Monday Fulham Stuff - 11/05/20...

[WhiteJC]

Michael Hector issues social update that Fulham fans are likely to love

Fulham will be hoping that they can continue to keep the pressure on the top-two in the Championship when football returns to our lives.

The Cottagers are currently sat third in the second tier standings, and are six points adrift of West Brom with just nine games remaining in this year's campaign.

Scott Parker's side have shown their quality on numerous occasions this term, and will be keen to put together a positive run of results when the sporting calendar gets back underway.

However, that push for promotion has been put on hold for the time being, with recent off-the-field events bringing an abrupt halt to proceedings.

No scheduled return date has been set in the EFL as of yet, as the relevant authorities continue to monitor the off-the-field situation over the next few weeks.

One player that has been impressive since signing for the Scott Parker's Fulham side is Michael Hector, who has made 13 senior appearances since arriving from Chelsea in January.

Hector recently took to Instagram to reveal that he's missing competitive action with the Cottagers, and made the hilarious statement in saying that he's excited to kick the ball into the Thames.

The Verdict:

I think the majority of football fans will agree with him in saying they're missing competitive action.

Hector has been brilliant since coming into the starting XI, and he'll be a key player to rely on for Scott Parker heading into the final nine games of this year's campaign.

I'd be surprised if Fulham were able to catch West Brom and Leeds before the end of the season, but I think they've got enough quality in their side to win the play-offs and return to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

Hector will be hoping he can prove a point in the top-flight as well, after struggling for any sort of opportunity with Chelsea earlier in his career.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/michael-hector-issues-social-update-that-fulham-fans-are-likely-to-love/

[WhiteJC]

'That touch against Villa' – Many Fulham fans get involved in Berbatov debate

Many Fulham fans have looked back on the spell of Dimitar Berbatov at Craven Cottage with many picking out his moment against Aston Villa as a favourite.

Berbatov first arrived in English football in 2006, joining Tottenham Hotspur and he had a successful spell at White Hart Lane before going on to join Manchester United.

A superb spell with the Red Devils saw the Bulgarian striker win the Premier League and finish as a runner up in the Champions League.

Having left United in 2012, Berbatov would have a two-year spell to end his career in England at Craven Cottage and he continued to impress, netting 20 goals in 54 games.

Now retired from the game, the 39-year-old is fondly remembered for his time in the Premier League which saw plenty of moments of skills and memorable goals.

Looking back on his time at Fulham and with football at a standstill due to the recent pandemic, fans of the club opted to look back and describe their former striker, picking out a memorable moment against Aston Villa, which saw Berbatov produce a moment of magic.

Reacting to @CottagersHQ's tweet, fans gave their opinion on the former goalscorer....



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/that-touch-against-villa-many-fulham-fans-get-involved-in-berbatov-debate/

[WhiteJC]

Solidarity and reform are the only way that football will survive coronavirus

Continuing to share words from Trust board members, here is our Chair, Tom Greatrex, with some words he penned on the future of the sport, originally written for the Co-operative Party website.

At what would normally be the climax of the football season the sudden but now quite prolonged period without any live sport has left sports journalists, commentators and pundits with column inches, website pixels and broadcast hours to fill. In light of the scale of the public health emergency, many have been careful to preface their contributions by quoting Bill Shankly (and more recent comments from one of his Anfield successors, current Liverpool manager, Jurgen Klopp) about the relative importance of football in the context of the global response to coronavirus.

Filling that space there has undoubtedly been a lot of nostalgia – enabling reflections on top tens, on this day and replayed classic matches. But this has been combined with pontification about top-level player wages and deductions, the rights and wrongs of the richest clubs using government furlough schemes and whether, when or how the current season should conclude. This matters in the, as yet unseen but in all likelihood soon to be felt, impact on football clubs further down the pyramid that could be one of the significant consequences for life after the pandemic.

'So what?' you might think – businesses across all sectors that have grimly hung on in recent lean years are just now going to go into liquidation, shedding jobs and reducing tax revenue – and ultimately what is so different about football clubs as opposed to shops, gyms or factories that may never open up again? And football is awash with money – look at how much players are sold for, their salaries and the obscene amounts of money that agents, and agents of agents, skim off the top.

That is – at least partly – true. English football at the top level is a successful, highly marketed, internationally sold entertainment business with huge amounts of broadcast revenue accrued for the domestic and international rights to show those games. What is perhaps less well understood is how unevenly that wealth is distributed in football. The Premier League is the golden ticket, and clubs lower down and in the League are either desperately striving to reach the promised land by becoming hugely indebted, or are operating on a completely different level with the theoretical possibility of promotion to the top level far from a realistic prospect.

Yet often it is those smaller clubs that are such an important part of the communities  – when Bury FC, one of the oldest names in professional football in England and an FA Cup winner, were discharged from the League back in August (a time which now seems like generations ago rather than the start of the current season) there was a sudden and belated attention to how poor owners, massive indebtedness and ultimately lax self-regulation could all but finish off an institution of history, heritage and real community value. These assets of community value, expressions of civic identity and historic parts of the fabric of towns and cities across the country are fragile institutions and could go under.

For many years, as Supporters Direct – now part of the Football Supporters' Association – argued, the toxic combination of poor governance and bad ownership put clubs into crisis. It was often only thanks to supporters' trust and fans groups that the pieces were picked up at all and clubs managed to survive when those owners departed. Only with good regulation, better governance and recognition of the role of supporters in running clubs could football become sustainable in the long term.

While Bury shook football authorities out of some of the habitual complacency, and the media and select committee shone a light on those shortcomings, some small steps were being taken to look again at regulation and oversight. Senior figures at the FA, and the EFL, were at least implicitly acknowledging things would need to change. That was before coronavirus.
Now, suddenly, the whole of football is facing an existential crisis – from even some of the richest clubs in professional football to those whose community activity has become as significant as their first team in non-league – and the response will have to come from football itself. The likely backdrop is one where broadcast revenue will fall, sponsorship riches will reduce and supporters who have lost jobs through this crisis may forsake their season tickets.

Clubs that are well run, prudently administered, and owned by supporters are facing up to as grim a situation as those who have been more cavalier. When so much of the money in football is concentrated at the top, but then mostly goes out in transfer fees and player salaries, even the relatively small amounts in solidarity payments made to lower league clubs will hardly scratch the surface. The big clubs that sometimes talk about the importance of the pyramid and the value of lower leagues as part of what makes the top level of English football so prized a sporting asset will need to think not only of their own survival, but also of that which exists below them. Acting as part of what is often called the football family will be harder than paying it lip service – and not something that has had to be done to any great extent for close to thirty years.

It is only through a real exercise in solidarity, fundamental reform of governance and an approach that places restrictions on professional football clubs operating beyond their means that football as we recognise it will be able to survive. That matters in places where the football club is a cultural anchor, where the identity of a place is enshrined and where work with communities demonstrates a positive and ongoing value in health, education and social cohesion with some of the hardest to reach and most vulnerable individuals.

There are worse places to start than the proposals published by the Football Supporters' Association and recognised as a contribution to the solution by the DCMS select committee ahead of the last election. Back then, we described the situation at Bury as a wake-up call for football. What has happened since, in a way that nobody could have imagined, is the equivalent of a bucket of ice-cold water being poured from a great height over the sleeping. Nobody wants to see clubs go under – but without a fundamentally different approach that is more likely.



https://www.fulhamsupporterstrust.com/news/2020/05/solidarity-and-reform-are-the-only-way-that-football-will-survive-coronavirus/

[WhiteJC]

Fulham reach Europa League final: Ten years on from one of football's unlikeliest odysseys

Roy Hodgson led Fulham to the Europa League final two years after saving them from relegation on the final day of the Premier League season

"It was an incredible story then and it is still an incredible story now" - Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer on the run to the 2010 Europe League final.

It is the tale of one of football's unlikeliest odysseys that started in Vilnius on 30 July 2009 and ended 286 days later and 820 miles away in Hamburg - the journey that took Fulham to the 2010 Europa League final.

The west London club's season in the sun as one of European football's high rollers - culminating in an unlikely final appearance exactly 10 years ago - will be remembered forever by everyone who witnessed it.

It ultimately ended in a cruel loss deep into extra time to a fine Atletico Madrid side who knocked Liverpool out in the semi-final and who boasted the attacking talents of Sergio Aguero, Diego Forlan and Jose Antonio Reyes, as well as a teenage goalkeeper by the name of David de Gea.

And for Fulham, it was the end of the Roy Hodgson era as he was swiftly lured away to a short and unfulfilling spell at Liverpool.

The finale may have brought heartbreak but the wider context is one of glorious achievement, of how Fulham's mix of old heads and misfits built momentum to see off some of the biggest names in the game.

Once the qualifying rounds and group phase had been negotiated they claimed an illustrious list of victims that gives this Europa League run legendary status in the club's history.

It started in the third qualifying round against FK Vetra of Lithuania and was followed by victory over FC Amkar Perm of Russia - both away games watched by a tiny band of travelling fans - before these unfashionable surroundings opened the doors to a fantasy route to the final.

Europa League holders Shakhtar Donetsk (featuring future Premier League stars Fernandinho and Willian) went in the last 32, then one of the tournament favourites Juventus in arguably the greatest night Craven Cottage has ever seen, before Bundesliga champions Wolfsburg and Hamburg - who would have played the final in their own stadium - on a thunderous night in the semi-final.

Schwarzer, the outstanding Australian goalkeeper, was also a beaten finalist with Middlesbrough in 2006 when they defied the odds before being beaten 4-0 by Sevilla.

He takes up the story.

"The similarities are uncanny. We both played Roma, we played Basel, we both had amazing victories against the odds to reach the final.

"With Fulham we had to beat Basel in the last game of the group stages to get through to the knockout stage. And we did it against a team who had a remarkable record at home in Europe where I don't think they'd lost for a couple of years, including the Champions League. They'd claimed big scalps and had been a thorn in the side of English clubs.

"What both Fulham and Middlesbrough had was incredible self-belief. It irks me to this day that we lost both those finals but no-one can take away the achievement of getting there with Middlesbrough and Fulham."

Sammy James, host of the Fulhamish podcast, told BBC Sport: "I, like most Fulham fans I suspect, was just happy to be in the group stages and visiting illustrious clubs such as Roma and Basel. None of us seriously considered that getting to the latter stages was a serious prospect."

A Roy rant - then big names start to fall


Ten years on a 'Still Believe' banner still has pride of place at Craven Cottage, a phrase-turned-chant that became an emblem of the 2010 run

Hodgson's calm "seen it all" demeanour was a trademark of Fulham's run to the final - but Schwarzer reveals how even the oldest head lost it in the dressing room after a potentially pivotal group loss away to Roma.

The future England manager had reached a European final earlier in his career, losing the Uefa Cup over two legs to Schalke of Germany when coach at Inter Milan.

He wanted to make amends badly.

"We had two players sent off," recalls Schwarzer. "There was a very average decision to send Erik Nevland off when Roma got a penalty, then Paul Konchesky lost his head a bit so we ended with nine men.

"Roy was fuming after the game. He had a real dummy spat. He said 'I don't care about this stupid tournament. I've been to the final once and lost it. Who wants to go to it anyway and lose? It is ridiculous, stupid'.

"Of course he wanted to win it. He was just frustrated at maybe a lack of discipline and a defeat - but we still had Basel to play and I used it in a talk before that game.

"The manager spoke, then Danny Murphy - who had won the tournament with Liverpool in 2001 - spoke, then I said a few words.

"I said we had every chance and we were good enough. I said I'd been to a Uefa Cup final and lost and while it's not nice it was an incredible journey and I'd do anything to get there again. We had to seize the moment.

"That was the motivation and there was Roy in the background with a smirk on his face. We went out and did what we had to do, winning 3-2."

Each chapter en route to Hamburg tells a different story.

"The team that stood out for me were Shakhtar," says Schwarzer. "They were the best team we played against, probably the best team I've played against to this day.

"Bobby Zamora scored a screamer to get us a 2-1 win but even their Croatian full-back Darijo Srna was kind of laughing saying 'see you in Ukraine'.

"We made life difficult for ourselves out there when Danny Murphy got sent off but we produced a brilliant backs-to-the-wall performance to draw 1-1 and go through."

Zamora was one of the players revived by Hodgson, becoming a talisman with their first goal in the Europa League in Vilnius, the crucial winner at home to Shakhtar then another goal against Juventus.

James, a Fulham season-ticket holder in the Hammersmith End for 12 years, says: "For me Bobby Zamora was the man that made that run happen. He was widely ridiculed by Fulham fans the season before but in 2009-10 he was a man possessed.

"The biggest shame of the run was that he played with an injury against Hamburg in the semis and Atletico in the final. I still believe to this day if he had been fully fit we would have won it."

Craven Cottage's greatest night
When "The Old Lady" of Italian football arrived on the banks of the Thames on Thursday, 18 March 2010, it seemed it was only to complete the formalities after a 3-1 win in Turin.

It was not the "La Vecchia Signora" of old but they still had a star-studded line up, including four of the Italian team - captain Fabio Cannavaro, left-back Fabio Grosso, midfielder Mauro Camoranesi and forward Alessandro del Piero - who had won the World Cup four years earlier, as well as France superstar David Trezeguet, who also played in that match.

What followed was, in many eyes, the greatest night at the famous old ground.

Fulham, with Murphy suspended and a makeshift central midfield pair of Dickson Etuhu and Chris Baird, conceded a Trezeguet goal after two minutes, meaning they had to score three times in 88 minutes just to force extra time.

They went one better, reeling in a panicking Juve before an ecstatic crowd with Zamora, two goals from Zoltan Gera and a chip eight minutes from time by substitute Clint Dempsey sparking delirium.


Dempsey's audacious chip against Juventus is arguably the most iconic goal scored at Craven Cottrage

"If you want the dramatic moment it has to be Juve," says Schwarzer. "To lose an early goal then win through Clint's goal was fantastic but that was the self-belief we had - not just us but the fans.

"We had finished seventh in the Premier League to qualify for this. We were a good side. This was a team that only stayed up with 15 minutes left of the 2007-08 season by winning at Portsmouth but it had turned into a fantastic ride.

"The connection between the players and the fans was very good. The rebuild began after staying up - not immediately but you felt something was happening and this was happening in the Europa League.

"Everyone bought into Roy's methodology. We had the right mix, attitude and it came to its peak in that season. We had the work rate, the work ethic, training details.

"Players and fans grew with it and it came off the back of having a great previous season. We had the best defensive record outside the top four and were so difficult to play against collectively.

"The fans knew that. They saw it, understood it and went with it. It flowed and we also played some attractive football, despite what some people say about Roy. It was the dream season in so many respects and nights like beating Juve epitomised it.

"They were not the Juve we know today. It was one of Juventus's lowest periods in the past 20/25 years and at the moment we knocked them out they maybe felt they couldn't get any lower and wanted to stop the slide and there were massive changes. They have now gone back to greatness again.

"Make no mistake, though, they still had some brilliant individuals and to claw back that 3-1 defeat was incredible. What a night that was."

Dempsey, the match-winner, was another symbol of not just the European journey, but Hodgson's astute management.

Schwarzer said: "Clint was often on the receiving end of a selection decision that didn't go quite his way but it fired him up even more. When he came on he was so angry.

"He was able to channel it and made such a big difference for us in so many games, and most notably scoring the fourth goal against Juve."

If it was special for the players, what about the fans?

"The Juve game is the obvious pinnacle for any Fulham fan," says James.

"It was by far and away the greatest performance ever by a Fulham side. We had no right to turn over such a deficit against a side containing those kind of players.

"I'll never forget the pandemonium in the Hammersmith End after Dempsey's winner - a glorious moment on a night that will never be forgotten."

And so to Hamburg - via Hamburg
Reigning Bundesliga champions Wolfsburg were beaten home and away - and it was back to Germany for the semi-final.

Fulham's opponents Hamburg had a prime incentive of knowing they would play the final in their own stadium.

But Hodgson's men were on a roll.

A goalless draw set up the second leg at Craven Cottage, which resounded to an anthem that became the soundtrack to this Europa League campaign.

Mladen Petric's first-half goal was the signal for the chant of "Stand Up If You Still Believe" to echo in the capacity 25,700 crowd as Hamburg, with Ruud van Nistelrooy leading the attack, capitulated to two goals in the final 20 minutes from Simon Davies and Gera.


Gera and strike partner Zamora both scored six goals during their team's run to the final

Such was the delight at this hugely popular club reaching the final that manager Hodgson was afforded a rare break from media etiquette as his arrival in Craven Cottage's press room was greeted with loud applause.

The end of the line came with that loss to Atletico in Hamburg, with Fulham so close to taking the final to penalties after Davies equalised following Forlan's opener, the Uruguayan scoring the winner via a deflection off Brede Hangeland four minutes from the end of extra time.


Forlan's 116th-minute strike in the final skewed off Hangeland and squirmed beyond Schwarzer's despairing dive

"We were so unlucky," Schwarzer remembers. "Both goals involved heavy deflections - but I think after the disappointment people realised we had done something special.

"We had a fantastic manager, but we also had the right group of players with the right mentality and approach.

"I'm not saying everyone was best of friends but we had an incredibly good working relationship on and off the pitch.

"Everyone had a common goal to be as successful as we could, to prove all the doubters wrong. We wanted to rewrite the history books and create something special and there was an opportunity.

"I've been back numerous times since and people always talk about that season and the two seasons under Roy. Obviously the first thing people mention is the run in Europe but those two seasons were sublime and up there with two of the best I had in my career.

"Did anyone expect Fulham to get to a European final? No.

"It was dreamland for the fans who had followed the club with such loyalty and I think everyone acknowledged we had something really special."



https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52608863

[Russianrob]

The UEFA final an incredible achievement.The football world came to know of an obscure team from London.How proud l am of Fulham FC.

[bog]

The UEFA final an incredible achievement.The football world came to know of an obscure team from London.How proud l am of Fulham FC.

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[hovewhite]

The UEFA final an incredible achievement.The football world came to know of an obscure team from London.How proud l am of Fulham FC.

+1 100%

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