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Friday Fulham Stuff - 12/07/19...

Started by WhiteJC, July 12, 2019, 07:57:23 AM

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WhiteJC

Exclusive: Fulham plan to rehabilitate striker Aboubakar Kamara into squad despite training-ground arrest in January

Aboubakar Kamara (right) clashes with Aleksandar Mitrovic Credit: getty images

Fulham have decided to rehabilitate striker Aboubakar Kamara with the Frenchman part of pre-season training and a plan in place to reintegrate him into the squad, lifting the club ban implemented following his arrest at the training ground in January.

The 24 year-old is with the squad for pre-season training in Portugal, and looks set to start the Championship season for the club next month, having previously looked like his career at Craven Cottage was over for good. In the midst of a relegation fight at the start of the year, he was banned indefinitely by Fulham and dispatched on loan to Turkish top-flight club Yeni Malatyaspor following his arrest for an alleged assault at Motspur Park.

It is understood that Scott Parker, the newly-installed manager at Fulham, and several members of the senior playing squad were consulted about Kamara's potential return, including star striker Aleksandar Mitrovic. It was with Mitrovic whom Kamara was alleged to have had an argument during a squad yoga session in early January when the former was ticked off by his strike partner for not listening to the teacher.

The situation reportedly escalated after that and on Jan 21, Kamara allegedly clashed with a member of staff at Motspur Park as he sought out senior club officials to remonstrate with them over his exclusion from first-team training. At that point he had been left out of two matchday squads by then manager Claudio Ranieri and told to train with the club's Under-23s. The Metropolitan police were called to Motspur Park and Kamara was arrested on suspicion of actual bodily harm and criminal damage.

Kamara has always had an ally at the club in vice-chairman Tony Khan, the director of football operations and son of Shahid, the owner. On Saturday, Kamara came on as a substitute in a game against Cambridge United at Motspur Park. His previous game for the club before that was the 4-1 defeat to Arsenal on New Year's Day, in which he scored.


Fulham players intervene in a penalty row between Aboubakar Kamara and Aleksandar Mitrovic Credit: action images

The club believe that, despite a modest return of three Premier League goals, Kamara's pace offers them a different kind of attacking dimension. He featured regularly in their Championship promotion season of 2017-2018 and started the play-off final against Aston Villa in May last year.

Kamara's relationship with Ranieri was effectively ended when the former Fulham manager reportedly said that he "wanted to kill" his then player after Kamara ignored team orders and insisted on taking a penalty against Huddersfield Town in December. Kamara clashed on the pitch with Mitrovic, the designated penalty-taker, and team-mates tried to intervene. Kamara missed the subsequent penalty. He scored one goal in 10 games at Malatyaspor. Fulham next play a friendly against Porto in the Algarve on Tuesday.



https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2019/07/11/fulham-plan-rehabilitate-striker-aboubakar-kamara-squad-despite/

WhiteJC

Leeds United, Stoke City, Cardiff City and QPR busy but Fulham, Swansea City, Derby and Reading quiet - every completed Championship signing

Every signing completed in 2019 Championship summer transfer window

Championship clubs' pre-seasons are well underway as the 2019/20 campaign kicks off in under five weeks.

The transfer frenzy in the Championship is now in full swing and deals are being confirmed across the board, with the window officially open.

Domestically, the transfer window opened on Thursday May 16th and FIFA's international window opened on June 8th, giving clubs two months to complete their activity before the Championship's deadline on August 8th.

Here are all of the completed deals so far.

Barnsley

In: Mike-Steven Bahre (Hannover 96, free), Luke Thomas (Derby, undisclosed), Mads Juel Andersen (AC Horsens, undisclosed), Brad Collins (Chelsea, free), Mallik Wilks, (Leeds, £1.2m)

Out: Ryan Hedges (Aberdeen, free), Zeki Fryers (Swindon, free), Adam Davies (Stoke City, free), Liam Lindsay (Stoke City, £2m), Ethan Pinnock (£3m)

Birmingham City

In: Gary Gardner (Aston Villa, undisclosed)

Out: Jota (Aston Villa, undisclosed), Greg Stewart (Rangers, free), Beryly Lubala (Crawley, free), Che Adams (Southampton, undisclosed)

Blackburn Rovers

In: Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough, free), Bradley Johnson (Derby County, free), Tom White (Gateshead, undisclosed)

Out: Paul Downing (Portsmouth, free)

Brentford

In: Kane O'Connor (Hibernian, undisclosed), Christian Norgaard (Fiorentina, undisclosed), Ethan Pinnock (Barnsley, £3m), Pontus Jansson (Leeds United, undisclosed), Mathias Jensen (Celta Vigo, undisclosed)

Out: Jack Bonham (Gillingham, free), Yoann Barbet (QPR, free), Daniel Bentley (Bristol City, undisclosed)

Bristol City

In: Daniel Bentley (Brentford, undisclosed), Sammie Szmodics (Colchester United, undisclosed), Tommy Rowe (Doncaster, free), Rene Gilmartin (Colchester United, undisclosed), Tomas Kalas (Chelsea, undisclosed)

Out: Lloyd Kelly (Bournemouth, £13m), Mo Eisa (Peterborough, undisclosed), Joe Morrell (Lincoln, loan) Frank Fielding (Millwall, free)

Cardiff City

In: Joe Day (Newport, free), Curtis Nelson (Oxford United, free), Will Vaulks (Rotherham, £2.1 million)

Out: Stuart O'Keefe (Gillingham, free)

Charlton Athletic

In: Macauley Bonne (Leyton Orient, undisclosed), Tom Lockyer (Bristol Rovers, free), Chuks Aneke (MK Dons, free), Ben Purrington (Rotherham, undisclosed)

Out: Patrick Bauer (Preston North End, undisclosed), Joe Aribo (Rangers, free), Tarique Fosu (Oxford, undisclosed)

Derby County

In: Graeme Shinnie (Aberdeen, free)

Out: Luke Thomas (Barnsley, undisclosed), Craig Bryson (Aberdeen, free), Bradley Johnson (Blackburn Rovers, free)

Fulham

In: None

Out: None

Huddersfield Town

In: Isaac Mbenza (Montpellier, undisclosed), Tommy Elphick (Aston Villa, free), Josh Koroma (Leyton Orient, undisclosed), Reece Brown (Forest Green, undisclosed), H Herbert Bockhorn (Borussia Dortmund II, undisclosed)

Out: Jonas Lossl (Everton, free), Chris Lowe (Dynamo Dresden, undisclosed), Erik Durm (Eintracht Frankfurt, free)

Hull City

In: Matt Ingram (QPR, undisclosed), Tom Eaves (Gillingham, free)

Out: None

Leeds United

In: Jack Harrison (Manchester City, loan), Ben White (Brighton, loan), Liam McCarron (Carlisle United, undisclosed), Jack Clarke (Tottenham, loan) Helder Costa (Wolves, loan), Rafa Mujica (Barcelona, free)

Out: Paudie O'Connor (Bradford City, undisclosed), Jack Clarke (Tottenham, £10m), Mallik Wilks (Barnsley, £1.2m)

Luton Town

In: Callum McManaman (Wigan, free), Martin Cranie (Sheffield United, free), Ryan Tunnicliffe (Millwall, free)

Out: James Justin (Leicester City, undisclosed), Jack Stacey (Bournemouth, undisclosed)

Middlesbrough

In: Tomás Mejías (Omonia Nicosia, free)

Out: Stewart Downing (Blackburn, free), John Obi Mikel (Trabzonspor, free), Alex Pattison (Wycombe Wanderers, free)

Millwall

In: Frank Fielding (Bristol City, free), Matt Smith (QPR, Undisclosed), Connor Mahoney (Bournemouth, loan)

Out: David Martin (West Ham, free), Lazar Stojsavljevic (Newport, free), Tom King (Newport, free), Steve Morison (Shrewsbury, loan), Lee Gregory (Stoke City, free), Ryan Tunnicliffe (Luton, free), Connor McLaughlin (Sunderland, free)

Nottingham Forest

In: Sammy Ameobi (Bolton, free), Alfia Semedo (Benfica, loan), Tiago Silva, Feirense, undisclosed), Youri Ribeiro (Benfica, undisclosed), Albert Adomah (Aston Villa, free), Arijanet Muric (Man City, loan)

Out: Alex Iacovitti (Oldham, free), Adam Crookes (Port Vale, free), Hillal Soudani (Olympiakos, undisclosed), Apostolos Vellios (Atromitos, undisclosed)

Preston North End

In: Patrick Bauer (Charlton, undisclosed)

Out: Michael Howard (Morecambe, free)

Queens Park Rangers

In: Liam Kelly (Livingston, undisclosed), Lee Wallace (Rangers, free), Yoann Barbet (Brentford, free), Luke Amos (Tottenham, loan), Matt Smith - midfielder (Man City, loan), Dominic Ball (Rotherham, free)

Out: Matt Ingram (Hull, undisclosed), Jordan Cousins (Stoke City, free), Matt Smith - striker (Millwall, undisclosed)

Reading

In: None

Out: Lewis Ward (Exeter, undisclosed), Jaakkola (Bristol Rovers, free)

Sheffield Wednesday

In: Julian Borner (Arminia Bielefeld, free)

Out: None

Stoke City

In: Adam Davies (Barnsley, free), Nick Powell (Wigan, free), Jordan Cousins (QPR, free), Lee Gregory (Millwall, free), Stephen Ward (Burnley, free), Liam Lindsay (Barnsley, £2m)

Out: Erik Pieters (Burnley, £1m)

Swansea City

In: Jake Bidwell (QPR, free)

Out: Tyler Reid (Swindon, free), Daniel James (Manchester United, £15m)

West Brom

In: Craig Dawson (Watford, undisclosed)

Out: Kyle Howkins (Newport, free), Craig Dawson (Watford, undisclosed)

Wigan Athletic

In: David Marshall (Hull City, free)

Out: Shaun MacDonald (Rotherham, free), Callum McManaman (Luton, free), Nick Powell (Stoke City, free), Jamie Walker (Hearts, free) , Devante Cole (Motherwell)



https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/leeds-united-stoke-city-cardiff-16566470

WhiteJC

Kamara to make Fulham first-team return

Fulham are planning to use Aboubakar Kamara in their first-team squad this season despite his previous disciplinary issues, according to a Daily Telegraph report this morning.

The French forward was shipped out to Turkey on loan in January after falling out with previous head coach Claudio Ranieri having insisted on taking a penalty ahead of designated taker Aleksandar Mitrovic. Kamara then got involved in an altercation with Mitrovic during a training ground yoga session and was arrested after an alleged assault on a club member of staff in a subsequent incident.

Kamara, whose cause has been championed by the club's director of football and vice chairman Tony Khan, had been invited back to train with club's first team on their return to training for the summer. The forward's future was the subject of discussions between Scott Parker and senior first-team players and he has been allowed to return to the senior set-up as a result.

Fulham are light on striking alternatives to Mitrovic, who signed an extended contract with the club last week. Kamara could also be utilised as a right winger, where he was effective towards the end of Fulham's promotion campaign under Slavisa Jokanovic, with the Whites also without first-team depth in that position. He appeared off the bench as Fulham were beaten 3-1 by Cambridge United in their first pre-season friendly and is expected to feature when Parker's side take on Porto next week.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2019/07/kamara-to-make-fulham-first-team-return/


WhiteJC

Huw Jennings' Honorary Award

Academy Director Huw Jennings has been awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Sport by Southampton Solent University.

Jennings was presented with the accolade following his excellent work with young players to develop some of the highest calibre of talent.

Since joining Fulham after his stint at Southampton, he has overseen the hottest prospects to come out of the academy including the likes of Patrick Roberts, Moussa Dembélé, Marcus Bettinelli and Ryan Sessegnon.

Congratulations from everyone at Fulham, Huw!



http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2019/july/11/huw-jennings-honorary-award

WhiteJC

Liverpool fee for Fulham teenager Harvey Elliott to be decided by tribunal

Fulham's compensation from Liverpool for Harvey Elliott is set to be decided by tribunal after the two clubs failed to agree a fee, according to Sky sources.

It is understood Elliott is set to join Liverpool on youth terms after rejecting the offer of a new contract at Craven Cottage.

The 16-year-old holds the record as the youngest player to play in the Premier League, and has attracted interest from other top European clubs such as Barcelona, Real Madrid and RB Leipzig.

He made his Fulham debut aged 15 in the Carabao Cup last September and became the youngest ever Premier League player in a 1-0 defeat against Wolves in May, when he was aged 16 years and 30 days.

Fulham boss Scott Parker, who gave Elliott his Premier League debut last season, described him as an 'unbelievable talent'.

Sky Sports News also believe Elliott will join up with Liverpool's first team, although FA rules dictate U17s cannot sign professional deals.



https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11669/11761148/liverpool-fee-for-fulham-teenager-harvey-elliott-to-be-decided-by-tribunal

WhiteJC

Elliott fee to be set by tribunal

A tribunal will set the fee Liverpool must pay Fulham for their teenage winger Harvey Elliott after the two sides failed to agree the terms of the impending transfer.

Elliott has rejected Fulham's offer of a scholarship and is poised to move to to the European champions to continue his career. The 16 year-old had made his senior debut against Millwall in the League Cup last September and Scott Parker handed him a Premier League debut when he came on as a late substitute at Wolves in May. Elliott also came off the bench on the final day of the season against Newcastle, but Fulham's hopes of holding onto one of their brightest talents faded when the youngster made clear he wouldn't sign a new deal at Craven Cottage.

Instead, the England under-17 youth international had a choice of several offers from across Europe to further his development, with the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid and RB Leipzig interested in his services. Elliott, a boyhood Liverpool fan, who became the youngest Premier League player in history at the end of last season, is rumoured to be in line to receive at least £60,000-a-week when he moves onto a professional deal after his 17th birthday.

The exact amount of compensation that Liverpool will have to pay Fulham for Elliott's service remains to be seen as very few teenagers had made a comparable move having played Premier League football.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2019/07/elliott-fee-to-be-set-by-tribunal/


WhiteJC

Five clubs showing interest in Fulham winger Ryan Sessegnon?

Fulham winger Ryan Sessegnon has reportedly emerged as a summer transfer target for as many as five clubs.

After Fulham's relegation from the Premier League, Sessegnon is expected to leave Craven Cottage this summer with just one year left on his contract.

Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have both been linked with the England Under-21 international, although it now appears that three more teams are monitoring the situation.

According to The Telegraph, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain and RB Leipzig are also considering making an offer for the prospect, who can also play at left-back.

The Cottagers are allegedly ready to do business for a fee in the region of £25m, a valuation which is unlikely to deter any of the interested sides.

The 19-year-old contributed two goals and six assists from 35 outings in the Premier League last season.



https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/man-utd/transfer-talk/news/five-clubs-showing-interest-in-sessegnon_364666.html

WhiteJC

Liverpool target Harvey Elliott watches Reds face Tranmere in pre-season friendly

Liverpool began their pre-season campaign with a trip to take on Tranmere at Prenton Park

Harvey Elliott watched on from the stands as Liverpool faced Tranmere in their first pre-season friendly.

Jurgen Klopp's men returned to action at Prenton Park just a month after beating Tottenham to win the Champions League.

Klopp named a youthful side against their League One opponents with Liverpool having made just one summer signing.

Sepp van den Berg arrived from PEC Zwolle earlier this summer but was ineligible to play as he awaits FIFA clearing.

He made the trip to watch his new teammates in action and Liverpool's next signing was also in attendance.

The Reds are set to swoop for 16-year-old Elliott, who made his debut for Fulham last season.

Real Madrid and PSG had also been keen on Elliott but he has opted to move to Anfield.

He is expected to conclude a deal in the coming days and is set to go straight into Jurgen Klopp's first-team despite not turning 17 until next April.

The deal sees Liverpool continue their transfer strategy of signing younger talents who can develop, a far cry from their lavish spending spree a year ago.

Klopp brought in Alisson, Fabinho and Naby Keita last summer but will not spend big in an attempt to topple Man City.

Liverpool are likely to focus on bringing in another more versatile signing to strengthen in the attacking wide areas but will only spend around £20m.

That search may intensify after the injury to Xherdan Shaqiri while Liverpool's first-choice front three have all been involved in summer tournaments and won't return until well into pre-season.



https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/liverpool-target-harvey-elliott-watches-17991297

WhiteJC

£5m man given chance to impress at Fulham


Aboubakar Kamara is set to be given a second chance by Scott Parker following his return to the club after a loan spell in Turkey last season, report The Telegraph.

It is a shock change in stance from the club, who had banned him following his arrest at the training ground in January on suspicion of committing actual bodily harm and criminal damage.

In response he was banned from training and shipped out to Yeni Malatyaspor on loan, where he scored just one goal in 13 appearances.

The Turkish club was thought to be keen on taking him back on loan but a deal is yet to materialise, meaning Kamara will take part in pre-season training and join the club's training camp in Portugal.

Kamara, who signed for Fulham for £5m in 2017,  has scored 12 goals in 50 appearances for The Cottagers, but his bustling style served them well in their promotion campaign in 2018 and he could be a useful option from the bench.

The Verdict

It is an interesting move from the club to give Kamara another chance, as it looked very unlikely that he would play for the club again given his indiscipline and the fact that he hasn't particularly impressed since joining.

However, it is another sign that Scott Parker is beginning to build team cohesion and install belief back into the players. Aleksandar Mitrovic has already been persuaded to sign a new five-year deal and if Kamara is accepted back into the squad he could have a successful campaign next season.

Alternatively, the club will stand a better chance of selling him if he is fit and firing in pre-season. He needs to find some form in order to attract suitors, and it could just be a case of putting him in the shop window.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/5m-man-given-chance-to-impress-at-fulham/


WhiteJC

City survival lessons: More than big money flops to blame for Fulham's failure

In the final part of our mini-series looking at lessons Norwich City can learn from the teams relegated from the Premier League last season, David Freezer finds out where it all went wrong for Fulham.

Fulham's huge financial outlay following promotion to the Premier League has been widely scoffed at following relegation. There is more to their failure than just money though.

The Cottagers beat Aston Villa 1-0 in the 2018 play-off final and proceeded to spend in excess of £100million to try and build a top-flight squad for Slavisa Jonkanovic.

Around £20m was spent on Alfie Mawson - more than Norwich City will be spending overall this summer - while £22m made striker Aleksandar Mitrovic's loan from Newcastle permanent and £25m of owner Shahid Khan's billions was spent on Nice midfielder Jean Michael Seri.

A club record £30m went to Marseille on deadline day for midfielder André Zambo Anguissa, who started 16 league games during an injury-hit season - yet Fulham finished 19th, eight points from safety and with the worst defensive record of 81 goals conceded.

Cottagers fan Jack Collins, who presents on the Fulhamish podcast and Bleacher Report's Football Ranks show, explains: "There's way more to it than that and any Fulham fan would probably tell you the same. We had 16 senior players when we went up, so not even enough to field a team and a bench when we went up to the Premier League, with the amount of loans and Ryan Fredericks walking away at the end of his contract and going to West Ham.

"So we needed to spend and everyone always throws the £100million around but I think we probably needed to spend more.

"Not necessarily in one go but maybe the preparation should have been better when we got those loans in when in the Championship, we should have made sure that we had loans in them that made sure they could be made permanent and all those kind of things.

"So we spent about a quarter of that £100m on players that had already been there and bringing them back for the next season, obviously Aleksandar Mitrovic is the one that stands out.

"But equally with Matt Targett we were kind of held to ransom by Southampton, they wanted £20m for him all of a sudden and the board decided that it wasn't worth paying that, and fair play to them because that was a mad sum, although Targett's a good player.

"So we had to replace him and Fredericks on the other side and with full-backs being so key to the way we played, they were the important ones. We brought in what everyone was calling for, Premier League experience, in Timothy Fosu-Mensah, and that probably turned out to be the worst signing!

"So the £100m looks bad on paper but £25m was for Mitrovic, you'd say that's quite a wise investment. The only one that didn't really step up to the mark really was Seri - and he was arguably the one that everybody was most excited about.

"So it's hard in some ways to look at it as we got it wrong but equally sometimes it just doesn't click and it didn't for us."

Collins pinpoints a 2-2 draw at Brighton, when Fulham were 2-0 ahead with 25 minutes remaining, as something of a turning point in the mood around the club.

He added: "I remember saying at the time that if you'd have told me we'd get a point at Brighton, we would have taken it, but the team spirit and morale just seemed to collapse and then we had a really tough run.

"We started to struggle, the manager was sacked and it all sort of snowballed.

Jokanovic was sacked in November with his team bottom and with just five points from 12 games, with the eye-catching appointment of former Leicester and Chelsea boss Claudio Ranieri quickly in place.

The switch was fairly disastrous though and the Italian went in February with Fulham 10 points from safety with 10 matches left.

With relegation imminent, Scott Parker took over and has since been appointed permanently, after winning three of those 10 games.

While Collins points to summer signing Mawson's serious knee injury as damaging to the defence early on and key players Tim Ream and Kevin McDonald not being able to adjust to the Premier League, it was the lurch from Jokanovic's passing style to the defensive approach of Ranieri which claims much of his blame.

"There are factors outside of our control but ultimately we just didn't do enough and the big thing that will resonate in Norwich is that the manager does have to have the backing of the board - and Jokanovic did," he continued.

"But when we sacked him, we were probably right to when we did because he wasn't adapting, learning or moulding his game to fit the Premier League and it was costing us because we weren't able to defend.

"But what we did was go from one extreme to the absolute other by bringing in Ranieri, bringing in this defensively minded manager and we just didn't have the players to defend.

"Yes we needed to shore up at the back and I completely get that but at the same time you've got to temper that with the squad not being built to play on the counter-attack, with Mitrovic up front, who is hardly a bastion of lightning pace.

"So when they did switch the manager they weren't able to get someone who could take what Jokanvoic had built and mould it, instead it was a manager who wanted to keep clean sheets and there were five at the back.

"I could see what Ranieri was trying to do but it didn't make sense with the personnel we had and what we needed was someone of Jokanovic's mould, who believed in a passing style and that Fulham should try and dominate the ball when they could, but who was also able to say that your main job is to pass the ball out - but sometimes you have just got to keep out the opposition."



https://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/sport/norwich-city/norwich-city-survival-lessons-fulham-1-6156267