Outlook?

[finnster01]

We've had a lot of jibber jabber about where in the table do you see Fulham end the season earlier in the year.

As we are now staying in the Prem on goal difference and Chrsitmas is just around the corner, what do you think will happen to Fulham? Where will we end up?

I said 12th at the beginning of the season and will stick to that. Main reason is sooner or later we will get our players back from injury, we are not a relegation battle team when fit and I think sparky will get some money to play with in January.

However, there were a lot of people predicting a top 7 finish etc. and likewise nobody predicting The Great Escape Part Two. So have you revised your predictions on where the Whites will be as you look towards the end of the season?

[cebu]

I've got to the point where 12th spot seems like a major success. Here's hoping.

[Lighthouse]

I cannot remember what I said. But I think I was hopeful of a top half and then said but anything other than relegation must be a bonus. I now would say the same thing. I had a feeling we had reached the top of the hill and were going to have to work to build a side.

My only sadness is that Fulham still cannot play against rubbish without looking rubbish. We must be more consistant against teams around us. But we are not too far from comfort. But we mustn't allow the slide for too long.

[jarv]

I think (and hope) 10-12. This must definitely be the most unlucky season in history.
Not just the injuries but another offside goal yesterday. Referee decisions have cost 2 points (Blackburn foul on keeper), 1 point (Spurs offside winner) and now 1 point (Arsenal winner). I think there was another point lost for an offside goal but can't remember which game.
Those points would put us about......12th I think.

Mr. Lighthouse is right though, just how to Fulham stop the poor performances against rubbish teams.? Didn't they do this back in the old division 1 days too?

[ImperialWhite]

I think (and hope) 10-12. This must definitely be the most unlucky season in history.
Not just the injuries but another offside goal yesterday. Referee decisions have cost 2 points (Blackburn foul on keeper), 1 point (Spurs offside winner) and now 1 point (Arsenal winner). I think there was another point lost for an offside goal but can't remember which game.
Those points would put us about......12th I think.

Mr. Lighthouse is right though, just how to Fulham stop the poor performances against rubbish teams.? Didn't they do this back in the old division 1 days too?

I don't think we should blame refs - there isn't a conspiracy, it's just a tough job and a lot of mistakes are made. People conviently forget decisions that go our way.
E.g. Schwarzer handling outside the box (Blackburn)
E.g. A goal against us disallowed (Blackpool)

Whatever the reason, it has been a poor start, so the further away from relegation the better should be our aim. Top half very unlikely now. According to the bookies there are 4 teams very likely to go down (odds of between 1-2): Wolves, West Ham, Wigan and Blackpool. There are then a cluster of teams not so likely to get relegated, but are being increasingly cut off from the fight for a top ten finish (odds of between 4-5 for relegation). These are Birmingham, Fulham and West Brom.

I'll go 15th-16th.

As an interesting aside, if Dempsey keeps scoring at his current rate, he'll actually have more league goals than Bobby did last season. (Bobby got 8 league goals, and Dempsey is currently on 4).

[os5889]

Before yesterday i had us plumped for the big R.

I saw enough yesterday to know the players havent lost it and the fact we gave such a performance away from home which is the first time in a while (chelse.a 2-1?)
Hopefully MH has seen his Gera that he knows and loves and will give him some game time.

Can we make Sunderland next weekend the save our season match?

[RidgeRider]

I thought at the beginning of the season, coming off of the past two we would be a shoe-in for a top 10 spot, I think I was predicting 8th. As of today, I am not as optimistic but think we will not be relegated. We have too good of a squad for that fate. Now I think we will finish 14th-16th.

[Jimpav]

Based on the season we have had so far I would be happy with anything from 17th upwards.

Injuries have played their part but Sparky has been slow to find his best team and we are definitely suffering a hangover from Roys departure/Europa league.

The only saving graces is that we are not stranded yet and that we have the return of Zamora to look forward to.

COYW.

[Rambling_Syd_Rumpo]

12 to 14th and I'll stick to that,we'll limp to Jan then the Cavalry arrives with new players coming in and injured players coming back,no panic.Sparky will upgrade and a few old uns will go to be replaced with young uns-job done :59:

[ScalleysDad]

I was beginning to brace myself for a Doomsday scenario in April, we have a killer set of fixtures to finish with, but we did play well in stages yesterday and although I pull my hair out when passes and possession go needlessly astray it seems to be rampant throughout the Prem. Sunderland and Spam are doing it at the moment. As has been said I hope Gera has won his place and with Dembele due back perhaps they can forge a partnership. That is key for us. There have been so many changes, trials and injuries that apart form H and H there has been no consistency, or indeed continuity, allowing partnerships to develop. I thought the Etuhu experiment had been done and dusted but maybe Hughs has even less faith in KD and Greening. Pantsil must have blown it and Hughs won't be bothered by the crowd response last week so I expect more trials and experiments, a turgid January on the pitch but almost addictive checks on the transfer rumour mill. Drifting off thread a tad so I'd be content, not happy, with 15th but a fresh look about the squad even if it has to be leaner and meaner and we lose a few names like JP, Duff, and AJ. I would hope that some of the dross we are carrying will be gone by January 31st. 

[jarv]

Just watched Sunderland/west ham.  :039: Two poor teams so Sunderland is a must win more than ever! :dft012:

[TonyGilroy]

This season's now just about staying up and I expect us to manage that.

By now Hughes will know who he wants to bring in and who he'd like to offload. I don't see any reason why he can't do for us what he did at Blackburn but I think a big turnover of players is going to be necessary. An aging squad drilled by another manager with set ways has to be overhauled. Had Zamora stayed fit there might have been more evolution than revolution but it's blatently obvious now that this squad needs more energy, muscle and pace as well as quality strikers.

[finnster01]

Just did the math. We are currently on the pace to clock in a grand total of 36 pts (if rounded up).

Last season that would have given us a 16th spot, but now the lower teams are stronger. Is it bum-squeezing time already?

[VicHalomsLovechild]

I know results haven't gone our way but I'm enjoying the football. We look like a team who want to score goals as opposed to a team that didn't want to concede goals. The Europa games last season where exciting the league games weren't for me.
West Ham, Aston Villa and Liverpool all have new managers and are not playing well or not getting the breaks. I'm not sure weather we'll rise out of this and be safe by March or struggle on for the rest of the season but lets be fair for a number of reasons this was always going to be a tough season after last years heroics.
On a separate note Finn and NFR. My brother used to service Mks motorbike and then have to drop it round to his and give him the run down on what had been done. He (my brother) then had an accident on his bike and was off work for a few weeks. MK cancelled his next service till David was back at work and a shinny new crash helmet arrived in the post with his best wishes. I didn't want to change the direction of your MK post so I've added it here. All the best mate.

[AlFayedsChequebook]

I know results haven't gone our way but I'm enjoying the football. We look like a team who want to score goals as opposed to a team that didn't want to concede goals. The Europa games last season where exciting the league games weren't for me.
West Ham, Aston Villa and Liverpool all have new managers and are not playing well or not getting the breaks. I'm not sure weather we'll rise out of this and be safe by March or struggle on for the rest of the season but lets be fair for a number of reasons this was always going to be a tough season after last years heroics.
On a separate note Finn and NFR. My brother used to service Mks motorbike and then have to drop it round to his and give him the run down on what had been done. He (my brother) then had an accident on his bike and was off work for a few weeks. MK cancelled his next service till David was back at work and a shinny new crash helmet arrived in the post with his best wishes. I didn't want to change the direction of your MK post so I've added it here. All the best mate.

I am the complete opposite tbh, I see little to enjoy with the new 'direct' style of play. For all the 'I am glad we are looking to score goals' mantra that is being trotted out we are not scoring that many nor winning many games.

I said 12th at the beginning of the season but I think we will be somewhere between 14-17th provided we start winning games and whoever we sign in january settles in quickly.

[FC Silver Fox]

I think I said 10-12th.  I'm not getting too worried yet though. We always go through a bad patch somewhere in the season. We're just having it a bit early this season. I think we'll finish up with 40-42 points.  The relegation zone will be very tight at the end of the season because there are a lot of sides of similar quality.  38 points should be enough to stay up but we'll need a decent goal average just to be on the safe side.

After all, at the end of the day.... it gets dark.

[VicHalomsLovechild]

I am the complete opposite tbh, I see little to enjoy with the new 'direct' style of play. For all the 'I am glad we are looking to score goals' mantra that is being trotted out we are not scoring that many nor winning many games.

I said 12th at the beginning of the season but I think we will be somewhere between 14-17th provided we start winning games and whoever we sign in january settles in quickly.



I'm always surprised how people see games totally different from your own view. I hope for both of us things start to go our way.

[LBNo11]

...my only concern is that Mr Hughes managed a club with infinately more quality than we have, and could only succeed in getting them to regularly draw games. Was that down to tactics, bad man management or quality players not responding to their manager..?

[Burt]

The next few home games are season-defining for me.

Ordinarily you would expect us to beat these sort of teams.

If we pick that up again, and then with Dembele, Zamora et al returning in the new year then we should be comfortably safe.

If however we drop points against these sorts of teams then it is definitely squeaky bum time as our away form is not good enough or consistent enough to plug the gap.