Friday Fulham Stuff (15/06/18)...

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham fixtures Premier League 2018-19: Crystal Palace at Craven Cottage first before a difficult trip to Tottenham

    Fulham begin the 2018-19 Premier League season against Crystal Palace
    They then face Tottenham, but it looks likely that it will be at Wembley
    The play against their west London rivals Chelsea on December 1

Fulham will open their 2018-19 Premier League campaign at home to Crystal Palace, before making the difficult trip to Tottenham in their second fixture.

The Premier League new boys then face the champions Manchester City on September 15 before taking on their west London rivals Chelsea on December 1 at Stamford Bridge.

Cottagers will have to wait until March 2 for the home derby, when they will welcome the Blues to Craven Cottage. 

Read the full list below - home fixtures are in bold.



August 11 - Crystal Palace (H)

August 18 - Tottenham Hotspur (A)

August 25 - Burnley (H)

September 1 - Brighton (A)

September 15 - Manchester City (A)

September 22 - Watford (H)

September 29 - Everton (A)

October 6 - Arsenal (H)

October 20 - Cardiff City (A)

October 27 - Bournemouth (H)

November 3 - Huddersfield Town (A)

November 10 - Liverpool (A)

November 24 - Southampton (H)

December 1 - Chelsea (A)

December 4 - Leicester City (H)

December 8 - Manchester United (A)

December 15 - West Ham United (H)

December 22 - Newcastle United (A)

December 26 - Wolves (H)

December 29 - Huddersfield Town (H)

January 1 - Arsenal (A)

January 12 - Burnley (A)

January 19 - Tottenham Hotspur (H)

January 29 - Brighton (H)

February 2 - Crystal Palace (A)

February 9 - Manchester United (H)

February 23 - West Ham United (A)

February 27 - Southampton (A)

March 2 - Chelsea (H)

March 9 - Leicester City (A)

March 16 - Liverpool (H)

March 30 - Manchester City (H)

April 6 - Watford (A)

April 13 - Everton (H)

April 20 - Bournemouth (A)

April 27 - Cardiff City (H)

May 4 - Wolves (A)

May 12 - Newcastle United (H)

All fixtures are subject to change once live TV schedule has been finalised



http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-5842909/Fulham-Fixtures-Premier-League-2018-19-Season.html

[WhiteJC]

 
Palace Travel To Fulham For Opener

The fixtures for the 2018/19 Premier League season have been revealed which confirms that the Eagles will travel to Craven Cottage to kick off the new season.

In what is another kind run in, Palace take on Everton(h), Cardiff City (a) and Bournemouth (h).

Clearly the fixture list will be decimated by the television companies but here it is in its entirety before they get their hands on it.

Sat Aug 11 Fulham A
Sat Aug 18 Liverpool H
Sat Aug 25 Watford A
Sat Sep 1 Southampton H
Sat Sep 15 Huddersfield Town A
Sat Sep 22 Newcastle United H
Sat Sep 29 Bournemouth A
Sat Oct 6 Wolverhampton Wanderers H
Sat Oct 20 Everton A
Sat Oct 27 Arsenal H
Sat Nov 3 Chelsea A
Sat Nov 10 Tottenham Hotspur H
Sat Nov 24 Manchester United A
Sat Dec 1 Burnley H
Tue Dec 4 Brighton and Hove Albion A
Sat Dec 8 West Ham United A
Sat Dec 15 Leicester City H
Sat Dec 22 Manchester City A
Wed Dec 26 Cardiff City H
Sat Dec 29 Chelsea H
Tue Jan 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers A
Sat Jan 12 Watford H
Sat Jan 19 Liverpool A
Wed Jan 30 Southampton A
Sat Feb 2 Fulham H
Sat Feb 9 West Ham United H
Sat Feb 23 Leicester City A
Tue Feb 26 Manchester United H
Sat Mar 2 Burnley A
Sat Mar 9 Brighton and Hove Albion H
Sat Mar 16 Tottenham Hotspur A
Sat Mar 30 Huddersfield Town H
Sat Apr 6 Newcastle United A
Sat Apr 13 Manchester City H
Sat Apr 20 Arsenal A
Sat Apr 27 Everton H
Sat May 4 Cardiff City A
Sun May 12 Bournemouth H



https://theeaglesbeak.com/2018/06/14/palace-travel-to-fulham-for-opener/

[WhiteJC]

 
Premier League Fixtures Confirmed

Fulham will kick-off our 2018/19 Premier League campaign with back to back London derbies.

First we welcome Roy Hodgson and his Crystal Palace side to Craven Cottage before heading to Tottenham Hotspur who will still be at Wembley, which is slightly Fulhamish in that we had previously waited 43 years for a trip to the home of football!

Other notable fixtures include a trip to the champions Manchester City early on, while the first SW6 derby takes place at Stamford Bridge at the beginning of December.

The Whites will be at home on Boxing Day against Wolverhampton Wanderers, and have a short journey to make to Arsenal on New Year's Day.

March promises to be a cracking month down by the Thames with Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City all making the trip to the Cottage.

We're also at home for the season finale, when we entertain Newcastle United on Saturday 12th May.

Please note that all fixtures are subject to change, particularly those against sides who will be competing in the UEFA Europa League.



http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2018/june/14/premier-league-fixtures-confirmed

[WhiteJC]

Fulham begin Premier League return against Crystal Palace
by Dan on June 14, 2018

Fulham will make their return to the Premier League by welcoming former Whites boss Roy Hodgson back to Craven Cottage as they face Crystal Palace on Saturday 11 August.

The reunion with Hodgson, who led Fulham to the Europa League final in 2010, is followed by another London derby away at Tottenham, although the venue for the fixture is yet to be confirmed. Spurs could start the season at Wembley, where the Whites sealed promotion back to the top flight last month, if their new stadium is not completed in time for the big kick off. Slavisa Jokanovic's men finish August with a home game against Burnley.

September sees Fulham travel to Manchester City, whilst the first SW6 derby of the season will take place at Stamford Bridge on December 1. Fulham have their first home Boxing Day fixture in five years against Wolverhampton Wanderers before making the trip to Arsenal on New Year's Day.

The Whites will host Chelsea in the local derby on March 2nd and will finish the season with a home game against Newcastle United on May 12th.



http://hammyend.com/index.php/2018/06/fulham-begin-premier-league-return-against-crystal-palace/

[WhiteJC]

 
Spurs reveal first Premier League fixture at new stadium as one more trip to Wembley beckons

Tottenham will face Fulham at Wembley Stadium in the first 'home' game of the season before opening their new stadium

Tottenham Hotspur have revealed that the first game at the New White Hart Lane will be against Liverpool on on September 15.

That means that the home tie against Fulham on the second week of the season, their first scheduled home tie, will be played at Wembley Stadium on August 18.

Spurs had planned to seek permission to play their first few games of the season away from home, but after discussions with the coaching staff the club have decided to break their run of 'away games' by facing newly promoted Fulham at Wembley Stadium, which was their 'home' stadium last season.

That means that the visit of Liverpool will be the first Premier League game held at the new stadium, but Tottenham have also pencilled in a number of operational tests at the new stadium to check and rehearse operational aspects, with details to be confirmed.

While Fulham will be the only Premier League side this season not to visit the new Spurs stadium, they do have previous at Wembley, having won promotion there in May in the Championship play-off final with a 1-0 victory over Aston Villa.

It will be their second visit to the national stadium in the space of four months, with their last visit before that coming 43 years ago in the FA Cup.

Speaking about the decision to play Fulham at Wembley Stadium, Chairman, Daniel Levy said: "I am absolutely delighted to announce the date of our first match in our new home. Our fans have been hugely supportive and this has been much appreciated during a challenging but momentous time.

"I should also like to thank Richard Scudamore and the Board of the Premier League for having regard to exceptional circumstances, along with the Board of Watford for agreeing to reverse our fixture on Matchday 4 to an away game.

"We had always intended to request a few games away at the start of the season. The Coaching staff were keen to place a home game within the early fixtures so we shall have one home game at Wembley.


(Image: Courtesy of Tottenham Hotspur)

"We have held extensive scheduling discussions with Mace, our construction manager, and our lead sub-contractors. Our first operational test event will be held on 5 August."

Meanwhile, Mauricio Pochettino said: "We are so excited to have the date of the first Premier League match at our new stadium.

"We discussed the timings and the ability to play away games and I think it is a good solution to have an earlier home game. Wembley was great for us last season and we are even more used to that than we are the new stadium.

"We are excited about the season ahead and making the new stadium our new home. I have stood inside the bowl and I know the atmosphere will be unbelievable – it will be well worth the wait."



https://www.football.london/tottenham-hotspur-fc/news/spurs-reveal-first-premier-league-14782608

[WhiteJC]

 
Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United - who Fulham will face over the festive period

It's a tough festive fixture for the Whites as they face their first Premier League season in four years

Fulham now know who they'll be facing in their first season back in the Premier League in four years - and the Christmas schedule looks fun.

For the first time in six years, the Whites will have a home game on Boxing Day as they welcome Wolves to Craven Cottage in a meeting of two promoted sides.

Fulham won the same fixture 2-0 in February in the second tier in the middle of their 23 game unbeaten run and they will be hoping for a similar scoreline when the Midlands side come to town.

The month of December will begin with a west London derby at Stamford Bridge as Fulham take on Chelsea on the first of the month, before a midweek hosting of former Premier League champions Leicester City three days later.

Next up is a trip to Old Trafford to take on Manchester United on December 8, before another London derby as they welcome Manuel Pellegrini's West Ham side to the Cottage on December 15.

A week later they make the long trip up north to St James' Park to face Newcastle United on December 22 - a place the side have fond memories of after their 3-1 demolition job in March 2017, where Ryan Sessegnon really made his mark with two goals against Rafa Benitez' side.

Then it's Wolves on Boxing Day, followed by Huddersfield Town on December 29 at the Cottage, before a tough trip to the Emirates to face Unai Emery's Arsenal on New Year's Day.

Here's the festive fixture list in full:

Chelsea v Fulham - 01/12/2018 15:00

Fulham v Leicester City - 04/12/2018 19:45

Manchester United v Fulham - 08/12/2018 15:00

Fulham v West Ham United - 15/12/2018 15:00

Newcastle United v Fulham - 22/12/2018 15:00

Fulham v Wolverhampton - 26/12/2018 15:00

Fulham v Huddersfield Town - 29/12/2018 15:00

Arsenal v Fulham - 01/01/2019 15:00



https://www.football.london/fulham-fc/fulham-festive-fixtures-premier-league-14782148

[WhiteJC]

 
When Fulham will face their London rivals in the 2018/19 Premier League season

A lot of time will be spent in the capital this season as Fulham take on the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea in the Premier League

Fulham have found out who they'll be facing when in the 2018/19 Premier League season - and with it comes a new set of London derbies for fans to look forward to.

After west London derbies with Brentford and QPR last season, the Whites will now take on the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur after they gained promotion to the top flight of English football with victory at Wembley Stadium in the Championship play-off final.

With West Ham United and Crystal Palace in the Premier League too, Fulham will be spending a fair bit of time in the capital this season competing in London derbies.

Fulham face two of them in the opening two weeks of the season, first as they welcome former manager Roy Hodgson and his Palace side to the Cottage, followed by a trip to face Spurs.

The next one is Watford (if you count them as a London side) at Craven Cottage on September 22, before Arsenal at home on October 6 and a west London derby with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on December 1 to kick off the festive fixtures.

West Ham visit west London on December 15, then there's a trip to the Emirates to take on Arsenal again is the first fixture of the new year on January 1, while Spurs visit the Cottage on January 19.


(Image: Paul Burgman)

The Cottagers are then on the road to Selhurst Park to face Palace on February 2 before visiting the London Stadium on February 23 to face West Ham, followed by the next west London derby at the Cottage against Chelsea on March 2.

Finally, Fulham travel to Vicarage Road on April 6 in their sixth last game of the season to round off the London derbies for Slavisa Jokanovic's side.



https://www.football.london/fulham-fc/fulham-face-london-rivals-201819-14782376

[WhiteJC]

 
'Like London buses!' - Fulham fans react to facing Tottenham at Wembley Stadium

Fulham fans have reacted to the news that their side will be heading to Wembley Stadium again just months after the play-off final

Fulham will make another trip to Wembley Stadium just four months after lifting the Championship play-off trophy when they face Tottenham Hotspur on the second week of the season.

The north London club have been given special dispensation by the Premier League to play the game at Wembley, their home for the past season, while their new stadium on the site of the old White Hart Lane is still being built.

Spurs will open their new stadium against Liverpool on September 15, meaning that Fulham's away game against them has been rescheduled to the national stadium which will see the side play their twice in four months - 43 years after waiting for their next visit.

That means that Slavisa Jokanovic's team will be the only Premier League side this season not to play at Tottenham's new ground, with discussions originally taking place over the possibility of moving the tie to Craven Cottage.

Fulham open their season with a home game against Crystal Palace, seeing a return to the Cottage for former boss Roy Hodgson, before facing Spurs at Wembley, followed by hosting Burnley in another home game to end August.



Fans have reacted to the news as you might expect, with most comparing the new trips to Wembley in such short time to London buses.



https://www.football.london/fulham-fc/like-london-buses-fulham-fans-14782840

[WhiteJC]

 
Pre-season prep and watching Mitrovic - what Fulham will be up to during the 2018 World Cup

The head coach will be concentrating on making sure plans are in place ready for the start of pre-season at Motspur Park

Fulham's promotion to the Premier League has coincided with the World Cup, meaning it's set to be an even busier than usual summer for the west London side.

As we all know, the transfer window is usually a hectic time for clubs, but with players jetting off to Russia for the tournament it's going to be even more difficult to push through deals, with a lot of them most likely being done once the competition ends.

The Whites are in an interesting place compared to other clubs though - with Tony Khan and his recruitment team focusing solely on transfers, Slavisa Jokanovic and his coaching staff, including trusted lieutenants Javier Pereira and Alberto Escobar, will have more than enough time to examine what needs doing on the playing side of things next season.

With no contracted players from Fulham at the World Cup, the core of the side will be returning to pre-season come the end of the month, fresh from their holidays and promotion at Wembley, ready to take on the Premier League.

Here's what the coaching staff will be doing over the summer while the World Cup is on.

Planning, planning and more planning

Once the season was done, Jokanovic jetted back off to Spain to spend some much deserved time with his family and friends ahead of the new season.

With recruitment not a priority for the head coach, it's unlikely he's going to spend much time on the phone chasing potential new transfers like he's counterparts, meaning he'll be focused on preparing his tactics for the Premier League.

In the previous two campaigns, Fulham found a style that suited the players at their disposal - a dominant, attacking, passing brand of football that saw them retain possession and attack predominantly down the flanks.

After the play-offs, Jokanovic insisted that the Cottagers wouldn't be changing their style in the top flight and will continue with the same attacking football that saw them wipe the floor with teams over the past two campaigns.

Jokanovic and his coaching staff will be sitting down and discussing just how they can implement that against some of the best defences and attacks in the world - the upcoming campaign will see them struggle with their style when they face the likes of Manchester City.

Working out how they'll be able to go toe-to-toe with the bigger teams in England will be a top priority for the coaching staff as they work through the World Cup and aim towards the opening game of the season in two months time.


(Image: Victoria Jones/PA Wire)

Pre-season preparations

Last season we saw Fulham start extremely slowly, something that cannot happen in the Premier League.

If they start like they did then, we could well be looking at a disaster of a campaign before the first month has even ended, and so getting pre-season right will be a crucial point for Jokanovic in the next few weeks.

Fulham have already announced some of their pre-season schedule, with a behind-closed-doors friendly with Crawley Town their first point of action followed by a game with Reading, before a trip out to France for two games.

They then head out to Germany for the Cup of Traditions tournament with a week to spare before the first Premier League games, which are scheduled for the weekend of August 12.

That represents a change from last season, where the first point of call was a trip to Poland before behind-closed-doors games with QPR and Chelsea, followed by two more trips abroad in the form of Austria and Germany.

It seemed that Fulham went into the start of the season under cooked somewhat, and it looks like the schedule this season has been designed to ensure that doesn't happen again, with the players and staff being able to make full use of Motspur Park for nearly three weeks at the start of the pre-season schedule before a trip overseas.

It is vital that the Whites get pre-season right and go into that first fixture ready to lay down their dominant style of football and show whoever they get why they deserve to be in the top flight.

Deciding which Academy stars to bring into the fold

We know Jokanovic likes to use pre-season to get a look at the youngsters coming through the ranks at Fulham - two seasons ago was when Ryan Sessegnon really came into his own when he scored against Brighton and Hove Albion.

There will be discussions taking place between Jokanovic and Huw Jennings, the Academy Director at Motspur Park, not only on which players he will be incorporating into pre-season, but on the new crop of talent coming into the U18 and U23 sides.

Again, Jokanovic doesn't have much input on transfers at the club and that is down to Khan's recruitment team, but Jennings will be talking with Khan on which young players will need loan spells this season and what move might work out best for them, like they did with Marek Rodak, Mattias Kait, Stephen Humphrys and others last season.

With Fulham in the Premier League, the likes of Steven Sessegnon, Matt O'Riley, Tayo Edun, Marlon Fossey and Luca de la Torre may benefit from time away at a Championship club to get some game time.

Watching Serbia

And of course, Jokanovic will be watching Serbia at the World Cup.

He was present at their training camp a few weeks ago to see them put through their paces before heading home to Spain, and with Aleksandar Mitrovic leading the line he will be extra interested in how they get on.

There will also be an eye on Spain, with Escobar, Pereira and Jose Sambade Carreira, the team's goalkeeping coach, all hailing from the country.



https://www.football.london/fulham-fc/fulham-world-cup-aleksandar-mitrovic-14769548

[WhiteJC]

 
Newcastle want £20m for Aleksandar Mitrovic


Newcastle are ready to sell Aleksandar Mitrovic this summer

Newcastle are prepared to sell Aleksandar Mitrovic this summer and want £20m for the striker, according to Sky sources.

Mitrovic spent the second half of last season on loan at Fulham and scored 12 goals in 20 matches as they secured promotion to the Premier League via the Sky Bet Championship play-offs.

The 23-year-old, who is currently preparing for the World Cup with Serbia, has two years remaining on his contract at St James' Park.


Mitrovic helped Fulham secure their place in the Premier League in May

Mitrovic joined Newcastle from Anderlecht in 2015 after scoring 44 goals in 90 appearances for the Belgian side.

He has since struggled for the same consistency with the Magpies, netting only 17 times in 72 appearances for the club.

Mitrovic was allowed to join Fulham in January after falling down the pecking order under Rafa Benitez, with Dwight Gayle, Joselu and Ayoze Perez among the names preferred in attack.



http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11678/11404485/newcastle-want-20m-for-aleksandar-mitrovic

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham told how much they'll have to spend if they want Newcastle striker Aleksandar Mitrovic

The Whites want to make his move to west London permanent, and reports are now suggesting how much they'll have to fork out

Fulham will have to cough up £20million if they want to sign Aleksandar Mitrovic on a permanent deal.

The 23-year-old spent half of the last campaign on loan at Craven Cottage, with his 12 goals helping to fire the Whites to the Premier League via the play-offs at Wembley.

It's no secret that they would like him to return to west London on a permanent transfer this summer, but Sky Sports News are reporting that his parent side want £20million if they are to part with him.

Mitrovic still has two years left on his deal at St James' Park but has found himself behind the likes of Dwight Gayle and Joselu in the past year, which lead to Rafa Benitez allowing him to leave for west London.

Slavisa Jokanovic is a big fan of his countryman and would like him to return, but any deal will not be down to him and it will be the recruitment team, led by Tony Khan, who will have the say on whether Fulham move for Mitrovic once again.

He's currently away with Serbia at the World Cup and it was though that Newcastle would wait until after the competition to set their stall out for the striker, with hopes of him having a solid tournament boosting his price tag even more.


(Image: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)

And Fulham aren't the only ones interested - Crystal Palace have been linked with a move for Mitrovic, as have a whole host of European teams, who see the striker as their preferred option up front.

However, the Whites have the upper hand in the chase for Mitrovic, with the striker and his family happy with their stay in London, while the striker himself has said in the past he would like to return to Fulham.



https://www.football.london/fulham-fc/fulham-transfer-cost-aleksandar-mitrovic-14784229

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham's Premier League start is one of the toughest on paper

The Whites opening six opponents include Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley Stadium

Fulham have one of the toughest starts to the season of any Premier League side - on paper at least.

The Cottagers' opening six opponents next season had an average finishing league position of 8.5 in 2017/18.

Only three other Premier League teams are starting their campaign against sides with a higher average.

Slaviša Jokanović's boys kick things off with a home game against Crystal Palace, who finished in 11th.

That's followed by games against Tottenham (third), Burnley (seventh), Brighton (15th), Manchester City (first) and Watford (14th).

Of course, by the time the season comes around there will be other factors that will make each of Fulham's games either more or less daunting, such as injuries and new signings.

But at the moment, it gives us some idea of how tough a start the Cottagers have compared to other teams.

Manchester City, for example, start with games against Arsenal (sixth), Huddersfield (16th), Wolves, Newcastle (10th), Fulham and Cardiff.

That opening set of fixtures works out at an average finishing league position of 14.8 - the lowest in the division - if you assign Wolves 18th, Cardiff 19th and Fulham 20th.


(Image: Alex Morton/Getty Images)

The other newly promoted teams also face tough starts. Cardiff's opening six opponents had an average finishing league position of 8.3 last season.

Wolves' had an average of 6.7 - the highest of any side in the division.

Team: Average position of first six opponent

Wolverhampton: 6.7

Newcastle United: 7.5

Cardiff City: 8.3

Fulham: 8.5

Huddersfield Town: 8.8

West Ham United: 8.8

Southampton: 9.0

Arsenal: 9.3

Watford: 9.7

Brighton: 10.0

A.F.C. Bournemouth: 10.2

Tottenham Hotspur: 10.8

Manchester United: 11.0

Liverpool: 11.3

Leicester City: 11.5

Chelsea: 12.7

Crystal Palace: 13.5

Everton: 13.7

Burnley: 13.8

Manchester City: 14.8



https://www.football.london/fulham-fc/fulhams-premier-league-start-one-14783877

[WhiteJC]

 
Fixtures In Focus

Our first match of the 2018/19 Premier League campaign will be a repeat of our most recent top flight match, with Crystal Palace making the trip across South London. A little over four years ago the teams played out a 2-2 draw, with Fulham twice recovering from a Dwight Gayle strike. Cauley Woodrow's first for the Club just after the hour mark initially restored parity, before a wonder goal from Chris David deep into stoppage time again drew us level.

In true Fulhamish style, the Whites will be back at Wembley in our first away fixture. Having waited 43 years for an appearance at the national stadium prior to our Play-Off Final success, this time less than four months will have passed before our return. Tottenham Hotspur's new ground will not be ready for our August 18th meeting, and so they will use Wembley as a temporary home for one last time.

Fulham and Burnley then meet in the Premier League for the first time in eight-and-a-half years at Craven Cottage, with the previous meeting ending in a 3-0 victory for Roy Hodgson's side, with Danny Murphy, David Elm and Bobby Zamora all on target.

We will then face a Pep Guardiola team for the first time in our history when we head to Manchester to take on the current champions City, before Slaviša Jokanović welcomes his former club Watford to SW6 on September 22nd.

Our biggest Premier League hoodoo is Everton away, and the Whites will be hoping to end a horrible run of zero points from 13 matches when we head to Goodison Park at the end of the month. Our next match then sees us face an Arsenal team managed by someone other than Arsene Wenger for the first time since March 1968 when Les Barrett was on target in a 3-1 defeat.

A repeat of last season's 4-2 success would be most welcome when we head to Cardiff in mid-October, and we then host AFC Bournemouth for only the second time in the best part of two decades.

A double header of away days kick off November as we travel to Huddersfield Town and Liverpool. It's a quiet month for league football, with Southampton providing the only other opposition when they visit the Cottage on the 24th. It's a repeat of our only 2017/18 fixture that featured a Premier League side, when a James Ward-Prowse goal was the difference in a tightly contested Emirates FA Cup tie.

One of the first fixtures Fulham fans will have looked out for comes on December 1st when we make the trip to Stamford Bridge. Two of our last three meetings down the road have ended in draws; 0-0 in 2012, and 1-1 the year before when Clint Dempsey cancelled out Juan Mata's opener. Leicester City are then back at the Cottage for the first time since October 2003 when a Luis Boa Morte double meant they left empty handed.

The Whites have scored five times in our last three trips to Old Trafford, a trend we'll be keen to continue on December 8th. The last game there was full of drama, with Darren Bent heading in at the death to secure a 2-2 draw. West Ham United are next up at the Cottage, a fixture which Fulham won on our two previous meetings by the Thames, mostly recently when Steve Sidwell and Dimitar Berbatov netted in a 2-1 triumph.

The festive period pits us against three sides we have faced recently in the Championship; Newcastle United, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Huddersfield. Our most recent seasons in the same division as this trio yielded 15 points from a possible 18. The Wolves game also represents a first home match on Boxing Day in six years.

Fulham are in action on New Year's Day for the first time since that aforementioned win over the Hammers, and it's another London derby this year when we travel to Arsenal's Emirates Stadium. We haven't lost on January 1st since 2011 which was also in North London, when Gareth Bale earned a 1-0 win for Spurs, another team we face in January following a trip to Burnley's Turf Moor on January 12th.

The month concludes with a midweek encounter against Brighton at the Cottage, before we face the Seagulls' rivals Crystal Palace four days later, in what will be our first visit to Selhurst Park since the 4-1 victory famous for Pajtim Kasami's FIFA Puskás Award-nominated volley.

We've enjoyed some famous victories over Manchester United in our own back yard over the years, and Jose Mourinho will be bringing his team down south on February 9th. We then get a chance to tick a new stadium off our list when we head to West Ham's new home at the London Stadium, before we set off to Southampton for an evening kick-off to conclude the month.

March appears to represent our trickiest month on paper, with Craven Cottage playing host to Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City. Our sole away trip sees us journey to Leicester – a fixture we haven't lost in the league since Gary Lineker scored in a 2-0 win for the Foxes at Filbert Street back in December 1982.

Four of our final six fixtures are against sides who finished from 8th-14th in the Premier League last season. Watford away and Everton at home get April under way, before a trip down to Bournemouth on April 20th. Our previous trip to the Goldsands Stadium ended in a 2-0 defeat on a rainy Boxing Day in 2014, with a Marcus Bettinelli penalty save the sole highlight for the Whites. Newcastle at the Cottage concludes the campaign, a game which is preceeded by matches against our fellow promoted sides Cardiff (home) and Wolves (away).



http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2018/june/14/fixtures-in-focus

[WhiteJC]

Newcastle want £20m for Mitrovic
by Dan on June 14, 2018

Newcastle United have told Fulham they are willing to sell striker Aleksandar Mitrovic this summer – but only if the Whites match their £20m asking price.

A Sky Sports report this afternoon discloses that Newcastle are confident that Mitrovic's recent form for both club and country – and the possibility that he could shine during this month's World Cup with Serbia – means they will not be short of offers for the striker, who spent six months at Craven Cottage at the end of last season. Mitrovic is unlikely to feature in Rafa Benitez's plans for the new campaign and Magpies owner Mike Ashley is sure to drive as hard a bargain as possible.

Mitrovic, who has two years to run on his current contract at St. James' Park, has publicly expressed an interest in turning his loan spell with Fulham into a permanent transfer. The former Anderlecht forward, who was set for a return to Belgium in January until the deal broke down and he teamed up with compatriot Slavisa Jokanovic at Fulham, scored 12 goals in 20 league appearances as the Whites won the Championship play-offs. Jokanovic has reportedly made the signing of Mitrovic his top priority as he prepares to lead Fulham back into the Premier League.

A deal for £20m would make the 23 year-old Fulham's record signing – and would be a significant statement of intent ahead of the club's return to the top flight. Fulham are known to be keen to strengthen their attacking options and had an £8m bid for Swansea forward Jordan Ayew rejected by the Welsh club yesterday.



http://hammyend.com/index.php/2018/06/newcastle-want-20m-for-mitrovic/

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The major change of heart that means Spurs will play their opening game against Fulham at Wembley

Why Spurs have been granted permission to play their first game at Wembley this season

Spurs have announced that they will play their first home game of the season at Wembley, to give workers more time to finish construction of their new stadium.

There were question marks over whether or not the new ground would be completed in time for the start of the 2018/19 season and it has transpired this morning that the club have asked for a bit of extra time in getting everything finished.

As a result, on the second weekend of the season, Spurs will host newly-promoted Fulham at Wembley - their home last year while the new stadium was built.

Tottenham needed special dispensation from the Premier League to play one game away from their new home as it is against Premier League rules to play home matches at different stadia.

Indeed, when Spurs were originally planning for the rebuild at White Hart Lane, they posed the question as to whether they could split their home games between Wembley and Milton Keynes Dons.

That was rebuffed out of hand by the Premier League, and executive chairman Richard Scudamore's comments in 2015 show that Spurs can count themselves lucky that they have been given the opportunity to play one home game at a different ground.

Scudamore is reported as saying in 2015: "They'd have to play in the same stadium for the entire year, for the integrity of the competition. You can't have 19 home games with 10 at Milton Keynes and nine at Wembley – completely, completely unfair. That won't be allowed in our competition."

Of course, Spurs could have simply requested to start the season with a clutch of away matches, but manager Mauricio Pochettino was not keen on doing that.



https://www.football.london/tottenham-hotspur-fc/news/spurs-wembley-fulham-premier-league-14784314

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Swansea City 'reject Fulham's £8m bid for Jordan Ayew'

Swansea City have reportedly turned down an £8m bid from Fulham for Jordan Ayew.

On Wednesday, it was claimed that Fulham had opened talks with Swansea over a possible deal for the Ghana international in this summer's transfer window.

However, according to Sky Sports News, the Welsh outfit have turned down the £8m bid from the promoted Cottagers.

Ayew scored 11 times in all competitions for the Swans last season - including seven in the Premier League, but he could not prevent the club from being relegated to the Championship.

The attacker, who has also been linked with a move to Scottish champions Celtic, has two years left to run on his contract at the Liberty Stadium.



https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/swansea-city/transfer-talk/news/swansea-reject-fulhams-bid-for-ayew_328341.html

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Fulham Given The Chance To Make A Reasonable Start To New Premier League Season

This morning, the Premier League fixtures were published.

It was a moment that all Fulham supporters have been waiting for since promotion was earned on that memorable day at Wembley, in the Championship Play Off Final.

Recently, as we've begun to look forward to the new Premier League season, we've carried a couple of articles relating to the forthcoming campaign.

One article, Click Here, highlighted the home games we feel Fulham need to win to ensure our Premier League status is maintained.

With the fixtures being released today, we thought we'd revisit those first six crucial fixtures, to assess whether we believe that Fulham will get off to the good start that could define their season.

The first six fixtures being:

1 – Crystal Palace (h)
2 – Tottenham Hotspur (a)
3 – Burnley (h)
4 – Brighton and Hove Albion (a)
5 – Manchester City (a)
6 – Watford (h)

Three home games and three away games, an even spread.

Looking into our crystal ball, whilst maintaining a degree of neutrality, we'd be foolish to expect we'd get anything from the away trips to Tottenham and Manchester City, indeed anything would be a bonus.

But, from the three home fixtures, we'd be looking to get seven points, with wins against Crystal Palace and Watford and with a draw, at minimum, against Burnley.

As for the trip to the south coast, I'm optimistic that we can get something against Brighton, a draw would be nice.

If I've gauged the first six games right then we'd have amassed 8 points from a possible 18 available from the first six games.

It's not the most brilliant of starts but it'd be a start to build upon.



https://fulham.vitalfootball.co.uk/fulham-given-the-chance-to-make-a-reasonable-start-to-new-premier-league-season/

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Why Fulham over Huddersfield could be the ideal move for this promising Welsh starlet

According to a report by the Huddersfield Daily Examiner, Fulham and Huddersfield Town are embroiled in a £7m transfer tussle for Liverpool starlet Harry Wilson.

The youngster spent the second half of the previous season on loan at Championship outlet Hull City, meaning the Cottagers would have closely observed his skills. But Slavisa Jokanovic's men have now secured a promotion to the top-flight and it will be interesting to see how they fare in the Premier League next term.

But given the choice between Huddersfield and Fulham, where should Wilson go?

Huddersfield have managed to retain their top-flight status as they will contend in the Premier League once again next season. But to be honest, their performances weren't all that encouraging last term.

But given the choice between Huddersfield and Fulham, where should Wilson go?

Huddersfield have managed to retain their top-flight status as they will contend in the Premier League once again next season. But to be honest, their performances weren't all that encouraging last term.

They started out on a slow note but towards the end of the campaign, they sparked a stunning resurgence which displayed their true potential to the footballing world.

The likes of Ryan Sessegnon, Tom Cairney and Stefan Johansen were their standout performers throughout the season and the club are expected to fare well in the Premier League as well.

And if one takes a look at their squad, it is safe to say that Fulham have a stronger team compared to Huddersfield. Undoubtedly, Fulham's depth and power will place them in a strong position in the upcoming season.

It must be a priority for Wilson to join an exciting side who will stay afloat in the Premier League, and to that end, he is likely to benefit from joining the Cottagers.

Given his pacy and skilful performances, the player will be useful at Craven Cottage. Also, he would work well with the current Fulham team and Jokanovic must do everything to acquire his services this summer.

However, it remains to be seen if Liverpool agree to let him leave in the first place. Considering the state of the current attack at Anfield under Jurgen Klopp, it seems tough for Wilson to break into the first-team. Thus, he must push for a move to Fulham in order to play regular football and develop his career further.



https://soccersouls.com/2018/06/15/why-fulham-over-huddersfield-could-be-the-ideal-move-for-this-promising-welsh-starlet/

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham signing Swansea City's Jordan Ayew would be a smart move

Fulham have been linked with Swansea City's Jordan Ayew.

According to a report by Sky Sports, Fulham are keen on signing Swansea City forward Jordan Ayew this summer though their recent £8 million bid was turned down by the Welsh club.

Fulham would be wise to go back in for him as the Ghana international could make a big difference to the club this coming season and play a key role in their Premier League survival bid.

Ayew was Swansea's standout player in an otherwise disappointing campaign for the relegated club. He scored seven goals and grabbed a further two assists in 33 league starts.

The 26-year-old was arguably the Swans' only player who genuinely looked like Premier League quality, but it's his versatility more than anything which would be a big bonus should Fulham get him.

The Cottagers earned promotion to the Premier League last term via the playoffs, though it wasn't until the second half of the campaign and with the aid of loan signings that they really started to click.

Newcastle United's Aleksandar Mitrovic played a pivotal role in the club's promotion, and Fulham should be pulling out all the stops in order to bring the Serb in on a permanent basis.

Assuming they get him, Ayew would make an excellent forward partner for Mitrovic as he is capable of playing in any of the wide forward roles or behind him in a number 10.

Jordan Ayew of Swansea is seperated from Gary Cahill (r) by his team mate Cesar Azpilicueta after a heated exchange during the Premier League match between Swansea City and Chelsea at...

His versatility would allow boss Slavisa Jokanovic to rotate between playing three central midfielders, or just the two and pushing Ayew forward as a number 10 in a 4-2-3-1 role when choosing to be more attacking.

The Swansea man previously played for Aston Villa before turning up at the Liberty Stadium, but at Fulham he could arguably produce his best football yet with the player likely to reach his peak over the next few years.



http://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2018/06/14/tt-fulham-signing-26-year-old-attacker-would-be-a-smart-move/