Thursday Fulham Stuff (20/11/14)...

[WhiteJC]

 
Agent: 'Marcello Trotta wants Italy return'

The brother and agent of Marcello Trotta has claimed that the Fulham forward wants to return to Italy in January.

The 22-year-old was sent on loan to Barnsley earlier this month after struggling to nail down a first-team place with the Cottagers this season.

However, Giuseppe Trotta claims that his brother is using his spell at Oakwell as a stepping stone toward a return to his homeland.

"The plan is to come back to Italy," he told Tuttomercatoweb. "After many years in England, as an Italian, Marcello would like to measure himself up against his home league.

"We also have an agreement with Fulham that, if an offer comes in from Italy, Marcello can return. Unfortunately Fulham never gave my brother the opportunity to express himself. Over the summer Wigan strongly wanted him, but the negotiations didn't go through.

"As soon as the season had started, [former Fulham manager] Felix Magath put him out of the squad so we decided to accept a six-month loan to Barnsley. That way he could play and prepare himself for a January move."

Trotta, who impressed on a season-long loan with Brentford last season and helped them earn promotion into the Championship, is out of contract with Fulham next summer.


http://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/fulham/transfer-talk/news/agent-trotta-wants-italy-return_188979.html

[WhiteJC]

 
Baba Sent Off In Draw

Noe Baba was sent off for two bookable offences as the Republic of Ireland Under-19s rounded off their UEFA U19 Championship Qualifying Round with a 1-1 draw against Switzerland.

The Swiss took the lead with less than a minute played when Aldin Turkes capitalised on some hesitancy in the Ireland defence to break free and score.

Baba picked up his first yellow card on 28 minutes, and his side were unlucky not to draw level soon after when Ryan Manning hit the crossbar with a fine volley, before Fiacre Kelleher saw his header cleared off the line.

It took just three minutes after the restart, though, for the Republic to find the equaliser when Reece Grego-Cox headed in from a Manning corner.

They were down to 10 men not long after when Captain Baba was given his marching orders for a foul on Kilian Pagliuca, but they defended well despite his absence and held on for a point to ensure they finished Group 6 with an unbeaten record – level on points with Switzerland who topped the standings courtesy of a superior goal difference. 

Both nations will now advance into the Elite Round phase of qualifying.


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2014/november/19/baba-sent-off-in-draw?

[WhiteJC]

 
We used to hate Fulham, says Brentford legend

Derbies really mattered in my day, admits Terry Evans


Brentford legend: Terry Evans remembers some real derby ding dongs
Terry Evans reckons if Brentford's derby against Fulham on Friday was being played in his day, there would be as much venom on the pitch as in the stands.

Bees legend Evans played for the club at a time when both they and Fulham were regular Third Division rivals, with owners like Matthew Benham and Mohammed Al-Fayed a distant dream.

Evans, who know works on the medical team for rugby side Wasps, admits the rivalry meant just as much to the players as the fans in those far off days, when men were men and Detsi Kruszynski was considered an exotic signing.

He said: "There was no love lost, and we hated each other in the nicest possible way. Bliss (Gary Blissett) had a run in with Jim Stannard, as did Batesy (Jamie Bates) with Gordon Davies. That's how it was back then, derbies really counted. We would always back ourselves, and we had a decent run against Fulham.

"Of course they were big games, both Fulham and Orient were. We all knew the drills, it was a rivalry on and off the pitch, and they were always special because we knew they were important to the fans.


Knock-out: Gary Blissett, pictured with Richard Cadette, could pack a punch, as Jim Stannard could testify
"You trained together, played together, fought together and stuck together, and we were all just local lads. It's a bit more free and easy for players to move on now, you don't see many testimonials these days. You just stayed with a club in our day, what would be the point in moving up north for an extra £100 a week?"

Between 1986 and 1984, Brentford beat Fulham 10 times and only lost four, and the one which Bees fans will always hold as special was a 4-0 drubbing of their west London rivals in April 1992, a week before they lifted the (old) Division Three title at Peterborough.

Evans said: "I remember we were on a good run. We played on the Sunday, and all the results had gone our way on the Saturday, so we knew what we had to do against Fulham, We were on fire that day and everyone was on top of their game, and Fulham didn't have a lot to play for to be fair. We knew we could do it then, that if we won at Peterborough we would be champions."

That title triumph lifted Brentford into the second tier for the first time in 38 years, and following an instant relegation the next season, it would be another 22 years before they would return this year.

One school of thought amongst Bees fans is they would have survived more than just one season last time round if Evans had no got injured early in the campaign, ruling him out for most of it.


Back in the day: How the Ealing Gazette reported on Brentford's 4-0 win over Fulham in 1992
He said: "That's nice for them to say, but who knows? I was rushed back to play last few games, but some screws came loose in my knee. It was quite an unlucky season, we had a lot of injuries that year and conceded late on in quite a few games. It was a tough year, and there were some really good sides in that division.

"Brentford's is still the first result I look for, even though I don't get to many games now. The boys have done fantastic, and I'm sure they have achieved more than expected already. They have decent people behind them now and are going places, everything looks rosy.

"I totally believe they will say up. It can be a total lottery, as we found last time, and you have to stay injury free. But they do have the advantage of nice tight compact ground which other teams won't enjoy coming yo, with good partisan fans."



http://www.getwestlondon.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/used-hate-fulham-says-brentford-8134750?

[WhiteJC]

 
Burn Ready For Bees

Dan Burn is hoping to continue his fine run of results against Brentford when Fulham head to Griffin Park on Friday night (7.45pm).

The defender has a 100 per cent winning record from three games against the Bees and has also netted twice in that time.

During his loan spell at Yeovil Town, Burn scored against Brentford in a 3-0 win at Huish Park in 2012/13 and also notched what proved to be the winner over the Bees in the League One Play-Off Final at Wembley later that season.

After initially falling out of favour under Felix Magath, Burn's first Fulham appearance this season was the 1-0 win over Brentford at Griffin Park in the Capital One Cup.

"That was a massive result on a personal note for me," Burn told the official website. "As I've said previously, if I hadn't played well that night I don't think I would have played for Fulham again. But we played really well and got a clean sheet.

"Friday is a massive game and I love playing against Brentford. I played against them twice when I was at Yeovil and I've played them once for Fulham and I've always got a pretty good result. I hope I'm not jinxing myself but I do seem to do well against them, so let's hope it carries on."

Promoted last summer, the Bees are currently flying high in sixth place in the Sky Bet Championship table.

But Burn insists he's not surprised to see Mark Warburton's side in the higher echelons of the league, stating: "They've got a similar squad to what they did in League One and when you come from a league where you've spent most of the season winning, your confidence is really high.

"They're sixth and they're playing very well. All the lads know we can't be complement on Friday.

"We didn't play that well last time out against Huddersfield Town, we rode our luck a bit. They had a massive chance first half when Harry Bunn broke clear and put it wide. They then equalised but then Lasse [Vigen Christensen] went and scored a great goal straight away. They always say you're at your most vulnerable when you've scored and so it proved. With the quality we've got, we just never say die.

"A few of the squad have been away on international duty since and Kit Symons was away with Wales, so last week was quite relaxed. That's good when you've played a lot of games on the bounce.

"But everyone's back now and we've been preparing for Brentford for the last few days."

Burn has made 15 appearances in all competitions for the Whites this term and has formed a decent partnership with Nikolay Bodurov at centre-back.

"At the start of the season, it was difficult. Niko didn't speak a lot of English and I obviously don't speak any Bulgarian at all," said Burn. "It's hard when the centre-halves are chopping and changing every week as you don't really know what the other player is going to do.

"But when I play with Niko, I know when he's going to drop off and when he'll attack a ball. You work each other out. It's starting to become a really good partnership.

"It took him a little while t get used to this league, it's a lot faster and more physical. But you've seen him play, he's a physical guy - I certainly wouldn't get in a fight with him."


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2014/november/19/burn-ready-for-bees?

[WhiteJC]

 
Brentford v Fulham SOLD OUT

No more tickets left for Brentford v Fulham in Sky Bet Championship on Friday November 21

Brentford's first league match against West London rivals Fulham for more than 15 years is now SOLD OUT.

Fulham will come to Griffin Park for a Sky Bet Championship match on Friday, November 21.

All tickets are now sold for the first league match between the teams since April 1998 and no more will be available.

Tickets are on sale for upcoming matches against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Blackburn Rovers, Ipswich Town, Rotherham United and Middlesbrough.

There are a limited number of half-price tickets available for the Blackburn match and Brentford's Pay What You Can promotion is in operation for the game against Rotherham.



Read more at http://www.brentfordfc.co.uk/news/article/fulham-sold-out-21.11.14-2091949.aspx#ukorzGHd48OXpsBq.99

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham agree long-term CRM contract with Two Circles

English soccer side Fulham FC have agreed a long-term partnership with Two Circles, a data-driven agency that works with sports rights-holders to help drive their commercial revenue.

The Championship club will utilise the agency's CRM solution, which draws on social media and other external sources to provide fan data and insights.

It is hoped the move will enable Fulham to run more effective marketing campaigns, improve customer experiences and enhance commercial performance across ticketing, membership, retail and hospitality.

Two Circles has performed a similar duty for its other clients including Liverpool Football Club, the Lawn Tennis Association, and Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC).

"We have been working with Two Circles since last summer and the work that has been carried out has increased our understanding of the fan-base and is generating tangible returns," said Sarah Brookes, the communications and marketing director at Fulham.

"For example, only five weeks into the season-ticket campaign we had exceeded our target, and had achieved more than at the equivalent point in the previous season. Given the obvious differences between then and now in terms of our league status, we could not be happier with the results of this project to date."

Fulham have struggled to adapt to life back in the second-tier of English soccer, taking just 19 points from 17 league games since being relegated from the Premier League last season.


http://www.soccerex.com/industry-news/fulham-agree-long-term-crm-contract-with-two-circles/?

[WhiteJC]

 
Preview: Brentford vs. Fulham

Brentford and Fulham will both be looking to pick up where they left off before the international break when they clash at Griffin Park on Friday.

The Bees are buzzing following three consecutive victories which have seen them climb into the playoff places in their first season back in the Championship.

Two of those wins have come against promotion hopefuls Nottingham Forest and Derby County.

While they lost to the Rams in the Capital One Cup fourth round, the Cottagers are also in fine form and are yet to lose in the league since the appointment of Kit Symons as permanent boss in October.

However, the Welshman is yet to correct Fulham's defensive concerns, with the Whites having conceded 14 goals in their last six games.

Symons will have to make decisions on the fitness of Elsad Zverotic and Bryan Ruiz, who were involved for Bulgaria and Costa Rica respectively during the week.

Ross McCormack, who scored the only goal as Fulham beat Brentford in the League Cup earlier this season, is available again after suspension while Fernando Amorebieta is in contention following a knock.

Brentford boss Mark Warburton could understandably stick with the same starting XI which won 3-2 at Millwall a fortnight ago for the West London derby.

Andre Gray has scored four goals in his last three games and will again lead the line, while Tottenham Hotspur loanee Alex Pritchard will be tasked with creating chances for the striker from midfield.

Brentford:

Recent form: WWWLDD

Possible starting lineup: Button; Odubajo, Dean, Craig, Bidwell, Diagouraga, Jato, Judge, Pritchard, Toral, Gray

Fulham:

Form in Championship: WDDWDW
Form in all competitions: WDDLWD

Possible starting lineup: Bettinelli; Zverotic, Bodurov, Burn, Stafylidis; Parker; Christensen, Williams; Roberts; McCormack, Rodallega.

Sports Mole says: 3-1


http://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/fulham/preview/preview-brentford-vs-fulham_189101.html?