What to expect from Fulham this summer and next season.

[Frankie-Peter Taylor]

With a respectable top ten finish for Martin Jols team, it seems set that the main transfer rumours will be with regards to possible exits to Clint Dempsey and Moussa Dembele. Am I being really optimistic by honestly thinking that they will both be playing their football at Craven Cottage this year? I know our transfer rumours with players coming in suggests that Martin Jol is playing for exits, but obviously these are just rumours and I really want to see our club pull out the stops to keep these to highly talented footballers. I've posted on here before about Dembele and Dempsey and why they shouldn't go and why they wouldn't go. I really hope they see sense in that they are actually part of something special and they are both key players in a team with fans that love them. We've seen with Liverpool that they love to jump on the backs of one poor performance, and actually squad wise, I think we might just be better. Also, with Arsenal (to be fair they've mainly been linked with Dempsey), Dempsey would be second fiddle to van Persie up front, and also somewhere behind the imminent arrival of Podolski, and other wingers Walcott, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Gervinho out wide. They only thing I can see happening is Dembele to Manchester United because they are desperate for a classy central midfielder, but I feel £12m is an injustice and I hope Martin Jol and Mohamed Al Fayed do too.

Another thing we can also expect is us being linked with players from the Eredivise, of Dutch decent or players that Martin Jol has previously managed. It will be an interesting summer for little old Fulham to see to what extent Martin Jol goes to in an aim to lower the average age of the squad, could it mean exits for players like Damien Duff, Dickson Etuhu, Bjorn Helge Riise, Steve Sidwell and Andy Johnson? There is a hell of a lot of people that need to come in to replace the hefty amount of squad players we have left. Also the starting eleven could do with some tweaking with a new right back, centre back, winger and striker needed. Kelly's had a good season but we could well do with a better option there. Aaron Hughes is getting on a bit and it's clear to see that Philippe Senderos has lost his place in Martin Jols squad. I do expect that Martin Jol does see this a problem and will probably sign his own partner for Brede Hangeland, one comfortable in possession as well. A central midfielder will probably be neccesary at some point with possible exits for Sidwell and Etuhu. A winger to replace Damien Duff and possibly Dempsey as well, before Ruiz got injured, it seemed that he had been moved behind the striker so perhaps a younger version of Duff will be coming to Craven Cottage. Lastly, we could well do with a top class striker to give the Pog a battle, NOT to play up with him. A fight for the same position can bring out the best out of each player, I know this is a different class but look at Real Madrid, Jose has used both Benzema and Higuian and the have both scored barrells to try and get the starting berth, this could work for Fulham FC.

A full pre-season with the same manager as the season before seems like it was ages ago, hopefully the consistency can help us get a better start in the league and crack on from August, it's been a good season and hopefully things can get better.

[Mr Fulham]

Avoiding relegation. Still.

I'll hope for Top10 finished though. Doubt we can achieve more than that.

[fulhamthroughandthrough]

Going to say it now, QPR will finish above us next season and we will only take 1 point off them. We will finish 14th

[mangoputney]

13th n season long of gloating hahahahas :$

[YankeeJim]

Going to say it now, QPR will finish above us next season and we will only take 1 point off them. We will finish 14th

Go look in the mirror and repeat after me:

I WILL NOT BE FULHAMISH!

[Blingo]

Avoiding relegation. Still.

I'll hope for Top10 finished though. Doubt we can achieve more than that.

13th n season long of gloating hahahahas :$

Going to say it now, QPR will finish above us next season and we will only take 1 point off them. We will finish 14th

We will have our best season ever next season. Remember my words because I am coming back to haunt you this time next year. And you reckon you are Fulham supporters????

[Mr Fulham]

And you reckon you are Fulham supporters????

Yes. But I'm not in dreamland.

[RidgeRider]

Lets see what happens in the transfer window. Too early to suggest where we will end up. I'm always optimistic so I think Jol will continue to improve the squad and we will compete for 6th or 7th next season.

[Jambo]

Lets see what happens in the transfer window. Too early to suggest where we will end up. I'm always optimistic so I think Jol will continue to improve the squad and we will compete for 6th or 7th next season.

Agreed.  To early to say until we see who comes and probably more importantly who goes.  Would like to think we are established enough to expect a comfortable mid table to top 10 finish

[Blingo]

And you reckon you are Fulham supporters????

Yes. But I'm not in dreamland.

You're not in the real world either. We have just equalled our best ever points tally and never really got going until the second half of the season. I do not see your logic in saying that we will be looking to avoid relegation!! We are a decent side and with a few signings during the summer window, there is no reason as to why we should not improve again. Perhaps if you dreamt a little more you would see that we are going in the right direction, instead of seeing us as a team that is struggling to survive.

[Mr Fulham]

And you reckon you are Fulham supporters????

Yes. But I'm not in dreamland.

You're not in the real world either. We have just equalled our best ever points tally and never really got going until the second half of the season. I do not see your logic in saying that we will be looking to avoid relegation!! We are a decent side and with a few signings during the summer window, there is no reason as to why we should not improve again. Perhaps if you dreamt a little more you would see that we are going in the right direction, instead of seeing us as a team that is struggling to survive.

Avoiding relegation ALWAYS has to be our main target. We shouldn't forget where we are coming from and who we are. Remember West Ham. Remember Pompey.

If Dempsey and/or Dembele leave, it will be difficult to replace them. We will most likely struggle for goals if Dempsey leaves.

Without a new stadium, I can't see us going higher than Top8/Top9. So I'm expecting Fulham to avoid relegation and hope for a top10 finish. But I think we're as good as we can get at the moment. Can't see us achieving bigger things without significant investment into the club' infrastructure. I don't want us to leave the Cottage, but we'd have to if we want to break into the Top7.

If the Dems leave, I'm also not that sure that Jol will stay - same situation with Hamburg a few years ago. Very good debut season, then the club sold their main assets, notably Kompany and van der Vaart. Jol left because of this.

[valdeingruo]

You arent a real supporter unless you are hopelesly optomistic, chuck out the previous seasons results and expect to win the league! Fulham for the trebble. COME ON YOU WHITES. scarf yee-haw! :goalski: Belgique starsnstripes 000en.gif 1499 1491 :dead horse: 093.gif 079.gif

[fulhamthroughandthrough]

And you reckon you are Fulham supporters????

Yes. But I'm not in dreamland.

You're not in the real world either. We have just equalled our best ever points tally and never really got going until the second half of the season. I do not see your logic in saying that we will be looking to avoid relegation!! We are a decent side and with a few signings during the summer window, there is no reason as to why we should not improve again. Perhaps if you dreamt a little more you would see that we are going in the right direction, instead of seeing us as a team that is struggling to survive.

Avoiding relegation ALWAYS has to be our main target. We shouldn't forget where we are coming from and who we are. Remember West Ham. Remember Pompey.

If Dempsey and/or Dembele leave, it will be difficult to replace them. We will most likely struggle for goals if Dempsey leaves.

Without a new stadium, I can't see us going higher than Top8/Top9. So I'm expecting Fulham to avoid relegation and hope for a top10 finish. But I think we're as good as we can get at the moment. Can't see us achieving bigger things without significant investment into the club' infrastructure. I don't want us to leave the Cottage, but we'd have to if we want to break into the Top7.

If the Dems leave, I'm also not that sure that Jol will stay - same situation with Hamburg a few years ago. Very good debut season, then the club sold their main assets, notably Kompany and van der Vaart. Jol left because of this.

brilliant post although i think you are being overly negative on Jol leaving. he'll stay if he is given funds to reinvest

[Burt]

My hopes and desires for next season:
1. Avoid relegation.
2. A good run in one of the two cup competitions.
3. What the hell - a good cup run in both competitions.
4. A fan base that continue to be grounded, rather than "big club" with the sense of entitlement that goes with it.
5. FOF to rule the message board world.

[MJG]

Three top nine finishes in four years should make me not worry about relegation. But 40 pts is the first priority and we take whatever comes next.
I would like a really good start to the season for a change. 10 pts from first 5 games would be nice and have about 17pts after 10 games is good.
All out attack on the cups no pissing around in them.

I fully expect to be teased with great signings only to be waiting, watching Sky at 5 to12 on Aug 31st and see we sign a third reserve striker from some other club.

[Blingo]

And you reckon you are Fulham supporters????

Yes. But I'm not in dreamland.

You're not in the real world either. We have just equalled our best ever points tally and never really got going until the second half of the season. I do not see your logic in saying that we will be looking to avoid relegation!! We are a decent side and with a few signings during the summer window, there is no reason as to why we should not improve again. Perhaps if you dreamt a little more you would see that we are going in the right direction, instead of seeing us as a team that is struggling to survive.

Avoiding relegation ALWAYS has to be our main target. We shouldn't forget where we are coming from and who we are. Remember West Ham. Remember Pompey.

If Dempsey and/or Dembele leave, it will be difficult to replace them. We will most likely struggle for goals if Dempsey leaves.

Without a new stadium, I can't see us going higher than Top8/Top9. So I'm expecting Fulham to avoid relegation and hope for a top10 finish. But I think we're as good as we can get at the moment. Can't see us achieving bigger things without significant investment into the club' infrastructure. I don't want us to leave the Cottage, but we'd have to if we want to break into the Top7.

If the Dems leave, I'm also not that sure that Jol will stay - same situation with Hamburg a few years ago. Very good debut season, then the club sold their main assets, notably Kompany and van der Vaart. Jol left because of this.

If you want us to leave the Cottage, you are NOT a Fulham supporter. If the day ever came where we left the Cottage for a new stadium, that would be curtains for me as a Fulham supporter, and before you  ask, I would not and could not EVER support another team.
As far as expectations go, we are a good team and to say that we shouldn't forget where we come from is akin to saying we could very easily slip backwards. What part of we have been in the Prem for 11 years is it that you do not want to understand?
Now lets address the D&D issue. Get this straight in your head. If either or both left, we would survive and go forward we are FULHAM FOOTBALL CLUB and NEVER forget that son. We are bigger than any individual player or players. I don't want them to go but if they want to go then it's a bye bye from Blingo and good luck. We survived 9 years in the prem without Dembele and we can continue to survive if he goes. Same with Dempsey, we would buy replacements of MJ's choosing that would fit into his system.
What people like you seem to fail to understand is that we are NOT the little club down by the river any more. We are a decent sized club that many clubs would love to emulate and it really p1sses me off when we are termed as "a small club" we are not giants in the world of football but we are not minnows either.
I do not comprehend your rational in saying that if Dembele goes that MJ will also go. That is in my eyes a very stupid statement to make. Do you really think that MJ came to us because MD was with us? Pathetic.

And just to reiterate, NO REAL FULHAM SUPPORTER WOULD EVER WANT US TO LEAVE THE BEST GROUND IN THE WORLD. Perhaps you would be better off supporting another team.

[MasterHaynes]

Going to say it now, QPR will finish above us next season and we will only take 1 point off them. We will finish 14th

Nice one!. We have a long summer to get through when all the positives from this season will fade and all the negatives will be amplified and despondency and worry about next season will takeover. I need to write your slogan across the bathroom mirror to give me a shove back to reality, We are a good team, We can achieve something next season and We will beat QPR..twice! We will stay at the Cottage forever

Go look in the mirror and repeat after me:

I WILL NOT BE FULHAMISH!

[AlFayedsChequebook]

My hopes and desires for next season:
1. Avoid relegation.
2. A good run in one of the two cup competitions.
3. What the hell - a good cup run in both competitions.
4. A fan base that continue to be grounded, rather than "big club" with the sense of entitlement that goes with it.
5. FOF to rule the message board world.

Spot on here, Burt.

I would probably add - continue to play exciting, passing football whilst making the team younger+energetic

[SJH]

Top 10 again, whatever happens transfers in / transfers out. But Jol's line with Dembélé - one more season with me and you'll have your pick of clubs - might work out; he's clearly a player who looks to plan his career.

As for the stuff about QPR - they still have the same ground capacity as this season (and they still have the same training 'facilities' when it comes to convincing players to sign), and they still have a mess: too many signings by too many managers, too much deadwood, too many players on wages way above anything that is sensible for a club their size and way above those players' abilities. That's a noose round their necks when it comes to new signings / wages. And they still have Barton, a self-deluding thug who, unless they can find a way of sacking him or he does something that gets him sent down again, they are stuck with.

[cottage cheese]

it all depends who we sign..we need two strikers
a replacement for murphy, dembele and demspey (if they go)
players to come into the squad if davies.baird,duff?bhr and aj if they go..we need a squad
a right back and center back i feel.

Thats potentially 6-7 players if you break it down. I just hope we get our signings early to fit them in!