Wednesday Fulham Stuff - 30/09/20...

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Club open talks with Fulham to sign player – Also contact his agent for help

Turkish website Sporx report Galatasaray have opened talks with Fulham with regards to loaning Jean-Michael Seri until the end of the season.

Gala manager Fatih Terim said after the draw with Fenerbahce last weekend that his club are lacking a midfielder like Seri, and Sporx say they are looking to re-sign the player.

It's reported the Super Lig side have also contacted the Ivorian midfielder's brother and agent Dominique Seri to ask him to help them convince Fulham.

Due to FFP, Gala can only offer a loan deal, but Sporx report Scott Parker's side are looking to sell him on a permanent basis. Subsequently Fulham's stance is causing problems for the Turkish club.

This season Seri has yet to play in the Premier League for Fulham and he wasn't in the squad for yesterday's game against Aston Villa.

Seri's only appearance has come in the Carabao Cup, and his contract with the London side will expire at the end of June 2023.



http://sportwitness.co.uk/club-open-talks-fulham-sign-player-also-contact-agent-force-move/

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Full details as Premier League referees set for new 'tweaked' version of handball

PGMOL chief Mike Riley has received backing from law makers IFAB, but while Everton's penalty against Joel Ward wouldn't be given, the one controversially given against Eric Dier would still be awarded

Premier League referees will be given a new "tweaked" version of the handball law.

As revealed in Wednesday's Mirror Sport, referees' chiefs will send out a fresh directive to officials after a string of controversial decisions last weekend.

PGMOL chief Mike Riley has received backing from law makers IFAB in relation over the "proximity" of opponents when the ball hits the arm of an opponent and also the position of the arm.

It means that Everton's penalty against Joel Ward would not be given because the Crystal Palace defender would be deemed too close to get out of the way.

But Tottenham defender Eric Dier would still be judged to give away a penalty because, according to law 12, the ball struck his arm when it was above his shoulder.

The Dier decision caused uproar and yet the Prem do not believe there is any room for manoeuvre under the new handball on the position of the arm.



https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/premier-league-handball-var-rules-22763837

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10 goals conceded in three games, co-owner Tony Khan apologising on Twitter and just six days to sign the defenders so desperately needed... Fulham's Premier League return isn't going well but is it any wonder after only 39 days of pre-season?

    Fulham's defending was atrocious during Monday's 3-0 home loss to Aston Villa
    The match was followed by a Twitter apology from co-owner Tony Khan
    Khan pledged to deliver new signings at centre back before the window closes
    Defensive problems look set to once again be the main issue in Premier League
    Fulham can be excused as they had just 39 days to prepare for top-flight return

It didn't take long for Twitter to swing into action in the wake of Fulham's 3-0 loss to Aston Villa.

There was another viral mash-up in which the words of manager Scott Parker were set to a tune by The Streets.

But more significantly, there was an extraordinary intervention by Fulham co-owner Tony Khan on the club's efforts in the transfer market.

So what's going on at a club whose return to the Premier League has started badly to say the least?

What did Tony Khan have to say?
Within minutes of the final whistle, Khan, the son of Fulham owner Shahid, tweeted an apology to fans for the dismal performance.

He then added that the club had been trying to strengthen a defence that has now conceded 10 goals in their first three Premier League games.

Khan said two centre back targets had contracted Covid-19, a deal to bring in another on a free had fallen through and there was 'another issue' with a fourth set of negotiations.

Khan then promised there would be signings in the final week of the transfer window as well as 'better efforts from this squad.'

He later posted a second message apologising again and emphasising there would be improvements.

In the meantime, Khan responded to a couple of replies from Fulham fans to his original tweet.

He shut down one suggestion that Fulham take new Chelsea signing Malang Sarr on loan, saying Premier League rules prohibited it.

Khan also hinted that talks over at least one of the (unnamed) players suffering from Covid weren't necessarily over.

Whatever, time is fast ebbing away for Fulham to make the necessary improvements at the back.

How did Parker react to the comments?
Well, Khan's intervention was certainly unexpected and can be interpreted as a move to quickly quell some of the fan criticism that followed such a poor performance.

He clearly wanted to show efforts have and are being made to sort things out at the back.

Parker certainly won't turn down some new recruits in defence and it's very clear that Fulham need them.

But he stopped short of saying that Khan's words were helpful.

'Tony's the (co-)owner of the football club, and he is a director of football and obviously he feels it's his responsibility and it is in terms of bringing players in, so that's obviously where it is,' Parker said.

'Helpful? Yeah, I'm not sure. But that's up to Tony, really.'

Parker went further in another press conference on Tuesday, saying: 'It's not something I agree with it, it's not something that is helpful.

'The one thing I'm disappointed with is that he apologised for the performance. The other bits, it is what it is.'

And as Sportsmail revealed, the players are backing Parker over Khan's decision to apologise for their performance.

There had been news earlier on Monday that Fulham's move for Sassuolo's Brazilian centre back Marlon had fallen through after a failed medical.

But when asked specifically about Marlon, Parker said: 'Honestly, I wouldn't know. I think the people in the places to be at the football club make those decisions.'

So it confirms Khan and his team are still very much in charge of recruitment strategy with minimal input from Parker.

With increasingly disgruntled Fulham fans knowing this already, it perhaps explains Khan's rush to apologise.


So Fulham haven't signed any defensive players this summer?
That's not strictly true as they've brought in the right back Kenny Tete from Lyon and left back Antonee Robinson from Wigan.

But as their shocking performance against Villa showed, the glaring weakness that needs to be urgently addressed is at centre back.

Denis Odoi allowed Jack Grealish to run between him and Michael Hector to open the scoring for Villa after just four minutes.

Odoi didn't cover himself in glory for Villa's second, either, as Conor Hourihane was allowed a close-range finish.

And their third, just after half-time, was a dismal failure of the offside trap as Tyrone Mings ran through to poke home a free-kick.

This is hardly an isolated incident. Fulham lost 3-0 to Arsenal on the opening day and shipped four at Leeds United last weekend.

We may only be three games in but Fulham are already bottom of the table and one bookmaker is already paying out on them to be relegated.


So there are echoes of their last Premier League season?
Absolutely. It was defensive frailties mainly to blame for Fulham's relegation in 2018-19. They conceded 81 goals - the most in the division.

Odoi and Tim Ream played the majority of games then so little has changed.

You simply don't get away with the kind of lapses in defensive concentration that can go unpunished in the Championship.

In the Monday Night Football studio, Jamie Carragher didn't hold back in his criticism of Khan and Fulham.

'It never works, it always ends up in tears,' Carragher said.

'He's a clown, getting involved with that. Just shut your mouth, get on with it, keep your head down.

'I'm more certain of Fulham going down than Liverpool winning the league. What we saw there was actually unbelievable.'

As well as setting himself up for criticism come the end of the window next week, Khan's tweets have only alerted selling clubs to Fulham's desperation meaning they're more likely to charge a premium.


What has Parker done to try and solve the problem?
Fulham's manager did try a tactical tweak on Monday night.

In their opening two league games of the season, Parker went with the 4-2-3-1 formation used towards the end of their promotion-winning campaign.

Against Arsenal, Ream and Hector played at centre back with Odoi on the right side. Against Leeds, Odoi partnered Hector in the middle with new arrival Tete at right back.

For the Villa game, Parker switched to a 3-4-3 system with Odoi, Hector and Ream at the back plus wing backs Joe Bryan on the left and Tete on the right.

Unfortunately, the team seemed baffled with Villa able to kill the contest inside the first 15 minutes and midfielders Tom Cairney and Frank Anguissa so consumed with defensive responsibility they couldn't do anything going forward.

It was certainly clear that a more stable defensive foundation is needed before Parker tries the set-up again.


Is there any mitigation?
Yes, plenty. It was always going to be difficult for Fulham given the tight 39-day turnaround between their play-off final win over Brentford and their Premier League opener against Arsenal.

After giving the players some down time, Parker only had a couple of weeks on the training ground to get across his ideas for the tricky season ahead. There was only time for one pre-season match.

So it's going to take a little bit of time for them to readjust to life in the Premier League but given the defeats so far, things could quickly become a little demoralising as they did two years ago.

There's also the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic that is keeping crowds away from stadiums and wiping out matchday revenue.

Craven Cottage isn't the biggest stadium but the windfall that usually comes from promotion to the Premier League won't be as big this season as in the past.


What are Fulham's ambitions though?
That's an interesting one. The last time they won promotion, Khan spent big in an effort to compete.

Over £100million was paid out for the likes of Anguissa, Alfie Mawson, Jean Michael Seri and a permanent deal for Aleksandar Mitrovic.

It was a disaster. Neither Slavisa Jokanovic nor Claudio Ranieri could fit these square pegs into round holes. By the time Parker came in as caretaker boss, relegation was a certainty.

Having learned a lesson and with Covid squeezing the budget, Fulham have been more cautious this time.

There's been an outlay of only £25m so far with the permanent signing of Anthony Knockaert from Brighton for £10.5m the biggest spend.

That could well change if Fulham can get those defensive targets over the line this week but the expenditure will be nowhere near 2018 levels.

But the example of Norwich last season suggests being prudent in the transfer market doesn't make you competitive in the Premier League.

Fulham, like Norwich and West Brom, seem destined to be a yo-yo club. Too good for the Championship but not good enough for the top tier.

That seems good enough for the owners, though. One Fulham fan replied to Khan saying: 'Our fans love this club dearly yet you seem happy to let us become a yo-yo club for financial gains.'

To which Khan replied: 'While absolutely nothing I can say would make up for tonight's performance, frankly we would've absolutely killed to be a yo-yo club when I took it over after finishing 20th in the Championship.'


Khan's reply about being happy to be a yo-yo club will have alarmed some Fulham fans

While nobody is denying Fulham's progress since the low of that season, let's also not forget they became a Premier League mainstay between 2001 and 2014, and reached a European final 10 years ago.

After a Carabao Cup visit to west London rivals Brentford on Thursday, Fulham do have a run of games against Wolves, Sheffield United, Crystal Palace and West Brom that can - indeed must - yield some points.

The immediate focus must be on the defence, however.




https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-8785115/Fulhams-Premier-League-return-quickly-turning-disaster.html

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Journalist claims NUFC are now trying to beat Fulham to the signing of Omar Colley

According to reports in Italy, Newcastle have reignited their interest in Sampdoria centre-back Omar Colley.

This comes from Sport Italia reporter Gianluigi Longari, who claims that we are taking another look at the 6ft 3′ defender after Fulham entered talks with the Serie A side over a potential deal.

Colley was linked with a move to St James' Park back in January, with TuttoMercatoWeb reporting that we met the player's representatives in Italy earlier this year after watching him 'several times' over the 2019/20 season.

It's been well documented that Bruce is in the market for a centre-back over the final few days of the window, with us all set to sign Rob Holding last month – only to see Mikel Arteta pull the plug on his loan move to St James' Park.

Colley could be an alternative we're now looking at, although I can't help but wonder whether we'll only be looking at loans unless funds are raised from an Atsu or Yedlin?

The Gambian international completed a £7m move from Genk to Sampdoria in 2018 and has played 57 times for them since, scoring once.

Fulham appear to be in the driving seat if Longari is to be believed – and boy do they need a good centre-back – but this could be on to watch over the next few days given our previous interest.



https://www.nufcblog.co.uk/2020/09/29/journalist-claims-nufc-are-now-trying-to-beat-fulham-to-the-signing-of-omar-colley/

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Fulham to rival Tottenham Hotspur for Milan Skriniar?

Inter Milan defender Milan Skriniar has reportedly emerged as a surprise transfer target for Fulham.

The Slovakia international is allegedly valued in the region of £50m by the Europa League runners-up, a price tag which may be deemed too expensive by Tottenham Hotspur.

However, according to The Sun, Fulham are contemplating whether to enter the race for the highly-regarded centre-back.

After Monday night's 3-0 defeat to Aston Villa, co-owner Tony Khan claimed that he would make fresh attempts to sign a big-name player for Scott Parker's backline.

Nevertheless, it remains to be seen whether Khan would be prepared to commit to the significant financial outlay required to bring in Skriniar.

The 25-year-old may also favour a switch to a club competing in Europe, rather than one at the wrong end of the Premier League table.



https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/spurs/transfer-talk/news/fulham-to-rival-spurs-for-milan-skriniar_416483.html

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Report: Fulham join Tottenham Hotspur in the race to sign Inter Milan's Milan Skriniar race

Fulham are yet to secure a point in the Premier League this term, suffering a third consecutive defeat on Monday at the hands of Aston Villa.

Scott Parker's side have now shipped 10 league goals since returning to the top-flight, prompting director of football Tony Khan to go on Twitter and admit that they have been poor.

The Fulham chief also revealed how his side have failed in their attempts to land a centre-back, with a £13 million move for Sassuolo's Marlon falling through after he failed his medical.

The Craven Cottagers are looking to sign a centre-back before the summer transfer window shuts, and they are ready to punch above their weights from the look of things.

According to The Sun, Fulham are plotting to pip Tottenham Hotspur to the signature of Inter Milan's Milan Skriniar.

Spurs boss Jose Mourinho wants the Slovakian centre-back, but the Serie A giants are holding out for £45 million.

The North Londoners have been prepared to offer between £30 million and £35 million for the services of the 25-year-old, and while Inter want to cash in on him, they want more from suitors.

Fulham will have to outbid Tottenham and convince Skriniar with a huge salary for them to have the slightest chance of getting such a deal done.

They have signed six players thus far this term but clearly need to concentrate on quality and not quantity, and it appears that they are ready to do so with an audacious bid for the Inter star.



https://sportslens.com/report-fulham-join-tottenham-hotspur-in-the-race-to-sign-inter-milans-milan-skriniar-race/316451/

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Report: Newcastle could hijack Fulham's move to sign Sampdoria defender Omar Colley

Italian website TuttoMercatoWeb have claimed that Newcastle United could look to hijack Fulham's move to raid Serie A side Sampdoria and lure Omar Colley to the Premier League, as the African continues to be heavily linked with English clubs.

Colley, 27, has caught the eye for Sampdoria in his two years with the Italian club after joining from Belgian side Genk. He has since played 57 times in all competitions for Sampdoria, becoming renowned for his strength, pace and aerial ability.

Fulham are desperate to sign central defenders before October 5 and many have been linked with the west London side. Colley is the latest, with the Italian report stating that Fulham are in talks over a move. However, Newcastle could make a late move.

Indeed, it is believed Newcastle tried to sign the Gambia international in January and could go back in for Colley. Italian website SampNews24 have claimed that Celtic, West Ham, Liverpool and others are keen – with a fee of £9million enough (CM).

TBR's view – Colley would be a top addition for Newcastle

The Toon certainly need central defenders. The club have loaned out Florian Lejeune, leaving the club with Jamaal Lascelles, Ciaran Clark, Fabian Schar and Federico Fernandez for a side that sometimes use a back three.

Colley would add some much-needed pace at the back, at a bargain price. It would give Bruce more flexibility in being able to use a back three or just two centre-backs given his pace and ability to recover if a player goes through.

A no-brainer for Newcastle to hijack Fulham's move for a player that has the same agent as ex-Toon striker Emmanuel Riviere, as per TransferMarkt.



https://tbrfootball.com/report-newcastle-could-hijack-fulhams-move-to-sign-sampdoria-defender-omar-colley/

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Report: Fulham join Tottenham in race for defender Milan Skriniar

Tottenham have reportedly been joined by Premier League and London rivals Fulham in an attempt to sign defender Milan Skriniar from Inter Milan.

According to the Sun, Spurs have been in talks with Italian giants Inter about the 25-year-old and he's expected to leave the Serie A outfit.

It is claimed that Jose Mourinho's side have been willing to pay between £30million-£35million for the centre-back this summer, although Inter are holding out for £45million.

The report explains that Fulham have now emerged as late suitors for the Slovakia international, as they are desperate to bolster their backline and know they would have to give him colossal wages to entice him to West London.

The report adds that Spurs still view themselves as favourites and in pole position to sign Skriniar, but are frustrated by his price tag and could be willing to look elsewhere.

TBR's View:

Despite the fact that the Skriniar saga continues to drag on, Spurs shouldn't be worried about Fulham joining the race to sign him as it seems highly unlikely he would pick a move to Craven Cottage over a team competing in Europe.

Mourinho's team seem intent on adding another centre-back to their squad and they need to do everything they can to negotiate a deal for the Inter ace before the transfer window shuts.

Skriniar is an all-action defender that looks ready for the Premier League with his physical presence and reading of the game, plus he's proven in the Italian league he's a classy centre-back in possession too.



https://tbrfootball.com/report-fulham-join-tottenham-in-race-for-defender-milan-skriniar/