Thursday Fulham Stuff - 21/04/22...

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4 apps, 3 goals: Marco Silva's top Fulham XI's last top-flight records

Fulham are back in the Premier League at the first time of asking after a prolific season by Aleksandar Mitrovic fired Marco Silva's men out of the Championship with a title in reach.

The Cottagers have yo-yoed between the top-flight and second-tier over recent years, so will hope to re-establish their presence now. They spent 13-straight seasons in the Premier League before relegation in 2013/14, and bounced back and forth since the 2018/19 term.

Fulham sealed their top-flight returns in 2018 and in 2020 via the play-offs after ending the Championship seasons in third and fourth-place. But they sit first this season with a nine-point advantage to Bournemouth with six games to play and promotion already in the bag.

Mitrovic has been vital to Silva's efforts to secure Fulham a Premier League berth with the Serbian the Championship's top-scorer. He has hit a massive 40 goals in 40 appearances, but he has never been as prolific in the top-flight with a career 64 goals across 182 games.

So, how did Silva's most-used men from each position fair in their respective last seasons in a top-flight, now that Fulham are guaranteed to play Premier League football next term.

GK – Marek Rodak
Marek Rodak has featured in 30 of Fulham's fixtures as they sealed automatic promotion from the Championship. The 25-year-old has also kept 13 clean sheets to 24 goals allowed to date. But he only played twice and conceded five goals during 2020/21 in the top-flight.

The Slovakian shot-stopper started the Cottagers' opening match of the Premier League term in defeat at home to Arsenal. He then had to wait until a final day defeat at home to Newcastle to feature again. And former loanee Alphonse Areola could again take his place.

RB – Neco Williams
Silva started Denis Odoi in 17 of his 18 appearances during the Championship season. He has also scored once and assisted four goals as the Portuguese coach's most often utilised right-back so far, ahead of Neco Williams (13 starts in 13) and Kenny Tete (12 starts in 16).

Yet the Cottagers sold Odoi to Club Brugge during January before loaning Williams in from Liverpool. The 21-year-old has now matched his career top record of 13 Premier League appearances, with a single-season high of six achieved in 2019/20 and again in 2020/21.

CB – Tim Ream
Tim Ream has been a rock of Fulham's defence so far this term with 42 appearances, a goal and two assists. He has also only been cautioned on five occasions, having stepped up off the bench from last season. The American only played seven league games in 2020/21.

CB – Tosin Adarabioyo
Tosin Adarabioyo was a key part of the Fulham defence that suffered relegation in '20/21, unlike Ream. The 24-year-old joined from Manchester City ahead of the term for £8m and made 33 appearances. His form even drew transfer interest from Arsenal, per The Athletic.

Newcastle considered raiding west London for the centre-half this January, as well, per The Times. Adarabioyo had maintained top-flight interest with his form over 38 Championship appearances, and will now have another shot with Fulham after remaining with the club.

LB – Antonee Robinson
Antonee Robinson joined Fulham alongside Adarabioyo ahead of the 2020/21 season. The American full-back also featured in 28 Premier League games, but failed to create or score any goals. He has laid on four assists and scored twice in 33 second-tier games this term.

CM – Harrison Reed
arrison Reed started the current campaign on the sidelines but overcome his injury to be a key part of Silva's plans. The midfielder has featured in 35 of Fulham's second-tier games and started 29 – eclipsing his 26 starts over 31 outings as part of the Cottagers' relegation.

CM – Jean Michael Seri
Jean Michael Seri spent the second half of last season away from Craven Cottage on loan with Bordeaux after failing to feature for Fulham. The Ivorian remained outside of their Premier League squad in all 20 possible sides and would only feature 12 times in Ligue 1.

RW – Harry Wilson
Harry Wilson's creativity has played a key role in Fulham securing another instant return to the Premier League. The £12m summer signing from Liverpool has scored 10 and assisted 16 goals over his 38 appearances. But he must now prove his worth in the top-flight, too.

The Welshman returned to the Championship on loan with Cardiff last term after a year in the top-flight with Bournemouth. He struck seven goals but no assists in 31 Premier League games for the Cherries in 2019/20. Yet only started 20 matches and scored once in 2020.

CAM – Fabio Carvalho
An injury limited Fabio Carvalho's availability early in the current campaign, but the 19-year-old has flourished under Silva since. He has nine goals and seven assists in 32 games, starting 29. The Portuguese had only played four league fixtures previously in his career.

Scott Parker afforded the teenager his top-flight bow in May 2021 and he started Fulham's final three fixtures, as well. Now, he could add to that record next term, but with Liverpool as Fabrizio Romano reports he will join the Reds for £5m plus £2.5m in future add-ons.

LW – Neeskens Kebano
Neeskens Kebano produced a lively campaign up until February with eight goals and five assists. He has since only managed to add one in either tally, despite playing 37 games so far this season. The 30-year-old has also started 29 of his appearances in the second-tier.

He had an early look at life in the Championship last season after joining Middlesbrough on loan in January. Parker cut the DR Congo international in the winter market as he had only played five Premier League matches for a total of 116 minutes without scoring or assisting.

ST – Aleksandar Mitrovic
Mitrovic has been the man of the moment for Fulham this season with an astounding 40 goals and seven assists over 40 games to seal their promotion from the Championship to Premier League, with the title possibly theirs for the taking at Bournemouth on Saturday.

But Silva will hope his incredible campaign is replicated somewhat next season as the Serb has struggled in the top-flight before. He scored just three and assisted three goals over 27 games last term under Parker, while also only starting 13 of his league appearances, too.

The striker's output also failed to prevent the Cottagers falling back into the second-tier in 2018/19. Mitrovic amassed 11 goals in 37 that season after starting in each of his matches.



https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2022/04/20/4-apps-3-goals-marco-silvas-top-fulham-xis-last-top-flight-records/

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75% overall pass completion rate: The Manchester United player wanted by Bournemouth and Fulham

Dean Henderson has been linked with a move away from Manchester United this summer.

Bournemouth, Fulham and Middlesbrough have all shown an interest in bringing the 25-year old to their club on loan for next season.

The goalkeeper has struggled for game time at Old Trafford this campaign, only appearing three times for the senior side in all competitions.

With David de Gea now back as the number one choice in the side, Henderson may seek a move away on loan to re-establish his position as a number one option for a Premier League club.

The Englishman had closed last season as United's first choice, but circumstances out of his control led to him missing the start of this campaign.

Looking at Henderson's stats from this and last season, we can see what he could bring to the likes of Bournemouth, Fulham or Middlesbrough if he joined them this summer.

Courtesy of stats of Statsbomb, from Fbref, we can see that Henderson had a pass completion rate of 75 per cent last season, when he made 13 Premier League appearances.

His passing from a close range increased to 100 per cent, showing he can be relied upon to distribute the ball quickly and accurately from a short distance.

Over a medium range distance, this completion rate remained at 100 per cent, so he can continue to be relied upon to play out from the back.

Henderson can remain calm under pressure as well and has been known to play a role in starting quick counter attacks.

Most notably, his pass out to Luke Shaw in Man United's derby win over Man City last season helped the team start a quick transition that led to the Red Devils scoring to make it 2-0 at the Etihad.

The goalkeeper's post-shot expected goals, i.e. the expected goals based on how likely the goalkeeper is to save the shot, amounted to 12.3 from 12 goals conceded, so his shot-stopping wasn't out of this world.

However, he is still dependable and this also indicates that he is not likely to be a liability between the sticks.

From only those 13 games in the top flight last season, Henderson also had 14 actions outside the penalty area, which is a measurement of how proactive a keeper is in coming off his line.

This figure shows that the 25-year old likes to venture forward when he spots danger which could be of use to a possession heavy side like Bournemouth who could play a higher line.

These stats show that Henderson has a varied game and is a very modern goalkeeper who could be of use to any side at a Premier League level.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/75-overall-pass-completion-rate-the-manchester-united-player-wanted-by-bournemouth-and-fulham/

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Marlon Fossey and a potential new Bolton Wanderers deal: What do we know so far? Is it likely to happen?

Marlon Fossey made an eye-catching impact at Bolton Wanderers after signing on loan from Fulham in January.

Injury ended his campaign prematurely but Fossey impressed Ian Evatt a lot at The UniBol, and off the back of that he is going to be a transfer target in the summer.

The flying right wing back complimented the Trotters' possession based style of play very nicely, and added to their pace in behind in combination with fellow January signing Dion Charles.

At 23, Fossey has just one year remaining on his contract at Craven Cottage, and does not look likely to challenge Kenny Tete or potentially even Neco Williams, for a first team berth next season in the Premier League.

What do we know so far?

Bolton have not been the same since his injury, the Trotters' distant play-off push has diminished since, potentially due to a dip in motivation with less to play for, but the Fossey sized hole in Evatt's side has been evident, so much so that they have gone back to deploying a back four at times.

Evatt is going to do everything in his power to lure Fossey back to The UniBol, with the ball in the player and Fulham's court in terms of where he will be playing his football next season.

Is it likely to happen?

Entering the final year of his contract, and well-stocked in his position, the chances are that Fulham sort a permanent move away for Fossey this summer, as it would be smart asset management if he does not sign a new contract.

Bolton would be a candidate with him being available, and will have one of the larger budgets in League One, however for Fossey's development he should be playing Championship football next season.

The 23-year-old is suited to a team that see a lot of the ball and can play adventurous attacking football, and that is where Bolton could trump a bottom half second tier side, but at the moment it does seem likely that the American drops back down to League One next term, given the quality he demonstrated even in a small sample size, 15 League One appearances, at the start of this calendar year.



https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/marlon-fossey-and-a-potential-new-bolton-wanderers-deal-what-do-we-know-so-far-is-it-likely-to-happen/

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Michael Jackson, parties at Harrods, European nights, mice and mayhem! After a 25-year rollercoaster that began with Mohamed al Fayed's takeover, Fulham are back in the big time again

    Fulham were in the third tier and skint when Mohamed al Fayed bought it in 1997
    Since then they have had 15 years in the top flight and graced a European final
    Fulham promoted to the Premier League for third time in five years on Tuesday
    Marco Silva believes the Cottagers have better chance of staying up this time

Fulham never did become the 'Manchester United of the South' as Mohamed al Fayed once promised but they did banish the mice from the dressing room and repair the showers, and they have risen once more to the Premier League.

In the 25 years since Al Fayed paid £6.25million for the west London club, then in the third tier and utterly broke, they have savoured 15 seasons of top-flight football, celebrated promotion five times and graced a major European final.

With respect to Johnny Haynes and Co, this has been an era of sustained Fulham success unlike any other.


Michael Jackson with former Fulham owner Al Fayed at a game against Wigan in 1999

The residual fear of enforced relocation from Craven Cottage has gone, with the stylish Riverside Stand due to open next season opposite the wooden seats, tin roof and classic lines of the old Stevenage Road Stand designed by Archibald Leitch and now named in honour of Haynes.

They own a modern training ground and an academy which is producing talent such as Tottenham's Ryan Sessegnon, Liverpool's Harvey Elliott and Fabio Carvalho, who has lit up the Championship this season and is tipped to follow Elliott to Anfield.

Quite a contrast for those who recall the days before Al Fayed, when they operated without a kit man or a paid scout.

'We were skint,' admits Simon Morgan, Fulham legend of more than 400 appearances. 'There was a lot wrong and it had been that way for about 20 years.

'There were mice running round the walls in the dressing room, showers that didn't work, parts of the terracing were closed off and attendances went under 3,000.

'We were a team of journeymen and Micky Adams dragged us up by the bootlaces from 91st in the Football League. It took a big effort from a small number of people to get us back on the right track and somehow get promoted. That's when Mohamed came in.'

Al Fayed, the first in a new breed of foreign owners, was in a hurry. The Egyptian businessman owned Harrods in London and the Ritz in Paris and declared his intention to transform Fulham into one of the world's greatest clubs.

Popular boss Adams was sacked four months into a new five-year contract to make way for Kevin Keegan and Ray Wilkins, the new managerial dream team.


The managerial dream team of Kevin Keegan (right) and Ray Wilkins (2nd left) in 1997

'That was the first real sign of the massive change coming,' recalls Morgan. 'We then spent a million on Paul Peschisolido. It was bewildering.

'Our first game under Kevin and Ray was Wigan away at the old Springfield Park. There were about 50 photographers on the pitch as we ran out. They weren't bothered about the players. All the lenses were pointing at the directors' box.

'We lost in the last minute so, even then, there was something a bit Fulhamish about it all, and the dressing room was so small that Kevin was standing in the shower as Ray was doing his team talk. Not a great start.'

Keegan left for England and Jean Tigana was in charge by the time they reached the Premier League in 2001 — ahead of schedule, according to the owner's five-year plan.


Fulham were beaten 2-1 by Atletico Madrid in extra time in the 2010 Europa League final

Star players such as Edwin van der Sar, Andy Cole and Dimitar Berbatov were signed. Managers came and went. As did random celebrities, although none made the same impact as Michael Jackson, who accompanied Al Fayed to Craven Cottage for a game against Wigan while still in his King of Pop pomp.

Jackson was honoured with a statue inside the stadium, which drew ridicule and complaints from Fulham supporters. 'Go to hell or go to Chelsea,' was Al Fayed's typically frank response.

'Apparently, he'd been doing a trolley dash at Harrods in the morning,' says Morgan. 'Then he came over with the chairman, who brought him into the changing room after the game and we all went back out on to the pitch to do some pictures.

'Just bonkers. We were starstruck, like, "Wow, Michael Jackson's in our changing room". He said he'd enjoyed himself and what a great game it had been, in a very squeaky voice.

'We were giving the chairman some stick when he brought Tony Curtis to the next game, telling him it was a bit of a let-down. You can't go from Michael Jackson to Tony Curtis.

'Mohamed was larger than life. It was his club and when he came in he commanded the dressing room and he would tell us he loved us. Brilliant times.'

End-of-season parties at The Georgian restaurant at Harrods became a tradition. One insider recalled the incongruous sight of Louis Saha, dressed in an ice-white suit, locked deep in conversation in French with Princess Diana's stepmother.

All of this set the template for the modern Fulham. Unashamedly ambitious with a hint of showbiz, evoking a time when George Best and Rodney Marsh generated popular appeal, and an unconventional owner who was quick with a soundbite and not afraid to make mischief.

When Mark Hughes was appointed and posed stern-faced for photographers on the pitch, Al Fayed could not resist pushing up the corners of the manager's mouth with his fingers and telling him, 'Smile, you've got a new job'.

Once back at the all-seater Cottage after lodging for two years at QPR, they flourished. Seventh under Roy Hodgson in 2009 was the best finish in Fulham's history and they reached the Europa League final a year on, losing to Atletico Madrid after recording a famous comeback win against Juventus in the quarter-finals.

'Those European nights were fantastic and to stay up for 13 years was a hell of an achievement,' says Morgan.

Al Fayed sold to Shahid Khan in July 2013 and Fulham were relegated within 10 months. Since then they have won promotion twice, both times via the play-offs, and come straight back down on both occasions.

This time, however, the feeling at the club is that they are better equipped to re-establish themselves in the Premier League, with more time to recruit.

Tony Khan has found his feet in his role as sporting director and has established a good working relationship with head coach Marco Silva and chief executive Alistair Mackintosh to build a team with attacking flair.

'When you see what the new owner is doing, building the new stand means there will be virtually 30,000 people there for every game. It's just fantastic,' says Morgan.

'I love going back to Craven Cottage and the best thing is there are still people working behind the scenes who were there in the bad times. It means Fulham keeps the identity it always had.'



https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-10736533/Fulhams-fascinating-25-year-journey-Al-Fayeds-6m-plunge-Premier-League.html

[WhiteJC]

Harry Wilson back in the Premier League as Fulham promoted

NORTH Wales born-and-bred footballing sensation Harry Wilson is set for a return to the Premier League with Fulham.

London's oldest professional club earned promotion back to the top-flight after a 3-0 win over Preston North End at Craven Cottage on Tuesday night (April 19).

That win meant that Fulham were guaranteed to finish in the EFL Championship's top two and return to the Premier League - which they have been either pormoted to or relegated from for the last five seasons.

Wilson, who turned 25 last month, played the full 90 minutes in the club's latest win.

Born in Wrexham, the winger went on to attend Ysgol Dinas Bran school in Llangollen and was brought up in the Denbighshire town of Corwen.

From a young age, his footballing talents were clear to see and the family made national headlines when he made his international debut for Wales aged just 16 years and 207 days old v Belgium in October 2013.

That is because his grandfather, Peter Edwards, netted £125,000 as a result of having placed a bet of £50 with bookies William Hill on Harry to someday go on and play for Wales when he was just 18-months old.

Wilson last played in the Premier League for Bournemouth (on loan from Liverpool) during the 2019/20 season, scoring 7 goals in the top flight.

He signed for Fulham initially on loan before signing a four-year-deal. Now, he is set for a return to the big time with the club in the 2022/23 season.

Despite enjoying successful loan spells at Hull City, Derby County and Cardiff City previously, it is arguably at Fulham that he has truly been able to show what he is capable of this season.

Wilson, who has also earned 35 caps for Wales to date, has 10 goals and 16 assists in 38 appearances for Fulham so far.

Having started out at Liverpool as a youngster, many clubs were reported to have been after his signature before he decided to make the permanent switch to Fulham last year.

During the off-season, he can often be spotted back home in the Corwen area and regularly supports his local football club.



https://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/20081005.harry-wilson-back-premier-league-fulham-promoted/

[WhiteJC]

Jack and Loz at the Cottage When Fulham Were Promoted - Blog 217
Date: 19th April 2022

Opposition: Preston North End

Score: 3-0

Goal scorers: 🔥, Carvalho, 🔥

Weather: temperate

Atmosphere: experts (ie. all Fulham fans) will debate for years to come where Tuesday night fits in and around the Juve and Hamberg home matches and the play-off semi final against Derby. Suffice to say, it was Up there

MOTM: unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures. We've said a lot recently that it's been hard to pick a Man of the Match because everyone has played so well. This is another occasion where it would be unfair to single a player out. So our Man of the Match is the mastermind behind not just Tuesday's win but a whole campaign of exquisite and effective football which has propelled Fulham to our first automatic promotion for 20 years. Understated but never under appreciated and definitely never at a loss for words, Marco Silva has brought more than just stylish football to Fulham. His warmth and honesty blend well with a club which prizes hard work and family values over naked ambition and success at any cost. We hope this season is only the start of a special relationship. Marco Silva and Fulham Football Club are a match made in heaven.

Pre-match drinks: by the river

Post-match champagne: the Blue Boat

We have often blogged about how Fulham's motto should be Making Life Hard for Ourselves Since 1879. Even earlier in this extraordinary season, indeed, even earlier in this incredible week, Fulham have demonstrated a knack for not taking the easy option.

However, when you look back at the season, something revolutionary has happened. We have been promoted the easy way. At times (7-0 away from home twice) it's looked effortless. There have been games, sometimes whole months (August, January) which have been unfulhamishly stress free. We appreciate this is the result of a lot of hard work behind the scenes but all the hours of preparation and training have paid off. Often, we've been spectacular. But just as often, we've been businesslike. And occasionally we've been gritty.

And all that flair, efficiency and resilience led to Craven Cottage under the lights on Tuesday night and promotion. At Home.

The thing about the play-offs, is that they're a gamble. And if you hit the jackpot, it's an all time high. That white hot, brilliant day at Wembley in 2018 will remain one of the highlights of all our lives, but imagine if we'd lost? That tense, edgy evening on 40,000 separate sofas in 2020 will remain one of the highlights of.......lockdown. But imagine if that hadn't been Scott Parker's finest hour?

So someone else can suffer the play-offs this year. Fulham took control of the Championship early on, and didn't let Up. Promotion had an inevitability about it, even for Fulham fans who are doubtful by nature, but it was worth it when it arrived. Few clubs associate themselves so strongly with their home as we do. Give us a new stand and we love it. Threaten us with a new ground and we'll riot.

We might have been promoted at Derby. We might, Fulhamishly, have been promoted by default, by Forest losing. But it didn't happen that way. It was perfectly fitting that we were promoted at the Cottage and fans could celebrate with the players and in the local bars. It's not a pitch invasion when it's your pitch.

But we must Back Up. There's a whole 90 minutes to talk about before we scaled the barriers.

As so often, this was a game of two halves. Not in terms of effort or performance, but there was a half in which Fulham were clinical and scored goals, and there was a half in which they didn't.

All 3 goals were superb and all featured an assist so good that the strike itself was the easy part. Joe Bryan, always a good bet on a promotion night, was tough, agile and intelligent in the build-up to Mitro's #39. Rodak, Mitro and particularly Neeskens were all superb for Fab's fab goal and Harry made #40.

There should have been more but in the second half the players faffed around, showed off, played to the crowd.....and missed the target. Mitro should have had at least one more and Fab, Neeskens and Neco all came close too. But it didn't matter. The job was already done, and, in fact, it was already done long before Tuesday night.

As we've said before, this was an outstanding all round performance with no weak links but, as well as praising the attack as we've already done, we have to mention Rodak for some great saves and Ream and Tosin for some calm and solid defending. Harrison Reed put in such a classic CDM performance that we didn't realise how good it was until his time was Up.

Marco's sub policy was Up to scratch. We got to see Seri and, although we were initially disappointed to see Mitro go off, we have a feeling that might be to ensure that at least #41 happens on Saturday.

We said earlier this season that watching a white clad hoard storm the Hammersmith End is even better when you're singing "We're Top of the League". It's better still when you're singing "We're Going Up" when you know it's true. The final whistle was a long time coming but the result was never in doubt. And as the match ended, the celebrations began.

We can't get enough of the players' exuberance and joy. Muniz and Boa sambaing, Seri boogieing, Mitro crowd surfing to his own song. The flags, the fizz, Fab's phone call. Marco carried aloft like a tribal king. And what a tribe we are.

We say the job is done, but of course it isn't. We've only secured the Silva medal. The celebrations so far are only interim, the real prize awaits.

Random musings:-

- Muniz celebrating Fab's goal!

- the subs joining in the cheers as the steward disappeared inside the Riverside looking for the ball

- and surely Bobby was pointing out that some new seats just aren't worth £1,000?

- 40 goals! He's lining Up the record

- "When We Win, We're on the Pitch." Not exactly Operation Mincemeat!

- when Ole was replaced with Shoot!

- we had 2 for 1 Forever Fulham awards with Mark and Glen!

- we couldn't have been promoted at Derby with Marco wearing a scruffy tracksuit. The business casual in Club colours was much more appropriate.

There are targets left for this season but it's impossible not to look further ahead. We've gone Up before. We've failed before. We so want it to be Third Time Lucky.

But it won't be about luck. It'll be about having 4 months to prepare for the Premier League not 5 weeks; it will be about the owners wanting to learn from past mistakes and ensure a future for the best stand in the country in the best league in the world. And it will be about having a manager who knows what he wants and who he wants and how he wants them to play.

We loved Slav's football, we backed him, we felt he was sacked too soon; we tried to see the positives with Scott and maybe he did his best but that wasn't good enough.

This time it's going to be different. We are Marco Silva's Fulham and we are Premier League.



https://werdsmith.com/p/CngCS3vxuY3kBK