Fulham Sign Wilson and Gazzaniga

[colham]

https://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2021/july/Fulham-Sign-Wilson-Gazzaniga/

[ALG01]

Let us hope they work out well.
Not bad signings but very late after being relegated such a long time ago.

[Friendsoffulham]

FULHAM SIGN WILSON & GAZZANIGA

The Club is delighted to announce the signings of Harry Wilson and Paulo Gazzaniga.

Wilson signs from Liverpool on a deal that could see the player remain at Craven Cottage until the summer of 2026.

Gazzaniga joins on a two-year deal, following the expiry of his Tottenham Hotspur contract last month, keeping him with the Club until the summer of 2023.

Harry Wilson

24-year-old Wilson, a left-footed attacking midfielder, primarily operates on the right wing but has also featured on the opposite flank, as well as centrally.

Born in Wales, he had been with Liverpool for 15 years, with a first taste of senior domestic football coming on loan with League One Crewe Alexandra as an 18-year-old during the 2015/16 season.



A Liverpool debut came the following season, before he exploded onto the scene when he was sent on loan to Hull City for the second half of 2017/18, scoring seven goals in just 11 Championship starts.

His final goals for the Tigers were a brace during a thrilling 5-5 draw at Ashton Gate, in which Joe Bryan and Bobby De Cordova-Reid were also on target for Bristol City.

Wilson was back on loan in the Championship the following season, this time for the duration of the campaign, with Derby County.

It was a fantastic year for both player and club, though they fell just short in the Play-Off Final where they were beaten by Aston Villa, who bounced back from their Wembley defeat by Fulham 12 months earlier.

Wilson scored a phenomenal 18 goals from midfield for the Rams, including a vital penalty in their memorable second leg victory over Leeds United in the Play-Off Semi-Finals.

Fans may also recall a stunning free-kick he netted against Manchester United in a Carabao Cup victory at Old Trafford.

Derby might not have been playing Premier League football the following season, but Wilson was.



His goalscoring exploits prompted AFC Bournemouth to move for his services, with Wilson featuring in 31 of their 38 top-flight fixtures and returning an impressive haul of seven goals.

He matched that tally while back in his homeland on loan with Cardiff City last term, while also registering a career best 12 assists during his season in the Welsh capital.

Wilson actually played for the Wales senior team before any of his club sides, with Chris Coleman giving him a debut in their 1-1 World Cup Qualifier against Belgium in October 2013.

At the age of 16 years and 207 days, it made Wilson the youngest player to ever represent Wales, taking a record that was previously held by Gareth Bale.

It would be several years before he represented his country again, but he marked his first start with a wonderful goal in a victory over China.

Wilson was named in the Wales squad for this summer's European Championship, featuring in three of their four matches, meaning he now has 29 caps for his country.

Speaking to FFCtv after signing, Wilson said: "I'm delighted to sign for Fulham. From my first chat with the Gaffer on the phone, I loved what he was saying and felt that he understood me as a player, and that played a massive role in me coming here.

"The ambition of the Club to get back into the Premier League appealed to me as that's where we all want to be. I'm hoping I can come here, have a good season and help get the Club back into the Premier League."

After leaving his native Argentina, goalkeeper Gazzaniga's first port of call in Europe was Spanish side Valencia.



He spent four years at the Mestalla before moving to the UK, where he signed a contract with Gillingham ahead of the 2011/12 season.

Fulham Academy goalkeeper Ross Flitney began that campaign with the gloves, but the 20-year-old Gazzaniga soon won his place, featuring 20 times in the second half of the season as the Gills missed out on a League Two Play-Off spot by just two points.

His form had not gone unnoticed, and that summer newly promoted Southampton brought him in on a four-year deal, where he worked closely with Fulham legend Jim Stannard who was their goalkeeping coach at the time.

A Saints debut came in a 4-1 League Cup victory over Stevenage that August, with a Premier League bow following a month later as Aston Villa were beaten by the same scoreline at St Mary's.

Gazzaniga got plenty of Premier League experience under his belt on the south coast, featuring 21 times in the top-flight before a loan move to Rayo Vallecano for the 2016/17 season.



He was first choice for the Spanish side, making 32 appearances.

That summer, Tottenham Hotspur signed him for an undisclosed fee, reuniting Gazzaniga with his former Southampton boss, Mauricio Pochettino.

He kept a clean sheet on his Premier League debut for Spurs, in a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace.

The following campaign saw Gazzaniga feature more regularly, including in the Champions League, and his form was rewarded with a first call-up for the Argentina national squad, for whom he made his debut in a 2-0 victory over Mexico in November 2018.

The 2019/20 season was his busiest in North London, featuring 25 times across all competitions.

Gazzaniga was back in Spain at the start of the current calendar year, appearing eight times across the second half of the campaign to help Elche avoid relegation from La Liga.

The 29-year-old departed Tottenham with 37 first team appearances to his name.

Speaking to FFCtv, Gazzaniga said: "Fulham is a great club. I love the challenge and I think this is an excellent opportunity for me.

"When they spoke of the project here at Fulham the decision was easy. The Championship is a very strong league and I am looking forward to getting started."


Tony Khan added: "I'm delighted to welcome both Harry Wilson and Paulo Gazzaniga to Fulham Football Club this evening.

"Harry's been a very productive player in his young career and his arrival greatly strengthens our attack, as Harry has gained valuable experience in the Championship.

"He helped lead Derby to the Play-Off Final at Wembley in 2019, and he's an important goalscoring threat who also has provided good service to his teammates and is highly regarded for his contributions on set pieces.

"We're thrilled to welcome Paulo to Fulham as well; we believe he'll be a valuable addition to our squad. He's had many clubs pursuing him since his contract expired, and I'm glad that he chose to come to Fulham.

"All of us at the Club are working hard to ensure we give ourselves and the beloved Fulham supporters our best possible chance to succeed this season, and I'm sure that both Harry and Paulo will help us in our pursuit of another promotion! Come on Fulham!"

https://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2021/july/Fulham-Sign-Wilson-Gazzaniga/

[Deeping_white]

Let us hope they work out well.
Not bad signings but very late after being relegated such a long time ago.

Or signings we waited for our new manager to approve. Why sign players when you've got issues around the manager wanting to leave and a new manager who potentially doesn't want them?

[HV71]

Welcome - our best wishes to you both!

[ALG01]

Let us hope they work out well.
Not bad signings but very late after being relegated such a long time ago.

Or signings we waited for our new manager to approve. Why sign players when you've got issues around the manager wanting to leave and a new manager who potentially doesn't want them?

at the risk of re-running the discussion. we were relegated well before the end of the season, we have had ages to part company, and apperntly on very bad terms, with the parker, get a new one and get players in for a full pre season. the lack of learning lessons remains staggering.

However, wilson may be a very good signing. The jkeeper certainly made too many errors for my liking when he played for spurs and fabri and rico pay testament to our signing of keepers so we will have to see what he does for us.

[fcfulham55]

In Fulham terms, this is quick business for us!

[bigalffc]

Two good signings  049:gif

[LC]

Happy with this, hope this is just the start this summer.

[Deeping_white]

Interesting snippet from a Liverpool journo is that we're not starting to pay for Wilson until 2022 so essentially got him without payment for a while

[Matt10]

Solid signings. Really excited for Wilson as he's got the dual threat of goals and assists, not to mention plenty of PL experience.

[paulbrookersmazydribbles]

Decent pair of signings.

[Tabby]

Interesting snippet from a Liverpool journo is that we're not starting to pay for Wilson until 2022 so essentially got him without payment for a while

Wilson was likely on a higher wage at Liverpool, and they're probably paying the difference until his contract would run out. Think he was meant to be on something like £60k per week or something like that.

[Caedal]

Harry Wilson is a very very good signing

[Whitestone]

Interesting snippet from a Liverpool journo is that we're not starting to pay for Wilson until 2022 so essentially got him without payment for a while

Wilson was likely on a higher wage at Liverpool, and they're probably paying the difference until his contract would run out. Think he was meant to be on something like £60k per week or something like that.

This is how rumours start. Personally I find it unlikely that Wilson has ever been on £60,000 a week.

[Somerset Fulham]

Interesting snippet from a Liverpool journo is that we're not starting to pay for Wilson until 2022 so essentially got him without payment for a while

Wilson was likely on a higher wage at Liverpool, and they're probably paying the difference until his contract would run out. Think he was meant to be on something like £60k per week or something like that.

This is how rumours start. Personally I find it unlikely that Wilson has ever been on £60,000 a week.

Yep!

[Gezza]

Let us hope they work out well.
Not bad signings but very late after being relegated such a long time ago.

Your right it's only two weeks before the start of the season and over a month before the window closes. Perhaps we should use Amazon prime and get next day delivery!

[Tabby]

Interesting snippet from a Liverpool journo is that we're not starting to pay for Wilson until 2022 so essentially got him without payment for a while

Wilson was likely on a higher wage at Liverpool, and they're probably paying the difference until his contract would run out. Think he was meant to be on something like £60k per week or something like that.

This is how rumours start. Personally I find it unlikely that Wilson has ever been on £60,000 a week.

Has been reported as such all over, not me starting a rumour, just stating what I could find.

Doubt well be paying him that much though.

[Andy S]

Good luck to you both. I wish you every success

[H4usuallysitting]

All that talk about Harry Wilson - but no mention of him being Prime Minister of this country....apart from that 2 very good signings