Thursday Fulham Stuff - 18/08/22...

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Data experts make staggering 2022-23 prediction for Brighton, West Ham, Tottenham, Arsenal, Brentford, Aston Villa and Fulham after Premier League openers
Brighton and Hove Albion have made a solid start to the new Premier League season – but where are they and their rivals tipped to finish this season?

Graham Potter's team have four points from their first two fixtures as they beat Manchester 2-1 at Old Trafford and then drew 0-0 with Newcastle United at the Amex Stadium.

The Seagulls will look to keep their unbeaten run going as they head to West Ham this Sunday to face David Moyes' team who have lost 2-0 to Manchester City and then suffered 1-0 defeat at newly-promoted Nottingham Forest.

Manchester City have already impressed with this season with six goals from two victories but Liverpool have been slow from the blocks with just two points from a possible six following draws against Fulham and Crystal Palace.

Chelsea and Tottenham – who played out a feisty 2-2 at Stamford Bridge last weekend – both look strong as do Arsenal who have also enjoyed a fast start with wins against Crystal Palace and Leicester.

Manchester United currently prop up the table after their home loss to Albion was swiftly followed by a 4-0 thrashing at Brentford.

Everton are also without a point in the early stages and Southampton have also looked off the pace in their opening matches, despite fighting back to claim a point in a 2-2 with Leeds.

Promoted teams Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth are off the mark with wins against West Ham and Aston Villa respectively, while Fulham have started brightly with draws versus Liverpool and Wolves.

After matchday two and ahead of this weekend's Premier League fixtures, data experts at FiveThirtyEight provide every team's probability of winning the league, claiming a top four spot and being relegated.

Here's where they tipped every team to finish and how many points they will achieve.

1. Man City
Points: 87, title: 59%, top four: 95%, relegated

2. Liverpool
Points: 76, title: 18%, top four: 76%, relegated: 1%

3. Chelsea
Points: 72, title: 10%, top four: 62%, relegated 1%

4. Tottenham
Points: 68, title: 6%, top four: 48%, relegated 1%

5. Arsenal
Points: 66, title: 4%, top four: 41%, relegated 1%

6. Brighton
Points: 56, title: 1%, top four: 15%, relegated 4%

7. Aston Villa
Points: 53, title: 1%, top four: 11%, relegated 6%

8. Man United
Points: 51, title: 1%, top four: 9%, relegated 8%

9. Brentford
Points: 51, title: 1%, top four: 9%, relegated 8%

10. Newcastle
Points: 49, title: 1%, top four: 7%, relegated 10%

11. Crystal Palace
Points: 49, title: 1%, top four: 6%, relegated 10%

12. Leicester
Points: 48, title: 1%, top four: 6%, relegated 12%

13. West Ham
Points: 46, title: 1%, top four: 5%, relegated 15%

14. Wolves
Points: 44, title: 1%, top four: 3%, relegated 20%

15. Leeds United
Points: 42, title: 1%, top four: 2%, relegated 23%

16. Everton
Points: 40, title: 1%, top four: 2%, relegated 29%

17. Fulham
Points: 39, title: 1%, top four: 1%, relegated 33%

18. Southampton
Points: 39, title: 1%, top four: 1%, relegated 34%

19. Bournemouth
Points: 37, title: 1%, top four: 1%, relegated 39%

20. Nottingham Forest
Points: 35, title: 1%, top four: 1%, relegated 47%



https://www.sussexexpress.co.uk/sport/football/brighton-and-hove-albion/data-experts-make-staggering-2022-23-prediction-for-brighton-west-ham-tottenham-arsenal-brentford-aston-villa-and-fulham-after-premier-league-openers-3809874

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Fulham Not In Rush To Make Decision On Willian

Fulham are in no rush to offer a contract to former Arsenal and Chelsea winger Willian, according to Sky Sports News.

The veteran winger is available on a free transfer after he left Corinthians earlier this month.

He is aiming to return to the Premier League but for the moment he does not have any offers on his table.

The winger has been training with Fulham, which has led to suggestions that he is close to joining the newly-promoted side on a free transfer.

However, the Cottagers are in no rush to make a decision on whether to sign Willian this summer.

He is working behind the scenes and Marco Silva is happy having him around his training group as he mulls over his options.

The Fulham coach is taking a look at Willian and his fitness, but a decision is not expected to be made soon.

His free agent status gives Fulham the time to think about whether to offer him a contract with the club.

Willian could be signed up on a free transfer even after the window closes in two weeks' time on 1st September.



https://insidefutbol.com/2022/08/17/fulham-not-in-rush-to-make-decision-on-willian/573880/

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Fulham closing in on Justin Kluivert deal

Fulham appear to be nearing a deal for AS Roma forward Justin Kluivert, with the 23-year-old believed to have given his thumbs-up to the move.

What's the word?

As per the Evening Standard, Marco Silva's side are 'edging closer' to signing the promising Dutchman, with the winger having informed those at Craven Cottage that he is keen on the proposed switch.

The report suggests that the two-cap gem – who spent last season on loan at Nice – is expected to shun rival interest in order to realise his ambition of playing in the Premier League.

However, the report does add that a full agreement has not yet been reached with the Serie A club, with the west Londoners' latest offer said to be that of a loan deal which would include a £10m obligation to buy fee, should the player reach a certain number of appearances this season.

Ease Wilson blow
The arrival of the 5 foot 8 menace – who is the son of Dutch icon Patrick Kluivert – could well help to soften the blow of losing former Liverpool winger Harry Wilson, with the Welshman facing an extended period on the sidelines after suffering a knee injury in pre-season.

The 25-year-old had been integral to the club's promotion push under Silva last season, scoring ten goals and providing a remarkable 20 assists in 41 league games for the Cottagers after joining on a £12m deal at the start of the campaign.

Losing such an integral figure – who registered by far the most assists in all competitions for the club last term – will have proven a real headache for the former Everton boss, with that only compounded by the subsequent loss of summer signing Manor Solomon to a long-term injury.

The absence of Wilson in particular will have disrupted Silva's plans for the season, with the possible addition of Kluivert likely to go someway towards helping to bolster Fulham's options on the flanks.

The £13.5m-rated gem initially bust onto the scene at Ajax as a teenager, scoring ten goals and providing 13 assists in 56 games for the Eredivisie outfit, with such form seeing him being dubbed a "sensation" by journalist Ronan Murphy.

Also labelled a "special talent" by Ryan Baldi, the Amsterdam native was subsequently snapped up by the Giallorossi in 2018, although has since spent the past two seasons out on loan after failing to really make his mark at the Stadio Olimpico.



https://www.footballfancast.com/fulham-fc-transfer-rumours/fulham-kluivert-silva-wilson-premier-league

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Fulham loanee Kieron Bowie talks through the 'great feeling' of scoring a stoppage-time winner for Cobblers
'It was right off the right swinger and I was just hoping it went in but I'll take it all day long!'


Kieron Bowie.

Kieron Bowie could hardly have picked a better moment to score his first ever senior goal in English football.

The 19-year-old, who started out at Raith Rovers before moving to Fulham last year, joined the Cobblers on loan from Craven Cottage earlier in the summer and has impressed supporters every time he's stepped onto the pitch, either from the start or as a substitute.

The only thing missing from his first three appearances was a goal but he put that right in memorable fashion at Crawley Town on Tuesday. With the clock ticking past 90 minutes and the teams locked at two apiece after a helter-skelter League Two encounter, substitute Bowie received a pass from Sam Hoskins inside the penalty box, took an excellent first touch and dispatched a shot into the roof of the net to snatch victory and send both his team-mates and the away fans behind the goal wild.

💪 A special goal on an emotional evening 🥰

That roar of the #ShoeArmy 😍 pic.twitter.com/iMYjttS7y4

— Northampton Town (@ntfc) August 17, 2022

"To be fair, it just came to me on my left foot, I touched it and then it was hit and hope! It was right off the right swinger and I was just hoping it went in but I'll take it all day long," said a beaming Bowie.

"I didn't really know what to do with the celebration so I went for the knee slide. You aren't even thinking you are going to score so you don't plan the celebration.

"But it was great togetherness from the boys because everyone came together to celebrate and we were all jumping on each other - it was just a great feeling."

Bowie set up Hoskins for a goal at Grimsby recently but on Tuesday the roles were reversed.

The 19-year-old added: "The other week, I played a good ball to him and now he's returned the favour - hopefully we can keep doing that!

"We don't want to have to leave it so late too much but it is a great feeling to score my first goal in the EFL and hopefully there are more to come."



https://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/sport/football/fulham-loanee-kieron-bowie-talks-through-the-great-feeling-of-scoring-a-stoppage-time-winner-for-cobblers-3809978

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Claim Fulham and Southampton 'tried to buy' player – Another club 'made the transfer' instead

Fulham and Southampton both tried to sign Tanguy Nianzou from Bayern Munich but missed out on a deal to Sevilla.

That's according to SportBILD journalist Christian Falk, who says the 20-year-old decided to move to Spain instead.

Sevilla have moved to sign Nianzou from Bayern this week, with director of football Monchi stepping up his efforts to reinforce their defence.

That's been left thin after Diego Carlos left to join Aston Villa and Jules Koundé moved to Barcelona, necessitating a need for reinforcements.

Nianzou is the man they have targeted, and the Spanish side are now closing in on a deal for the 20-year-old according to reports in Spain and Germany.

It seems they have beaten competition to Nianzou's signature as well, with Falk reporting that Fulham and Southampton were both keen.

According to him, the Premier League duo 'tried to buy' the 20-year-old this summer but Sevilla 'made the transfer' and he will be going there instead.

It now remains to be seen if Fulham or Southampton will look elsewhere in the market for an alternative to Nianzou or stick with what they have and spend their remaining money elsewhere.



http://sportwitness.co.uk/claim-fulham-southampton-tried-buy-player-another-club-made-transfer-instead/

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Fulham close to deal for Roma outcast Kluivert

Roma are finally preparing to transfer Justin Kluivert to Fulham, on loan with obligation to buy based on certain conditions, at a cost of €12m.

The negotiations have been going on for weeks, threatening to crumble with interest also from other clubs including Olympique Marseille, Galatasaray and Torino.

According to Tuttomercatoweb, Fulham have now agreed basic terms to take Kluivert on loan with an obligation to buy for a total €12m.

The obligation will be tied to the number of appearances he makes in the Fulham jersey.

Roma purchased Kluivert for €17.25m from Ajax in 2018, but the son of ex-Milan striker Patrick Kluivert never really fulfilled his potential.

There were loan spells at RB Leipzig and OGC Nice without making vast improvements or earning a permanent transfer.

His contract with the Giallorossi only runs to June 2023, so in order to make this deal with Fulham work, he must first extend his commitment to Roma until 2024.



https://football-italia.net/fulham-close-to-deal-for-roma-outcast-kluivert/

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Player 'one step away' from joining Fulham as clubs are 'close' to agreement

Fulham's pursuit for AS Roma's Justin Kluivert now gets very positive updates from the Italian media.

Tutto Mercato Web turns up to say that the player is 'one step away' from completing his move to Craven Cottage.

The website claims that following a positive response from the player, negotiations between Fulham and Roma have 'practically been unlocked' in the last few hours.

The agreement between the clubs is now said to be 'close', with Kluivert joining the Whites on loan with a right to buy. That clause, which is set to be worth €12m, would automatically be triggered depending on a number of performances for the Premier League side this season.

Earlier today, the Italian media had already reported that the player had said yes to a Fulham move. Even though clubs from other countries had also been interested in signing him, it was repeatedly claimed that the Whites would have an advantage by offering him the chance of playing in the Premier League, besides the financial power to cover the salary he has at Roma.



http://sportwitness.co.uk/player-one-step-away-joining-fulham-clubs-close-agreement/