Pre Match Press conference

[Roberty]

Dempsey wasn't fit when on loan.  He also isn't a shirker, a malingerer, there just to collect a paycheck.  That was never his style. I don't think he was "strolling around", "keeping out of trouble so he would be fit for the World Cup."  He had a legacy at the club he was apparently proud of.  The loan just didn't pan out.  I don't understand the romanticism about playing youngsters.  You know the team should have won its first game.  The lineup was wrong.  Too many youngsters.  As to your other point about Ruiz and Mitro not willing to play hard for Fulham, why would you think they would risk phoning it in.  Won't their performances at the start of this season be on display for all teams considering whether to make offers or not?  What incentive would they have to merely show up and go through the motions?  Wouldn't such behaviour work against their own self-interest?  They want to continue to impress prospective clubs, not disinterest them.  We started this season losing, not playing them.  And your argument is, "More, please."

He is building a team for the future and I am failing to see where two player who will be gone in 15 days fit into our future

Given what has happened since they both signed it might be better to have potential buyers look at old video from previous clubs.

Dempsey's performance is being excused because he was not fit - as far as I am aware neither of them is 100% fit

We seem to be obsessed with age on this board - for the last several seasons too old - now too young.

If they are good enough, they are old enough - for several years our team have not been good enough - that is why we went down not because they were too old.

[Holders]

Please can some of you answer the following question --- do you really think that Khan has spent US$200m just to grow a team of juniors in the Championship ??

Obviously he bought what was an established Premier club - he's been stuffed on that -- what the hell is the plan now - sit and wait a few years for promotion ?

It doesn't make business sense to me

It was not business sense to buy the club and mess up his investment by changing managers and not buying the right players to retain our place in the Premiership. 

Buying a football club is more of a personal indulgence than a business investment.

[FulhamStu]

We've signed three defensive players with Champions League experience and our current league's top scorer from last year.  We could probably do with a bit of experience in goal and something extra in midfield, but it's far from a lost cause.  Give the guys a damn chance!!

All 3 don't have experience of the Championship though, and our current leagues top scorer can't even play for 10 minutes without blowing. If Rodders, Mitro and Ruiz all leave, which is now highly likely, who else do we have that will score goals? And please, before you say Demeble' and Woodrow, lets be sensible here and say that they are currently unproven. Maybe I am always the pessimists, but I'm also looking at this through experienced eye's, just like I did when I said last season would our last in the top flight.

I'm sorry, but if that 19 year old kid from Boca is the last of our dealings for this window, then we've got big problems, but hey, I'm always the pessimist!!   

You're right, they don't have Championship experience.  They have experienced club football at the highest level available, something we don't have to worry about.  We don't know how they'll adapt, but that doesn't automatically mean that they won't.  This overbearing pessimism from some members is so boring, it's making this place nearly intolerable.

A little bit of patience really wouldn't go amiss.  I'm not saying wait until Christmas, but give them more than one bloody game to gel and get used to a new style of football.

As for transfers, if need be we can get loans in after the transfer window closes.  Whilst clearly not ideal, it could give us experience whilst not permanently hampering development of the younger players.

And how many times have we seen Premiership / Champions league players fail at this level? More times than you can throw a stick at, simply because they can't cope with the physical side that this division offers. For me, Ipswich was a harsh wake up call, and if you think it won't get more physical than them, your wrong. By the way, if you do find this forum boring, or nearly intolerable because people have opinions, then there are other places for you to post.

But really, we should have beaten Ipswich.  We were clearly the better side dispite the fact that the team is so new to each other.  We made some bad defensive errors that cost us.  Ifs and buts, but would you honestly prefer Ipswichs team to ours ?

we could have been out there all day and still not scored. For a start we lacked width, put on 2 wingers and we'd have murdered them down the flanks. The hopeless long balls up to Dembele' were comfortably dealt with every time, and when Ipswich wanted a foothold in the game, they just gave us a clump, we rolled over, they scored. I'm sorry, but if you want out of that division, pretty football alone won't cut it. 

Or, you could say - if Dembele had scored, they would open up more and we could have got them on the break and scored 5 !!!  If we played wider, they could have swamped our central MF area etc etc etc.  Its just your opinion - you will never know.  Tigana got us out of the div playing pretty football.  I do agree however you need a blance between good football, tough defending etc etc.

[epsomraver]

Dempsey wasn't fit when on loan.  He also isn't a shirker, a malingerer, there just to collect a paycheck.  That was never his style. I don't think he was "strolling around", "keeping out of trouble so he would be fit for the World Cup."  He had a legacy at the club he was apparently proud of.  The loan just didn't pan out.  I don't understand the romanticism about playing youngsters.  You know the team should have won its first game.  The lineup was wrong.  Too many youngsters.  As to your other point about Ruiz and Mitro not willing to play hard for Fulham, why would you think they would risk phoning it in.  Won't their performances at the start of this season be on display for all teams considering whether to make offers or not?  What incentive would they have to merely show up and go through the motions?  Wouldn't such behaviour work against their own self-interest?  They want to continue to impress prospective clubs, not disinterest them.  We started this season losing, not playing them.  And your argument is, "More, please."

He is building a team for the future and I am failing to see where two player who will be gone in 15 days fit into our future

Given what has happened since they both signed it might be better to have potential buyers look at old video from previous clubs.

Dempsey's performance is being excused because he was not fit - as far as I am aware neither of them is 100% fit

We seem to be obsessed with age on this board - for the last several seasons too old - now too young.

If they are good enough, they are old enough - for several years our team have not been good enough - that is why we went down not because they were too old.

well said

[Forever Fulham]

If Mitro is finally healthy, he should play.
The consensus opinion on this board is that he wasn't physically fit when he arrived last season.  If he's finally healed from whatever injury he was nursing, he should play.  Ruiz was clearly healthy during the World Cup and appears so now as well.  It's untenable to argue Ruiz isn't fit.  Just ask the England MNT.  Play them, and let's see.  The argument appears to be: oh, they might get hurt, lowering our selling price.  No one makes the obvious counter-argument: They play well, and interest and selling price goes way up. 

[BestOfBrede]

I love Fulham as do my Pa and my Bruv, but....
I think we have possibly the worst supporters in the country!

Never stop flipping moaning whatever the club does!

I dread tomorrow - 1 bad miss or pass by a youngster and his career here will be finished!
We lose to Millwall and the whole team will be booed
Arsewipes calling for Magaths head
Etc etc

How's about you give Felix and the project a 'kin chance?
If you don't like it why not go elsewhere - there's a good number of London prem teams or even London championship teams that have bought better players than us - apparently!

A lot of you expect too much just because we have been in the prem for a good while.

Good time to bump I think!

[Jims Dentist]

I agree that our manager's ego is costing us.

You simply cannot start with so many young players, however how much potential they may have, and expect to compete with hardened profesionals. The goals conceded so far show this.