Monday Fulham Stuff (28/01/13)...

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Fulham boss to check on Arsenal loanee ahead of West Ham clash

Martin Jol will assess the fitness of new arrival Emmanuel Frimpong before deciding whether to pitch the midfielder into Fulham's London derby with West Ham on Wednesday.

Frimpong signed on loan from Arsenal on Friday for the remainder of the season.

The deal came too late for Frimpong to be involved in yesterday's FA Cup defeat at Manchester United.

However, the 21-year-old is in contention to face the Hammers at Craven Cottage.

"He will train with us and then we'll see how fit he is and whether he can play on Wednesday," said Jol.

"I feel he can play a good part in our squad."

Giorgios Karagounis should return to the Fulham starting line-up as they look to stabilise their league position after an extended downturn following their encouraging start to the campaign.

Yesterday's meek surrender does not bode well, particularly as United have to be encountered in the Premier League as well next weekend.

However, Alex Kacaniklic is confident Fulham can find the improvement they require.

"We know that we need to raise our game and a win against West Ham would put things back on track," he said.

"It's been a difficult period and January has been a strange month for us. It started well with a win at West Bromwich Albion and there was the draw with Wigan, now we have lost our last two games.

"But we are determined to pull through. We want to be a lot higher in the table so we have to start winning again.

"Hopefully that starts in four days' time.

"West Ham are a good side, but we feel confident of being anyone at Craven Cottage."



http://www.london24.com/sport/fulham/fulham_boss_to_check_on_arsenal_loanee_ahead_of_west_ham_clash_1_1829375

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham Lead Butland Race
   
Several news sources seem to be in agreement that Fulham are closing in on the young Birmingham City goalkeeper, Jack Butland.

Birmingham, befuddled by financial problems, are looking to reduce costs whilst also raising funds and the sale of their young, prize asset seems inevitable.

Originally, it was believed that Butland would cost circa £6 million, but it appears that the csh crisis could see them accept a lower bid.

But, with Newcastle, Liverpool, Everton, Southampton also all expressing an interest, a bidding war could up the price to somewhere near that original figure.

Let`s just wait and see shall we!


Read more: http://www.fulham.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=306788#ixzz2JEz5edB9

[WhiteJC]

 
In For a French Defender?
   
Our recent results have put pressure on Martin Jol to turn things around.

Going behind, early on, in two consecutive games, perhaps hints that the squad could do with strengthening.

To that effect, newspaper speculation, this morning, has us vying with West Ham United for the French U21 international Fabrice N`Sakala

N`Sakala, a mere twenty-two years of age, is on the books of the French club, Troyes. It is thought that a bid of £1.5 million could be enough to swing the deal.

Keep those eyes focussed, this one might just happen.


Read more: http://www.fulham.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=306790#ixzz2JEzFZk3e

[WhiteJC]

 
Jol may hand Frimpong Fulham debut against West Ham after assessing fitness

Martin Jol will assess the fitness of new arrival Emmanuel Frimpong before deciding whether to pitch the midfielder into Fulham's London derby with West Ham on Wednesday.

Frimpong signed on loan from Arsenal on Friday for the remainder of the season.

The deal came too late for Frimpong to be involved in yesterday's FA Cup defeat at Manchester United.


Man in the middle: Emmanuel Frimpong (centre) moved from Arsenal to Fulham on loan

However, the 21-year-old is in contention to face the Hammers at Craven Cottage.

'He will train with us and then we'll see how fit he is and whether he can play on Wednesday,' said Jol.

'I feel he can play a good part in our squad.'

Giorgios Karagounis should return to the Fulham starting line-up as they look to stabilise their league position after an extended downturn following their encouraging start to the campaign.

Yesterday's meek surrender does not bode well, particularly as United have to be encountered in the Premier League as well next weekend.

However, Alex Kacaniklic is confident Fulham can find the improvement they require.


Waiting: Fulham manager Martin Jol (right) will assess Frimpong's fitness


Running riot: Fulham were battered at Old Trafford by Manchester United

'We know that we need to raise our game and a win against West Ham would put things back on track,' he said.

'It's been a difficult period and January has been a strange month for us. It started well with a win at West Bromwich Albion and there was the draw with Wigan, now we have lost our last two games.

'But we are determined to pull through. We want to be a lot higher in the table so we have to start winning again.

'Hopefully that starts in four days' time. West Ham are a good side, but we feel confident of being anyone at Craven Cottage.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2269032/Emmanuel-Frimpong-start-West-Ham.html#ixzz2JEzWPyZa
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Fulham boss Jol turns attentions to league after Man Utd loss
Fulham boss Martin Jol turns his attentions back to the Premier League after watching his side be well-beaten at Old Trafford

Martin Jol admits Fulham got off lightly with a 4-1 defeat against Manchester United in the FA Cup fourth round, saying that the Cottagers could have conceded "six or seven" goals to the Red Devils.

Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney both netted, and Javier Hernandez bagged a double to seal an easy win for Sir Alex Ferguson's side, with Aaron Hughes scoring a late consolation for the visitors at Old Trafford.

Fulham host West Ham United in the Premier League on Wednesday and Jol is keen to see his side return to winning ways.

"We tried to have good intentions and play our football but we couldn't," Jol told ESPN after Saturday's loss.

"We couldn't link up from the back and we couldn't keep the ball.

"It was still 1-0 at half-time so we were still in it, but we came out and they scored two early goals and the game was finished.

"Luckily enough they only scored a fourth goal because it could have been one of those days that they scored six or seven.

"But it's a one-off game and we lost it. For us the most important thing is the league."



http://www.thesportreview.com/tsr/2013/01/fulham-boss-jol-turns-attentions-to-league-after-man-utd-loss/?

[WhiteJC]

 
Beware: FAKE Berbatov Photo Doing The Rounds On Social Media

In case this photo is familiar, pay no attention to it:



It is just a photoshopped version of this photo from Berbatov's Facebook page:



It's a shame someone feels the need to stir things up like this, especially since the last thing Fulham needs right now is further divided supporters and increased animosity. So please, if you see it, let people know it's fake and don't spread it around.

LRCN



http://hammyend.com/index.php/2013/01/beware-fake-berbatov-photo-doing-the-rounds-on-social-media/?

[WhiteJC]

 
Wanted man: Norwich and Fulham will bid for QPR winger Jamie Mackie

The £3million Scotland flank ferret has been told he can leave Loftus Road – and Premier League rivals are queueing up for him


Mack it so: Jamie Mackie celebrates after scoring

Fulham and Norwich are both lining up £3million bids for QPR winger Jamie Mackie.

Scotland international Mackie, 27, has been told he can leave Loftus Road, with Rangers boss Harry Redknapp targeting new recruits to help beat relegation from the Premier League.

Mackie's preferred option is thought to be fellow London club Fulham, but Canaries chief Chris Hughton is keen to bring him to Carrow Road.

Former Exeter midfielder Mackie has made 73 appearances and scored 18 goals for QPR since joining them from Plymouth in 2008.


http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/qpr-transfer-news-norwich-and-fulham-1559561?

[WhiteJC]

 
Glad all over: Martin Jol sees silver lining as Fulham exit Cup at Old Trafford

With relegation rivals Wigan and Reading set to carry on in the competition, Cottagers boss reckons defeat could help his side

Martin Jol hopes exiting the FA Cup against Manchester United can help Fulham avoid slipping out of the Premier League.

Jol is quite happy to see relegation rivals Wigan and Reading carry on in the Cup while Fulham focus on collecting the 12 points he feels they need to survive.

"It's no guarantee of safety, but on the other hand, I always like it if teams, especially those around us, have replays or stay in the Cup," said the Cottagers boss.

"So in that respect it's probably better to be out of it. It's quite simple – we need four or five wins. But if you leave it up until the end of the season, you could probably end up with a problem.

"If we win those games as soon as possible, it could be easier. I think you will need 36 or 37 points to be safe and at present, there are probably eight teams who are fairly concerned."

Jol is confident Fulham will survive and claims loan signing Emmanuel Frimpong from Arsenal will beef up their lightweight midfield.

"He's quite a good warrior," he said. "We are not the youngest team in the league and maybe he can give us a bit more legs."

Fulham never looked like causing an upset at Old Trafford with lone striker Dimitar Berbatov (left),
still ­United's record signing at £31million, so often isolated up front.



http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/manchester-united-4-1-fulham-cottagers-1559223?

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Fulham's thoughts elsewhere as Ryan Giggs rolls back the years to help Manchester United in FA Cup mission
Watching the manner in which their side surrendered tamely to Manchester United, the small platoon of Fulham fans who made the journey up from west London for this fourth-round mismatch must have wondered why they bothered.

Across 90 minutes of limp ineffectualness, it was evident that club policy was to depart from the FA Cup at the earliest opportunity, the better to ensure Premier League survival.

"Well, you cannot guarantee it," said Fulham manager Martin Jol, as good as admitting to the plan. "But I always like teams around us to be involved in replays."

At United, the attitude to the world's oldest football competition is very different. Here the official line is that the Cup matters. Javier Hernández, scorer of two poacher's goals in the second half to add to a lovely strike by Wayne Rooney and a Ryan Giggs penalty, summed up the corporate message: "For 10 years, all the players have been here, they have not won this Cup," he said.

"The gaffer, my team-mates and myself, we want to win this Cup. We have a lot of hunger to win and not to be distracted by the league and the Champions League."

Sir Alex Ferguson added that it was "ridiculous" that Rio Ferdinand had never won the Cup. This year, he said, they were determined to do it for Rio. Though such romantic indulgence of his senior defender did not extend to actually selecting him for this game.

Not that United needed much in the way of defence, not with Fulham adopting all the urgency of an eight-year-old dawdling on the way to school.

Dimitar Berbatov was warmly applauded before the game by the home crowd, before going on to give demonstration of precisely why Ferguson was right to move his record signing on to Jol last summer.

Sure of touch, deft of pass, exquisite of control he may be. But every time the ball landed at his feet he slowed play down, passing backwards, apparently occupying a different time/space continuum from his team-mates.

At one point substitute Hugo Rodellaga railed at him for not providing a quick forward pass. The Bulgarian merely glared back, dismissively. And the next time he got the ball, pointedly passed it back to his central defenders.

This is not the United way. They ran at Fulham at pace all afternoon. Driven by Anderson's powerful midfield dash, they had the visitors on the back foot from the kick-off.

In honour of the Cup, the home crowd staged a Seventies-themed march to the ground before the game. "Call the Doc, I've got Cup fever", read one of their retro-style banners. And, though he is not quite old enough to have played in the Seventies, the man-of-the-match brought back memories of those dashing Tommy Docherty times of swash and buckle.

Almost exactly 20 years on from his first FA Cup goal, Giggs dispatched a penalty after just 70 seconds, following Aaron Hughes's attempt to catch a Rooney corner.

The old boy was in magnificent form here, flicking and feinting, urging and prompting, a grizzled amalgam of guile and wit. One moment in the second half summed up his contribution: receiving the ball from Phil Jones he arced a beautiful pass around Sascha Riether for Rooney to run on to.

He then tore up the middle of the field looking for the return. And when Rooney ignored him and cut inside, he did not stop Berbatov-like and glare, he simply embarked on a second lung-busting decoy run to distract the visitors' back line.

"At his age to play like that, and he's getting better and better, it's unbelievable," Hernández said.

Not that Giggs had the toughest of opposition. He has been gifted less time and space in many a testimonial match, including his own.

Indeed the only thing that might have disturbed his equilibrium this week was the sight of Wilfried Zaha, the latest next Ryan Giggs, signing for the club while wearing a T-shirt decorated with the image of his nemesis Imogen Thomas.

Mind, he will get his revenge: the way Giggs is playing, he will still be in possession of the No 11 shirt when Zaha approaches retirement.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/fulham/9830122/Fulhams-thoughts-elsewhere-as-Ryan-Giggs-rolls-back-the-years-to-help-Manchester-United-in-FA-Cup-mission.html

[WhiteJC]

 
Allardyce in double swoop for defensive duo Pogatetz and Warnock

West Ham have agreed a £500,000 loan fee for Wolfsburg defender Emanuel Pogatetz.

The 31-year-old flew to London on Sunday for medical tests and the former Middlesbrough player is keen to sign for the rest of the season. Fulham had also shown interest.

Left-back Stephen Warnock is also joining West Ham on a free transfer after Sam Allardyce was priced out of moves for Blackburn's Martin Olsson and Montpellier's Henri Bedimo.


Defensive reinforcements: Emanuel Pogatetz (left) is heading to West Ham

Blackburn wanted £4.5million for Olsson while Montpellier want around £3m for Bedimo, 28, as revealed in Sportsmail.

Villa agreed to release Warnock from the final six months of his contract. The 31-year-old spent the time on loan at Bolton earlier this season and was wanted by Wolves and Leeds.

Defender Alan Hutton has agreed to join Real Mallorca on loan from Paul Lambert's side.



Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2269287/Emanuel-Pogatetz-Stephen-Warnock-sign-West-Ham.html#ixzz2JF2hfQVt
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

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BRENTFORD 2 - CHELSEA 2: MARCELLO TROTTA MAKES PLONKERS OF THE BLUES

CHELSEA'S troubled season hit a new low as the League One minnows came so close to pulling off one of the great FA Cup shocks.

The Bees of Brentford did not just sting the pride of the Blues yesterday, they also put another huge dent in their fragile confidence.

It took an 83rd-minute strike from Fernando Torres – his only attempt on goal – to rescue him, the team and manager Rafa Benitez from an embarrassment that would have dwarfed the defeat by bottom club QPR and humbling by Swansea in the Capital One Cup.

Play-off hopefuls Brentford sent out a team including just three players who cost a fee, six free signings and two who are on loan.

Benitez picked a surprisingly strong 11 for Chelsea's 40th game of the season, leaving Demba Ba and Juan Mata on the bench – and he had to bring both on, Ba in the 82nd minute, Mata at half-time.

Uwe Rosler's Brentford were twice in the lead, through goals from Marcello Trotta in the 43rd minute and a penalty from Harry Forrester in the 73rd.

Oscar and Torres – two players who cost £75m between them – kept holders Chelsea in the competition and secured a replay at Stamford Bridge in two weekends' time on fifth-round day. It was a blustery day at Griffin Park, a cramped stadium still ­surrounded by houses with pubs on all four corners of the ground.

The pitch was hardly an award-winning one either, with large patches covered with sand.

In short, it was not the sort of place the multi-millionaires of Chelsea are used to.

The Bees were up for it, but some of the delicate flowers from the Premier League clearly were not and boy did it show – ­particularly in the first half.

Chelsea's Marko Marin, in particular, looked like a boy amongst men and it was no surprise the German international was hooked at half-time. But even stalwarts Frank Lampard and John Terry did not seem like they wanted to be out there for this high noon encounter.

The early exchanges saw Brentford create half-chances and there was an ­embarrassing mix-up in the 12th minute between Terry and keeper Ross Turnbull.

Under pressure from the excellent ­Clayton Donaldson, skipper Terry passed back to his keeper, who picked up the ball.

Forrester, though, having been teed up from the free-kick just inside the box, could only blaze over.

"Champions of Europe, you're having a laugh," went out the cry, after Gary Cahill sent an attempted pass straight into touch.

Brentford got the goal they deserved ­following a fine tackle by Adam Forshaw on Lampard 30 yards out.

Forrester's right-foot shot was well struck and Turnbull could only parry weakly to Trotta.

The Italian striker on loan from Fulham followed up to drive the rebound into the ground and in with his right boot.

Chelsea stepped it up after the break and equalised through Oscar. The Brazilian showed class to evade two challenges and poked home high into the net from just ­inside the box.

Just a minute after coming on for goal hero Trotta, Tom Adeyemi was brought down by Turnbull, who dashed off his line following a terrific through ball from ­Donaldson. Forrester calmly stroked the penalty low past the keeper.

Benitez surprised many by taking off Branislav Ivanovic straight after he almost scored with an overhead kick and replacing him, like for like, with Cesar Azpilicueta.

"Rafa Benitez, you're not wanted here," was the response from the travelling ­support.

Ba did come on in the 82nd minute, for Ryan Bertrand not Torres, and it was just as well. The Spaniard delivered a minute later, lashing home from the edge of the box after Ba hooked it to his fellow striker.

In stoppage time a Mata cross struck Harlee Dean on the arm inside the penalty area.

Chelsea went barmy at the lack of a penalty award, but to see the Bees beaten at the death would have been too cruel.


http://www.dailystar.co.uk/football/view/295520/?

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Fulham & Norwich City Line Up Bids for £3m QPR Forward Jamie Mackie

Loftus Road attacker on Craven Cottage and Carrow Road radars.

Fulham and Norwich City are ready to make offers for unwanted QPR forward Jamie Mackie according to the Daily Mirror.

The 27 year old Scottish international is seemingly not an important part of Harry Redknapp's plan and is being made available this month as the Loftus Road boss looks to beef up his front-line, having already signed French international Loic Remy this month.

The hard working forward has made 73 appearances for QPR since his move to West London from Exeter City, scoring 18 goals in the process.

Scotland international Mackie, 27, has been told he can leave Loftus Road, with Rangers boss Harry Redknapp targeting new recruits to help beat relegation from the Premier League.

A move to near neighbours Fulham would appear to be one that the QPR man would prefer.


http://www.caughtoffside.com/2013/01/28/fulham-norwich-city-line-up-bids-for-3m-qpr-forward-jamie-mackie/?

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham call for 'warrior' Emmanuel Frimpong

Fulham boss Martin Jol is ready to plunge Emmanuel Frimpong into Wednesday's vital Premier League derby at home to West Ham, so long as the injury-haunted Arsenal loanee proves his fitness in training.

Just six points clear of the relegation zone, Fulham must get some reward from the West Ham game knowing that League leaders Manchester United, who completely dominated the weekend's FA Cup tie between the two teams at Old Trafford, are the visitors to Craven Cottage on Saturday.

Frimpong (above), still only 21, has already suffered two cruciate ligament injuries but the Ghanaian midfielder successfully came through a loan spell with Charlton earlier this season and Jol, who has signed the player on a season-long deal, said: "I feel he can play a good part in our squad.

"He will train with us and then we'll see how fit he is and whether he can play on Wednesday. Frimpong is quite a good warrior. We are not the youngest team in the League and maybe he can give us a bit more legs."

Jol confirmed the importance of the West Ham clash when he added: "We are not in the top half of the table, we know that. There are seven or eight teams around us and we have to pick up points against them. We need a win on Wednesday."

Fulham are also looking to further strengthen their squad before the transfer window closes, and exciting Belgian teenager Junior Malanda signalled his possible arrival from Zulte-Waregem by tweeting "I will come maybe...".

The stumbling block could be Waregem's £5million valuation on the midfielder their supporters have dubbed "the new Mousa Dembele".


http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/fulham-call-for-warrior-emmanuel-frimpong-8469291.html

[WhiteJC]

 
Ruiz: A Big Week

Bryan Ruiz insists Fulham must forget about Saturday's disappointing Fourth Round of the FA Cup with Budweiser defeat at Manchester United and turn our attentions to Wednesday's crucial clash with West Ham United.

The Whites slipped to a disappointing 4-1 loss at Old Trafford to bow out of the famous competition. Ryan Giggs opened the scoring from the penalty spot after a handball by Aaron Hughes, with Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez (2) making it 4-0. Hughes grabbed a late consolation for the Whites when he headed home Giorgos Karagounis' corner.

And, while upset with the result, Ruiz says the Whites must now focus on the midweek meeting with the Hammers at the Cottage.

"It was a bad start against United," he told the official website. "We knew it was going to be difficult but we didn't expect to concede a penalty after just one or two minutes. So that made things even harder for us.

"In the first half, we did okay. But in the second half we lost our focus and the moment was gone.

"I couldn't really see what happened with the penalty. Aaron says he got a little knock but he handled it and when they scored the penalty, it was always going to be a tough match.

"We had a bit of possession for the rest of the half; Sascha Riether had a shot that went just wide. We needed to try something different in the second half but they scored two goals very quickly and that meant it was game over."

Like Fulham, the Hammers are in something of a poor run of form of late and victory for either side could provide a timely boost for the remainder of the season.

"Of course we are not happy after Old Trafford," continued Bryan. "We wanted to win but now we have a very important game on Wednesday and we are already focused on that. We have to put this game behind us now, learn from it and move on.

"We have a big game with West Ham and then we play Manchester United again. It's a big week."


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2013/january/28/ruiz-a-big-week?

[WhiteJC]

 
Trotta's Chelsea Goal

On-loan striker Marcello Trotta opened the scoring for Brentford on Sunday as the Bees came close to knocking Chelsea out of the FA Cup with Budweiser at the Fourth Round stage.

The home side began the game strongly at Griffin Park, and so the Italian's strike three minutes before half-time was well-deserved. Ross Turnbull was unable to hold Harry Forrester's initial effort and Trotta followed up with a composed first-time finish to give his side a 1-0 advantage.

Chelsea responded 10 minutes after the interval when Oscar showed some individual brilliance to jink in between the Brentford defenders and fire into the top corner to equalise.

Rather than being rocked by the goal, though, the npower League One side showed great character to come back and take the lead once again on 73 minutes. Tom Adeyemi – a replacement for Trotta – was brought down in the area by Turnbull and Forrester stepped up to roll the subsequent spot-kick just beyond the reach of the keeper.

The lead only lasted 10 minutes, though, as Fernando Torres' fine curling effort ensured the tie will go to a Replay at Stamford Bridge, as the two sides do battle once again to see who faces Middlesbrough in the next round.


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2013/january/28/trottas-chelsea-goal?

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham star eyes West Ham return

KIERAN Richardson is expected to return to the Fulham squad for Wednesday night's vital clash with West Ham.

The 28-year-old, who started his career with the Hammers, missed Saturday's FA Cup mauling at Manchester United with a calf strain.

However, the utility man is due to take part in full training at the club's Motspur Park base today ahead of the visit of Sam Allardyce's side.

Mahamadou Diarra and Kerim Frei will miss out.



Read More http://www.fulhamchronicle.co.uk/fulham-fc/2013/01/28/82029-32695320/?#ixzz2JHemhQMs

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Redknapp says he doubts QPR will sign Olsson or Hangeland

Harry Redknapp claims there is little chance of QPR signing Brede Hangeland or Jonas Olsson this week.

The Rangers boss would like to land both players but recently had a bid for West Brom defender Olsson rejected.

And he says he does not believe Fulham will listen to pre-deadline offers for Hangeland, whose contract expires at the end of the season.

Redknapp said: "I'd like to have both of them but the clubs don't want to sell them. I don't see them being possible – I wouldn't have thought so."

Fulham have shown an interest in Olsson, who is keen to move to London, while West Ham are monitoring the situation.

Meanwhile, West Brom have rejected a second bid from QPR for Peter Odemwingie despite the forward publicly making it clear that he wants to move to Loftus Road.

"It's a difficult situation for West Brom. The whole situation has been a bit too public, but that's not our doing," said Redknapp.

Redknapp also insists Rangers have not received an approach for Jamie Mackie.


http://www.westlondonsport.com/qpr/west-london-sport-qpr/redknapp-says-he-doubts-qpr-will-sign-olsson-or-hangeland

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Hodson hails Fulham frontman after Chelsea draw

LEE Hodson reckons Marcello Trotta is now Brentford's not-so-secret weapon after the Italian sharp -shooter scored the goal which stunned Chelsea yesterday.

Trotta gave the Bees the lead for the first time in yesterday's 2-2 draw at Griffin Park with a neat finish after Harry Forrester's shot was parried by Blues keeper Ross Turnbull.

But it came as no surprise to Watford loanee Hodson, who played alongside Trotta when the Fulham man had a loan spell at Vicarage Road last season.

Hodson said: "We see Marcello do that all the time in training, so it was no surprise to us – you give him a chance and he will score.

"He did not have the best of times at Watford last season, but even then you could see his quality, and he now he is getting more game
time we are seeing what he can do.

"Nine times out of 10 he will put the ball in the back of the net, but while he was a bit of a secret weapon for us before, Chelsea will be very wary of him now."

Hodson, who is on loan from Watford until the end of the season, played his way, with impeccable timing, into the side with some impressive displays in the run up to the Chelsea game.

With Jake Bidwell suspended for the big game, Bees boss Uwe Rosler stuck with Hodson at right back and moved Shaleum Logan to cover for Bidwell on the left instead of Scott Barron.

Hodson added: "Jake will be back for the replay, so the challenge for me is to fight to keep my place, but not just for that game.

"But we have got competition for places like that across the park, with people always fighting for their shirt, so it doesn't allow us any complacency.

"I've had a run of games in the last few weeks and come in and proved my point, so it was nice to be involved against Chelsea as games like that don't come around very often."


http://www.hounslowchronicle.co.uk/west-london-sport/west-london-brentford-fc/2013/01/28/109642-32695998/?

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Frimpong? Fulham's transfer market struggle in a nutshell

Fulham have yet to make an impact this transfer window, despite being reported to have cash available to spend.

Fulham sealed the loan signing of Emmanuel Frimpong from Arsenal at the end of last week, and he may well turn out to be a useful acquisition, but he won't be what supporters had in mind.

Having sold Moussa Dembele for £15 million in the final days on the August transfer window, it had been expected that Martin Jol would have lined up a replacement but it is looking increasingly likely there will be no big-name arrival.

Martin Jol told the Fulham Chronicle last week; "We would like to strengthen the squad because we lack a few players. We'll have to see in this last week, maybe there will be one or two surprises. We'll have to wait and see."

Frimpong counts as one of those 'surprises' but he remains just a 'kid' from Arsenal's reserves - not a proven player to excite the fans.

Jol is insistent that in January the pickings are slim, with competition for quality available players high and prices hiked, which is true - But it hasn't stopped Newcastle from snapping up some of France's very best talent.

Is there a reason that with the right scouting and desire to push through such moves, Fulham could not have done the same?

The availability of central midfielder Moussa Sissoko had been known all window, with his contract expiring in the summer, and his 'undisclosed fee' is believed to be as little as £4 million.

A France international who can go box-to-box, tough in the tackle and able in attack - he would have been exactly what Fulham needed to spark their midfield, and at a bargain price.

Instead the club are sitting on their hands with the Dembele money tucked safely away, and picking up loan signings instead.

Six points above the relegation zone at present, Fulham should be fine. But a last push in this transfer window will give them an even better chance of not only securing safety but pushing on for the top 10, which is just three points away.

Jol pulled out a real deadline day surprise last time out with Dimitar Berbatov, we wonder if the club are just biding their time for another notable move.



http://hereisthecity.com/2013/01/28/why-are-fulham-struggling-in-the-transfer-market/?

[WhiteJC]

 
Sunderland 2-2 U21s

Fulham Under-21s drew 2-2 with Sunderland at the Academy of Light on Tuesday afternoon in the Barclays U21 Premier League Group 1.

After falling behind, the Whites recovered to equalise and then take the lead, although a late effort by the home side meant that Kit Symons and his boys had to settle for a point.

"We should have won the game," Kit told fulhamfc.com after the match. "We kept the ball quite well and had some good opportunities that we should have taken, so that was disappointing.

"We went 1-0 down from a corner which we poorly defended so that was disappointing from our point of view. Then we got it back to 1-1 through Lauri [Dalla Valle]. It was a good run from Ryan [Williams] who went round the keeper and got brought down and Lauri scored the penalty.

"So it was 1-1 at half-time and then in the second half we went 2-1 up through a bit of a freaky goal really; it might have been an own goal or it might go down as a Tom Donegan goal. Lauri closed down a backpass, Tom got the ball and broke wide and he sort of dinked it in and the boy headed it on the line. I don't exactly know how it went in to be honest but if it goes down as a goal for Tom then I'll be quite happy.

"We had some good opportunities and then conceded with about five or six minutes to go. The wind got really heavy second half and sort of penned us in and we couldn't really get out."

Kit named 17-year-old centre back Cameron Burgess in his starting line-up for the first time and was pleased with how the Scottish-born youngster fared on his Under-21s debut.

"He did really well actually, he was very good," Kit said. "That was his first run out for us and he did very well. He's 17 and a first year scholar. It was an opportunity for Cameron and he stepped up and did well so we're very pleased with him."

Fulham: 1. Somogyi, 2. Brister, 3. Kavanagh, 4. Vigen Christensen, 5. Grimmer, 6. Burgess, 7. Williams, 8. Smith, 9. Dalla Valle, 10. Donegan, 11. Altman

Subs: 12. Oberschmidt, 13. Minkwitz, 14. David, 15. Islamovic, 16. Gameiro


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2013/january/28/u21s-sunderland?