Thursday Fulham Stuff (28/1/2016)

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U21s Travel To Villa

Fulham Under-21s will be looking to bounce back from consecutive defeats by West Ham United when they face Aston Villa at Bodymoor Heath on Thursday afternoon.

The Hammers have emerged victorious from both fixtures with Peter Grant's boys this month, nabbing a 3-2 win in the cup and a 2-1 success when we met in the league last week.

Villa go into the game on the back of a thrilling 3-2 win over local rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday. They'd twice led through first team squad regular Jack Grealish's penalty and a Jerell Sellars strike only to be pegged back each time, but Sellars struck in the 91st minute to secure the three points and the bragging rights.

There was nothing to separate Fulham and Villa when they met at Motspur Park earlier in the season, as the Whites twice came from behind to secure a 2-2 draw.

Mattias Kait had cancelled out Rushian Hepburn-Murphy's opener, only for the visitors to go into the break in front courtesy of Harry McKirdy's stoppage-time strike. But Jordan Evans fired home a fine free-kick to earn his side a point.

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Grant's Villa Preview

Following a strong finish to 2015 which saw Peter Grant's Under-21s go five games undefeated, they have since lost the opening two matches of 2016 against West Ham United.

However, following the Christmas break Grant feels the changeable nature of the 21s may have played its part in the dip in form.

"At this level the team keeps changing all the time," he told the official website. "In the last couple of games, we have had a few First Team players come down as a late shout so we have left some of the younger boys out.

"Because of the chop and change of the last couple of weeks we have had to change the shape with certain personnel coming in.

"I like to play the boys in their favoured roles but recently we have had players out of position. We've had young Shane Elworthy who has done exceptionally well for us, but I have been playing him at left-back for example when it isn't his natural position.

"It adds another string to the bow of young players but shows how we have had to move things around after the Christmas break."

The last two matches have seen multiple Under-18s players make the jump up to the 21s, an approach that Grant sees as a positive for members of the Academy.

"Against Aston Villa on Thursday we will have six or seven Under-18s lads starting," Grant stated. "That is something that we have tried to do this season because we realised last year there were plenty of lads going long stretches without games.

"We have tried to get the 18s and 21s to predominantly train together. If a player from the 18s comes in and plays well they stay in their position."

One such player who has benefitted from getting a chance in the 21s is Dennis Adeniran, who started in the Fulham midfield in the last clash against West Ham.

"Dennis has started centre-midfield, he has played higher in the number 10 role," Grant explained. "He can handle the ball, he is powerful and he is learning all the time with his game awareness. He is getting used to the change in tempo. You can sense that he is growing each game."

This month we have seen numerous players who have contributed to the Under-21s this season head out on loan. Jack Grimmer joined Shrewsbury until the end of the year, and Cameron Burgess and Sean Kavanagh have joined Cheltenham Town and Mansfield Town, respectively, on similar deals.

"We looked very strong when we had the likes of Cameron, Jack and Sean," Grant said.

"But the good news for us is that they are out on loan now. It is a good part of their development to go out on loan. People have seen enough of them to come to us and get them in temporarily.

"Ok maybe it weakens our team a little bit but that development is what we are trying to do; let our players learn and grow."

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Bettinelli: Road To Recovery

As he steps up his recovery from a serious knee injury, Marcus Bettinelli reflects on a testing five months on the treatment table.

Checkout Marcus's video interview and get the latest on his update
http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=Y82a73SGtp4

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Fulham's Loan Round-Up



Shrewsbury Town were beaten 1-0 at home by fellow strugglers Oldham Athletic on Tuesday evening, with Jack Grimmer playing the full 90 minutes and Larnell Cole the first half.

Carl Winchester netted from outside the penalty area midway through the first half to secure the points for the Latics to move them to within five points of the Shrews in Sky Bet League One.

There was better news for Sean Kavanagh in League Two, as his Mansfield Town side came from behind to secure a late 2-1 win away at Morecambe.

The Irishman came on with seven minutes remaining as the Stags trailed to Paul Mullin's penalty, and soon after they were level when Chris Clements bundled in, before Adi Yussuf completed the turnaround at the death.

The win moves Mansfield into ninth, just one point off the Play-Off places.

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U18s: Arsenal 1-3 Fulham

Watch the goals as the young Whites made it seven league wins on the bounce with a 3-1 victory away to Arsenal.

http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v= g6YVP6D10oA

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U18s: Arsenal 1-3 Fulham

Watch the goals as the young Whites made it seven league wins on the bounce with a 3-1 victory away to Arsenal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6YVP6D10oA

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Tottenham ready to give up chase for Moussa Dembele as Fulham youngster nears lucrative move to Monaco 

*Moussa Dembele is set to sign a pre-contract agreement with Monaco
*Tottenham had been hoping to secure the 19-year-old's signature
*Spurs were prepared to use one of there fringe players as part of the deal

By SAMI MOKBEL FOR MAILONLINE

Tottenham are ready to concede defeat in their attempts to land Fulham teenager Moussa Dembele.
The striker looks set to complete a deal to join Monaco with the French club willing to offer the forward a much more lucrative contract than Spurs.
Tottenham and Fulham had been locked in talks for weeks over a switch for the 19-year-old.

Spurs were even prepared to use one of their fringe players as part of the deal.
But Dembele is set to sign a pre-contract agreement with the Ligue 1 side with his current contract due to expire in the summer.
Spurs have already turned their attentions to West Brom striker Saido Berahino in their search for a striker The White Hart Lane club will make one last offer for Berahino before Monday's transfer deadline.
Sportsmail understands Spurs are pitch their proposal at around £17million - considerably short of the amount bid in the summer.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3418873/Tottenham-ready-chase-Moussa-Dembele-Fulham-youngster-nears-lucrative-Monaco.html#ixzz3yVerOicR
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A trip down memory lane: Was this performance the peak for Fulham?

Four years ago last week, Fulham Football Club achieved a result that fans can only dream of now. The Cottagers thrashed high flying Newcastle United 5-2 on a cold January afternoon in 2012, making history in the process. Star attacker Clint Dempsey notched a hat trick, the first American to do so in the Premier League. As Fulham languish in the wrong half of the Championship, a look back at that glorious afternoon paints a picture of what this proud club once was.

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Newcastle United had been on a great run of form that season, and had even cracked the top four in the opening months. The Magpies were coming off a resounding 3-0 win over Manchester United in early January and were sitting in sixth. When Newcastle made the long trip south to the Cottage, Fulham knew they were in for a tough match. The Londoners had also achieved some impressive results in the preceding weeks, defeating Arsenal at home and demolishing Charlton in the FA Cup. The Whites would go on to finish 9th in one of the best seasons in recent memory.

The Fulham starting line-up that day was miles away from the poor quality we currently see at the Cottage. The attack consisted of Bobby Zamora, Damien Duff, Bryan Ruiz, and Clint Dempsey. The defence was solidly led by Brede Hangeland, while Danny Murphy marshalled the midfield with terrific experience.

However, the first half was absolutely abysmal. Fulham played with little pace, intensity, or passion and Newcastle looked all too comfortable playing around the Whites. A major turning point occurred on 37 minutes, when holding midfielder Steve Sidwell went down injured and was replaced by striker Andy Johnson in a bold attacking move by Martin Jol. Newcastle deservedly bagged the opening goal right before halftime, with midfielder Danny Guthrie ripping home a long range effort.

As the Cottagers trudged off at half-time, boos rained down on them from the Fulham faithful. It was looking like a disappointing day on the banks of the Thames. However, during half-time, Jol made a substitution that will go down in history. Out came the glitz and creativity of multimillion pound signing Bryan Ruiz. In came the grit and work ethic of full back Chris Baird, slotted into the centre of midfield. And against all odds, the substitution worked wonders.

Fulham came out of the dressing room with a renewed purpose and quickly stamped their authority on the match. In the 52nd minute, winger Damien Duff strode into the penalty area and drew a penalty. Danny Murphy calmly strode up and slotted home to even the score. The match was back on.

Indeed, the floodgates had opened. The Fulham team was steadied by the presence of Baird in midfield, and it allowed the attackers to play with increased freedom. Seven minutes later, a furious counter-attack led by the influential Johnson resulted in Fulham's second. Zamora's strike was parried by Krul directly into the path of Dempsey, who instinctively turned home from close range with his thigh. It was a true poacher's goal, and exemplified the type of season Dempsey was having. Everything he touched turned to goals that year, racing to the position of fan favourite amongst the supporters at The Cottage.

Up 2-1, Fulham poured attack upon attack on the Newcastle back-line. The third goal was the same combination, with Zamora releasing Dempsey through on goal, and the American fired home with a low shot into the bottom left hand corner. Next it was Zamora's turn to get in on the goals. Johnson drew yet another penalty, and Zamora smashed it straight down the middle to give the Whites a three goal cushion.

Hatem Ben Arfa grabbed a consolation goal for Newcastle, but Dempsey finished off the perfect day for Fulham by completing his hat trick in some style. Murphy scooped a lovely through ball to the American and he did well to head the ball into his path and slide the ball in the back of the net to make it 5-2. The Whites were rampant, led by the unstoppable Clint Dempsey.

As Fulham fans take a moment and reminisce about that brilliant day at the Cottage four years ago, they will remember what this club used to be. Fulham used to be a tough place to go, and Craven Cottage was a fortress that the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United, and Chelsea all feared to visit. Fulham boasted some of the best attacking talent in the league with Dempsey, Zamora, Johnson, and Duff. And with the ageless Danny Murphy pulling the strings in midfield, Fulham were a side no one looked forward to playing.

Yet nowadays, Fulham is a shadow of its former self. Mired in the bottom half of English football's second tier, victories such as the one Fulham achieved four years ago look further away than ever. Something must be done to take this historic football club back to where it belongs – firmly established in the top flight. For now however, all one can do is remember the good old days, and few matches were better than Fulham 5-2 Newcastle.