Thursday Fulham Stuff - 02/07/20...

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Results

Wednesday
Preston NE	0-1	Derby
Birmingham	0-3	Huddersfield
Forest	1-0	Bristol City
Sheff Wed	0-3	West Brom

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Scott Parker urges Fulham to keep coping without talisman Aleksandar Mitrovic

A relieved Scott Parker has challenged Fulham to keep on coping without a recognised striker after his side's crucial 2-1 Sky Bet Championship win at QPR.

Fulham boss Parker admits he had to reshape his entire attack with 23-goal hitman Aleksandar Mitrovic suspended for the Loftus Road clash.

Serbia star Mitrovic will miss two more matches after his retrospective ban for elbowing Ben White in the 3-0 loss at Leeds, leaving Fulham without a recognised central striker.

Cyrus Christie fired Fulham to a patchy win, after Harry Arter had cancelled out Jordan Hugill's first-minute header.

"There's no hiding from the fact we've not now got a recognised forward in our squad, in the building," said Parker.

"So the way the players look to the structure and the way we wanted to play tonight was spot on really.

"While it's disappointing to lose Aleks, other players are going to have to step up.

"Definitely, he's going to be a big loss for us in the next few games, how we work, everything is around him. So to the players coming in it's a big responsibility now.

"We had to shuffle things around a bit here and I think obviously the result was key tonight, that was evident.

"I don't think my team have deserved what we've got out of the first two games, our performance was exceptional for large parts in those two games.

"But you need to show another side to you where we've fallen short. And the main thing tonight was certainly the result.

"The performance and the way we've played in the last two games I've been really pleased with. But tonight the result was the be-all and end-all.

"QPR are a very well-drilled team, we knew coming here was going to be tough, and they were very aggressive in that.

"We showed real character, definitely. To go a goal down as early as we did was very disappointing, it was poor on our behalf and sloppy.

"But not to drop our heads and be the team to really take it to QPR, get control of the game and have real impetus was pleasing."

Rangers boss Mark Warburton was left fuming to see a fine performance end in defeat.

"I think it's very clear what my perception will be: we've given away three points tonight," said Warburton.

"It was a very, very strong display; intensity, desire quality, had to maintain it second half, we did that but didn't get the rewards tonight.

"There's one team in it in the second half, we've hit the bar and gone close, but we've let in two soft goals shot from distance.

"Against a very talented team, I have huge respect for Scott Parker and Fulham, but I don't see how that has happened tonight.

"We should have saved both goals, simple as that, and I'm trying to think of when Liam (Kelly) had another save to make.

"When you play like that, the more you play like that belief's got to grow.

"And if we play like that week in week out we'll be in a good place come the end of the season.

"The chance for Luke Amos to stroke the ball home, he worked so hard to get there. That's the type of football we want to see."



https://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/scott-parker-urges-fulham-to-keep-coping-without-talisman-aleksandar-mitrovic-1593549338000

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Parker delights in Fulham's resolve, Warburton feels his QPR were robbed

Scott Parker praised his players for digging deep after going a goal down in the derby at QPR to recover and win 2-1 – and for proving they could do it without Aleksander Mitrovic.

Their 23-goal striker is suspended for three games for violent conduct at Leeds at the weekend and having lost their opening two games since the Championship restart, the signs were ominous when they trailed after less than a minute at the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.

But they regrouped to win it with goals from Harry Arter and Cyrus Christie.

"While it's disappointing to lose Aleksandar, other players are going to have to step up," said the Fulham boss. "He's definitely going to be a big loss for us in the next few games. How we work, everything is around him. So to the players coming in, it's a big responsibility now.

"We had to shuffle things around a bit here and obviously the result was key. But I don't think my team have deserved what we've got out of the first two games.

"The performance and the way we've played in the last two games, I've been really pleased with. We showed real character. To go a goal down as early as we did was very disappointing. It was poor on our behalf and sloppy.

"But not to drop our heads and be the team to really take it to QPR, get control of the game and have real impetus was pleasing."

Rangers boss Mark Warburton felt his side had thrown away a game that was there for the taking.

"We've given away three points," he said. "It was a very, very strong display - intensity, desire, quality. We had to maintain it in the second half and did that but we didn't get the rewards.

"There's one team in it in the second half, we've hit the bar and gone close, but we've let in two soft goals shot from distance. I have huge respect for Scott Parker and Fulham, but I don't see how that has happened.

"We should have saved both goals, simple as that, and I'm trying to think of when Liam Kelly had another save to make.

"When you play like that, the more you play like that, the belief's got to grow. And if we play like that week in week out, we'll be in a good place come the end of the season."



https://www.capitalfootball.co.uk/single-post/2020/07/01/Parker-delights-in-Fulhams-resolve-Warburton-feels-his-QPR-were-robbed

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Talking Points: QPR

Here are five things we're talking about after Fulham returned to winning ways in the West London derby.

1. Reversing the tide

Although Fulham deserved more than we got from our first two matches after the restart, the cold hard fact was that we had won zero points. A response as soon as possible was imperative, and the lads provided it in the West London derby, picking themselves up after the earliest of setbacks to secure a double over QPR.

2. Déjà Vugill

Jordan Hugill netting inside three minutes was a shock to the system at the Cottage earlier this season, but he was even quicker this time as just 48 seconds had passed when he headed in the opener. Thankfully, just like that Friday night in November, the boys didn't panic and ensured it would just be a consolation for the on-loan West Ham United striker and his team.

3. Cy scores when he wants

Cyrus Christie's winner doubled his goal tally for the Club, and it seems he only scores bangers. He broke his duck for Fulham last season with a lovely left-footed curling effort on the angle against Millwall in the Carabao Cup, and he's now off the mark in the league with a piledriver to defeat our local rivals. Lovely stuff.

4. Adapting without Mitro

The last time we played QPR, Aleksandar Mitrović was serving a ban, and it was his replacement Aboubakar Kamara who did the damage with a brace to secure victory for the Whites. With the Frenchman currently injured, Scott Parker had to implement a different style and get goals from other areas of the pitch. It certainly worked, with midfielder Harry Arter and right-back Christie pitching in to nab the much needed three points.

5. Rody on red alert

The best goalkeepers can have nothing to do all game, but then produce the goods when they are called upon. QPR only had one effort on target, aside from their goal, and it was a very decent attempt from Hugill who had bent a shot into the top corner. But Marek Rodák, like he has so many times this season, proved his quality with a sprawling save to keep the scores level going into half-time.

http://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2020/july/01/talking-points-qpr

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Fulham set to confirm signing of £10.5million winger from Brighton and Hove Albion

Fulham are set to confirm the £10.5million signing of Brighton and Hove Albion winger Antony Knockaert in the next 24 hours according to Football Insider.

Knockaert has been on loan at the Cottagers this season but the move is set to become a permanent one with the club working on finalising the deal for the French winger today.

The 28-year-old is set to put pen-to-paper on a four-year deal with the London outfit for a fee of just over £10million.

Although the winger hasn't consistently impressed this campaign there is little doubt that on his day he is one of the best players outside the Premier League and can be a real match-winner.

He has made 37 appearances for Fulham this season scoring four goals and registering five assists. With someone of the calibre of Knockaert he is likely to improve on that record next season now he appears to be fully settled in Scott Parker's team.

The Frenchman joined Brighton from Belgian side Standard Liege in January 2016 and played a key part in getting them promoted in the 2016/17 campaign and was named the EFL Player of the Season.

He scored 27 goals in 139 games for the Seagulls and also notched 25 assists.

The winger has the ability to trick his way past defenders and has been an ever-present for Fulham this season.

The Cottagers are currently in the play-off places and despite a poor return to Championship action they are still well in the hunt for a return to the Premier League next season.



https://the72.co.uk/176794/fulham-set-to-confirm-signing-of-10-5million-winger-from-brighton-and-hove-albion/

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 EFL: Zero positive coronavirus tests in Championship, League One & League Two
Over 3,000 players and staff tested from 24 Sky Bet Championship clubs and teams in League One and League Two

There were no positive results in the latest round of coronavirus testing in the English Football League, the governing body has announced.

Of the 2,798 players and club staff tested from 24 Sky Bet Championship clubs, there were zero individuals who tested positive for Covid-19.

From the 311 players and club staff from four League One clubs tested over the course of the past week, nobody tested positive for coronavirus.

The 154 players and club staff tested from four League Two clubs also returned zero positive tests.

Northampton defeated Exeter in the play-off final on Monday at Wembley to conclude the 2019-20 League Two season.



https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/12018804/efl-zero-positive-coronavirus-tests-in-championship-league-one-league-two

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Grinding out a win

When you get down to the business end of the season, it becomes much more about results than performances. Scott Parker admitted as much after Fulham clung on to a precious three points last night and, given Fulham's wretched couple of results against the teams also chasing automatic promotion since the restart, relief was certainly the order of the day.

It wasn't a vintage victory – and when Parker and his backroom staff analyse the action, they'll find plenty of things to work on. It was always likely to be a little hairy at the back again given that the reshaped back four only had a couple of days to work on their shape and responsibilities after the debacle at Leeds, but the manner in which things started would hardly have given anyone much confidence.

Fulham were guilty of overplaying far too close to their own goal, with Denis Odoi, who actually had a decent game at left back, attempting a ridiculous crossfield pass that put his team-mates under pressure. Michael Hector, who hasn't been as assured as he was pre-lockdown, was drawn out of position to try to deal with Ryan Manning and while the QPR wing-back's delivery was first class, there were further questions to ask about how Fulham failed to deal with the danger. Could Marek Rodak have come for the cross? And Tim Ream was far too easily outjumped by Jordan Hugill, adding to the sense that he has lost a bit of sharpness as well as form of late.

A fairly limited QPR side caused Fulham plenty of problems, although that won't serve as much comfort for Mark Warburton. Hugill, a proven nuisance at this level, seemed to find time and space in front of our back four throughout – and was only denied a second before half time by a brilliant save from Rodak. Perhaps the most alarming moment of a first half that prompted several sharp intakes of breath came when another sloppy Harry Arter pass allowed QPR to break forward. Bright Osayi-Samuel skipped around Hector far too easily and seemed to lay another goal on a plate for Luke Amos, only for the midfielder to blaze over the bar. Talk about a let off.

Arter had another one of those performances that seems to defy description. He was busy and positive on the ball, but gave it away far too often, and for my money, gave the energetic Harrison Reed an awful lot to do. His goal was a fine strike from distance, although we must add the caveat that Liam Kelly will feel he should have saved it. It was good to see Kevin McDonald return in the closing stages – he's spent far too much time on the sidelines this season and you feel his experience and leadership could prove invaluable during the run-in.

There's still a sense that the balance of this side is not quite right. It must be said that Cyrus Christie added urgency and drive down the right flank – taking his wonderful winner with real aplomb. But there's a big problem with a side packed with creative players failing to carve out clear-cut chances at the moment. Tom Cairney spent much of the evening in far too deep a position to threaten the QPR goal, whilst our inverted wingers were anonymous for long periods. Poor old Bobby Decordova-Reid looked like a fish out of water as a forward – his own lack of confidence summed up by his free header from a corner just before half-time that sailed over the bar.

You still feel that this squad can deliver more clinical displays in the games ahead and there was definitely an element of feeling the pressure going into a local derby on the back of two defeats. If it is to be the play-offs – and that is still by no means assured given the congested nature of the Championship table – the hope has to be that Fulham can play their way back into form over the closing weeks of this campaign to be ready for the crunch fixtures that will decide our destiny.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2020/07/grinding-out-a-win/

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Fulham hope 27-year-old is the ready-made replacement for Aleksandar Mitrovic

It was no Mitrovic, no problem for Fulham last night as they edged out QPR.

The Cottagers left their London rivals with all three points yesterday after goals from Harry Arter and Cyrus Christie turned the game around after Jordan Hugill gave the hosts an early lead.

Fulham were without top scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic, who still has two more games to serve of his suspension, and started with Bobby Decordova-Reid up front.

Decordova-Reid offered Scott Parker's side a completely different option up top then the Serbian international and his side see him as the man to fill their key man's boots whilst he sits out.

The summer recruit from Cardiff City has only managed five goals for Fulham this season and hasn't managed to show their fans what he is truly capable of doing in this league. After all, he scored 21 goals in all competitions for Bristol City just two seasons ago.

Decordova-Reid will see Mitrovic's suspension as an opportunity to step up, get more game time and help his side get their promotion push back on track.

Last night was a big result for Parker's side after a dismal start to post-lockdown football. They are now 4th in the table and four points behind 2nd place West Bromwich Albion who play their game in hand later.

Decordova-Reid will most likely be called upon to play striker for the next two games, with Ivan Caveliero and Anthony Knockaert either side, and will be eager to chip in with a goal or two.



https://the72.co.uk/176845/fulham-hope-27-year-old-is-the-ready-made-replacement-for-aleksandar-mitrovic/

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Scott Parker becomes more unpopular with Fulham fans – Manager Approval Ratings (Week 2)

This is part of the Manager Approval Ratings series. This is where every week, we ask the fans whether they approve or disapprove of their manager. We then track the results over the weeks to see whether a manager has got more or less popular within their fanbase.

For the first time, we included a Don't Know option within our poll. This is so fans who aren't sure if they approve of their manager can accurately detail their thoughts to us. With this, it is expected that approval rates will contract, so massive approval rates will get smaller and terrible ones will get a bit better.

Last week in Week 1, Scott Parker received an approval rating of -40. This was after he was approved by 30% of Fulham fans with 70% of fans disapproving of him. The Don't Know option was not available in that week's poll.

Week 2's results are as follows with changes from Week 1 detailed in brackets.

Approve: 13% (-17)
Disapprove: 78% (+8)
Don't Know: 9% (+9)
Net Approval Rating: -65 (-15)

As you can see, Scott Parker has become more unpopular within the Fulham fanbase. It was a shock to see how disapproved of Parker is with the fans last week considering they are in the fight to get promoted. But now we know that Parker is unpopular, it is unsurprising to see Parker's popularity drop this week. They had another disappointing weekend after losing 3-0 to promotion rivals Leeds United. During the time this poll was taking responses, they beat West London rivals QPR 2-1.



https://the72.co.uk/176879/scott-parker-becomes-more-unpopular-with-fulham-fans-manager-approval-ratings-week-2/

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Sky Sports pundit makes bold Aleksandar Mitrovic to Leeds United transfer claim

The Fulham striker has scored 23 Championship goals this season

Chris Kamara has insisted that Aleksandar Mitrovic would not fit Leeds United's style of football when asked if the Fulham striker would be an ideal signing if the club are promoted.

The Whites beat the Cottagers 3-0 on Saturday, with Mitrovic receiving a three-match ban on Monday for his elbow on Ben White during the match.

However, the Serbian forward is the joint top goal-scorer in the Championship, with 23 goals this season.

Should Leeds secure promotion to the top-flight in the final seven games of the season, adding a striker to support Patrick Bamford will be high on Marcelo Bielsa's list of priorities.

With Fulham's hopes of automatic promotion dwindling, Kamara was quizzed whether Mitrovic could be the perfect addition for Leeds.

However, he believes that Bielsa's demands for fluidity in attacking positions would mean he would struggle to fit the Argentine's style of play.

"With the movement that Bielsa has, probably not, no," Kamara told Sky Sports.

"He wouldn't want one static player in there. He does indeed(work hard), but he's down the middle. The change of positions, they do things in waves.

"That's why at times they need a breather. They will all squeeze and push the opposition as far back as they can. They'll do that wave after wave after wave and then they will need a breather.

"Then the opposition come at them for one or two attacks then they regroup. That's why I think the break for them has been brilliant, to get their legs back, to get their second wind.

"They train as hard as they played."



https://www.leeds-live.co.uk/sport/leeds-united/kamara-mitrovic-transfer-claim-leeds-18517914

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Manager tells directors Fulham player is the priority – Talks underway

Turkish newspaper Sabah report Galatasaray manager Fatih Terim has told the club's board that keeping hold of Fulham's Jean Michael Seri should be their priority this summer.

The Ivorian midfielder has proved himself a key player at Galatasaray, and his performances in the second half of the season have been impressive.

Subsequently, Sabah report Galatasaray manager Terim wants him to remain in Istanbul, as he feels Seri will be an important member of his team next season.

It's reported talks with Fulham have already started with regards to loaning Seri, and much will depend on Fulham's status next season. The London club remain in the promotion race and can still go up automatically.

This season the 28 year old has made 32 appearances in all competitions for Galatasaray, scoring one goal and providing four assists.

Cim Bom have the option to make his move permanent for €18m, but that's highly unlikely given their finances.

Seri's contract with Fulham will expire at the end of June 2022.



http://sportwitness.co.uk/manager-tells-directors-fulham-player-priority-talks-underway/

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Christie blockbuster earns Parker a bit of breathing space

Fulham have been here before. Let's flashback to last December where Scott Parker's side started the month with defeats by Bristol City, Preston North End and Brentford, sparking the first questions about the rookie manager's tenure at Craven Cottage. Along came a crunch clash with high-flying Leeds United, where a rather generously awarded Aleksandar Mitrovic penalty and a Josh Onomah thunder-bastard stole all three points and sparked a run of just two defeats in fourteen league matches leading up to lockdown.

Suddenly, football is back and everything seems a bit different. That unbeaten run is certainly a thing of the past. As if you need reminding, but Fulham's own restart has been woeful. Damaging defeats by Brentford and Leeds left their already tenuous automatic promotion hopes virtually destroyed. It felt like a local derby against QPR would prove pivotal for Parker – a defeat might not have been terminal, but the questions following three successive slip-ups would have followed him all the way to the end of the season and perhaps beyond.

Last night was never going to one for the purists and nobody was expecting the fluent football to return in such a high pressure game. But it was a scrappy, error-strewn affair, and Fulham prevailed thanks to strikes out of nowhere from Harry Arter and Cyrus Christie. The three points shouldn't paper over the alarming cracks in this Fulham side at such a critical juncture in the season. QPR created the far clearer chances with Jordan Hugill forcing Marek Rodak into a great save, Luke Amos firing a sitter over and Ryan Manning crashing a late header against the bar. Against far poorer opposition than Leeds and Brentford, Fulham relied on pop shots and a little bit of luck to grind through to claim all three points – and they were hanging on for dear life by the end.

To quote Roy Keane, "When you win a Premier League medal Jamie you get one medal you don't turn it over and it says how many points you got." And whilst the performances don't matter when you look back on seasons, I do think it's important to question how you've managed it, even when you win. Such an analysis isn't negative, it is just realistic. All coaches will do it in the aftermath of a victory.

So in the spirit of examining where things stand currently, it is worth considering the context of that result. QPR are poor side and whilst I like Ebere Eze as a talent and Mark Warburton as a coach, I do think they have a below-average squad – I think Eze starts for us, but I'd struggle to name another QPR player that would get on our bench. As disrespectful as that reads, I think it's important to note when you consider we won thanks to moments of magic (as we have done multiple times this season) and on another day, QPR would have scored two or three before half-time.

The final ten to fifteen 15 minutes in particular were hilarious. So desperate were Fulham for a win, the visitors finished with seven defenders and two defensive midfielders on the field – is it too cruel to suggest that Parker was battling for job here? Conspiracy aside, I can appreciate the manager doing everything possible to claim a crucial win, but it is interesting to compare to his own words about his football philosophy. After questions on his slow possession style, Scott has previously said, "I can understand people's opinion – not just how I want to play but the identity of this football team and how I feel is best to win football matches – if we weren't creating chances, if we weren't hitting the target. But you can't back up that argument. I will stick with it – 100 percent." A fun twist, he'll stick with it 100 percent, bar leading 2-1 at the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.

In fact, the game tested a lot of what Scott Parker's Fulham has been about. Though there were moments of prolonged passing play, notably QPR presses were met with long balls into the forward three and big long switches of play were obvious throughout the game. Fulham were far more direct last night than when they Aleksandar Mitrovic to call upon. The inability to create clear cut chances is especially galling and, aside from Christie's energetic display, the Whites really didn't offer much incisive attacking play.

Six games to go and, if West Bromwich Albion win tonight, it's seven points to chase down. The other problem, of course, is that we've let Brentford in between us and they don't look like stopping. Sure, three points are nice, especially given the poor run since the end of lockdown, but it is also important to reflect on the quality of performance. Nobody could claim with a straight face that this was the type of football Fulham were playing against Millwall in the early weeks of the season and the truth is a bit of magic and QPR's lack of quality got us over the line. The test for Parker will be to use that precious victory as a springboard to better things.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2020/07/christie-blockbuster-earns-parker-a-bit-of-breathing-space/