Saturday Fulham Stuff (11/08/18)...

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Fulham team news: Two defenders unavailable vs Palace, debutants ready

Fulham kick-off their first Premier League campaign in four years with a local derby on Saturday, as they welcome Crystal Palace to Craven Cottage.

The Championship play-off winners have brought in 12 new faces and spent over £100million, as they aim to avoid the drop and secure their top flight status.

Fulham's line-up will be littered with debuts, however they will be without two key defenders for their season opener.

Denis Odal is suspended for the opening two fixtures, while Alfie Mawson misses out with a knee injury which will sideline him until September.

According to a match preview from The Guardian, Aleksandar Mitrovic is set to lead the Fulham line after making a permanent move to the club.

Goalkeeper Fabri is touted to make his first start, while Callum Chambers will make his debut at the heart of the defence.

Deadline day signing Joe Bryan is expected to slot straight into the left-back position, with Jean Michael Seri also in line for a first Fulham outing in midfield.

Andre Schurrle has swapped Borussia Dortmund for Craven Cottage, and will likely be part of a three-pronged attack.

Fulham's last spell in the top flight ended in 2014, as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home to Saturday's opponents Palace.

Now, on their return to the Premier League, their new-look side will be aiming to get off the mark with a victory and lay a marker down for the rest of the season.



https://ninetyminutesonline.com/fulham-team-news-two-defenders-unavailable-vs-palace-debutants-ready/

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'Stunning summer signings have got the Fulham fans excited ahead of Crystal Palace clash'

Our Fulham correspondent for football.london gives his thoughts on the Cottagers

Crystal Palace face newly-promoted Fulham at Craven Cottage in their opening game of the new Premier League season this afternoon (Saturday).

The Eagles will make the short trip to west London to take on the Cottagers, and ahead of the game, our football.london correspondent for Fulham, Ryan O'Donovan, gave us his views on Palace's opponents, below.

Fulham are back in the Premier League, but what is the mood like ahead of the new season among supporters?

It's one of excitement heading into the new season - Fulham are back in the Premier League for the first time in four years, and if you add that to the amount and calibre of signings the club are making, you can't blame the fans for looking forward to it.

The likes of Andre Schurrle, Jean-Michael Seri and Aleksandar Mitrovic has got fans believing they can challenge for more than just safety this season.

What has the summer recruitment been like and how do you see the new signings fitting in?

The summer recruitment was slow to get going, but the Fulham fans were rewarded for their patience with some stunning signings.

The previously mentioned Seri and Schurrle, as well as the likes of Alfie Mawson and Calum Chambers have all been signed and shows Fulham's statement of intent this season. Some of these players should be at top Premier League clubs, so the recruitment can only be described as stunning.

Fulham played an attractive style of football on their way to promotion last season, do you envisage much the same now, or will there be changes?

I think it will be pretty much the same.

Slavisa Jokanovic built the style built on the players they have and the signings they've added fit in with that mould, so they'll continue that attractive style of football. I do think, however, that they'll be more compact off the ball than they have been previously as they won't see as much possession as they did in the Championship in a fair few games.

What are the realistic ambitions for the season ahead?

Fans are optimistic, but I think the priority still has to be safety. Once they reach that magic 40 points target they can go for further targets, but it's vital they stay up this season.

Who are the key men to look out for?

As always, Ryan Sessegnon and Tom Cairney will be players to keep an eye out for, but Seri looks a class above in pre-season and will be one for Palace fans to watch (and fear) while Schurrle is obviously a World Cup winner.

Mitrovic has the ability to be a focal point for Fulham's attacks and will cause problems for the Palace defenders.

What are the key strengths and weaknesses of this Fulham side?

Their strengths are their attractive style of football, which not only dominates opponents but also means they attack at will. That attack is their strength - they look frightening going forward and can make things happen all over the pitch. However, defence remains a concern and the side look suspect to crosses into the box.

What sort of game are you expecting on Saturday?

I'm expecting Fulham to come out all guns blazing in their first game back at Craven Cottage in the Premier League, while I expect Palace to sit back and try to soak up some of the Cottagers' pressure.

I do think there will be some nerves in the Fulham camp, especially with the lack of experience in places.

What is your score prediction?

I'm going to sit on the fence here and go for a 1-1 draw - I think Fulham will take the lead but nerves and frailties at the back will see them concede in the second half.



https://www.football.london/crystal-palace-fc/fixtures-results/stunning-summer-signings-fulham-fans-15010442

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Crystal Palace team news: Hodgson could be without five for Fulham meeting

Crystal Palace will kick their 2018/2019 Premier League campaign off with a London derby against Fulham on Saturday.

The Eagles make the short journey across the capital and head to Craven Cottage where they meet one of the league's new-boys.

Roy Hodgson will be looking to get their season started off quickly, as they look to improve on last year's impressive showing, following the disastrous start the club had.

However, it appears that Crystal Palace could be without five of players for their clash with Fulham, per the club's official website.

Hodgson, who just recently signed a contract extension to remain with the Selhurst Park outfit, has confirmed that Scott Dann will remain unavailable for the clash as he continues to recover from a knee injury he picked up on New Year's Eve.

Connor Wickham and Jonny Williams are also out of the match with slight strains, leaving Palace short of options.

It is also believed that two of their newest additions will unlikely make an appearance for the club, with Max Meyer and Jordan Ayew not considered to travel.

The Germany international midfielder, who is considered a real coup for the club following his arrival from Schalke on a free transfer, last played a competitive match in April and will be working hard on his fitness.

Ayew completed a last-minute switch from Swansea City on deadline-day, so it is unlikely he will be ready to take to the field and could make an appearance for the club in their next match, which is a home clash against Liverpool.



https://ninetyminutesonline.com/crystal-palace-team-news-hodgson-could-be-without-five-for-fulham-meeting/

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Mark Lawrenson states his prediction for Fulham's opening day clash with Crystal Palace

Former Liverpool defender has his say on Craven Cottage clash

Mark Lawrenson reckons it will be a good atmosphere at Craven Cottage for Fulham's return to the Premier League, as they entertain Crystal Palace this afternoon (Saturday).

But the former Liverpool defender says it is hard to know what to expect from the newly-promoted Cottagers, who have signed 12 players this summer.

However, he thinks Fulham will get off to a winning start against the Eagles.

Writing in his weekly predictions feature for the BBC website, Lawrenson says that keeping hold of Wilfried Zaha in the summer was "massive" for Palace, because he makes such a difference to the Eagles.

And he says it will also be interesting to see how new Palace midfielder Max Meyer gets on in the Premier League, although he is unlikely to feature at Craven Cottage as he continues to build up his fitness.

But Lawrenson has predicted a 2-1 win for Fulham on the opening day, adding that he is backing the Cottagers to win their first top flight game since 2014.

His opponent for the weekly predictions feature, The Inbetweeners actor Joe Thomas, says the London derby is hard to call, and has gone for a 1-1 draw.



https://www.football.london/crystal-palace-fc/fixtures-results/mark-lawrenson-prediction-fulham-palace-15015131

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Wolves, Fulham and Cardiff: the best-prepared trio of promoted clubs ever?
The three teams to come up from the Championship are all on different paths, but all look capable of staying up and maybe doing a lot more besides


Wolves, Fulham and Cardiff City celebrate promotion. Composite: Getty Images, Action Images

The summer is ending, the new season is here, and three fresh clubs are joining the Premier League, charged with the innocent hope that they can be the latest to establish themselves in the glitziest division of them all. In August, it is easy to feel that way without any logic, the cynicism from last season washed away.

But this time, might the good vibes from Wolves, Fulham and Cardiff be genuinely justified? Is this the best-prepared trio to ever join the Premier League? Usually the sole aim of new clubs arriving in the top flight is survival, but you could make a pretty convincing case that at least two of the new class could not only stay up, but finish in the top 10. Wolves have augmented a squad that was probably already Premier League standard, Fulham have had arguably the most eye-catching transfer window in the whole division, and Cardiff are managed by Neil Warnock, so anything could happen.

Sights are certainly set high. "We're looking at doing more than surviving," Wolves' managing director, Laurie Dalrymple, said this summer. "I think the strategy we've had has been about building a squad and a structure we think is going to be viable to take us further, beyond promotion." No "we'll take each game as it comes, we're just aiming for 40 points" here.

The money helps. It is not a startling revelation that there is more cash in the Premier League than the rest of European football. But occasionally a reminder of just how much is handy: when the English transfer window closed on Thursday, the 10 clubs promoted to the top divisions of Germany, France, Italy and Spain had spent around £40m put together this summer. Cardiff, Fulham and Wolves spent close to £200m.

That money has allowed Fulham to sign Jean Michaël Seri, who last summer nearly joined Barcelona. Wolves have made a few of their high-value loan signings from last term their own as well as attracting Rui Patrício and João Moutinho and breaking their transfer record (again) for Adama Traoré. Even the relatively parsimonious Cardiff have made their second and third most expensive signings (Josh Murphy and Bobby Reid), but they have some longer-term plans for the Premier League windfall.

"The club don't want do the same as they did last time [they were in the Premier League], when they threw so much money at it and had a lot of debt," Warnock says of Cardiff's 2013-14 season in the top flight, when they spent lavishly on players such as Gary Medel and Andreas Cornelius. "We're looking to build the club far more than last time. There are plans for a new training ground, for example.

"When Burnley went up a few years ago they went down again straight away. But they built a new training complex and it gave them the building blocks to come back up again, and they've never looked back. Although we don't want to go down, we've got to make sure the club is in a better place."

Burnley are the model for a team like Cardiff but they are also an example of why all three clubs should be optimistic. Without wishing to diminish the fine work of Sean Dyche, that Burnley came seventh while going two months in the middle of the season without winning a game perhaps says more about the mediocrity in the rest of the division than about how brilliant they were. Burnley finished 21 points behind Liverpool in fourth place. They also finished 21 points ahead of Swansea, who were relegated.

The morass of teams between the top six and the drop zone was, last season, a largely indistinguishable mush. Was there a huge difference between the teams that went down and those that finished in "comfortable" mid-table? A bit, but not much. Were West Ham appreciably better than Swansea? Were Southampton, who survived by three points, significantly worse than mid-table Bournemouth? Not really.

On paper some of those teams have improved: West Ham have reacted to the dithering of last summer and spent decisively, Brighton have made some exciting moves and Southampton will be better for having Mark Hughes from pre-season. But the point is that none of the promoted three, particularly Wolves and Fulham, should be scared by any of their competitors.

Those two already have terrific sets of players: for Wolves, the brilliant Rúben Neves sometimes looked like he was playing a different sport to most of his Championship peers, while the forward Diogo Jota and the frequently overlooked defender Conor Coady complete their strong spine.

Fulham have Tom Cairney and the player everyone should be extremely excited about seeing this season, Ryan Sessegnon. They also have a manager unwilling to compromise on his approach. "We are not going to change the style," Slavisa Jokanovic told Marca. "We are not going to hit balls or park the bus. It would not be a good plan. The Premier League is very demanding, we need to change things. But we're not going to give up our style."

Those strong bases have been added to nicely. In addition to Seri, Fulham have brought back the bulldozing Aleksandar Mitrovic, taken Calum Chambers, André Schürrle and Leander Dendoncker on loan from Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund and Anderlecht respectively and picked up Alfie Mawson from Swansea. Patrício and Moutinho are high-class additions to an already high-class Wolves side, the former arriving as one of nine Sporting players who rescinded their contracts following a turbulent season that culminated in around 50 masked intruders breaking into the club's training ground and assaulting players and staff. Portugal's goalkeeper at the World Cup was thus signed for nothing, although Sporting still say they are seeking compensation.

As for Cardiff, Reid is a good purchase from Bristol City, and at £3.5m goalkeeper Alex Smithies could be a bargain. But despite the riches of the Premier League, they know how quickly a club in their position can get blown away by more established buyers.

"At the end of last season, we had a look at [Colombia midfielder] Jefferson Lerma, and we were told he would cost about £8m," says Warnock. "Now Bournemouth are paying £25m for him."

But Warnock recognises that whoever they buy, the season is likely to be a struggle. "We realise it's going to be a hell of a difficult job," he says. "When every bookie in the country has you down to finish bottom ..." – he breaks off to laugh heartily – "... not many give us hope! We will enjoy it, because we shouldn't really be here. Instead of fearing it, we've got to enjoy every minute."

These are three very different clubs approaching life back in the top flight in very different ways. But it is interesting that they all seem to be looking beyond mere survival. Wolves want a status befitting their ambition. Fulham want substance without compromising on style. Cardiff are trying to build something for the long term.

Last season all three promoted sides avoided relegation, only the second time that has happened in the last 15 years. Don't bet against this trio repeating the feat, and perhaps achieving even more besides.



https://www.theguardian.com/football/2018/aug/11/wolves-fulham-cardiff-premier-league-prospects

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Crystal Palace defender warns to expect the unexpected from Fulham on the opening day

Palace defender outlines his hopes for the season and discusses opening day clash at Fulham

Crystal Palace defender James Tomkins says it is difficult to know what to expect from Fulham on the opening day.

The Eagles travel to west London this afternoon (Saturday) to face the newly-promoted Cottagers in the hosts' first game back in the Premier League for four years.

The Cottagers have invested heavily over the summer, with 12 players signing for the club since they won promotion via the Championship play-offs in May.

Among them are World Cup winner Andre Schurrle, highly-rated Frenchman Jean-Michael Seri and Manchester United defender Timothy Fosu-Mensah, who was on loan at Palace last season and will now spend the coming season on loan at Fulham.

Crystal Palace defender James Tomkins says it is difficult to know what to expect from Fulham on the opening day.

The Eagles travel to west London this afternoon (Saturday) to face the newly-promoted Cottagers in the hosts' first game back in the Premier League for four years.

The Cottagers have invested heavily over the summer, with 12 players signing for the club since they won promotion via the Championship play-offs in May.

Among them are World Cup winner Andre Schurrle, highly-rated Frenchman Jean-Michael Seri and Manchester United defender Timothy Fosu-Mensah, who was on loan at Palace last season and will now spend the coming season on loan at Fulham.


Some of Fulham's new signings this summer.

"We expect a tough game, they will be up for it. Fulham are back where I feel they belong, especially when I was growing up."

However, Tomkins says he feels Palace are in a good place to build on last season, when they finished in 11th position.

And the former West Ham man says it is imperative that Palace start this season better than the last, having not picked up a single point in their opening seven games last season.

"We need to have a stronger start, for starters," he said.

"For sure, we do not want a situation like last season with no goals or points after seven games.

"What happened last season is obviously something we never want to see again.

"We want to start strongly. The lads are more together than they were last year. Players have gone, players have come in and hopefully they can blend in straight away."

So does Tomkins believe a top half finish is achievable for the Eagles this season?

"It is a goal you need to aim for. We want to build on last year," he said.

"If top half is realistic by the time Christmas comes, then that is what we will aim for."



https://www.football.london/crystal-palace-fc/fixtures-results/palace-defender-expect-unexpected-fulham-15014765