Wednesday Fulham Stuff - 20/11/19...

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Fulham Women: Heads Up

Fulham Women players Mary Southgate, Ella Meehan, Kate Foster, Bianca Underhill, Gemma Taylor, Lilly Lambird, Sophie Hudson, Rachel Woodland, Emma Marlow and Olivia Cole play a game of "Heads Up" describing their teammates.

Calling all Fulham fans! Show your support on Sunday 24th November as Fulham FC Women face Dulwich Hamlet at Motspur Park.

This match is an all-ticket event, with numbers limited.

Tickets are priced at just £2 for adults and free for under-18s.

Fans can secure their tickets now online and in person from the Fulham FC Ticket Office.



https://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2019/november/19/ffc-women-heads-up

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Don Goodman issues Friday night verdict as key Fulham man misses out

Don Goodman has stated that Fulham's chances of beating QPR on Friday have not been helped by Aleksandar Mitrovic's suspension.

The Serbian striker currently leads the way for goals in the division so far this season, however, he picked up his fifth yellow card of the season in the victory over Birmingham meaning he'll miss the fixture against QPR on Friday night.

The Cottagers have had a rather indifferent start to the season, and will probably feel they're slightly under-achieving what with the talent that is available to them in their squad.

Scott Parker's side need to build on the victory over Birmingham, especially at Craven Cottage, having suffered a 3-0 defeat to Hull the last time they played at home.

Goodman has expressed it won't be easy without Mitrovic, and that they have to find a way of scoring more goals.

Speaking to the EFL Podcast, Goodman said: "It will be difficult on Friday, he's a unique striker in terms of the physicality he brings to a team. Even with him over the last three games, there have been worrying signs from Fulham.

"Goals at the minute have just dried up a little and that has to change, but it won't be helped by Mitrovic missing the game due to suspension."

The Verdict

Mitrovic is a huge loss for Fulham, even if it's just for one game. It's quite a big one to miss, due to the rivalry between the two sides and where they both are in the current Championship table.

The striker is the best in the division, and if he keeps on scoring the way he is then he's going to romp home to the golden boot this season. Mitrovic is Premier League standard to many, and even missing him for this one fixture could be pivotal for confidence in the coming weeks.

However, it does offer an opportunity for Bobby Reid to come in and try his best to break his drought for the club.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/don-goodman-issues-friday-night-verdict-as-key-fulham-man-misses-out/

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Fulham ace shares amusing dressing-room video ahead of QPR clash

Fulham midfielder Thomas Cairney has taken to Instagram to share an amusing dressing-room video ahead of the Cottagers' clash with West London rivals QPR on Friday night.

Scott Parker's side can temporarily move into the Championship play-off places with a win over the Rs this Friday, while a success would also represent back-to-back wins for Fulham for the first time since early October.

The Craven Cottage outfit have experienced a mixed start to life back in the Championship following their relegation last term, but they are still competing at the top end of the table thanks to seven wins from their first 16 games.

The likes of Aleksandar Mitrovic and Cairney have been vital during many of Fulham's successes so far this campaign, and the latter has now taken to his Instagram account to provide a behind-the-scenes insight to the Cottagers' dressing room.

Cairney has shared a clip of a prank being played on full-back Steven Sessegnon, along with a caption jokingly suggesting the 19-year-old is being "bullied in the workplace" by his teammates.

Both Cairney and Sessegnon have been featuring regularly for Fulham this campaign, with the duo having made fifteen and eight appearances respectively, and they could both feature against the Rs on Friday.

The Verdict

Parker's side have made a solid if not spectacular start to life back in the Championship, but a victory over QPR on Friday would surely give the club a huge lift as the season's midway point draws closer.

Fulham would have perhaps been hoping to be sitting higher in the table at this stage of the season, but they are still very much in with a chance of achieving promotion this term if they can find a consistent run of form.

Cairney has been an extremely important figure for Fulham this term, while Sessegnon has also made an impact during his first full season in senior football, and this amusing video suggest he has now fully integrated into the squad.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/fulham-ace-shares-amusing-dressing-room-video-ahead-of-qpr-clash/

[WhiteJC]

FourFourDrew: Let's Get Ready To Rumble

What does Tony Khan's latest Twitter grapple say about his role and our club? And does it matter? Drew Heatley enters the ring to have his say.

Making his way to the ring, from St. Louis, Missouri, weighing 250lbs, he is the Viper – Randy Orton!

And his opponent, from Champaign, Illinois, weighing 150lbs, he is the Fulham FC Director of Football – Tony Khan!

Just another Tuesday, then.

The Twitter beef between our Tone and the 13-time world champion and purveyor of the RKO is the maddest off-pitch Fulham story since Craig Kline was reported as allegedly mooting the idea of him against Slav in a sumo wrestling match.

Khan took on WWE superstar Randy Orton this week.

It's the perfect tonic for the final few days of another long international break, but it's bound to get many of the fans up in arms. So many are already sceptical of TK's ability to juggle his role as Director of Football Operations at our club with his position as Senior Vice President, Football Technology & Analytics at the Jacksonville Jaguars and his latest project – founder and president of US wrestling promotion AEW.

And it's not difficult to understand why. These are three key roles at three huge organisations – and there are only 24 hours in a day. TK defended his position to us during the summer.

"Even when I'm not in England I'm constantly looking at players for Fulham, the wage bill and deals that could be made. Even if I'm in Jacksonville or at an AEW show, please know I'm always thinking about Fulham, I'm constantly looking for ways to make this club better."

Khan gave an interview to Fulhamish during the summer.

The crux of the argument around TK's time really comes down to how much work he actually does at the club on a daily basis. The official site says he "liaises across all aspects of the Club in order to build, recruit and retain a strong and competitive squad". And from what he said to us during the summer, he's backed by fairly extensive teams ("I'm in charge of the scouting department and the statistics department – I oversee them both"). I find it very hard to believe that our entire transfer strategy is left in his hands alone, be he the owner's son or not. Shad Khan didn't earn his billions by being careless.

There's also the broader question of how his relationship with the world of wrestling reflects on us, a football club flirting with the Premier League. Professional wrestling is a divisive industry. It's scripted; the match results and feuds are pre-determined, but it presents itself as a legitimate sport. It's hard for some to reconcile with that. In reality, it's no different to a soap opera – an EastEnders, or in US terms, a The Young and the Restless.

Khan's AEW is the latest company to challenge WWE in the wrestling world.

TK's Twitter spat today, however, isn't pre-planned or scripted. And one fan described it as "not exactly the professionalism expected of a Fulham official".

For me, it's all just showbiz. We look back on the 1970s as a Hollywood era on the banks of the Thames. The larger-than-life Tommy Trinder; George Best, Rodney Marsh and Bobby Moore all plying their trade at the Cottage. It's part of the fabric of our club. The era of Al Fayed was similar; bringing Michael Jackson to the Cottage to brighten up a Division Two fixture against Wigan Athletic – not to mention the subsequent statue. Fulham FC has always been synonymous with some of the ol' razzle dazzle. 

But we as football fans generally don't like our club being sent up as a figure of fun. The MJ statue boiled a lot of piss. I can't help but look at it from a different perspective. It's funny, it's quirky, in a way – it's Fulham.

Interestingly, on TK's bio on the official site, there's no mention of AEW. We have the Roar of the Jaguars strut their stuff on the pitch, but it's unlikely we'll see Chris Jericho sink a little bit of the bubbly on the Cottage balcony any time soon. Is that a conscious decision from those upstairs? Who can say.

For now, TK's tweets only serve to reignite the debate over how he divides his time. And it'll do him no favours in bringing some of the more sceptical FFC fans onto his side – particularly with the January transfer window looming.

But in an era where the country's going down the pan and the long, dark nights are here, it might be a good idea to learn to be able to laugh at ourselves. Otherwise life will become quite the struggle.

If ya smell what the Padre's cookin'.



https://www.fulhamish.co.uk/post/2019-11-19-fourfourdrew-lets-get-ready-to-rumble/

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"Fulham could lose Mitrovic in January", warns legendary striker

Gordon Davies thinks Mitro is in danger of outgrowing the Championship

It hasn't been plain sailing for Scott Parker's Fulham so far in the Championship. Many tipped them for automatic promotion, but they find themselves mired in seventh, one place outside the play-offs.

The one truly bright light has been star striker Aleksandar Mitrovic. He leads the Championship scoring charts with 12 goals, and some Fulham fans are concerned that the Serbian forward could be attracting admiring glances from other clubs.

Speaking to Love Sport Radio, Fulham's all time record scorer Gordon Davies said that if Mitrovic maintains his hot streak, Parker could struggle to hold on to him in the January transfer window.

"Although we had a terrible season last year, Mitrovic was still knocking the goals in. He carries that forward line to a certain extent, because he's the main man banging goals in on a regular basis".

"You look at his international goal record, and he's close to being Serbia's record goal scorer at 25 years of age. When he plays for Serbia he gets top quality service, great crosses, and to be perfectly honest with you the amount of headers he scores at international level is ridiculous".

"I worry that if we're not there or thereabouts in January, he's getting far more recognition now, and Fulham will be hard pressed to hold on to him, even though he's signed a five year deal and says he's happy here".

"If we're not in or around that top six, we may be waving goodbye to Mitrovic.

Listen to Love Sport Radio on DAB Digital Radio, Online, smart speaker on via the Love Sport Mobile App.



https://www.lovesportradio.com/news/love-sport-exclusives/fulham-could-lose-mitrovic-in-january-warns-legendary-striker/