Tuesday Fulham Stuff (15/11/16)...

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham player of the month explains why his international career is far from dead
Whites man of the moment believes he has a a golden chance to once again soar as a Super Eagle

Sone Aluko says he still nurtures hopes of adding to his nine caps for Nigeria.

Fulham's player of the month for October says he hasn't given up on playing for the land of his father again - even though it's almost two years to the day since he notched his last of international appearance - a 2-2 draw with South Africa, in which Aluko scored both goals for the Super Eagles.

As Aluko logically points out, a top international side isn't going to pick you if you're not a regular at you're not a regular with your club - as was the case at Hull for the 27-year-old.


Winner: Sone Aluko

It hardly helps the cause either if the man who selected you in the first place has died in the meanwhile.

Aluko said: "International career? It's not over in my head.

"But the last coach to pick me passed away. The new coach doesn't know me as a person or a player, so it's only now I've got a chance to show what I can do,

"When you're on the bench at Hull you aren't going to get picked for a national team.

"If I keep playing well then maybe my chances will come again.

"Sure it's been frustrating, but now I'm in a good place, my career can kick on from here."


http://www.getwestlondon.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/fulham-player-month-explains-international-12170018?

[WhiteJC]

 
Aluko aims to revive Nigeria career
by DAN on NOVEMBER 14, 2016

Sone Aluko hasn't given up hope of reviving his international career – and hopes his fine recent form for Fulham could earn him a recall to the Nigerian squad.

The Fulham forward was voted the Championship's player of the month for October after a series of energetic displays and, although it has been two years since his last international appearance, Aluko is still optimistic that his club displays could help force his way back into the Super Eagles picture. He concedes that being a squad player at Hull City certainly harmed his international career but believes playing regularly – and well – with the Whites could give Salisu Yusuf something to think about.

Aluko, who hasn't featured for the national team since scoring twice in a 2-2 draw with South Africa, told Get West London:

International career? It's not over in my head. But the last coach to pick me passed away. The new coach doesn't know me as a person or a player, so it's only now I've got a chance to show what I can do.

When you're on the bench at Hull you aren't going to get picked for a national team. If I keep playing well then maybe my chances will come again. Sure it's been frustrating, but now I'm in a good place, my career can kick on from here.


http://hammyend.com/index.php/2016/11/aluko-aims-to-revive-nigeria-career/?

[WhiteJC]

 
Kebano On Target

Neeskens Kebano scored the equalising goal as the Democratic Republic of Congo came from behind to beat Guinea 2-1 on Sunday.

In their capital city of Conakry, Guinea took the lead midway through the first half when Seydouba Soumah converted from the penalty spot, but two goals in three minutes after the break turned the World Cup Qualifier on its head.

In the 54th minute, Botuli Bompunga's tackle high up the pitch ran kindly for Kebano, who let the ball pass him before unleashing a stunning first time shot that flew into the top left hand corner.

There was a touch of class to the winner moments later, too, when Everton's Yannick Bolasie rifled an effort high into the net from a tight angle.

Kebano was then withdrawn with 25 minutes to play, and Congo held on to maintain their place at the top of Group A, where they're above Tunisia on goal difference.


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2016/november/14/kebano-on-target?

[WhiteJC]

 
Owls resume with trip to Fulham

The Owls resume their Sky Bet Championship campaign this weekend with a trip to Fulham, following the final international break of the calendar year.

The Craven Cottage outfit have won back to back games heading into the break and are level on points with Wednesday, just two outside the top six.

The Owls enjoyed the upper hand in this fixture last season, winning both league fixtures and also triumphed in the FA Cup third round clash at Hillsborough.

A special strike from Ross Wallace separated the two sides at the Cottage back in January.

A capacity following of 3,900 will make the trip this weekend and swfc.co.uk, along with the club's official social media channels, will have all the build-up throughout the week.


Read more at http://www.swfc.co.uk/news/article/2016-17/owls-resume-with-trip-to-fulham-3415971.aspx#iAUru2oS4cSXO5HB.99

[WhiteJC]

 
Villareal midfielder linked with move to Fulham

Villarreal's Alfred N'Diaye has been linked with a move to Fulham according to a report from Spanish publication Don Balon.

N'Diaye had been a big summer signing for Villarreal and was expected to make a real impact this season but things haven't worked out that way. The man who signed him, Marcellino, was sacked just a few weeks after bringing him in and the new head coach Fran Escriba isn't a fan of the player. This means his time on the pitch has been limited and he's only ended up making five appearances so far this season.

And when N'Diaye has been on the pitch he has underperformed, most notably in the Champions League qualifiers when they lost to Monaco over two legs, sending them out of the competition before it got going properly. And with Escriba not really seeing him burst into his first team plans anytime soon, he is willing to let him go in the upcoming January transfer window.

And N'Diaye's representatives believe he would be best off he returned to England, where he once played for Sunderaland, so they have been offering his availability to Fulham. The Cottagers' coaching staff are believed to be impressed with the videos they have been shown of him when he played for Real Betis.

And they will be thankful that Villarreal have given up any hope that they will be recouping all of the £6.2m they spent on him in the summer, though they may only let him go out on loan with an option to buy in this window.


http://the72.co.uk/68213/villareal-midfielder-linked-with-move-to-fulham/?

[WhiteJC]

 
Record Breaking Season

Record breaking season for EFL clubs as fan numbers go up and ticket prices go down.

More and more people are attending fixtures in the EFL as clubs continue to attract growing numbers of season ticket holders, while also providing increasingly competitive pricing options for adult and family match day tickets.

The EFL now has more than 500,000 season ticket holders for the first time in living memory - and the numbers are increasing year-on-year as its 72 clubs think of innovative ways to attract fans through their turnstiles.

The landmark figure is representative of a growing appetite for live football. It is also illustrative of a greater focus being placed on concessionary and family ticket options.

Clubs in the Championship have the largest share of season ticket holders, with 326,000 between them.
The remaining 176,000 are split, with League One and League Two clubs having 117,000 and 59,000 respectively.
Overall, season ticket holders have increased steadily in recent seasons, with overall growth of 26% from 398,390 in 2007, to 502,826 this season.
In addition, match day ticket costs across all ticket options are decreasing too.

An analysis of the official gate receipts submitted to the EFL reveals that the average admission price received by all clubs was £13.11 per supporter. This compares with £14.08 from 2014/15 and is triggered by a decrease in match day prices across the three divisions.

EFL Clubs are also providing increasingly flexible pricing options for concessionary and family tickets, offering heavily discounted prices for youngsters. Over 50 clubs provide tickets for £5 or less, while a further 15 teams across League One and League Two allow access for free.

It is this kind of innovative thinking that is helping the EFL to thrive according to CEO, Shaun Harvey.

He said: "It is testament to the dedication and innovative approach clubs are taking to recruit season ticket holders that we are able to celebrate this collective landmark for the EFL.

"It is clear to see that football has never been so popular, nor has it ever been so competitively priced with great value for money being provided across the three divisions.

"It's particularly pleasing to see so many new ideas being implemented to encourage families to attend and ensure that kids are given a taste of live EFL football at an early age – an experience and a thrill that we hope will stay with them for a lifetime."

Clubs in the Championship charged, on average, £355 for their cheapest, full price adult season ticket for the 2016/17 season. This represents a cost of £15.43 per match for a full paying adult. However, many clubs charge less with the likes of Fulham and Wigan making season tickets available for less than £260 – a maximum per match cost of £11.30.

Further value for money is available in League One and League Two with clubs such as Charlton Athletic having tickets available from £175 while Leyton Orient offer a price of £190.

An increase in the range of family tickets being made available is also helping to improve value for money for parents.

There has been a 37% increase of junior season ticket holders over the past 10 years across the EFL.
More than 20% of all EFL club match attendees are now under 16.


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2016/november/14/record-breaking-season?

[WhiteJC]

 
Following Fulham Away

Details of the cheapest train tickets available for Fulham's upcoming away matches.

Brighton & Hove Albion – Saturday 26th November (3pm)

If you're travelling from Victoria, the cheapest way to get to Brighton is by purchasing a ticket for the 13.20, which gets you in at 14.17. This is priced at £5, and you can pick up your return leg ticket for £8.50 which departs Brighton at 28 or 58 past the hour.

A cheaper alternative now would be to travel from London Bridge where you can get an open return ticket for £10.60. This option is also available from St Pancras, but the train takes considerably longer (90 minutes in total).

The closest station to the Amex Stadium is Falmer, but in previous years your match ticket has entitled you to free travel between Brighton and Falmer.

Cheapest round-trip option: £10.60

Wolverhampton Wanderers – Saturday 10th December (3pm)

There are three outbound trains from Euston which are priced at £15.50; 11.23, 11.43 and 12.43. However, the latter only gets you into Wolverhampton 23 minutes before kick-off.

Coming home the cheapest option is the 18.00 for £11, if you don't mind changing at Birmingham New Street. The 17.45 and 18.17 are priced at £17.50, while the 18.45 is £15.50.

Cheapest round-trip option: £26.50

Reading – Friday 30th December (8pm)

Fans can purchase open returns for our final fixture of 2016, so for £18.20 you can travel on any service to and from Paddington. These run regularly and only take around half an hour, but Reading station is then approximately three miles from the Madejski Stadium.

Please note it is considerably cheaper to buy a return ticket than two singles.

Cheapest round-trip option: £18.20

Burton Albion – Tuesday 31st January (7.45pm)

The latest cheap outbound ticket to Burton-on-Trent from St Pancras is priced at £9 and departs at 13.46, with a change at Derby.

Trains do not run late enough to return the same day so a stopover would be required. The cheapest option coming home the next day is the 10.21, which also costs £9.

Cheapest round-trip option: £18

All prices are correct at the time of writing.


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2016/november/14/following-fulham-away?

[WhiteJC]

 
The Craven Corner: Is It Time To Be Optimistic Again?

Fulham are back in action this weekend as they prepare to take on last year's play-off finalists, Sheffield Wednesday.

After back to back wins for the Whites, Fulham should be full of confidence heading into the next two fixtures against teams who are expected to be in the promotion race this season; Sheffield Wednesday and Brighton. Both sides have more than enough quality to destroy anyone in this division, and if Fulham make it 4 wins on the spin, there's no reason why Jokanovic's men can't achieve a top six finish this season.

Despite Sheffield Wednesday losing their last two games, we can't expect it to be an easy game. With the likes of Fernando Forestieri, Steven Fletcher, Gary Hooper & former Fulham loanee, Urby Emanuelson amongst their ranks they possess more than enough attacking talent to cause any defence trouble. Even though they have underachieved so far this season, they are just waiting to hit form and hopefully that doesn't come against us.

What will be interesting from the next two games is that both Brighton and Sheffield Wednesday play in a very similar style to ourselves; they both want to dominate possession and when it comes down to match day it will be a massive battle in midfield. With Jokanovic seemingly finding his best system in recent weeks involving a midfield trio of Cairney, Johansen and McDonald, all three will have to continue their stellar displays should we want to continue our winning run. Since the change in system, we have been able to get the very best out of McDonald and Johansen, which in turn allows Cairney to operate freely in the centre of the park and when Tom is allowed to play in those gaps, chances are created by the bucket load.

At the start of the season, I predicted it would be a season of transition for Fulham and I'd be happy with a top twelve finish considering the past 2 years. As much as I don't want to get carried away and start looking too hopeful, there's no denying the quality we have in this squad. Without a shadow of doubt, it's our strongest squad we've had in the Championship and would probably outclass the squad that got us relegated from the Premier League. Should we manage to keep our stars injury free and in form, there's no reason why we can't achieve big things this season. Yes, last month's form was tough but we are going to have those games as the squad settles, but now that they are settling down and getting used to the style, we are seeing big rewards.

Another example of that was the performance in the derby against Brentford. A game that comes with massive pressure due to the importance of it to the fans, and it was a game the squad didn't shy away from. The team played as a unit from back to front, and on another day Fulham could have scored 4 or 5 with the chances that were being carved out. I know I've sung the praises of midfield and attacking talent in recent weeks, I can't overlook the back to back clean sheets either.

With the return of Ryan Fredericks & Tomas Kalas, Fulham's back line looks immensely stronger. In my eyes, Kalas has been a complete revelation in defence for Fulham. The Czech from Chelsea has all the attributes to succeed in the modern game. He's quick to cover ground and he's exceptional with the ball at his feet too. While, I hope and pray that there's a chance for him to be at Fulham for the long-term, I'm very happy he's here for this season at least and will be key to this season's final position in the table. As for Fredericks, it's great to see him back in the side. Arguably the fastest player we've had at the club, his work ethic and influence at both ends of the pitch is key to the way Jokanovic wants to play. With the pace Fredericks possesses, it allows him to join in with the likes of Piazon & Aluko in wider areas, forcing a 2 on 1 situation against their full-back, or if their winger tracks back too, creates space inside for the likes of Johansen and Cairney to operate. While, Denis Odoi created headlines earlier in the season, Fredericks seems to have the starting spot on the team sheet for now, being the better all-round full-back that is required.

There's definitely a lot of reasons to be optimistic at Fulham right now and I'm really excited to see how strongly we finish 2016. I'm also really excited for the Brighton game as it's a fixture I've missed, so I'm looking forward to finally visiting the Amex!


http://cottagersconfidential.sbnation.com/2016/11/14/13621538/the-craven-corner-is-it-time-to-be-optimistic-again

[WhiteJC]

 
Fulham defender says he uses international breaks to smell the coffee
Whites right back is a man on a mission to explore all the bits of London where there are no tourists

Denis Odoi is wasting no opportunity to see a bit more of his new country than scenery viewed en route to an away game.

The Fulham defender reckons getting out and about suits him - although he steers clear of the obvious attractions.

"I have days off so I've seen a little bit of London, not parts like the London Eye and things," he said.

"I went to Shoreditch, Brick Lane because that is more my kind of thing. I like it over there – I like coffee bars.

Odoi hopes he will win his way back i nto the first team starting Saturday with a home game against Sheffield Wednesday.

But at least Saturday last was a chance to avoid a bit of downtime.

The Championship is hard, so whenever you have a weekend off you enjoy it," he said.

"We do hard sessions even during the break, but we were fine with it. We want to keep a winning run going as long as possible and that doesn't just happen.

"It needs you to work for it."


http://www.getwestlondon.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/fulham-defender-says-uses-international-12171302?

[WhiteJC]

 
International Round-Up

Floyd Ayité scored for Togo on Friday, but they still needed a last gasp strike to draw 2-2 with Comores in Casablanca.

The Fulham winger opened the scoring in the 37th minute, but a Ben Mohamed El Fardou double put the islanders on the brink of an unlikely victory, only for substitute Agbeniadan Komlan to spoil the party in the second minute of stoppage time.

In World Cup qualifying, Stefan Johansen played the full 90 minutes of Norway's 2-1 defeat in the Czech Republic.

The hosts – for whom Tomas Kalas was an unused substitute – took the lead early on through Michal Krmencik, an advantage they doubled moments after the interval through Jaromir Zmrhal.

AFC Bournemouth striker Josh King reduced the deficit late on, but Norway were unable to salvage anything from the game and so slip below their opponents in the Group C standings.


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2016/november/11/international-round-up-friday?

[Roberty]

Following Fulham Away

Details of the cheapest train tickets available for Fulham's upcoming away matches.

Brighton & Hove Albion – Saturday 26th November (3pm)

If you're travelling from Victoria, the cheapest way to get to Brighton is by purchasing a ticket for the 13.20, which gets you in at 14.17. This is priced at £5, and you can pick up your return leg ticket for £8.50 which departs Brighton at 28 or 58 past the hour.

A cheaper alternative now would be to travel from London Bridge where you can get an open return ticket for £10.60. This option is also available from St Pancras, but the train takes considerably longer (90 minutes in total).

The closest station to the Amex Stadium is Falmer, but in previous years your match ticket has entitled you to free travel between Brighton and Falmer.

Cheapest round-trip option: £10.60

This is not correct - if you are coming from London - the free travel zone starts at Haywards Heath - buy a ticket to there and show your match ticket to complete the journey to Falmer - via Brighton

This is the map and instructions from the Seagulls site
http://www.seagulls.co.uk/documents/travel-guide-aug15-with-changes229-3021752.pdf

[fulhamben]

Record Breaking Season

Record breaking season for EFL clubs as fan numbers go up and ticket prices go down.

More and more people are attending fixtures in the EFL as clubs continue to attract growing numbers of season ticket holders, while also providing increasingly competitive pricing options for adult and family match day tickets.

The EFL now has more than 500,000 season ticket holders for the first time in living memory - and the numbers are increasing year-on-year as its 72 clubs think of innovative ways to attract fans through their turnstiles.

The landmark figure is representative of a growing appetite for live football. It is also illustrative of a greater focus being placed on concessionary and family ticket options.

Clubs in the Championship have the largest share of season ticket holders, with 326,000 between them.
The remaining 176,000 are split, with League One and League Two clubs having 117,000 and 59,000 respectively.
Overall, season ticket holders have increased steadily in recent seasons, with overall growth of 26% from 398,390 in 2007, to 502,826 this season.
In addition, match day ticket costs across all ticket options are decreasing too.

An analysis of the official gate receipts submitted to the EFL reveals that the average admission price received by all clubs was £13.11 per supporter. This compares with £14.08 from 2014/15 and is triggered by a decrease in match day prices across the three divisions.

EFL Clubs are also providing increasingly flexible pricing options for concessionary and family tickets, offering heavily discounted prices for youngsters. Over 50 clubs provide tickets for £5 or less, while a further 15 teams across League One and League Two allow access for free.

It is this kind of innovative thinking that is helping the EFL to thrive according to CEO, Shaun Harvey.

He said: "It is testament to the dedication and innovative approach clubs are taking to recruit season ticket holders that we are able to celebrate this collective landmark for the EFL.

"It is clear to see that football has never been so popular, nor has it ever been so competitively priced with great value for money being provided across the three divisions.

"It's particularly pleasing to see so many new ideas being implemented to encourage families to attend and ensure that kids are given a taste of live EFL football at an early age – an experience and a thrill that we hope will stay with them for a lifetime."

Clubs in the Championship charged, on average, £355 for their cheapest, full price adult season ticket for the 2016/17 season. This represents a cost of £15.43 per match for a full paying adult. However, many clubs charge less with the likes of Fulham and Wigan making season tickets available for less than £260 – a maximum per match cost of £11.30.

Further value for money is available in League One and League Two with clubs such as Charlton Athletic having tickets available from £175 while Leyton Orient offer a price of £190.

An increase in the range of family tickets being made available is also helping to improve value for money for parents.

There has been a 37% increase of junior season ticket holders over the past 10 years across the EFL.
More than 20% of all EFL club match attendees are now under 16.


http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2016/november/14/record-breaking-season?

nothing to do with the fact that both villa and newcastle just recently joined the league then