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Sunday Fulham Stuff - 16/05/21...

Started by WhiteJC, May 15, 2021, 01:24:54 PM

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WhiteJC

Jack and Loz Not at the Cottage - Blog 179
Date: 15th May 2021

Opposition: Southampton

Score: 3-1

Fulham goal scorer: Fabio Carvalho

MOTM: we're not just giving this to Fabio because he scored on his debut. Our teenager terrorised Southampton all match - looking eager, determined and sharp. He took his chances, rode his challenges and never stopped running. In a game of men against boys, Fab would be the man.

Snacks: Jack - lemon muffin; Loz - Magnum (ice cream, not champagne)

When football historians (or indeed, Fulham bloggers writing their end of season review) try to make sense of where it all went wrong, the Southampton game had it all:-

- unexpected line-up and formation

- players playing out of position (Aina)

- no starting strikers (not that we score goals even when the strikers play)

- Cav as centre forward

- giving the ball away in dangerous positions (Aina)

- chaos at the back (this went beyond the Triangle of Doom)

- lots of possession which led to nothing

- lots of passes which mainly went backwards

- dull, uninspired, going-through-the-motions football

- overplaying the ball and too much intricate, embroidered play when direct action was needed

- subs too late again (although it was good to see Joe Bryan)

- no Mitro

Added to this tale of woe is a defence which seems to have given up and a midfield which was too easily overrun. Luckily this wasn't a Must Win Game because, other than Fab (and Joe when he came on) no one was playing as if they wanted to win it.

We get that it kind of doesn't matter because we're relegated anyway but it kind of does because these players have futures ahead of them and how they conduct themselves in these last few games may impact where they go next season. Andersen, in particular, has done himself no favours with his recent lacklustre performances. Earlier in this season he was linked with some big clubs, now it looks like he might end up at Spurs.

Aina, who we would have liked to stay, seems to have regressed to his early season ineptitude and, Frankly, we don't understand why he started instead of Joe. Lookman lost his spark months ago and whilst Maja hasn't had a lot of game time to show us what he can do, he hasn't earned more of it.

We assume that Tosin, Onomah,Harrison and Bobby (whose assist was superb) won't be going anywhere and we hope Kenny won't either. We have probably reached the end of the road with Frank which is a shame as he would dominate the Championship in a way that he has never quite managed to in the Premier League.

Which brings us to the most controversial potential departures of all. Obviously you can't believe everything you read on Twitter (or anywhere, these days) but it looks like there are ructions between the Khans and Parker. Strained relations were always going to be made worse by relegation but could they now have reached breaking point? Will our manager stay, will he go, will he be pushed?

And then there is the debate which is turning more toxic than Brexit: Scott Parker v Aleksandar Mitrovic. Fans are evenly divided as to who is more important to the Club. But how has it come to this? What happened to consign Serbia's top scorer to the bench of a team with a dearth of strikers? Is Scott just not a good enough manager to incorporate either Mitro's personality or his skills in the team? Or is Mitro just too hard to handle?

The sad fact of the matter is that it looks like Fulham Football Club isn't big enough for both of them.

Random musings:-

- Joe's boots looked to be in the colours of the Jamaican flag, and certainly Bobby played much better when he came on

- how great is it going to be next season when we can sing "Fabio, Fabio, Fabio"!

This was yet another game to forget in a season full of them. But happenings off the pitch at Fulham are becoming more interesting than the football the team struggle to play. Whilst there is unlikely to be the root and branch reorganisation that some are clamouring for, upheaval is coming. And it's likely to bring recriminations and a backlash of trouble with it.



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