I was contemplating the task before new Chelsea manager José Mourinho, who has already stated his intention to whittle the squad down to 21 players, plus goalkeepers. That's easier said than done considering the current volume of the team, not to mention the expected summer signings (Porto's Paulo Ferreira and Deco claim their deals to move to Stamford Bridge are mostly finalized, while PSV Eindhoven's Arjen Robben booked his ticket last winter). So who will stick around, and who will leave? Thankfully we've already sent Veron to Italy to play for Inter Milan on loan for a year, most likely to boost his stock before selling him outright.

Here's my projected squad, with my favored starters underlined:

Goalkeepers
Carlo Cudicini
Petr Cech
Marco Ambrosio

Defenders
1. John Terry
2. William Gallas
3. Wayne Bridge
4. Paulo Ferreira
5. Glen Johnson
6. Marcel Desailly
7. Robert Huth
8. Celestine Babayaro

Midfielders
9. Claude Makelele
10. Frank Lampard
11. Damien Duff
12. Arjen Robben
13. Deco
14. Scott Parker
15. Joe Cole
16. Geremi

Strikers
17. Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink
18. Hernan Crespo
19. Adrian Mutu
20. Eidur Gudjohnsen
21. Carlton Cole

Some of this is speculation, some is wishful thinking. For example, a goal-scoring machine in the model of Ruud van Nistelrooy or Thierry Henry must top Chelsea's shopping list, so i wouldn't be surprised to see JFH or Eidur end up getting bumped and eventually sold. Also, a midfield with two left wings in Duff and Robben is unlikely, but i'm very much hoping that Duff once again proves his value to the side. Notable departures from the current squad, according to this list, would be Jesper Gronkjaer (a great player on his day, but too bloody inconsistent), Emmanuel Petit (getting old), Alexei Smertin (now what was the point of that buy?), Mario Stanic (just can't find any playing time), and Mario Melchiot (at best, a second choice these days). Also, i don't know how Scott Parker and Glen Johnson will like being pushed to fringe, especially if more new signings arrive.

Forgot to mention my satisfaction with the way the NBA Finals played out. That the Lakers' season ended in a soap opera-esque tirade of finger pointing, whining, and bickering is all too fitting. Gary Payton wanted a ring but couldn't get with the program. Shaq and Kobe are two spoiled children fighting over the front seat in the car. Karl Malone ... well, he did his best but couldn't bring sanity to this nightmare. It's poetic justice that the Pistons, a bunch that actually deserve the title "team", were the ones to expose the inherent weaknesses of the petulant Lakers.

Ding dong, the witch(es) are dead!

I decided this morning on the way to work that there are no teams in the NBA that i actually "like" anymore, i just have varying degrees of hatred for all of them. On the more vehement end of the spectrum there's the Lakers and the Knicks, but more or less all of them are chock full of rich undeserving jerks.