody knows that I am happy here, that the most important thing for me was to come back fit, to finish with the knee injury and give everything for my team, for the fans, for the club and I am really happy I can be on the pitch again and give everything.’

The Big Interview - Didier Drogba, where the man will expand further on the above and more can be seen on Chelsea TV today at 5.30pm, 8.15pm and 11pm, and tomorrow 10am and 8pm.

We all remember how Chelsea fared against Barnsley in last year’s FA Cup. Still, I don’t think this tie will be much of a problem.  Current holders Tottenham face the toughest test of the round, hosting Liverpool.

Here’s a look at all the ties:
Sunderland v Blackburn Rovers
Arsenal v Wigan Athletic
Chelsea v Burnley
Swansea v Watford
Manchester United v Queens Park Rangers
Stoke City v Rotherham United
Brighton or Derby v Leeds United
Tottenham Hotspur v Liverpool