Tuesday Fulham Stuff (21/07/15)...

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Fulham striker 'sent' to Portugal

Fulham are set to sell striker Kostas Mitroglou to Sporting CP, according to reports today.

The deal will be part of a chain of events involving Premier League side Leicester City.  New Leicester boss Claudio Ranieri wants Sporting striker Islam Slimani to be part of his squad at the King Power, however Sporting will only sell if they get a replacement.  Therefore Ranieri has 'sent' Mitroglou to Portugal to agree a deal.

Fulham have made it clear that they will not consider any offers that don't meet the asking price of £5.95m, the release clause in the Greek international's contract.  Therefore this could provide a pointer for how much Leicester will have to part with to sign Slimani.

After becoming Fulham's record signing in January 2014, Mitroglou did not live up to expectations, failing to score a single goal and spending last season on loan at Olympiakos, where he finished second in goals scored for the season, with 16.

Fulham and Mitroglou just did not fit and this move seems beneficial for both the club and player.


http://the72.co.uk/31640/fulham-striker-sent-to-portugal/?

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UNHAPPY STAR COULD STAY PUT AT TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

Tottenham Hotspur are not planning to sell Moussa Dembele, according to reports from ESPN.

Dembele joined Tottenham from Fulham for a sizeable £15million back in 2012 and big things were expected of the midfielder at White Hart Lane.

Unfortunately though, Dembele has disappointed during his time at Tottenham and the midfielder endured a particularly difficult campaign last term, where he was limited to only 10 starts by manager Mauricio Pochettino.

As a result, Dembele is understandably not pleased with his current situation at Tottenham and a move away from the club this summer has been widely touted, with Sunderland said to be interested in signing the Belgian international.

However it has now emerged that Tottenham have no intention of selling Dembele this summer, according to reports from ESPN.

Tottenham have recently sold the likes of Paulinho, Etienne Capoue and Benjamin Stambouli and as a result, Spurs want to keep hold of Dembele as they are currently short on options in midfield.


http://footballrepublik.com/unhappy-star-could-stay-put-at-tottenham-hotspur/?

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Berlin Memories

As Kit Symons' men prepare to face Hertha Berlin on Wednesday as part of our pre-season preparations, we caught up with Alain Goma, who was in the Fulham team the last time we faced the German outfit.

Anglo-Italian Cup action aside, Fulham's first foray into European competition arrived in the 2002/03 season. Having qualified to compete in the now defunct Intertoto Cup, the Whites came through their eight-game test as one of three winners of the competition, and thereby confirming their place in the UEFA Cup.

A narrow 3-2 aggregate win over Hajduk Split saw Jean Tigana's men safely into Round Two, where a 3-0 triumph in Dynamo Zagreb set us on our way to a far less stressful 5-1 two-legged success over the Croatians.

But then came our biggest test, as Bundesliga side Hertha Berlin stood between Fulham and a place in the last 16.

A 2-1 defeat in the German capital wasn't the ideal start, and Berlin won progression when Gabor Kiraly played a starring role in a goalless draw at Loftus Road two weeks later.

Goma played every minute of those matches, and while he was saddened to go out to what he considered avoidable goals, he relished competing on the continent with the Whites.

"I remember the game that we played at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin better than I remember the home game," he told fulhamfc.com. "We conceded a goal from a corner and from a free-kick and I can remember the feeling of disappointment because we were not far from going through.

"Every European game I really enjoyed. During my time at Auxerre we used to play European football every year and it was a big thing, so the opportunity to play in Europe with Fulham was a real buzz."

Participation in the Intertoto Cup meant that Fulham's 2002/03 season began on Saturday 6th July, and by the time Berlin arrived in West London we'd already played 32 competitive matches.

The Whites finished the gruelling campaign six points above the relegation zone, and Goma thinks the unrelenting fixture list may have been a contributing factor.

"It was through the Intertoto that we went into Europe," he recalled. "I didn't really think that we would go that far. Tigana took it very seriously and therefore we managed to keep going through.

"When you play Intertoto the problem is you can't have the hard work that you would normally when you do a pre-season. For me, pre-season is so important because it's the foundation for the rest of the year.

"So I think it had an effect on the rest of the season, unfortunately. If you look at the whole scale of things – the Intertoto Cup, UEFA Cup, the Premiership, the two [domestic] cups – if you add it up it's a lot of games that we were playing."

That said, European matches hold a lot of happy memories for Fulham fans, and Goma admitted you could sense what it meant to compete on one of the biggest stages.

"It was special, for the Club, for the fans," he explained. "It felt like it was an important era, a new era for the Club. I remember there was quite a few fans who travelled down to Berlin, so it was a really good feeling."


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2015/july/21/berlin-memories?

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Fulham prepare transfer bid to beat Forest and Wigan to Manchester United defender


Reece James of Manchester United could be heading out on loan (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Fulham are keen on buying Manchester United defender Reece James, according to reports.

The 21-year-old featured in the Championship for Rotherham and Huddersfield last season and Nottingham Forest boss Dougie Freedman would like to secure another loan move to the second tier for a player who made his United debut in the Capital One Cup last season.

But the Daily Mail believes Cottagers boss Kit Symons is willing to buy James rather than try to agree a temporary move for the left-back who only signed a new contract at Old Trafford earlier this year.

Newly-relegated Wigan are also said to be keen on adding James to their squad and will surely hope their location could help persuade James to play in League One this season.

It has been a summer of exits so far for Fulham with Brian Ruiz's departure and Patrick Roberts having joined Manchester City but a percentage of the reported £8 million fee for the young Englishman could be reunvested as Symons looks to put together a side capable of pushing for promotion.



Read more at: http://www.london24.com/sport/football/clubs/fulham/fulham_prepare_transfer_bid_to_beat_forest_and_wigan_to_manchester_united_defender_1_4161357
Copyright © LONDON24

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Fulham: Scott Parker using recovery method endorsed by Mo Farah's controversial coach

Whites midfielder and Alberto Salazar have something in common


Computer says 'no': Scott Parker (L)

Scott Parker is a lonely man at the Fulham training ground this week.

His pals in white are preparing to take on Hertha Berlin tomorrow in Austria, the latest of their pre-season games.

But the 34-year-old is Billy No Mates at Motspur Park as a result of failing a fitness test on his ankle.

Parker missed most of the end of last season before undergoing ankle surgery, and boss Kit Symons confirmed his midfield totem is some way off returning to action.

In fact, Parker will miss the start of the season after he could only manage 80 per cent on a piece of fitness gadgetry endorsed by Mo Farah's controversial coach Alberto Salazar (see here).

The man at the centre of doping allegations in athletics, which he denies, reckons the Alter G machine is the way to recovery – and Parker needs all the help he can get.

There is nothing sinister in the connection.

In fact, the weight-bearing treadmill is meant to remove pounding in stages, but the former West Ham and Chelsea player has yet to see a blade of grass.


Missed start: Scott Parker (L)

Symons explained: "Scotty's still not out on the grass yet. The Alter G machine, contraption that takes the weight off a runner, has him at 80 percent.

"Had he been higher we would have taken him to Austria, but we'll leave him here to carry on with that.

"He won't be ready for the start of the season. But I speak to him everyday and he's happy with the way things are progressing."

Symons also dismissed rumours linking the ex-England international with a move to join brother-in-law Harry Arter at Bournemouth.

The manager added: "It's just speculation and I've not been told anything about that."


http://www.getwestlondon.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/fulham-scott-parker-using-recovery-9697707?

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Future Planning

Chief Football Officer Mike Rigg talks about the Academy, the challenges of keeping young players and his aim to create a pathway of development.

! No longer available

http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2015/july/21/future-planning?

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72% Said Club Were Right To Sell Jazz Richards

In a recent site poll, 72% of our voters agreed that Swansea City were right to sell right back Jazz Richards.

Championship side Fulham bought him this Summer for a fee of around £500,000. This was shortly after the right back started for Wales in their memorable win against Belgium. He produced an impressive performance that day as Chelsea winger Eden Hazard couldn't get the better of him down the left, but this wasn't enough to convince Swansea manager Garry Monk that he was worth keeping.

Only 14% voted that the Swans shouldn't have sold Jazz Richards, while the remaining 14% said it depended on the transfer fee - this poll was asked before we knew that Fulham had a £500,000 bid accepted.

With Dwight Tiendalli likely to leave this Summer, Garry Monk will have Kyle Naughton and Angel Rangel as his right back options next season.

In our current poll, we'd like to know whether or not you think that young defensive midfielder Jay Fulton should go out on loan next season.


Read more: http://www.swansea.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=406249#ixzz3gWhnOUKR