Sunday Fulham Stuff (29/12/13)...

[WhiteJC]

 
René Reaction

A shell-shocked René Meulensteen issued an apology to the travelling Fulham fans after the Whites were thumped 6-0 at Hull City.

The Whites had gone into the game in buoyant mood after their Boxing Day victory at Norwich City. And the game was goalless at the break at Hull's KC Stadium, only for second-half goals from Ahmed Elmohamady, Robert Koren (2), George Boyd, Tom Huddlestone and Matty Fryatt to send Fulham to their heaviest-ever Premier League defeat.

Speaking afterwards, Meulensteen said: "I've asked myself and I've asked the players but it's something I didn't see coming after the good result against Norwich. But we lost easy possession in the middle of the park which resulted in a corner four minutes into the second half and they scored. Okay, it's not the ideal scenario but to not get back into the game at all and concede three goals in about seven minutes isn't good.

"In some of my other games in charge we didn't get the result our play deserved. This obviously doesn't fall into that sequence. Losing is hard to take but losing in such a manner is hard for any professional. We need to make sure we don't look back, shrug it off and be ready to react against West Ham United on New Year's Day."

Fulham's Head Coach made six changes to the side that won at Carrow Road but had no regrets over his starting line-up.

"We always knew it was going to be difficult with two away games in three days," he explained. "We utilised the squad the best we could and I was more than confident that the players I picked today were more than capable of getting a result. Sometimes because of the intensity of games, you're forced to make changes due to little injuries and niggles and that's what you have a squad for. After our previous performances I just didn't see that coming."

Asked if he was concerned such a heavy loss could affect his side physiologically ahead of two important league games at the Cottage against fellow strugglers West Ham and Sunderland, Meulensteen responded: "It's one of the things I addressed straight away in the dressing room. Don't let it play on our up-and-coming games. We have two very big matches coming up. The important thing is we take this on the chin, we learn from it, we bounce back from it and we react. But I'd also like to issue an apology to the travelling fans."



http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2013/december/28/rene-reaction

[WhiteJC]

 
I'm sorry! Sidwell apologises to Fulham fans after Hull drubbing

Stand-in skipper admits performance was unacceptable as Tigers ran riot

Steve Sidwell has issued an apology to Fulham's travelling fans after they suffered a 6-0 thrashing at Hull.

Robert Koren's brace, coupled with goals from Ahmed Elmohamady, George Boyd, Tom Huddlestone and Matty Fryatt, saw the Cottagers crash to a heavy defeat at the KC Stadium to leave them in the bottom three.

And stand-in skipper Sidwell, who wore the armband in the absence of Brede Hangeland and Scott Parker, has said sorry to supporters for their woeful display.

He said: "They travel a long way and pay a lot of money, especially this time of year. To come and watch that was unacceptable."

Fulham had David Stockdale to thank for keeping the game goalless in the opening 45 minutes.

However, the former Hull loanee was helpless as the Tigers ran riot after the break with six unanswered goals.

"It was hard to take," Sidwell added. "We didn't see it coming after recent weeks with the performances we've had and the momentum we've been building. It was a bolt from the ball really.

"When the first goal went in it was a whirlwind effect after that and to concede six was very disappointing."



http://www.getwestlondon.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/im-sorry-sidwell-apologises-fulham-6451385?

[WhiteJC]

 
Meulensteen defends team selection after Hull hammering

Fulham boss admits heavy defeat at the KC Stadium came as a bolt out of the blue

Rene Meulensteen has defended his decision to ring the changes to his Fulham side after they were hit for six at Hull.

There were only five survivors from the team that started the Boxing Day win against Norwich, with Sascha Riether, Kieran Richardson and Alex Kacaniklic relegated to the bench and Scott Parker, Adel Taarabt and Damien Duff not even among the 18.

However, Meulensteen insists he was forced to tinker with his team over a gruelling festive schedule.

He said: "We always knew it was going to be difficult with two away games in three days.

"We utilised the squad the best we could and I was more than confident that the players I picked today were more than capable of getting a result.

"Sometimes because of the intensity of games, you're forced to make changes due to little injuries and niggles and that's what you have a squad for. After our previous performances I just didn't see that coming."

Robert Koren's brace, coupled with goals from Ahmed Elmohamady, George Boyd, Tom Huddlestone and Matty Fryatt saw Fulham crash to a heavy defeat at the KC Stadium to leave them in the bottom three.

And manager Meulensteen admits the result came out of nowhere after a string of impressive displays since he took charge earlier this month.

He added: "I've asked myself and I've asked the players but it's something I didn't see coming after the good result against Norwich. But we lost easy possession in the middle of the park which resulted in a corner four minutes into the second half and they scored.

"Okay, it's not the ideal scenario but to not get back into the game at all and concede three goals in about seven minutes isn't good.

"In some of my other games in charge we didn't get the result our play deserved. This obviously doesn't fall into that sequence. Losing is hard to take but losing in such a manner is hard for any professional.

"We need to make sure we don't look back, shrug it off and be ready to react against West Ham United on New Year's Day."



http://www.getwestlondon.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/meulensteen-defends-team-selection-after-6451337?