When Did It All Go Wrong For You?

[nose]

keeping jol, ruiz and berba was the signal this season would be a disaster, quickly followed by getting an inexperieiced manager and then not keeping him.
But make no mistake, IMO, Jol was the number one problem with this season. I do not think it is down to purchasing power because the money we did spent could have been just as effectively flushed down the toilet.

[CanadianCottager]

I believed firmly we still had a chance of staying up until the Hull disaster. That's when the wheels came of the Rene wagon and the boards persistence with him in January led to a baffingly pathetic month on and off the field that saw him chase off 4 players whose quality and dedication (admittedly, not all of them had both) could have made a real difference in the hands of a competent manager like Magath. Instead, Rene plunged the team into the relegation zone and the little investment made to replace the missing pieces, with the exception of Heitinga, was totally ineffectual.

[NJFulham]

Couple points: Khan was probably told we were basically mid-table, which was kind of a lie. And losing Schwarzer.

[The Rock]

Going into the end of last season getting just a few points on about 12 games. You could tell our form would continue unless something was done and it wasn't.

[The Rock]

Rene's sacking. I still think he could have turned it around even that late. The performances from Utd and Liverpool would have kept us up, but hitting the reset button just as it was turning around was the worst possible decision, regardless which manager we got in.

I think Rene might have done it. He got us playing pretty well against L'pool and Utd, then poof - he was gone and anyone he brought it was loaned out. Players like Tunicliffe only looked good under him because he knew how to get those certain players playing well...

[Apprentice to the Maestro]

the day al. fayed sold .and left macintosh in charge

Shouldn't that be "The day Al-Fayed sold and Khan took charge"?

It's more complicated than just the change of ownership. We were very poor at the end of last season.

This obsession with Mackintosh is weird.

Unless we do find out that Mackintosh is in charge then it should be "The day Khan put an accountant in charge of the footballing side of the club".

[Apprentice to the Maestro]

The second shad said I will implement the transfer policy that's already in place. Dumbest thing I've ever heard and no doubt the dumbest thing he has ever done

Yes, a key moment.

[Apprentice to the Maestro]

After the Europa Cup Final. We needed to rebuild but every window since has been a disaster.

This is the one. This was our high point and we needed a little investment to consolidate our place in the top half of the table for a few seasons.

With some investment we might have even kept Hodgson.

All other (sensible) points also show that same lack of foresight or are a consequence.

[Burt]

We have never put a string of decent performances together since losing to Sunderland in November 2012.

Issues from then on in:
1. Holding on to Jol too long.
2. Not holding on to Rene for long enough.
3. That Curbishley and Wilkins debacle.
4. Not refreshing an ageing squad.
5. Hangeland, bless him, is not a leader on the field.
6. No creativity, fight and spirit in the team.

[Apprentice to the Maestro]

For me it was the day we sold Moussa Dembele to Tottenham, I've been pissed off ever since that day, although others also make very valid points, especially about the lack of investment.

For me it was the day we sold Mullery to Tottenham.

[Berserker]

After the Europa Cup Final. We needed to rebuild but every window since has been a disaster.

This is the one. This was our high point and we needed a little investment to consolidate our place in the top half of the table for a few seasons.

With some investment we might have even kept Hodgson.

All other (sensible) points also show that same lack of foresight or are a consequence.

I think this was when MAF decided would be good tme to sell. Our stock must have been at it's highest after the Europa League final. I think it just took him longer to get sorted out that he imagined

[Apprentice to the Maestro]

After the Europa Cup Final. We needed to rebuild but every window since has been a disaster.

This is the one. This was our high point and we needed a little investment to consolidate our place in the top half of the table for a few seasons.

With some investment we might have even kept Hodgson.

All other (sensible) points also show that same lack of foresight or are a consequence.

I think this was when MAF decided would be good tme to sell. Our stock must have been at it's highest after the Europa League final. I think it just took him longer to get sorted out that he imagined

Good point.

[HatterDon]

For me it was when they loaned Volzy to Leicester. I'd just ordered my #2 Volz LG shirt, and Hodgson shipped him out. I'm still shattered.

Yes, we had 3 top 10 finishes and got to a European final, and Volz never played in the top flight again, but DAMMIT I ORDERED THE SHIRT AND THEN HE LEFT. It's been all downhill ever since.

:dft004:

[RaySmith]

The story the history books will tell is - from when MAF took over Fulham had constant success, getting into the Prem and staying there for over 13 years, finishing just below mid table at the end of his last season as owner, and then he sold the club and we  were relegated.

And it's true that the upset of the transition, when  a lot of investment was already needed in the playing squad, seems to have done for us, with no- one to take firm decisions when needed - although many had already forecast our doom, unless there was a lot of investment.

Well, there was investment, but too late, and too panicked, perhaps - and obviously crucial errors seem to have been made in the running of the club. But were the seeds of our demise already sown before Khan took over? as many think- too late for him to do much about it - and not even aware of it.

[hn4fulham]

Watching the past few seasons just proves the point of how tough it is to stay in the prem day in a day out. The decisions that are made on a daily basis spells prem survival or relegation.

We just lost our way after hodgson left. We kind of began to lose our identity. We were a hard working mid table club punching above our weight with reasonable level of investments. Getting to the Europa League final sort of slowly and quickly changed who we thought we were becoming. We had the structure, level of investment, and management personnel who knew how to run an established mid table club but we were trying to be more without the right people, structure, and knowledge in place. The consequences, we came tumbling down.

[Shredhead]

Losing at home to Sunderland last year was the turning point for me.  Hangeland getting sent off for a foul on possibly the dirtiest player in the PL. He's not been a great leader on the pitch although he seems a really good bloke and is still a decent player.
Having said that the real problem has been lack of spending on younger players and Jol's tactics and training.

[F(f)CUK]

Hangeland and Hughes allowing themselves to age. Our defence was based around them. Never had any sort of decent replacements. We then have an overly defensive central midfield. In short, lack of proper investment last summer. For me, I became very nervous during the post Costa Rica friendlies. I now wish Sunderland had battered us in the first game as it might have encouraged a couple of last second panic buys.

[ffc73]

After the Europa Cup Final. We needed to rebuild but every window since has been a disaster.

This is the one. This was our high point and we needed a little investment to consolidate our place in the top half of the table for a few seasons.

With some investment we might have even kept Hodgson.

All other (sensible) points also show that same lack of foresight or are a consequence.

I think this was when MAF decided would be good tme to sell. Our stock must have been at it's highest after the Europa League final. I think it just took him longer to get sorted out that he imagined

With the benefit of hindsight, this for me.  I never saw it at the time though and got annoyed with Sir Roy leaving and then got distracted by Sparky walking out.  It looks as though he was right.  Unfortunately "ambition" was the wrong word to use and we all interpreted his intentions incorrectly

Personally.  
That things were not right.  From when we drew at home to Odense.  
That we were in trouble.  When Jol was not sacked at the end of last season
That it was an end of an era and at a crossroads. When MAF sold to Khan
That we were going down.  When the ball squirmed under Stek at WBA in the 87th minute

[Apprentice to the Maestro]

The story the history books will tell is - from when MAF took over Fulham had constant success, getting into the Prem and staying there for over 13 years, finishing just below mid table at the end of his last season as owner, and then he sold the club and we  were relegated.

And it's true that the upset of the transition, when  a lot of investment was already needed in the playing squad, seems to have done for us, with no- one to take firm decisions when needed - although many had already forecast our doom, unless there was a lot of investment.

Well, there was investment, but too late, and too panicked, perhaps - and obviously crucial errors seem to have been made in the running of the club. But were the seeds of our demise already sown before Khan took over? as many think- too late for him to do much about it - and not even aware of it.

I think that it could still have been turned around in January making all the other mistakes just missed opportunities.

Who knows, for example, what would have happened if we had kept Rene and Mitroglu or a fit alternative forward had played in all games?

[Me-ate-Live, innit??]

For me it was when they loaned Volzy to Leicester. I'd just ordered my #2 Volz LG shirt, and Hodgson shipped him out. I'm still shattered.

Yes, we had 3 top 10 finishes and got to a European final, and Volz never played in the top flight again, but DAMMIT I ORDERED THE SHIRT AND THEN HE LEFT. It's been all downhill ever since.

:dft004:

That was a good day..................... I got his folding  push bike  he didn't need it Tup North