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Friday Fulham Stuff (29.04.11)

Started by White Noise, April 29, 2011, 07:07:15 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

WhiteJC

http://www.clicklancashire.com/sport/bolton-wanderers-fc/129369-bolton-wanderers-boss-owen-coyle-upset-after-fulham-defeat.html?

Bolton Wanderers boss Owen Coyle upset after Fulham defeat

Bolton Wanderers boss Owen Coyle was disappointed with the way his team performed in their defeat at Fulham.

The victory leaves Wanderers only four points ahead of Fulham in the Premier League table.

"Obviously I am disappointed to lose any game," he said. "We came looking to get the three points.

"We came here in the cup and won so we wanted to try and win again to take us to seventh in the league and we've not done that.

"I thought we started really well and had a terrific chance in the first minute to take the lead.

"We probably should have scored but we never [did] and then Fulham came into the game because they have terrific individual players and have a very good team.

"My disappointment is the goals we have lost. They are soft from our point of view and I think all three goals came indirectly from set plays.

"That is always a disappointment but having said that it can happen in this league because the margins in the Barclays Premier League and their quality.

"I can't argue with the result, I think Fulham are fully deserving of the three points. But I know we are certainly better than what we showed tonight."

WhiteJC

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/football_focus/13224009.stm

Larwo's Prediction

Sunderland v Fulham

These two teams are similar - and they're both going to end up safely in mid-table.

I'm not sure Sunderland have a fit striker, so one thing they'll have learned from this year is that you can't sell your best player - Darren Bent - in the middle of the season and then fail to replace him.

It'll be interesting to see what happens with Fulham over the summer - if the Aston Villa job becomes available, Mark Hughes would be just the right person for it. The fact that Sunderland and Fulham are safe could make it a bit more of an open match than usual.

Prediction: 2-1

WhiteJC

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/9470155.stm?

Sunderland    v    Fulham

Barclays Premier League
Venue: Stadium of Light Date: Saturday, 30 April Kick-off: 1500 BST
Coverage: Watch live on Sky Sports 2 and highlights on Match of the Day; listen on BBC Radio 5 live and local radio; text commentary on BBC Sport website and mobiles


TEAM NEWS
Sunderland have a forward crisis with none of their senior strikers fit, which means Stephane Sessegnon could take a lone role up front.

Full-back Phil Bardsley has recovered from concussion but John Mensah and Anton Ferdinand are doubtful.

Fulham strikers Bobby Zamora and Andrew Johnson will be pushing for starts.

Both have come on as substitutes in the last two games, including in the midweek win over Bolton at Craven Cottage.

Sunderland
Doubtful: Ferdinand (hamstring), Mensah (groin), Richardson (calf)
Injured: Bramble, Campbell, Gordon, Meyler & Noble (all knee), Gyan & Welbeck (both hamstring), Welbeck (hamstring)

Fulham
Doubtful: Duff (Achilles) Injured: Senderos (Achilles)

MATCH PREVIEW
Sunderland manager Steve Bruce enjoyed a much-needed win against one of his former clubs last weekend; now he is hoping for another by getting the better of one of his former team-mates.
   
We've had a terrible run but we have a great chance now to finish in the top 10
Sunderland manager Steve Bruce

Fulham manager Mark Hughes might have something to say about that - his teams have been unbeaten the last three times the managers have met - although his last victory was somewhat bitter-sweet as he was sacked by Manchester City a couple of hours after they beat Sunderland 4-3 in 2009.

A first win in 10 games should be enough to ensure Sunderland's safety but Bruce will be keen to keep up the winning momentum to ensure a top-half finish.

Hughes has a similar aim, saying after Fulham's midweek win over Bolton that the Cottagers "deserve to be in the top 10" - another victory over his former captain would be a major step towards achieving that aim.

MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
• Sunderland have failed to score in four of their last five Premier League matches against Fulham, including the last three.
• Fulham's only victory in the last eight Premier League matches against Sunderland was 1-0 at home last season.

Sunderland
• Sunderland's victory over Wigan last weekend was their first win in 10 league games.
• The Black Cats have conceded at least twice in each of their last five matches.
• This will be Steve Bruce's 300th Premier League match as a manager. He will be the ninth manager to reach this milestone.

Fulham
• Fulham have not won any of their eight away league matches in 2011 - and have only won one of their last 35 away league matches.
• Fulham are the only Premier League club yet to concede a goal from a penalty this season. The only one they gave away was missed by Manchester United's Nani back in August.
• Damien Duff is one goal away from scoring 50 in the Premier League while Andrew Johnson and Danny Murphy are two short of the half-century.
• Jonathan Greening has made 249 career Premier League appearances.

LEADING GOALSCORERS
Sunderland
Gyan: 11 goals (10 league); Welbeck: 6 goals (6 league)
NB. Darren Bent scored 11 goals (8 league) for Sunderland before moving to Aston Villa.

Fulham
Dempsey: 13 goals (12 league); Zamora: 6 goals (4 league)

MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Howard Webb
Assistant referees: Peter Kirkup & Mike Mullarkey
Fourth official: Stuart Attwell

LAST LEAGUE MATCH LINE-UPS
Sunderland (W4-2 v Wigan, h): Mignolet, Elmohamady, Turner, Onuoha, Bardsley (Ferdinand 10), Henderson, Cattermole, Colback, Sessegnon, Gyan (Muntari 64), Welbeck (Malbranque 25).

Subs Not Used: Carson, Zenden, Riveros, Meyler.

Fulham (W3-0 v Bolton, h): Schwarzer, Baird, Hangeland, Hughes, Salcido, Gudjohnsen (Johnson 84), Sidwell, Murphy (Etuhu 78), Dempsey, Davies, Dembele (Zamora 68).

Subs Not Used: Stockdale, Kelly, Senderos, Kakuta.


WhiteJC

http://news.ladbrokes.com/en-gb/football/premier-league/sunderland-vs-fulham-cottagers-to-boost-top-ten-bid_059844.html

Sunderland vs Fulham – Cottagers to boost top-ten bid
Fulham have made a habit out of sharing the spoils away to positional rivals

Sunderland and Fulham are both in contention for a top-half finish, and a triumph at the Stadium of Light would significantly strengthen either clubs' chances of achieving their goal...

Match odds

Having sat in the relegation zone on Boxing Day, Fulham have completed a remarkable transformation since then at the exact same time that Sunderland have come flying in the opposite direction.

The Cottagers have claimed more points in that post-festive period than any team outside of the traditional Big Four, whereas their hosts have racked up the third lowest tally of any club, the consequence being that they now trail the west Londoners by a point.

All is not lost for the Black Cats in their attempt to achieve a first top-half finish in a decade, as they ended a lengthy winless run against Wigan last time out, while Fulham have enjoyed only one away victory all season.

Despite that, they haven't tasted defeat much on their travels, drawing eight of their ten trips to sides outside the top seven, and a spoil-sharer appears likely again at 11/5. If you anticipate there being a winner, Sunderland are 8/5, with Fulham 7/4.

Other markets

Mark Hughes' men have the joint-third stingiest defensive record on the road despite having only kept three clean sheets, so with Sunderland missing Asamoah Gyan and Danny Welbeck, under 2.5 goals is widely fancied at 4/7.

Fulham have scored against every team outside the top six that they have faced since Christmas though, and Sunderland have only been silenced three times at home, indicating that both sides to score is a reasonable prospect at 10/11.

WhiteJC

http://www.shieldsgazette.com/sport/football/sunderland-afc/match-reports/cottagers_are_ful_of_quality_1_3336468

Cottagers are Ful of quality

STEVE Bruce say Sunderland cannot afford to underestimate Fulham when the Londoners visit the Stadium of Light tomorrow.

The Black Cats boss believes the Cottagers, led by his former Manchester United team-mate Mark Hughes, are genuine rivals for a top-10 finish this season.

And he insists that despite Fulham not having a great away record this season, Hughes's men could yet be in for a storming end to the season.

"Fulham haven't caught the imagination of people this season like they have done in their previous couple of season when first they qualified for Europe and then did so well in the UEFA Cup.

"But they've still got a very good squad on the quiet.

"When I look around their team, I see Andy Johnson, Mousa Dembele, Clint Dempsey, Brede Hangeland, Mark Schwarzer, and all over the pitch they've got quality.

"They've been a little like us – badly hampered by important injuries – and I think they lost their way a little bit earlier in the season when they were without both the strikers Johnson and Bobby Zamora.

"But they've picked up recently and they could finish well. Certainly they've still a chance of finishing in the top 10, which is of course our aim as well."

Bruce concedes it is a big ask of Sunderland to notch back-to-back victories this weekend without either Asamoah Gyan, Danny Welbeck or Fraizer Campbell to call on up front.

But he claims that the positive mood in the camp after the Wearsiders' win over Wigan last Saturday could be a clinching factor.

"We've got home advantage and we'll have our terrific support behind us," he added. "On top of that, we've also got a bit of confidence back.

"For half-an-hour after we equalised against Wigan last week I watched us play some great stuff and I thought to myself: ' Wow, where's that been for the last few months?', because it was like the sort of football we were playing before we had our slump.

"The players were on a high afterwards, as you would imagine, and there's been a good buzz at the training camp this week.

"So hopefully we can take that into this Saturday's game against Fulham and keep it going.

"The one thing we have got to avoid is to get complacent. Fulham draw a hell of a lot of games, and they will come here looking to make it difficult and maybe pinch it.

"Having finally got that win, we need to work hard to keep the points total ticking over."

WhiteJC

http://www.fulham.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=240260

Dempsey Reflects!
Basking in the glory of his two goal brace, on Wednesday night, a two goal brace that made him our leading Premier League scorer, Clint Dempsey had a few words to say when faced by the press.

Firstly, when asked about the clubs ambitions, Clint remarked,

"We think we can finish in the top half and next season I`d like to think we can be pushing for Europe."

Europe, last season, saw Fulham perform on the big stage when they reached the Europa League Final, in Hamburg, something Clint would love to see repeated when he commented,

"I don`t think it was a fluke. Hopefully we have the quality here to show that."

But, Clint, aware that the international stage is set to dominate his summer, can see a conflict of interests appearing soon. If Fulham, via the Fair Play League, do qualify for the Europa League next season, those first important qualify matches will clash with Clint`s international commitments for the USA in the America`s Gold Cup.

Clint, according to one tabloid, looks set to put club before country, but is aware of the physical limitations constant football puts on a person, further adding,

"I haven`t really had much of a rest since I came over here, playing for my club and representing my country."

"Your career is not that long and I like to think it makes me stronger sometimes. But you do need a bit of a break."

A fair comment we`d say and perhaps some squad rotation is called for!


Read more: http://www.fulham.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=240260#ixzz1Kux3SKUR


WhiteJC

http://www.teamtalk.com/match/preview/978/6903266/Sunderland-v-Fulham-preview?

Sunderland v Fulham preview

Team news for Saturday's Premier League clash between Sunderland and Fulham at the Stadium of Light.

Sunderland boss Steve Bruce will head into the clash without a single senior striker fit.

Asamoah Gyan and Danny Welbeck (both hamstring) are unlikely to play again this season and Fraizer Campbell (knee) is out for a year, while even youngster Ryan Noble damaged a knee on youth team duty earlier this week.

Benin international Stephane Sessegnon is the main candidate for a lone role up front, while full-back Phil Bardsley has recovered from the bout of concussion he suffered during last Saturday's 4-2 victory over Wigan.

John Mensah (adductor tear) and Anton Ferdinand (hamstring) are being assessed, but Kieran Richardson (hamstring) is likely to miss out and Titus Bramble, Craig Gordon and David Meyler (all knee) remain on the sidelines.

Defender Philippe Senderos could make his first appearance for Fulham.

The Switzerland international joined from Arsenal last June but has yet to feature for the Cottagers after picking up a serious Achilles injury.

Senderos was included in the squad for the first time in Wednesday's 3-0 victory over Bolton and could be given a taste of first-team action from the bench at the Stadium of Light.

Fulham manager Mark Hughes will be hoping Damien Duff has recovered from his own Achilles complaint, while Bobby Zamora and Andrew Johnson will be pushing for starts having both come on as substitutes in the last two games.

Sunderland (from): Mignolet, Carson, Onuoha, Ferdinand, Mensah, Bardsley, Angeleri, Turner, Cattermole, Muntari, Riveros, Henderson, Malbranque, Elmohamady, Sessegnon, Zenden, Colback, Knott, Adams, Lynch.

Fulham (from): Schwarzer, Baird, Hangeland, Hughes, Senderos, Salcido, Etuhu, Duff, Davies, Murphy, Sidwell, Dempsey, Duff, Dembele, Zamora, Johnson, Stockdale, Kelly, Gudjohnsen, Kakuta.

WhiteJC

http://www.soccertimes.com/americans/2011/apr28?

Dempsey strikes twice to become Fulham's all-time best Premier League goal scorer.

By Robert Wagman (in Washington, D.C.)
SoccerTimes
(Thursday, April 28, 2011) -- United States attacker Clint Dempsey scored a pair of goals to lead Fulham to a 3-0 defeat of Bolton Wanderers last night, bringing his career English Premier League total to 33, a team record.

Dempsey passed fellow American and U.S. star striker Brian McBride and long-time Craven Cottage hero Steed Malbranque of France, both who had 32.

Dempsey opened the scoring in the 15th minute when he flew through the air to volley in a poorly-cleared corner kick. In the 48th minute, he made it 2-0 when he tapped home Eidur Gudjohnsen's flicked pass.

Brede Hangeland added a third goal, while Dempsey twice came close to a hat trick.

Breaking the record is "a great honor and, of course, it's very pleasing," Dempsey said after the match. "I found out about the record when I read it in the program before the game. I saw the statistic that if I'd have scored against (Wolverhampton) Wolves (the previous Saturday), it would have tied me with McBride and Steed Malbranque, so it was great to get two tonight and be among that company. Hopefully I can keep scoring goals now.

"I was fired up to get goals because I haven't scored in three games. I was starting to get the itch a little and feel the pressure to perform, so it was good that I was able to do that tonight and help be a part of the team's success in getting the three points to get us into the top half of the table. That's what's important tonight. Now, hopefully we can stay there for the rest of the season."

Fulham got off to a slow start this season and for weeks flirted with the relegation zone. Now, after going 6-0-1 in its last seven home matches, the Cottagers are tied for ninth place at (9-10-15) with 42 points.

Fulham also received some good news this past week which might complicate life for Dempsey. European governing body UEFA keeps close track of what teams and leagues receive the fewest yellow and red cards over the course of a season and it rewards the three teams with the lowest number with the so-called Fair Play league, with berths in the qualifying rounds for next season's second-tier Europa League.

Currently, Fulham stands in second place in the English Premier League behind Chelsea. The Premiership as a whole has done well with the latest figures published by UEFA, showing England second behind Norway in the Respect Fair Play ratings. Thus one of the spots will likely go to a EPL team. Chelsea looks like odds on favorites to either qualify for top-tier Champions League play or at least a Champions League play-in spot. That would leave the Fair Play spot for Fulham.

That could be a problem for Dempsey. The summer, the U.S. men will be involved in the CONCACAF Gold Cup. As things now stand, Dempsey will go directly from the final Fulham league match to the U.S. camp ahead of a friendly with Spain and then Gold Cup group play. Should the U.S., as expected, go deep into the tournament for the region of North Maerica, Central America and the Caribbean, it likely be playing as late as the Gold Cup final on June 25.

If Fulham is issued the Fair Play slot, it would have qualifying match which would come while the Gold Cup was still in progress.

Dempsey thinks that would be too much. "I haven't had much of a rest in the summer since I came to Fulham," he said. "I guess a career is not that long, but I do need a bit of break, hopefully the 17-19 days that's normal to recharge the batteries. There would not be much for a break for me," "The Gold Cup is important for the USA. . . although it would be exciting to be back in Europe."

Earlier, Dempsey played 80 minutes in Saturday's disappointing 1-1 draw with relegation-challenged Wolverhampton.

WhiteJC

http://www.sportinglife.com/football/news/story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=soccer/11/04/29/SOCCER_Fulham_Nightlead.html&TEAMHD=soccer&BID=165

FULHAM WON'T LET UP - HUGHES

Fulham manager Mark Hughes believes his side still have a lot to play for this season and thinks they can pick up an away victory at Sunderland on Saturday.

The Londoners all but secured their Barclays Premier League survival with a comprehensive 3-0 victory against Bolton at Craven Cottage on Wednesday.

Clint Dempsey's brace and a Brede Hangeland header secured the three points that propelled the side up to ninth in the standings.

With the upper echelons seemingly out of reach and relegation staved off, Fulham could be forgiven for taking it easy for the final four games.

However, boss Hughes insists the inherent motivation within his side will ensure they do not rest on their laurels in those matches, which include home games against Liverpool and Arsenal.

"We have two big games in fairness but we have still got challenges, which I think is good at this time of the year," he said.

"We want to see the season through to its conclusion and see where it takes us and obviously we have an opportunity to add to our away wins, which have been few and far between.

"We have an opportunity at the weekend, maybe Sunderland will be down on numbers in terms of who they can put out on the field.

"Maybe that will help us but we will still have to play as well as we did on Wednesday to get a positive result but let's see what happens."

The victory over Bolton extended Fulham's unbeaten run at Craven Cottage to eight matches, during which they have taken 19 points out of a possible 24.

Fulham's last home defeat came at the hands of West Ham on Boxing Day, which left them in the relegation zone.

However, the midweek win saw Hughes' side into the top 10 and he admits the Hammers' defeat was a turning point for his side.

"We had a poor result here against West Ham where we didn't really perform on the day and were in a poor position," he said.

"After that game we knew we had good quality players that would be coming back very quickly.

"As I've said time and time again, my teams are stronger in the second half of the season and that has been brought out.

"It is due to the work we do on a daily basis and the demands we place on the players.

"As a consequence of that, they have been benefiting from that in the second half this season where you need to be strong and have ability in the side that still enables you to compete."

There have been fewer brighter lights for Fulham this season than America international Dempsey, who wrote himself into the club's record books on Wednesday.

The midfielder's brace against the Trotters made him the Cottagers' record goalscorer in the Premier League, his 33 goals seeing him overtake Steed Malbranque and Brian McBride.

Dempsey 12-goal league haul this season is his highest figure and Hughes was quick to praise the Texan for his performances this season.

"He has been really important for us, certainly in the first part of the season because we were struggling," he said.

"I didn't feel we had that quality that we needed and obviously we were having guys coming back and I was playing Clint up there on his own on occasions.

"He still made an impact. If he didn't score he would set things up for someone else.

"Credit to him, he kept going. It has been a long, hard season for him. Just lately in a couple of games he has looked a bit tired and you think 'well, should you take him out?'

"But you can't afford to because he will always get you a goal."