Love Martin's honesty

[FFC1987]

This is a  joke isn't it? Changing players who were not ever first team players in the positions they were in for old men brought in on free transfer and non contract? Richardson for Riise for the odd game? The only genuine change is Senderos for Hughes. Yeah that has been a great success.

I am sorry but the changes are not tactical and only forced on him. Except for Senderos for Hughes. It really does seem to me that some fans over do their support for him when the best they can come up with is Karagounis for Baird who was never ever a midfield player. Reither for Kelly, who hardly ever started. Come on. It seems to me you will be putting down changes  that Jol makes when  it is overcast and drizzly and not hot and barmy.

If that is the best you can profer than we will just have to agree to disagree. Duff moving to the other wing because we have a better and faster player in Dejagah. It is the sort of thing one does on a playstation Fifa thingy. Not that I know what that is. But hardly tactical or clever.

I'd flip your argument and state that people who hate/dislike Jol are very quick to do the opposite of what us supporters of Jol do. I think it's the optimistic vs the pessimistic again and we will admitedly have to agree to disagree. I have been dissappointed with some of Jol's choices and lack of change but we are all safe with games to spare so alot of you pessimists said we were relegated a few months ago so he must be doing at least a half decent job and mixing it up when he feels its required.

[Lighthouse]

I will be honest and say as I have stated before. I really thought Fulham were pushing last season for a top 8 position and better. We had a squad and were promised better things. I have never really got over the sadness of losing players and just patching the squad up. This is not just Jols fault by any means but the clubs and whoever holds the purse strings. I think there is a happy medium between over spending and what we have done.

Plus I have fallen into the usual depression of watching a dull side with little attacking flair. Oh wait a flash of brilliance. Oh no back to pass pass and dull. I don't hate or dislike Jol. I just find the football deadly dull with sparks of light. Which is why I suggest we could see more light if the spark is there.

[Berserker]

I will be honest and say as I have stated before. I really thought Fulham were pushing last season for a top 8 position and better. We had a squad and were promised better things. I have never really got over the sadness of losing players and just patching the squad up. This is not just Jols fault by any means but the clubs and whoever holds the purse strings. I think there is a happy medium between over spending and what we have done.

Plus I have fallen into the usual depression of watching a dull side with little attacking flair. Oh wait a flash of brilliance. Oh no back to pass pass and dull. I don't hate or dislike Jol. I just find the football deadly dull with sparks of light. Which is why I suggest we could see more light if the spark is there.

+ 1

[ScalleysDad]

I will be honest and say as I have stated before. I really thought Fulham were pushing last season for a top 8 position and better. We had a squad and were promised better things. I have never really got over the sadness of losing players and just patching the squad up. This is not just Jols fault by any means but the clubs and whoever holds the purse strings. I think there is a happy medium between over spending and what we have done.

Plus I have fallen into the usual depression of watching a dull side with little attacking flair. Oh wait a flash of brilliance. Oh no back to pass pass and dull. I don't hate or dislike Jol. I just find the football deadly dull with sparks of light. Which is why I suggest we could see more light if the spark is there.

To be honest, for me anyway, it was Emanualson running at the opposition defence with a complete lack of fear and trepidation that was the first spark for ages. The Berbatov volley against Stoke, for which I was up way too soon aside, its been a long time from October to here in the dark. 

[Danitar]

I will be honest and say as I have stated before. I really thought Fulham were pushing last season for a top 8 position and better. We had a squad and were promised better things. I have never really got over the sadness of losing players and just patching the squad up. This is not just Jols fault by any means but the clubs and whoever holds the purse strings. I think there is a happy medium between over spending and what we have done.

Plus I have fallen into the usual depression of watching a dull side with little attacking flair. Oh wait a flash of brilliance. Oh no back to pass pass and dull. I don't hate or dislike Jol. I just find the football deadly dull with sparks of light. Which is why I suggest we could see more light if the spark is there.

Who would you bring in to do all of this, I'm agreeing with you to a point we do need that spark but I can't see how we could attract that extra bit of quality as the bigger clubs will beat us to them. But before anyone says berbatov let me remind you that berbatov is jol's best mate.

[Bassey the warrior]

So bloody honest but he never changes things to make them better.

He has made changes to try to improve the team all along. (Indeed, I've seen others on here complain that he makes too many; whatever he does, he just can't please some people, can he?)

Just not the changes you want him to make, clearly.  

No he hasn't. He only makes changes when he has to. In the setting up of the team he plays the same way until injury causes him to change things around. Even the Ruiz behind Berbatov with two wide players has only worked a few times. Yet we persist with it. Clearly some people are happy with what has been too many poor displays from talented players.

He has actually. He's tried Petric up front with Ruiz or Berbatov of him and Rodallega up front with Ruiz or Berba off him and Rodallega on the left and right wing. He's tried Ruiz in the hole, in central midfield and on the right. He's tried both Riise and Richardson at left back, tried Richardson left wing, tried Emanuelson both left wing and right wing, same with Duff, same with Dejagah. Tried Kara with Sidwell, Sidwell with Enoh, tried Baird in central midfield, tried Hughes, tried Senderos and been willing to drop them when they were really poor.

His greatest achievement to date has been the transformation of Dembele from a striker to a central midfielder. One that I'm proud to say I called for before he did it.

Granted he's not been willing to drop Hangeland, Schwarzer, Ruiz or Berbatov but all are excellent players and add something to the side.

[Apprentice to the Maestro]

I like Jol, but I didn't like how he used the 'he's not that sort of player' line during his post-match interview. I'm glad he has changed his tune.

I think he meant that Sidwell does not make deliberate, cynical fouls (but he does continue to make reckless ones, both in terms of potential injuries to the opponent and from the point of view of wrecking our chances by making a rash tackle on the halfway line 12 minutes into a game).

[Jambo]

So bloody honest but he never changes things to make them better.

He has made changes to try to improve the team all along. (Indeed, I've seen others on here complain that he makes too many; whatever he does, he just can't please some people, can he?)

Just not the changes you want him to make, clearly. 

No he hasn't. He only makes changes when he has to. In the setting up of the team he plays the same way until injury causes him to change things around. Even the Ruiz behind Berbatov with two wide players has only worked a few times. Yet we persist with it. Clearly some people are happy with what has been too many poor displays from talented players.

Riether for Kelly; Karagounis for Baird; Senderos for Hughes; Richardson for Riise; introducing Kacaniklic into the team; dropping Kacaniklic and moving Duff to the left flank to accommodate Dejagah; Enoh ahead of Karagounis on Saturday.

Not one of these changes was due to injury, whereas the only example you proffer is Jol's insistence on playing Ruiz and Berbatov.

As I said before, just not the change you want him to make.

Very well pointed out.  :clap_hands:

[Jambo]

This is a  joke isn't it? Changing players who were not ever first team players in the positions they were in for old men brought in on free transfer and non contract? Richardson for Riise for the odd game? The only genuine change is Senderos for Hughes. Yeah that has been a great success.

I am sorry but the changes are not tactical and only forced on him. Except for Senderos for Hughes. It really does seem to me that some fans over do their support for him when the best they can come up with is Karagounis for Baird who was never ever a midfield player. Reither for Kelly, who hardly ever started. Come on. It seems to me you will be putting down changes  that Jol makes when  it is overcast and drizzly and not hot and barmy.

If that is the best you can profer than we will just have to agree to disagree. Duff moving to the other wing because we have a better and faster player in Dejagah. It is the sort of thing one does on a playstation Fifa thingy. Not that I know what that is. But hardly tactical or clever.

us
People tend to forget that in the middle of our terrible run Hughes was playing like Titus Bramble!  When senderos came in we went on the best run we have had all season. God forbid am I praising Big Phil but people give Hughes a lot more slack and forget how poor he was.  Jol made the only change he had available and if it was because of him or not results turned.

[Berserker]

I will be honest and say as I have stated before. I really thought Fulham were pushing last season for a top 8 position and better. We had a squad and were promised better things. I have never really got over the sadness of losing players and just patching the squad up. This is not just Jols fault by any means but the clubs and whoever holds the purse strings. I think there is a happy medium between over spending and what we have done.

Plus I have fallen into the usual depression of watching a dull side with little attacking flair. Oh wait a flash of brilliance. Oh no back to pass pass and dull. I don't hate or dislike Jol. I just find the football deadly dull with sparks of light. Which is why I suggest we could see more light if the spark is there.

Who would you bring in to do all of this, I'm agreeing with you to a point we do need that spark but I can't see how we could attract that extra bit of quality as the bigger clubs will beat us to them. But before anyone says berbatov let me remind you that berbatov is jol's best mate.

or love child

[Arthur]

This is a  joke isn't it? Changing players who were not ever first team players in the positions they were in for old men brought in on free transfer and non contract? Richardson for Riise for the odd game? The only genuine change is Senderos for Hughes. Yeah that has been a great success.

I am sorry but the changes are not tactical and only forced on him. Except for Senderos for Hughes. It really does seem to me that some fans over do their support for him when the best they can come up with is Karagounis for Baird who was never ever a midfield player. Reither for Kelly, who hardly ever started. Come on. It seems to me you will be putting down changes  that Jol makes when  it is overcast and drizzly and not hot and barmy.

If that is the best you can profer than we will just have to agree to disagree. Duff moving to the other wing because we have a better and faster player in Dejagah. It is the sort of thing one does on a playstation Fifa thingy. Not that I know what that is. But hardly tactical or clever.

You're losing the plot. I wrote that Jol had made changes to improve the team, to which you replied: 'No, he hasn't. He only makes changes when he has to.'

Kelly finished last season as the incumbent right-back. Baird can also play right-back. Unforced change.

In the 2009-10 season, Baird played 52 times. Most of those were in midfield. Owing to the loss of Dembele, Dempsey and Diarra, he was back in midfield. Unforced change.

Having replaced Riise against Wigan, Richardson was injured in the following weekend at Manchester City. It was Riise's sudden return to side that was the forced change. Now Richardson has been given another opportunity. Unforced change.

However, you reserve most scorn for my having put Dejagah on the list. Not a tactical change, you cry. (All of a sudden, 'changes' have become tactical changes.) However, it most certainly is a tactical change. Duff is left-footed; Dejagah right-footed. Duff invariably cuts inside the full-back to cross/shoot with his left; Dejagah is likely to go outside the full back and cross/shoot with his right. Simple enough, yes, but not every tactical change requires a Fifa coaching badge to implement.

But you couldn't see that that counts as a tactical move. Illuminating. (Furthermore, it's a tactical change that proved successful when Dejagah played a key role in our counter-attacking goals at both Sunderland and Spurs - going on the outside of the full-back.)

Presumably, however, you have some tactical suggestions of your own to make. You know... the tactical changes that have escaped Jol; the 'clever' tactics. I'd like to know what you think these are. Instead than making daft references to the weather, do tell me something worthwhile.