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Monday Fulham Stuff - 13/09/21...

Started by WhiteJC, September 12, 2021, 05:17:53 PM

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WhiteJC


WhiteJC

Josh Onomah has a shocker as Fulham suffer defeat

Having seen his Fulham side get off to a fantastic start to the 2021/22 Championship campaign, picking up 13 points over their opening five fixtures of the season, Marco Silva must have been expecting more of the same heading into the Cottagers' fixture against Blackpool on Saturday afternoon.

Indeed, Neil Critchley's newly-promoted side were yet to taste victory in the second tier of English football – with Blackpool having picked up just two points over their opening five league games – something that few had expected the Seasiders to change against Silva's west London table-toppers.

However, despite boasting just 30% possession of the ball, managing one shot on target and completing 360 fewer passes than Fulham over the course of the 90 minutes, Josh Bowler's early second-half strike was enough for the Tangerines to take all three points at Bloomfield Road – sealing their first win, and Fulham's first defeat, of the current campaign.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, a number of Silva's players put in below-par performances in the fixture, with Domingos Quina, Bobby Reid and Neeskens Kebano all having games to forget, however, it will undoubtedly be Josh Onomah who is the player most disappointed with his display on Saturday.

Lost 80% duels

Indeed, prior to his substitution in the 67th minute, the £5.4m-rated man proved ineffective in central midfield, losing 80% of his duels, being dribbled past by an opponent on two occasions and ceding possession of the ball 14 times.

The 24-year-old also made no interceptions, no tackles, no clearances and blocked no shots in his time on the pitch, as well as failing with his one attempted long ball and taking one shot at goal, which was off target.

These returns saw the £30k-per-week former England U21 international earn a highly disappointing SofaScore match rating of 5.9, with no player from either side who featured in the clash receiving a worse score than the Fulham midfielder.

As such, following the deadline day signing of Nathaniel Chalobah, Onomah did very little in the Blackpool game to convince Silva that he is worthy of keeping his place in the 44-year-old's starting XI for the trip to Birmingham City on Wednesday evening – a game in which the Portuguese manager will undoubtedly be hoping his side can get back to winning ways.



https://www.footballfancast.com/fulham-fc-news/fulham-ffc-team-news-marco-silva-josh-onomah-blackpool-the-championship

WhiteJC

Bobby: Just A Bump

Bobby De Cordova-Reid will not be dwelling on Fulham's challenging afternoon in Blackpool.

The Whites had 70 per cent possession and four times as many shots on target as their hosts, but went back to London empty handed courtesy of Josh Bowler's strike early in the second half.

Put to him that it looked a frustrating match to play in, Bobby replied: "Yeah, but at the same time, we haven't done enough to win the game so we can't be too disappointed.

"They came with energy and got their goal, and we didn't do enough to get a result.

"We tried, we huffed and puffed, but they had something to hold onto. For us, it wasn't enough, but it's early doors, the game's done now, we've just got to look forward to Wednesday.

"It's fine, it's a learning curve for us. We've got to keep working ahead of Wednesday, keep plugging away and never give up.

"We're going to make chances, and when we do make them, we've got to put them away."

Defeat is a new emotion for Fulham this season, but De Cordova-Reid insists his side will be doing everything to respond in the right way at St Andrew's in midweek.

"We'll definitely have a reaction," he said. "We know the quality we've got in our squad, we've got a big squad as well, and we're ready to go again.

"It's just a bump, and we'll be back from it. We've got to dust ourselves off and go again Wednesday."



https://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2021/september/Bobby-Just-A-Bump/


WhiteJC

Pundit makes admission over Fulham's summer transfer

Former Fulham goalkeeper Mark Crossley has told This is Futbol that he has been hugely impressed by Harry Wilson since the player joined the club this summer.

The Welsh international signed permanently for the Whites from Liverpool and has since gone on to make a lasting impression in West London, scoring two and assisting one.

Wilson was by far and away the Craven Cottage side's marquee addition of the summer window and will now be looking to help his side gain promotion back to the Premier League at the first attempt following their releagtion last season.

Speaking on Wilson's start to life at Fulham recently, Crossley was only too keen to lavish praise on the shoulders of the 24-year-old:

"I really, really like him and it's his pedigree as well, he's been at Liverpool for so many years, he's done his little loan spells. What a signing.

"The kid's a talent, he's a talented player. I covered a lot of Wales games in the summer and he came off the bench quite a lot, but when he does, he excites you, he gets on the ball, he runs at people, he creates goals, he's got a wonderful delivery from set-plays. Worth every penny."


Wilson previously spent time out on loan with the likes of Hull City, Derby County, Bournemouth and Cardiff City before choosing to leave Liverpool this summer and is arguably yet to have reached his prime years as a professional.

Having signed a five year contract with the Whites this summer, Fulham fans will be hoping that Wilson continues to shine in their colours for years to come.

The Verdict

Bringing in Wilson was arguably the signing of the summer in the Sky Bet Championship for Fulham and many will be expecting him to continue to shine for his new side.

He is a player who clearly grew frustrated with being shipped out on loan constantly by Liverpool and now he can function in a comfortable environment without being moved around from pillar to post.

The winger fits in perfectly to Marco Silva's side and has looked like he has been playing with his new teammates for years.

If he continues to play as he has so far, the price that Fulham paid for him will be a very distant memory.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/pundit-makes-admission-over-fulhams-summer-transfer/

WhiteJC

Decordova-Reid targets quick recovery from Blackpool blow

Bobby Decordova-Reid is determined that Fulham will bounce back quickly from the disappointment of losing their unbeaten record at Blackpool yesterday.

Marco Silva's side rarely hit the heights of their August displays as the Tangerines recorded their first win of the campaign thanks to former Fulham youth player Josh Bowler's solo strike early in the second half. Decordova-Reid told Fulham's official website that the Whites deserved nothing from the contest:

"We haven't done enough to win the game so we can't be too disappointed. They came with energy and got their goal, and we didn't do enough to get a result. We tried, we huffed and puffed, but they had something to hold onto. For us, it wasn't enough, but it's early doors, the game's done now, we've just got to look forward to Wednesday.

It's fine, it's a learning curve for us. We've got to keep working ahead of Wednesday, keep plugging away and never give up. We're going to make chances, and when we do make them, we've got to put them away."

The versatile Fulham forward wants the Whites to put together a stirring response at Birmingham on Wednesday night.

"We'll definitely have a reaction. We know the quality we've got in our squad, we've got a big squad as well, and we're ready to go again. It's just a bump, and we'll be back from it. We've got to dust ourselves off and go again Wednesday."



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2021/09/decordova-reid-targets-quick-recovery-from-blackpool-blow/

WhiteJC

Marco Silva explains absence of Fulham duo from Blackpool defeat

Fulham manager Marco Silva has revealed that Fabio Carvalho missed his side's 1-0 defeat at Blackpool on Saturday through injury, while fellow attacker Harry Wilson was rested after his international exploits with Wales.

The Cottagers slipped to their first league defeat of the season at Bloomfield Road on Saturday, courtesy of Josh Bowler's stunning solo effort shortly after half time.

For Fulham however, there may be some who wonder whether things could have been rather different had they had Carvalho and Wilson available, with the duo both absent from the matchday squad on the Seaside.

Now it seems as though Carvalho may be for a bit longer yet, although Wilson's absence may not be an extended one.

Explaining why the pair were not involved for his side against Blackpool, Silva told Fulham's official website: "It's different situations – Fabio because of his injury in the Hull City game, he did a big effort to play against Stoke but he felt it again the week after. We have to let him recover as much as possible, as fast as we can.

"Harry Wilson was because of his time with his national team, let's see. Let's hope he can play the next game."

Following that defeat to Blackpool, Fulham now sit second in the Championship table, one point behind league leaders West Brom.

Next up for Fulham is a trip to St Andrew's to face fourth placed Birmingham City on Wednesday night.

The Verdict

This will be hugely frustrating for Fulham given the result they were left with at Blackpool on Saturday.

Carvalho in particular has been outstanding for the Cottagers at the start of the season, so could have done plenty of damage against a Blackpool side who were still looking for a first win of the season prior to kick-off.

As a result, there may be something of a sense of what might have been for those of a Fulham persuasion, although there is of course plenty of time for them to recover from that.

Indeed, if Carvalho is to be out for some time, then the fact that Wilson may not be out for too long will of course be a relief, given the impact that he himself has shown he can make in attack for Silva's side.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/marco-silva-explains-absence-of-fulham-duo-from-blackpool-defeat/


WhiteJC

3 lessons we learnt from Blackpool's surprise win over Fulham

Blackpool earned their first win in the Championship this season by beating Fulham 1-0 at Bloomfield Road on Saturday.

A much needed result for Neil Critchley's Tangerines in what was arguably their toughest match of the season so far on paper. The way they restricted Marco Silva's men after taking the lead early on in the second period will give them great belief that they can kick on from here and stabilise in their first season back in the Championship.

A piece of individual brilliance from Josh Bowler was the difference between the sides, with the summer signing from Everton  announcing himself at second tier level with a mazy run and finish low at the near post, condemning the Cottagers to their first defeat of the campaign.

Fulham went into the match as heavy favourites but the unpredictability of the Championship strikes again providing one of the biggest surprise results of the season so far.

Here, then, we take a look at three lessons we learnt from Blackpool's win over Fulham...

Strength in Blackpool's defence
Blackpool still rank in the bottom five in the division for defensive process, allowing 10 expected goals against (xGA) so far this term, but yesterday's performances demonstrated that they have the metal and application to limit the most feared attack in the Championship to just 0.94 xG and can keep a clean sheet, their first of the campaign.

Marvin Ekpiteta and Richard Keogh were the unbreakable centre back pairing on Saturday but the way they dropped deep and defended as a team will have been very pleasing for Critchley to witness. The pressure was building on the former Liverpool youth coach with every match that passed by before earning their first victory, a scenario he will no longer be worrying about.

Josh Bowler has given his future prospects a big boost
Josh Bowler, 22, arrived at Bloomfield Road with a point to prove this summer, his only recent experience in the Championship was playing 28 times as Hull City finished rock bottom of the second tier in 2019/20 when he was on loan from Everton.

Having only signed a one-year deal at Bloomfield Road it is important for Bowler to gain some admirers this term to give him added security that he could find a Football League club if he becomes unattached this summer.

The goal typified his desire and should build his confidence in being an effective player at the level.

Fulham are beatable at this level
Fulham have been tipped by many for automatic promotion, and to achieve that without even breaking into a sweat. After Saturday's result they are only three points above eighth, meaning there is certainly plenty of work still to be done if the Cottagers are to waltz back to the Premier League this season.

A reality check for August's Championship Manager of the Month winner Marco Silva and his squad, there are no easy games in the second tier and the Tangerines may have just provided a blueprint for the rest of the division on how to combat Fulham.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/3-lessons-we-learnt-from-blackpools-surprise-win-over-fulham/

WhiteJC

Away Day Guide – Birmingham City

Fulham attempt to bounce back from their first defeat of the season at in-form Birmingham City on Wednesday night, 15 September, ko 7:45pm. Here's our Away Day Guide.
TICKETING INFORMATION

Fulham have been allocated 1,000 tickets for this fixture priced at £25 for adults, £20 for senior citizens, 19-24 year olds, £15 for 13-18 year olds and £10 for under 13s. Supporters can still buy tickets via the Fulham website or by calling the ticket office on 0203 871 0810.
GETTING TO ST. ANDREW'S
BY CAR

Come off the M6 at Junction 6 and follow the A38M for Birmingham City Centre. Take the second turn off onto the Inner Ring Road. Turn left onto the Ring Road East – following the signs for Coventry and Stratford. You will need to remain on the ring road for about two miles, continuing straight ahead through three roundabouts. The fourth roundabout, which is notable for a massive McDonald's on your left, is where you will need to turn left into Coventry Road heading for Small Heath. Follow the signposts for the ground, which will soon appear on your left. Your best bet for parking is street parking off the ring road.
BY TRAIN

Although Bordesley is the closest station to St. Andrew's, very few trains from London and elsewhere call here. You are most likely to arrive from Euston at Birmingham New Street. You can take a connection to Birmingham Moor Street, with Bordersley being three minutes away, opt for a taxi – which should cost around £9 – or make the half an hour journey to St. Andrew's on foot.
BY COACH

Coaches will leave Craven Cottage and Motspur Park at 3.15pm. They are priced at £17 for adult season ticket holders and £10 for junior senior ticket holders. They will cost £22 for adults and £15 for juniors who don't hold a season ticket.
AWAY PUBS

Almost all of the pubs around St. Andrew's are strictly home fans only. The exception in the past has been The Cricketers' Arms (48 Little Green Lane, Birmingham, B9 5AX), which is happy to welcome a mixture of home and away supporters. It is quite a small pub but there is ample outside seating.

If you are walking to the ground, there a couple of recommended stopping off points.

    The Anchor Digbeth (308 Bradford Street, Birmingham B5 6ET) is a renowned real ale venue at the back of Birmingham Coach Station

    The Old Crown (188 High Street, Birmingham, B12 0LD) is situated in Birmingham's oldest building and has historically welcomed visiting Fulham fans.

Your best options in the city centre are likely to be

    The Wellington (37 Bennetts Hill, Birmingham B2 5SN)

    The Briar Rose (25 Bennetts Hill, Birmingham B2 5RE) – which often asks for away colours to be covered up nowadays

    The Sun On The Hill (23 Bennetts Hill, Birmingham B2 5QP)

    The Shakespeare Inn (Summer Row, Birmingham, B3 1JJ), right next to New Street station.




https://www.fulhamsupporterstrust.com/news/2021/09/away-day-guide-birmingham-city/

WhiteJC

Analysis: The Tactical Tools that beat Fulham

Fulham came into Bloomfield Road as runaway favourites to win the Championship. They were freshly relegated from the Premier League, had spent more than every other team combined and have a young, exciting manager in Marco Silva. Blackpool, newly-promoted, were yet to win a game and sitting within the relegation zone. But Fulham left with no points, as Blackpool's well-drilled and refreshed side executed a perfect gameplay to secure their first league win.

So how did Blackpool pull of these upset? We have identified a number of key important trends:

    In the final third, we pressed and cut passing lanes to force the ball wide and/or long
    In our third, we entered a low block in the centre of the pitch – forcing crosses and speculative efforts
    In build-up, we dropped extra players into defence to facilitate building from the back
    This, in turn, provided cover for our full-backs to be aggressive

1. Forcing Fulham's CBs to go long or wide

Blackpool came into this match with a clear plan for how they wanted to press Fulham and, as expected from Neil Critchley, it began with the front two. Yates and John-Jules focused on staying on the inside of the two Fulham centre-backs, cutting off the passing to Jean Michaël Seri (#24). Seri was playing as a single defensive midfielder, and without him available as an option, the Fulham centre-backs had to pass the ball between themselves or the full-backs. Any pass to the full-backs would then trigger pressing from Anderson/Bowler to force a turnover.

Fulham were being funnelled into the wings from the very beginning of their build-up. WhoScored estimates that 75% of their attacks came from the wide-areas. Rather than enjoying space in the centre of the pitch, they entered tight areas constrained by the touchline where losing possession is far more likely.

2. Allowing headers and long-shots

Whenever Fulham did manage to progress the ball, Blackpool's central midfielders and fullbacks quickly recovered into a low-block.  Fulham dominated the game with 70% possession, and were allowed to probe from the wings or distance. With six to eight bodies patrolling the 18 yard box, Fulham consistently struggled to create any great shots within the penalty area.

A quick look at Infogol's shot map (pasted below) shows every single one had a very low chance (<10%) of going in. While Blackpool did concede 11 shots, they were all speculative long-range areas or headers from outside the 6 yard box. Fulham's xG per shot in this game was around 0.07, around half their season average of 0.14.



They were also forced into making 28 crosses, over half their season average of 14. Blackpool didn't risk their defensive shape by aggressively winning back possession. We were instead content to let Fulham have the ball and leave no openings for them to use it.

3. Extra Bodies in Build-Up

In the second minute of this game, Chris Maxwell stepped far from his line, received the ball and ran forward to be level with Richard Keogh. From this position, playing almost as the 2nd centre-back, he played a long pass and launched a Blackpool attack. While this ball was called offside (spuriously), it is an excellent ability to have in your toolkit.


Maxwell – our third CB option

Maxwell regularly provides a passing option, but usually from behind the two centre-backs. By advancing this far up the pitch, he allows other players (like Ekpiteta or Gabriel) to push further up and overload Fulham's midfield. For games against sides of Fulham's quality, where the away side will often win the 1v1 battles, creating advantages in other areas. is invaluable. By stepping up, Maxwell frees up other players to create numerical advantages elsewhere.

Maxwell isn't the only one, and this season has regularly seen Reece James or other central midfielders move into the left-back spot. This time it was the turn of Kevin Stewart, who frequently joined the back line to provide another passing option and navigate the Fulham press.

4. Rampaging Full-Backs

The two individuals who benefitted most from these extra bodies in the build-up were Luke Garbutt and Jordan Gabriel. With cover in the back-line, our attacking-oriented full-backs could drive further up the pitch and terrorise Fulham's defenders.

Luke Garbutt, in particular, became a statistical monster. He created wo key-passes and six crosses, more than any other Blackpool player. Keshi Anderson and Garbutt combined to create dangerous chances the entire game – as illustrated by the outrageous piece of skill below.



Jordan Gabriel, in contrast, had a slightly quieter game. However, his ability to get on the overlap proved vital for Blackpool's winner. As usual, Bowler cuts inside and begins running at his men. But Dennis Odoi can't fully commit to stopping him in case he passes it Gabriel on the overlap. Odoi has to take a slightly wider position to try and cover this possibility. By the time that he realises that Bowler isn't passing the ball, he is already running past him and into the box. Gabriel, just by being there, creates uncertainty for Odoi and space for us to score.



Conclusion

Blackpool's victory today was no fluke. It was built on an effective game-plan that forced Fulham into uncomfortable and uninspiring positions, while allowing our own players to aggressively push up the pitch and play to their strengths. From forwards to full-backs, everyone played their part.

I can't wait to see what we do next.

#upthemightypool



https://upthemightypool.co.uk/2021/09/12/analysis-the-tactical-tools-that-beat-fulham/