Summer business catching up on Jol

[CanadianCottager]

We need a new centreback in the mix, as good as Hughes and Hangeland were in the Hodgson years, its pretty clear that they aren't used to Jol's more attacking system and our defense has been our Achilles' heel this season. Senderos is a useful squad player but he isn't the answer. A replacement for Schwartzer wouldn't hurt either.

[alfie]

We see comments on this board all the time that "we should get this player or that player", thats all well and good assuming that the players concerned want to play for Fulham, Jol probably had several players that he wanted, but for reasons we do not know about did not come here.

[Count Flapula]

This is not really Jol's fault. When have we EVER had a player in the mould of Dembele prior to him so finding a ready made replacement of his calibre is a tall order.

Losing Dembele has been key. I've never seen such a well balanced Fulham team as the one that tonked Norwich 5-0. Dembele and Diarra as a CM pair would have been immense. Against Spuds we sorely missed that link between defence and midfield that Moussa and in a different way, Murphy provided. So frustrating to see Hughes and big Phil exchange passes before knocking it back to Schwarzer to punt when that is the worst side of his game. Such a pointless passage of play repeated over and over... Karagounis has provided that link in flashes but is short term alternative at best.

[A Humble Man]

Berbatov is a good as Clint & Moussa put together he creates like Dembele and scores like Dempsey.  The main problem is Jol is using a new system where the wingers cut in the full back attack the wings and the defensive midfielders fill the gaps.  Baird and Sidwell do not get it or are not good enough to do it the reason, if you believe the rumours, Jol is after quality defensive midfielders.

[Matt]

Isn't that how the transfer windows work? Managers being a step ahead with the replacements if our players are acquired by other clubs. Please don't tell me it was news that Dempsay and Dembele weren't on the shortlist for many clubs. Jol failed with two things, replacing our key players (but Dempsey) and keeping the squad young. Summer was a step back during his days in charge.

He had players on the list, it's just that the money came in so late that we couldn't finalise deals for replacements.
Berba is Dempsey's replacement. We made bids for a few players to replace Dembele apparently. Jol's job of choosing replacements was done.

But surely there are more players out there? If you don't sign the players you want you need to beck them up. I'm not trying to have a go at you mate, but I can't really accept that he had his set of transfers lined up and then he didn't act when they fell through. Don't get me wrong but if same thing happens in January we should be worried.

[Bassey the warrior]

Isn't that how the transfer windows work? Managers being a step ahead with the replacements if our players are acquired by other clubs. Please don't tell me it was news that Dempsay and Dembele weren't on the shortlist for many clubs. Jol failed with two things, replacing our key players (but Dempsey) and keeping the squad young. Summer was a step back during his days in charge.

He had players on the list, it's just that the money came in so late that we couldn't finalise deals for replacements.
Berba is Dempsey's replacement. We made bids for a few players to replace Dembele apparently. Jol's job of choosing replacements was done.

But surely there are more players out there? If you don't sign the players you want you need to beck them up. I'm not trying to have a go at you mate, but I can't really accept that he had his set of transfers lined up and then he didn't act when they fell through. Don't get me wrong but if same thing happens in January we should be worried.

Negotiations take time and the club aren't the type to pay over the odds. Well not very often anyway, AJ and Marlet are the exceptions, Ruiz will prove he's worth the outlay. We sold Dembele with two days left to sign a replacement. Given that negotiations were reportedly going on right until the last few hours it seems more likely we just ran out of time, rather than ran out of targets.

[epsomraver]

What are in desperate need of is a midfield play maker the likes of Lee Clarke John Collins and Murf in his day

[HatterDon]

Would we still be having this debate if we had held on to beat Southampton and Reading? Those extra 4 points would have given us one of our strongest starts to a season.

Such is the thin line between perceived success, and a looming crisis.

Had we gotten the four points you reference, we would still be in the top half. That is certain. What is also certain is that our midfield is weak and shallow. We've not replaced Dempsey, Dembele, Murphy, and Etuhu WITH PEOPLE WHO DIDN'T PLAY FOR US LAST SEASON. Even if we were 4th going into the transfer period, we'd still need to beef up our midfield.

[Lighthouse]

Two misconceptions keep popping up like a nasty boils on the bum. One in that Jol is being blamed for the transfer debacle at the start of the season. I have read very few complaints aimed at Jol. I have made it very clear that the club and the MD are in charge of the transfers and if anybody is to be blamed it is them.

Secondly that our good start somehow proved our problems are not big problems. Clearly they are when we have older players and delicate flowers who are injured and suffer pulled muscles and ligaments. All this was predicted.

We are already, AS PREDICTED. having the excuse that January is not a good time to buy players. A season of struggle and where is the rebuilding?

[Bryanthebroom]

Well said Lighthouse, Jol can only choose the players he wants and it's up to the club and MD to sort it out. It doesn't sound like any of the players Jol has coveted have been ridiculously out of our price range so come on Al Fayed - sort it out!

[Apprentice to the Maestro]

We don't know how the transfer process goes. It seems who to blame isn't based on any information but rather on the prejudice of the poster. Choose your own scapegoat: Jol, MAF, Mackintosh, Billy the Badger.

Maybe there is no one to blame. We are not big enough like a top CL club to get whoever we want and even then they e.g. Man. Utd  (Ronaldo) and Arsenal (RVP) have lost key players and have had difficulty in replacing them.

Anyway, choosing your guilty party will have no effect on the club, just on your blood pressure.

[BishopsParkFantastic]

This was my posting, having watched us lose to Sheff Wed, and approaching the closure of the summer transfer window:

"A couple of weeks ago we were beating Norwich 5-0 and the under 18s were winning 7-1. In the past week, our under 21s have lost 2-1 and we have put in a dreadfully inept display to lose to a Championship team 1-0, and we are losing our two best, creative and exciting players – with no new top quality replacements in sight. We have obviously been waiting to sell before buying. It's no good Jol bemoaning the transfer window – it is what he knew it to be. He understood he was at risk of losing the Dems. He needed to have advance plans and strategies in place. I hope he now has top quality replacements set up to come in. If he hasn't, then our midfield will not sustain us, and keep us up this season. If management at the club has not been supporting him effectively, I think Jol will decide to go at the end of the season, along with Diarra and Riether and probably his marque signing, Ruiz!

Two weeks into the season, and yet we are out of one of three tournaments in which we are supposed to be competing. I was at the match last night in Sheffield. We had radio commentators agreeing that we had a 'strong team, with regular squad players' ..... and, the same was said of Sheff Wed! It is clear that we do not have strength in depth to support success in competitions like the Capital One Cup, and that is a shocking thing to have to say.

Up until a week ago, we had a really excellent quality, potential top half premiership team – with Dempsey and Dembele. We do not now."

..... and here we are, in December.

[BishopsParkFantastic]

Jol (FoF Friday Fulham Stuff): "We will always look to strengthen but January is not ideal because good players will stay and others you can't afford them," he said. "But we will come up with something. We always look to strengthen."

What I think Jol is trying to tell us: "I know in January, our supporters expect me to strengthen our 1st team squad in key positions; however, they may be disappointed. January will not be a good time for us to buy players because of the likelihood of our precarious league table position, our inability to attract fit, robust, high quality, creative talent from other clubs, and the insufficient amount of money I will be given by the Board to spend. But, I will cobble something together to get us through to the next transfer window – when I can come up with another list of lame excuses. There are still more players out there who are out-of-contract or, that I have previously managed at other clubs. These players will strengthen our pool of average-achieving, over 30s on one year contracts."

Am I being disingenuous to Jol? It's just that I smell a rat!

[BillNRoc]

He's (implicitly) telling Fulham fans to get ready for Championship football in 2013-14, or to cheer him as a savior if FFC manages to avoid the drop with the generally sorry lot he's assembled. Poor Berbatov must feel like he's living an episode of Twilight Zone.

[cottage cheese]

or the opposite to saying we have loads of cash, clubs will just rake up the price. Clever move more like

[CH FFC]

Jol (FoF Friday Fulham Stuff): "We will always look to strengthen but January is not ideal because good players will stay and others you can't afford them," he said. "But we will come up with something. We always look to strengthen."

What I think Jol is trying to tell us: “I know in January, our supporters expect me to strengthen our 1st team squad in key positions; however, they may be disappointed. January will not be a good time for us to buy players because of the likelihood of our precarious league table position, our inability to attract fit, robust, high quality, creative talent from other clubs, and the insufficient amount of money I will be given by the Board to spend. But, I will cobble something together to get us through to the next transfer window – when I can come up with another list of lame excuses. There are still more players out there who are out-of-contract or, that I have previously managed at other clubs. These players will strengthen our pool of average-achieving, over 30s on one year contracts.”

Am I being disingenuous to Jol? It's just that I smell a rat!

Disingenuous and frankly offensive!

[CH FFC]

This was my posting, having watched us lose to Sheff Wed, and approaching the closure of the summer transfer window:

"A couple of weeks ago we were beating Norwich 5-0 and the under 18s were winning 7-1. In the past week, our under 21s have lost 2-1 and we have put in a dreadfully inept display to lose to a Championship team 1-0, and we are losing our two best, creative and exciting players – with no new top quality replacements in sight. We have obviously been waiting to sell before buying. It’s no good Jol bemoaning the transfer window – it is what he knew it to be. He understood he was at risk of losing the Dems. He needed to have advance plans and strategies in place. I hope he now has top quality replacements set up to come in. If he hasn’t, then our midfield will not sustain us, and keep us up this season. If management at the club has not been supporting him effectively, I think Jol will decide to go at the end of the season, along with Diarra and Riether and probably his marque signing, Ruiz!

Two weeks into the season, and yet we are out of one of three tournaments in which we are supposed to be competing. I was at the match last night in Sheffield. We had radio commentators agreeing that we had a ‘strong team, with regular squad players’ ….. and, the same was said of Sheff Wed! It is clear that we do not have strength in depth to support success in competitions like the Capital One Cup, and that is a shocking thing to have to say.

Up until a week ago, we had a really excellent quality, potential top half premiership team – with Dempsey and Dembele. We do not now."

..... and here we are, in December.

90% of your posts are moaning, complaints, and I told you so's...yah?

I for one could care less about the "Capital One Cup", the prize is nothing and it eats into more important match preperations.

YES there could be better depth, YES we could improve on certain key positions

No we are not a team of poor players, but we are on a run of poor form.

you were saying that we would go down on the sell of the Dems, but we actually did well for some time. 

would you like us to be relegated, it definitely appears that way!

[CH FFC]

Isn't that how the transfer windows work? Managers being a step ahead with the replacements if our players are acquired by other clubs. Please don't tell me it was news that Dempsay and Dembele weren't on the shortlist for many clubs. Jol failed with two things, replacing our key players (but Dempsey) and keeping the squad young. Summer was a step back during his days in charge.

He had players on the list, it's just that the money came in so late that we couldn't finalise deals for replacements.
Berba is Dempsey's replacement. We made bids for a few players to replace Dembele apparently. Jol's job of choosing replacements was done.

But surely there are more players out there? If you don't sign the players you want you need to beck them up. I'm not trying to have a go at you mate, but I can't really accept that he had his set of transfers lined up and then he didn't act when they fell through. Don't get me wrong but if same thing happens in January we should be worried.

I know what you're saying, but I do not believe it is that easy.  especially if you are trying to bring in someone, and they are stalling....you can not spend the money twice...right? 
if someone is stalling, because maybe they are looking at another offer...or perhaps they are unsure...or perhaps trying to get more in wage.
You have to wait for them, hope for them, but in the end....Jol is not the one doing negotiations either, is he?

[Admin]

January is always a bad time to buy players, well especially at last knockings because you get charged the earth. I see this as Jol saying that he's got potential targets but we won't be prepared to pay over the odds, which I think is right. All he is doing is not getting peoples hopes up but if a couple of them come off, so be it.

[BishopsParkFantastic]

you were saying that we would go down on the sell of the Dems, but we actually did well for some time.  

would you like us to be relegated, it definitely appears that way!

I haven't said we WOULD go down; however, I have consistently expressed concerns about the direction Martin Jol has taken our 1st team squad loans and selection of teams since September. I wish I could be happier. I hope I am proven wrong, and that Jol achieves success with our club.