Fulham got it wrong this summer...

[SouthWest6]

... instead of wheeling and dealing, Felix Magath should have followed Norwich

Just nine games in to the Sky Bet Championship season and Norwich City are already 16 points clear of Fulham, and eight ahead of Cardiff.

For the trio relegated from the Barclays Premier League in May, it is hard not to conclude that their current league positions - first, 15th and 23rd respectively - are a direct result of each club's preparations for the 2014-15 campaign.

While Fulham were still frantically buying and selling with no apparent plan right up to the close of the transfer window last month, Norwich had a settled and balanced squad before the first ball of the season was kicked. Cardiff, too, were preoccupied with transfer dealings and distracted by off-field squabbles when they should have been concentrating on their fixtures.

It was no surprise then when Felix Magath lost his job at Fulham after their disastrous start and when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's stay in South Wales came to an end 11 days ago.

While all this has been going on, Norwich have been making serene and steady progress under Neil Adams. They sit top of the table after the weekend's fixtures. It is no fluke.

Faced with the very real possibility of relegation in April, the Norwich board sacked Chris Hughton. They were in fact five points clear of the drop zone at the time, but with a nightmare run of fixtures coming up they made the bold move to invest in the long-term in favour of the short.

In came Adams, so successful as Norwich's youth coach and a man with close ties to the club from his playing career.

Hughton had achieved an 11th-placed finish the season before but a steady decline had seen the natives grow restless as transfer funds were wasted on failed foreign imports such as Ricky van Wolfswinkel.

In hiring Adams, chief executive David McNally felt, even if Norwich went down, the feel-good factor would soon be back in Norfolk.

And so it is proving, even if we are only nine games in to the season.

The club sold their prized assets for top dollar; swiftly and efficiently and with no hard feelings. Handsome fees were brought in for Robert Snodgrass and Leroy Fer, among others, allowing Adams to concentrate on adding Championship experience and a sprinkling of youth from the club's academy to an already strong squad.

While Norwich were not turning many heads with their pre-season work, one senses that was exactly the plan.

Contrast that to the circuses going on at Craven Cottage and the Cardiff City Stadium this year, and it is easy to see how such a gap has already opened up between Norwich and their relegated counterparts.

Mercifully, things finally seem to be moving in the right direction at Fulham and Cardiff, but the moral of the story is never to underestimate the Championship.

While Russell Slade looks to be a shrewd appointment at Cardiff and Kit Symons is steadying the ship at Fulham, you cannot afford to give your rivals a nine-game headstart at this level, no matter how much money you have to spend in January.

The Football League is littered with clubs who have taken years to recover from relegation from the top flight because they didn't face up to it in time and invest in their long-term futures.

Norwich were one of those clubs. Never recovering from relegation in 2005 and eventually slipping down in to League One in 2009.

Perhaps that is why they have made moves to make sure the same doesn't happen again.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2773640/Fulham-got-wrong-summer-instead-wheeling-dealing-Felix-Magath-followed-Norwich.html#ixzz3EjhuzHvr

[Artful Dodger]

We did need some change as too many players were past their best but we should have tried harder to hold on to Richardson, Dejagah, Kaca, Stockdale, Heitinga assuming they weren't out of contract. That would have made the process of integrating a few of the promising youngsters much easier rather than having huge expectations heaped on them. So we were never going to be able to be as settled as Norwich but the general point is correct.

[RaySmith]

Well we had an aging squad with a high wage bill, but I was surprised we practically the whole squad go.

As GJ said about us being pre season favourites to go back up - 'we aren't a relegated Prem team, because we are a completely different side to the one that was relegated.'

Anyway, rebuilding is taking place, and we just need to get behind our squad of youngsters, and inexperienced players in this League, with our new manager.

I think we are doing well, all things considered, and will get better, and start getting points.

[Burt]

Much more surgery was needed here compared to the other two teams.

Perhaps we did cut a bit too deeply though. Shame to see Sidwell, Kasami and Dejagah go in particular. But getting rid of those who were past it or not interested was the right thing to do, and that is probably the one thing that Felix got right.

Naturally we should have done this gradually over a couple of seasons rather than in the 8 weeks between last season and this, but it wasn't to be.

[SouthWest6]

Keepers should have been Hangeland, Sidwell, Stockdale, Kasami

[Craven Mad]

Keepers should have been Hangeland, Sidwell, Stockdale, Kasami

+1

Maybe Richardson and Dejagah too...

[Snibbo]

Keepers should have been Hangeland, Sidwell, Stockdale, Kasami

Gawd. Poor old Brede was a great servant but he was terrible for the last two years and as a captain showed little leadership on the pitch. Worth noting that he is not even on the bench for Palace. He was offered a deal and he turned it down. Fair enough. He decided to move on and so should we.

[BigbadBillyMcKinley]

Keepers should have been Hangeland, Sidwell, Stockdale, Kasami

Gawd. Poor old Brede was a great servant but he was terrible for the last two years and as a captain showed little leadership on the pitch. Worth noting that he is not even on the bench for Palace. He was offered a deal and he turned it down. Fair enough. He decided to move on and so should we.

Agree totally.

Personally, out of all the players w let go, only Stcokdale - and at a big push Sidwell - were worth keeping on.

[St Eve]

Well we had an aging squad with a high wage bill, but I was surprised we practically the whole squad go.

As GJ said about us being pre season favourites to go back up - 'we aren't a relegated Prem team, because we are a completely different side to the one that was relegated.'

Anyway, rebuilding is taking place, and we just need to get behind our squad of youngsters, and inexperienced players in this League, with our new manager.

I think we are doing well, all things considered, and will get better, and start getting points.

GJ is spot on. We knew for a couple of years that we needed to rebuild but to clear everyone out  as the Wacko did was a mistake. Didn't really care for Sidwell but he probably would have been good for us. Brede was slow but would have steadied our defence. Kasami would have been great.

[HatterDon]

Keepers should have been Hangeland, Sidwell, Stockdale, Kasami

Gawd. Poor old Brede was a great servant but he was terrible for the last two years and as a captain showed little leadership on the pitch. Worth noting that he is not even on the bench for Palace. He was offered a deal and he turned it down. Fair enough. He decided to move on and so should we.

Agree totally.

Personally, out of all the players w let go, only Stcokdale - and at a big push Sidwell - were worth keeping on.

I guess we'll have to keep saying this over and over until Big Brede hangs them up.

[sunburywhite]

Keepers should have been Hangeland, Sidwell, Stockdale, Kasami

Even Felix would not have played Sidwell in goal

Bit harsh no place for Betinelli

[Holders]

This was my point in another thread a couple of days ago, FFP rules permitting,

I think our cutting was just too drastic. After all, Kit has chosen to play all the more senior players who remained. One wonders which others he would have liked to have had available.

[Southcoastffc]

2 interesting things in that article - Fulham were still frantically buying and selling with no apparent plan right up to the close of the transfer  window. Agreed - whether it's right to swap lots of players in and out or keep an unchanged squad it seemed that we were simply out of control. Second, Norwich's Chief Exec is  David McNally.  Remember him?  Formerly our MD and allegedly instrumental in bringing in Hodgson.

[Holders]

Yes, I remember him but didn't know where he'd gone. Well regarded.

[Peppo]

The mistake was employing Magath in the first place. EVERYTHING has been wrong since then.

[TonyGilroy]

Norwich appointed their equivalent to Kit Symons.

[MJG]

Just a quick bit of data on Fulham's income last season and this.
Total prize money, tv appearance from 2013-14 was £64.9M

Anticipated prize money/tv/PL TV deal share...we will be lucky to get 4-5M
parachute payments are £15m

so the club will be looking at a 40m plus black hole from their income in 2014-15.
That's without even looking at gates.

Our wage bill at end 2013 season was £67M (92% of turnover) also the 9th highest, can you imagine what it was like last season. I suspect if we get change out of 75M we will be lucky.

Norwich wage bill at end of 2013 season was 51M. because they have gone up and down they are at a more realistic figure, hence I believe the less changes they had to make.

The problem is we should have been making changes to the squad and getting it younger over last two seasons, not over two summer months in 2014.

[jms]

The mistake was employing Magath in the first place. EVERYTHING has been wrong since then.

Everything has been wrong since the appointment of Mr Jol !

[Arthur]

As MJG reminds us, we had a far greater wage bill than Norwich. On top of this, both Parker and Rodallega are on the sort of bumper contracts that meant we couldn't even give them away (as we found out with Hugo on transfer-deadline day).

In light of all this, I fail to see why the Club would hold onto any other high-earning player who wanted to leave (i.e. Dejagah, Richardson, Kasami, Riether etc.) nor do I see why it would offer others new contracts on improved terms (as Sidwell reportedly asked for).

The only players who might have been retained are Stockdale and Hangeland (not overlooking that Amorebieta and Ruiz are still here). I strongly doubt that any supporter believes that the inclusion of these two players would have seen us currently parading at the top of the table.

In my opinion, comparing us to Norwich and lamenting that we didn't do what they did is just wishful thinking.

[Bracken White]

Have to agree with Peppo - appalling panic appointment just when Meulensteen had brought in his own players and the team were improving. That was then, this is now and we just could be in for a really exciting season!