Friday Fulham Stuff - 14/06/19...

[WhiteJC]

West Ham and Crystal Palace interested in £30m-rated striker

West Ham and Crystal Palace are interested in signing Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic this summer, according to The Mirror's transfer blog (12/6, 21:14).

The 24-year-old was an important player for Fulham last season and scored eleven goals in 37 Premier League appearances for the Whites, although he was unable to save them from relegation.

Fulham are bracing themselves for bids for the Serbian this summer, following their relegation to the Championship and have already identified Newcastle's Dwight Gayle and Middlesbrough's Britt Assombalonga as potential replacements.

The Mirror's transfer blog (12.16, 21:14) claims that Fulham have placed a £30million price tag on the striker, but that has not deterred the likes of West Ham and Crystal Palace, with Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen also interested.

Mitrovic scored twelve goals in 20 appearances for Fulham in 2017-18, after joining on loan from Newcastle halfway through the season, helping them win promotion from the Championship via the play-offs, before he joined the Whites on a permanent deal for a reported £22million last summer.

The Verdict

Mitrovic is a fantastic player and it will be a big task for Fulham to keep hold of him this summer, following their relegation back to the Championship.

I'm sure the striker will feel that he is more than good enough for the Premier League and he could be tempted by a move to West Ham or Crystal Palace.

The good news for Fulham is that £30million would allow Scott Parker to find a good replacement and considerably strengthen his squad in other areas, as he looks to build a team capable of winning automatic promotion next season.

Both Gayle and Assombalonga score goals for fun in the Championship and they'd both be great signings for Fulham, as they look to bounce straight back straight away with promotion.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/west-ham-and-crystal-palace-interested-in-30m-rated-striker/

[WhiteJC]

The opening day and other key dates for Charlton, Fulham, QPR and other EFL clubs in 2019/20

There are several key dates in the season for clubs in EFL, from the fixture release day to the opening weekend, final day and the play-offs

The countdown to the new English football season is on, with the Premier League fixtures for the 2019/20 campaign being released this morning (Thursday).

Teams in the English Football League season will have to wait another week for the release of their fixtures though, with the EFL fixtures being released next Thursday at 9am.

But already attention has turned to the 2019-20 season, with anticipation rising, ahead of what is set to be another dramatic campaign.

Indeed, it won't be long until the players are back in pre-season ahead of the campaign, which begins in August.

And here are all the key dates you need to know ahead of the new campaign for clubs outside of the Premier League, including the likes of Cardiff City, Fulham and Huddersfield Town, who were relegated from the top flight.

EFL

The 72 clubs in the three divisions of the EFL will be able to map out their seasons on Thursday June 20 when the fixtures for the 2019-20 season are released at 9am. This is one week after the release of fixtures for the clubs in the Premier League, on Thursday, June 13 .

The new EFL season begins on the weekend of Saturday, August 3, with a live game likely to kick off the new season on Friday, August 2 .

The play-offs

The play-offs will be played across two weekends in May due to Wembley's commitments to the 2020 European Championships.

The League Two final will take place on Saturday May 16, 2020 , with the League One play-off final taking place on Sunday May 24 and the Championship play-off final on Monday May 25 .

The FA Cup

The world's oldest football cup competition will start in August, with the extra preliminary round, with teams from non-league competing in several qualifying rounds to try and reach the first round proper, when Football League teams from League Two and League One join the fray.

The round dates have not yet been confirmed by the FA, but the first round proper is likely to take place in early November.

Championship and Premier League sides enter the competition at the third round stage, which will take place in early January, with the final at Wembley in May 2020.

The Carabao Cup

The Carabao Cup will begin in August, with the first round set to take place in the week commencing August 12.

The final will take place at Wembley on Sunday March 1, 2020 .

The EFL Trophy

The EFL Trophy will begin in the week commencing September 2 , and the final is set to take place at Wembley on Sunday April 5, 2020 .



https://www.football.london/championship/opening-day-key-dates-efl-16387270

[WhiteJC]

League lowdown: Fulham

We look at our 2019/20 opposition.

One of the most exciting days in the football calendar- fixture release day, is nearly upon us as we find out when and where Leeds United will be playing next season.

Fixtures for the 2019/20 Sky Bet Championship campaign will be announced online at www.leedsunited.com at 9:00am on Thursday 20th June.

Ahead of the fixtures being released, we are bringing you the lowdown on each of the opponents we will be facing in the division next season with our league lowdown.

Name: Fulham

Nickname: The Cottagers

Founded: 1879

Stadium: Craven Cottage

Stadium capacity: 25,700

Distance from Elland Road: 197 miles

Manager/head coach: Scott Parker

2018/19 league position: 19th (Premier League)

2018/19 top league goal scorer: Aleksandar Mitrovic (11)

2018/19 average league attendance: 24.371

2019/20 Championship title odds: 8/1

2019/20 Championship relegation odds: 40/1

Previous encounters: 55

Leeds United wins: 22

Draws: 15

Fulham wins: 18

Last time at home: Leeds United 0 Fulham 0- Tuesday 15th August (Sky Bet Championship)

Last time away: Fulham 2 (McDonald 33, Mitrovic 63) Leeds United 0 – Tuesday 3rd April 2018 (Sky Bet Championship)

Did you know: Fulham were the second London club to turn professional after Arsenal.

Gold Memberships for the 2019/20 Sky Bet Championship campaign are now on sale, giving you a host of benefits such as: priority bookings period for home tickets, exclusive retail offers and much, much more.  Click the image below to secure your Membership now!




https://www.leedsunited.com/news/a-z/21919/championship-a-z-fulham

[WhiteJC]

Fulham looking to sell midfielder this summer – Won't be asking for 'colossal' fe

Spending large sums of money on players last summer to attempt to stay in the Premier League, Fulham's plan backfired, and they're heading straight back down to the Championship.

The season was quite the disaster, bettered only by Huddersfield, who had one of the worst campaigns in the history of the competition, and now there's some assets to get rid of.

Among those appears to be André-Franck Zambo Anguissa, for whom the Cottagers paid €30m to Marseille last season.

The 23-year-old failed to have the desired impact in Fulham's midfield, and even if Scott Parker continued to start him until the very end, his future at Craven Cottage is very shaky.

Foot Mercato in France claim the relegated side want rid of the Cameroon international, as he doesn't feature in their plans for the Championship.

Furthermore, Fulham aren't expected to ask for a 'colossal' price despite paying a hefty fee for him last year.

The French website state a lot could end up resting on the player, who signed a four-year contract with an option to extend for another.



http://sportwitness.co.uk/fulham-looking-sell-midfielder-summer-wont-asking-colossal-fee/

[WhiteJC]

11 goals: Exciting West Ham target profiled

Aleksandar Mitrovic isn't short of suitors this summer, with West Ham, Crystal Palace and Fenerbahce all said to be interested, according to The Mirror's transfer blog (12.16, 21:14).

Bayer Leverkusen are another club said to be monitoring the striker, which means Fulham face a tough fight if they are to keep for life in the Championship.

The Serbian is clearly too good for the second tier. He was instrumental in firing The Cottagers to promotion in 2018, scoring 14 goals in 17 Championship games.

He was a handful at times in the Premier League last season too, and scored 11 goals in the league – a pretty good return in a struggling side.

However, that form doesn't go unnoticed and it is little surprise that he has caught the attention of so many. With so many interested Fulham have set his asking price at £30 million, so it could be a deal that works out for them too, having signed him for £22m last summer.

Here, we look back at his statistics from the 2018/10 Premier League season, and take a look at what he has to offer those clubs interested in signing him.



He averaged around a goal every three games for Fulham, which is impressive given his head could have dropped once it was realised that Fulham were heading down.

Mitrovic is not just about goals however and he continues to display that. He won an average of 6.5 aerial duels per game, which is terrific for s striker coming up against some of the best defenders in the world.

One area of his game that will need improving is his passing. It is imperative that top-level strikers are able to link play well. Mitrovic is simply not this type of player though, and what he lacks in technique he makes up for with his physical, battering-ram like presence.

A pass success rate of 72% will need vast improvement if he is to improve in the Premier League or at Leverkusen, a team which likes to play passing football. His average pass per game rate of 27.7 also suggests he needs to be involved more, although the caveat to this is that Fulham spent the majority of their matches on the back foot.

Despite that, he still contributed with three assists and averaged 3.5 shots per game, which indicates he comes to life in the opposition penalty area.

If Mitrovic can continue to bully defences whilst adding some finesse to his game then he will be an excellent addition for any of the aforementioned clubs.

He would be a big loss to Fulham as he would undoubtedly score goals for fun in the Championship, but he is a Premier League player and Fulham will be able to use the funds from his transfer to strengthen again.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/11-goals-exciting-west-ham-target-profiled/

[WhiteJC]

Opinion: Here are 3 things that Fulham must do to make an immediate return to the Premier League

Fulham opinion: 3 ways the Cottagers can make an immediate return to the PL

A truly disappointing campaign for Fulham saw them return to the Championship after just getting promoted last season.

The Lilywhites' performances this season saw two managers sacked before they appointed former player Scott Parker as their permanent manager before the last game of the season.

Fulham now have another daunting campaign ahead of them in the Championship, where anything but promotion back to the Premier League will be considered as a failure. Scott Parker has a huge summer window ahead of him before he starts his first full season as a manager.

Here are three ways in which Fulham can make an immediate return to the Premier League:

Proper replacement for Aleksandar Mitrovic

Fulham's top scorer this season, Mitrovic carried the Cottagers this season but his performances proved to be insufficient as they went down. The
Serbian has been linked with a move away to much bigger clubs and he has the quality to produce the goods in the Premier League.

Scott Parker needs to bring in an able replacement, who will guarantee as many goals as Mitrovic scored for them in their last incredible season in the Championship.

Mitrovic was one of the biggest reasons why Fulham returned to the Premier League and they will need a similar player to bring them back again next season.

Keep hold of Jean Michael Seri

A lot was expected of the Ivorian when he made the shock switch from Nice last summer. However, Seri took time to settle into the English game and his performances went from strength to strength as the season progressed.

Seri will have a major say in Fulham's season if they manage to keep hold of him beyond the end of the summer transfer window. The Ivory Coast international will provide incredible balance in central midfield and his quality could help the Whites go a long way into making a return to the Premier League.

Re-sign Calum Chambers on loan

A shining light in Fulham's dark season, Chambers' performances won him the player of the season award. The Arsenal man was immense for the Lilywhites in the centre of the park this season and Fulham will have their midfield secured if they can bring him back.

Chambers' chances of regular game time at Arsenal are highly unlikely considering the quality at the Emirates. Fulham should take full advantage of the situation and bring their best player from last season back to Craven Cottage this summer.



https://soccersouls.com/money-cant-guarantee-you-a-place-in-a-premier-league-3-ways-fulham-can-make-an-immediate-return/

[WhiteJC]

What does the future hold for Jean Seri and Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa?



The midfield pair endured miserable campaigns for Fulham but is there light at the end of their seemingly dark tunnels?

Deadline-day transfers are usually met with a level of skepticism owing to the accompanying panic-buy price tag. However, when a club opts to smash their transfer record on the final day of the window, the average critic is inclined to believe the necessary due diligence was undertaken before the splurge.

Nonetheless, there were doubts when Fulham opted to sign Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa for £30 million in the closing stages of last year's summer window, given he'd only just played his first breakthrough season in 2017/18 with Olympique de Marseille.

It was their 15th signing of the window and Slavisa Jokanovic faced the uphill task of getting his side to play with the required synergy in a short space of time.

Another top signing for the Cottagers was Jean Michael Seri. The deep-lying playmaker arrived from another French side, OGC Nice after impressing over a couple of seasons.

At the time it seemed a coup, given how highly rated he was, while taking into consideration a plethora of top guns had been linked with him previously.

In 2017, Barcelona legend Xavi spoke glowingly about Seri when Los Cules were reportedly interested in acquiring the midfield controller , labeling him as "having Barca's DNA."

"When I was told that a Nice player was nicknamed the 'African Xavi', I followed him very closely," the legendary Spaniard began. "I watched matches and a ton of videos.

"I didn't know him... and I was spellbound: I'm not used to seeing such a talent in midfield. Short passing, long passing, tactical intelligence, distance shooting, personality, organizing play, that last magic pass... 'madre mia!'

"He would do very well at Barca, he can play anywhere in the middle," Xavi continued. "Seri is fantastic.

"I can say, without hesitation, that he has what we call 'Barca DNA'."

Glowing praise indeed!

However, both moves turned out to be monumental disasters, with neither player finding his feet in West London.

The entire side often looked shambolic and out of touch with each other, with several players appearing to be rabbits in headlights.

Their constant defensive mistakes typified their mediocre season, while they didn't fare better going forward either.

With the side looking extremely disjointed, critics constantly rehashed the Londoners' decision to splurge on so many players in the summer.

It wasn't criticism in hindsight either, owing to the fact that many people had misgivings about their transfer activity after gaining promotion.

The West London club made a glut of signings, thereafter sidelining several stars that had helped secure their playoff win over Aston Villa in May 2018.

Zambo Anguissa and Seri suffered their fair share of criticism too, mainly because of their hefty transfer fees. After a bad game against Huddersfield Town in November, the former was mocked by fans of his former club Marseille, who saw the funny side of supposedly fleecing Fulham.

Seri, on the other hand, was ridiculed for failing to justify the effusive praise he'd been showered with before moving to England.

It didn't help that Fulham panicked by sacking the guy who'd overseen their return to the big time in November.

Claudio Ranieri replaced the departed Jokanovic but results remained mixed.

Scott Parker was to come in for the jettisoned Italian in the closing weeks of the campaign before relegation was sealed after one season back in the top flight.

For the pair of Anguissa and Seri, the upheaval in the dugout summed up a miserable and muddled first year in England.

The changes were unsettling too, with players needing to learn new tactical schemes throughout the season.

The African duo had been signed by Jokanovic for a purpose - and while they may have struggled even when the Serbian was in charge, one suspects he had a plan in mind for the pair - but that was defeated with the change in strategy.

It remains to be seen if Parker will discard the high-earning pair this summer or take the risk of retaining them for the fight to secure instant promotion.

After one year in England, they'll be more acclimatized now and are likely to fare better in their second year at the club, albeit in the hurly-burly of the Championship.

There's also the fear that failing to cash in on them now could see their stock plummet even further if their promotion push doesn't turn out as expected.

The Championship is a different kettle of fish, and failure to adapt to a difficult division could leave Parker stuck with unwanted players on high wages while playing second-tier football.

Be that as it may, it's a risk they have to take, as it may be a bit too reactionary to pull the plug on their time in England after a sole season.

However, Seri doesn't seem intent on sticking around going by reports a few months back that he had no plan to play outside the Premier League.

Both players are predicted to play vital roles in their countries' Africa Cup of Nations campaigns which begin in Egypt on June 21.

Anguissa is expected to feature prominently in Clarence Seedorf's Cameroon team as they seek to retain a title they won in Gabon two years ago. Not part of the side that secured a fifth African crown, he'll be making his Afcon debut for the Indomitable Lions.

Seri is also likely to star in Ibrahim Kamara's Ivory Coast midfield as they aim to do better than 2017's group-stage exit.

After so much promise, last season represented disappointing years for the midfielders at Fulham.

Nevertheless, sparkling displays at the Nations Cup finals could prompt a revival in the pairs' fortunes as they attempt to find a bit of light and hope after enduring forgettable individual seasons in West London. 



https://www.goal.com/en/news/what-does-the-future-hold-for-seri-and-zambo-anguissa/1hwbrgmtnmx2w1lz5jvdvpy48r