Tuesday Fulham Stuff - 25/10/22...

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Results

Monday
West Ham	2-0	Bournemouth

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The bashful brilliance of Bobby Decordova-Reid
In the early stages of his Fulham career, Bobby Decordova-Reid was a bit marmite. You either liked his work ethic and appreciated his energy, or you felt the Whites would be better served by playing someone else. It didn't help that nobody was quite sure where his best position was: he scored 21 goals in 2017/2018 when deployed as a centre-forward by Lee Johnson at Bristol City as the Robins reached the League Cup semi-finals, but was never likely to displace Aleksandar Mitrovic as the focal point of the Fulham attack. He fared better as a number ten but couldn't dictate Championship games with the class of Tom Cairney (who could?) and had to make do with an understudy role whilst filling one of the spots out wide when selected.

There were, of course, glimpses of his undoubted quality. Decordova-Reid's intelligent running and ability to terrorise opposition defenders were in evidence when he opened the scoring with a sensational individual goal against Huddersfield Town, which still rates as one of the best goals I've seen at the Hammersmith End. He was also one of the few Fulham players to enhance his reputation post-promotion during the dismal relegation season under Scott Parker. Never a first choice, Decordova-Reid was a dependable member of the first team squad, slotting in at right wing-back, when the former Fulham boss switched to a back five in an attempt to stem the flood of goals conceded in those concerning early weeks of the campaign.

Decordova-Reid also did his bit at the other end of the field. Fulham fans knew he could score. He denied Slavisa Jokanovic's promotion chasers the points at Bristol City with a fine finish that cancelled out Mitrovic's first Fulham goal at Ashton Gate in 2018 and scored his first goal for Cardiff against the Whites when the Serbian's side imploded the following season at the Cardiff City Stadium after taking the lead through Andre Schurrle's stupendous strike. He scored seven goals, all while spending half the season at right wing-back, including a lovely strike that rocked Liverpool in December 2020 when fans returned to Craven Cottage for the first time, as well as adding three assists.

Decordova-Reid went one better in the Championship last term, quickly becoming a player that Marco Silva could rely on to do whatever job was required. But as well as hitting the target regularly, the Jamaican international's clever feet and eye for a pass created eight goals for his team-mates: and his endeavour off the ball was just as important in leading the press that prompted errors from opponents. One Championship coach described Decordova-Reid to me as 'a manager's dream' and you can see exactly why.

Sunday's superb showing against Leeds, where his glorious glancing header put Fulham in front for the first, encapsulated his effort. Decordova-Reid will never be a flawless right back as his talents lie in creating and finishing chances at the other end of the field, but he was close to perfect against Leon Bailey on Thursday night. He will always be a target for high diagonal balls on account of his 5ft 6in stature, but he was working diligently both on his header and defensive positioning. Luis Sinisterra got inside him a little too easily on a couple of occasions in the first half, but by the time the Colombian was substituted midway through the second period, Decordova-Reid was winning their individual battle.

He underlined his importance to a side that is battling for each other with a display full of grit and seemingly ceaseless running. When Leeds failed to clear a corner, it was Decordova-Reid who darted to the near post to encourage Andreas Pereira to put the ball back in and directed the deftest of headers across Illan Meslier and into the far corner. That it was already his third Premier League goal of an excellent season shows how valuable our makeshift right-back can be in the opposition's box. He admitted in a post-match interview with FFCTV that was just happy to help anywhere on the pitch – but that sort of attitude, as well as his enduring effectiveness, has cemented Decordova-Reid's standing as one of my own Fulham favourites.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2022/10/the-bashful-brilliance-of-bobby-decordova-reid/

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Will Jesse Marsch follow Steven Gerrard out of a job as Leeds United fans lose patience?

Steven Gerrard lasted just 11 months as Aston Villa manager. Jesse Marsch might pass through Leeds United after an even shorter tenure with the club's fans turning on the former RB Leipzig coach in recent games despite him being in charge for a mere eight months.

Managing a Premier League team is becoming harder at every level -- even Thomas Tuchel lost his job at Chelsea earlier this season, just over a year after winning the Champions League. But succeeding at clubs that go into the season as neither title challengers nor relegation candidates appears to have become the hardest challenge of them all.

All those coaches employed by the so-called Big Six know exactly what will happen if they don't succeed, but they at least go into the job knowing they are working for clubs with the financial power and attractiveness to potential signings to have a chance of achieving their targets. And at the other end, at those clubs who have either been promoted or who accept that Premier League survival is their only measure of success, the manager has a simple objective: stay up. Scott Parker's dismissal at Bournemouth five games into the season, having secured promotion back to the Premier League three months earlier, was due to his repeated public questioning of the club's recruitment strategy rather than a prolonged period of bad results although a 9-0 defeat at Liverpool almost certainly sealed his fate.

Yet teams such as Villa, Leeds and Everton, who dispensed with Rafa Benitez after seven months last season after the former Liverpool boss lost 10 of 22 games in charge, are in an unenviable position. They have proud histories, huge fan bases and ambitions to re-create the successes of the past, yet lack the resources or patience to play the long game and build from the bottom up.

Finishing 10th might be a sign of progress at such clubs, but only if it is a springboard for bigger, better and higher the next season. Unless you are a team such as Newcastle United, another club seeking to re-create more positive times from the past but one with the financial strength to build for today and tomorrow, it is almost impossible to succeed if you are in that middle ground of Premier League clubs.

Gerrard discovered that to his cost at Villa, losing his job after 40 games in charge in which he won 13 and lost 19. The former Liverpool captain cannot argue that he was successful at Villa Park, but the club invested only £63 million on new signings this summer (plus £27m on full-back Lucas Digne in January) and his biggest transfer, £28m defender Diego Carlos, has been out since the second game of the season due to injury. Gerrard's gamble on Philippe Coutinho did not work out, with the £18m summer signing from Barcelona failing to have an impact after an initial bright spell on loan last season. But for a club of Villa's stature and ambition, the summer outlay on new players was never likely to be transformative.

It is a similar story at Leeds, where Marsch lost midfielder Kalvin Phillips (to Manchester City) and forward Raphinha (Barcelona) for fees totalling almost £100m, while club-record signing Daniel James also left on loan to Fulham. The Elland Road recruitment team replaced them with a variety of players with little or no Premier League experience, such as Brenden Aaronson, Luis Sinisterra, Tyler Adams and Rasmus Kristensen. Having avoided relegation only on the final day of last season, Leeds arguably went into this season with a weaker squad after allowing three key players to leave in the summer, so it is no surprise that Marsch's team would be struggling and now in the bottom three.

But Leeds, like Villa, have too proud a history for their fans to accept annual fights against relegation. The problem is, neither club is yet financially strong enough to be able to chase new glories with the kind of investment, on and off the pitch, that enables Eddie Howe to make such rapid strides at Newcastle.

Gerrard went after the fans turned on him at Fulham last week, chanting "You're getting sacked in the morning" as they watched their team lose 3-0 at Craven Cottage. Marsch was subjected to the same supporter anger after his side also lost, 3-2 at home, against Fulham on Sunday.

Hearing fans sing the name of a previous manager is another bad sign, and Marsch has heard Marcelo Bielsa's name chanted several times in recent weeks. Sources told ESPN on Friday that Marsch was in no imminent danger of losing his job at Elland Road, but Premier League management is all about the shifting sands of results and the backing of supporters. Marsch is in negative territory in both of those key metrics.

It was the same story for Gerrard who, having arrived at Villa Park to great fanfare last November after proving his credentials by guiding Rangers to the Scottish Premiership title in 2021, was fired within minutes of the 3-0 defeat at Craven Cottage this past Thursday. Whomever Villa appoint to replace Gerrard will discover the same problems, and there might also be a new coach at Leeds soon charged with bridging the gap between expectation and reality.

But if clubs appoint managers and then fail to sign players good enough to make a difference, it will always be a story of diminishing returns followed by another roll of the managerial dice.



https://www.espn.co.uk/football/english-premier-league/story/4779936/will-marsch-follow-gerrard-out-of-job-as-fans-lose-patience

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Fulham boss Marco Silva hails 'outstanding' Andreas Pereira and makes transfer admission

Marco Silva hailed Andreas Pereira for silencing the doubters with his superb Fulham form and revealed he explored signing the midfielder last season.

Pereira set up goals for Aleksandar Mitrovic and Bobby Decordova-Reid as the Cottagers climbed to seventh with a 3-2 victory over struggling Leeds on Sunday.

Eyebrows were raised when Silva paid an initial £10million to sign Pereira from Manchester United in the summer, where he had made just 45 Premier League appearances across an eight-year spell that included four stints out on loan.

However, the 26-year-old appears to have found a happy, permanent home in west London, with four assists and a goal so far this term to help Silva's men make a flying start to their top-flight return.

"He has been outstanding this season," Silva said. "I know a lot of people had doubts when I decided to sign him but I knew his qualities and his character.


Top form: Andreas Pereira has been outstanding since arriving at Fulham in the summer / Getty Images

"Even last season we had a conversation about his future but it wasn't the right moment for him to join us. He's a key player on and off the ball and with set-pieces. Two assists this afternoon. A top professional who is enjoying himself at the moment in a white shirt. The three midfielders all played an amazing game today."

Fulham had to battle back from behind at Elland Road, Rodrigo opening the scoring before goals from Mitrovic, Decordova-Reid and Willian saw the visitors assert control.

Mitrovic's header took his tally for the season to nine goals, behind only Erling Haaland and Harry Kane in the race for the Golden Boot.

"Mitro is a top player and he has been great for us over the past few years and also his national team," Silva added. "He's a really important player and he's more than just a goalscorer. As a team, we are confident and we are here to embrace the challenge. I'm here to get the best from my players."

Crysencio Summerville's stoppage-time strike reduced the deficit but came too late for the hosts, who are without a league win since mid-August and have now lost four on the bounce as pressure mounts on manager Jesse Marsch.

"I'm here for the long-term," the American insisted. "I love this club, I'm investing everything I have to try to make us better.

"I understand the frustrations from the fans and we are equally if not more frustrated. We are doing everything we can and we are together."



https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/fulham-fc-transfer-news-andreas-pereira-marco-silva-b1034754.html

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Positives and Negatives: Leeds United 2-3 Fulham

With CamRam on Dad duty (and firstly, a huge congratulations to Cam and his lovely wife Lucy!), Jack Collins steps into the breach to look at the ups-and-downs from what was a stunning result in Yorkshire that moved the Whites up to seventh (!) in the Premier League table.

Elland Road hasn't been a particularly happy hunting ground for Fulham of late. You have to go back almost eight years to December 2014 to find our last win in Beeston, when a solitary Hugo Rodallega goal was the difference between the two sides.

But that didn't matter on Sunday, as Fulham took the game to Leeds, and recorded the win, which means that in October the Whites have already equalled our tally in the win column from our last attempt at a Premier League season. That's a positive in itself, but there are plenty more to pick from.

Positives
The irrepressible Harrison Reed
Fresh off the back of his second league goal of the season against Aston Villa, Harrison Reed could well have added a third in the opening minutes of this one, having a strike brilliantly blocked on the line by Marc Roca. His presence though, was keenly felt throughout the entire game – not only with a stunning assist for Willian's goal that put daylight between the two teams – but also in the centre of the park, where his tireless workrate off the ball and ability to drift into the right areas in possession meant that Leeds couldn't really lay a glove on him.

Reed's relationship with Palhinha is the bedrock of this Fulham team – the Portuguese provides the anchor, and off him Reed buzzes around putting out fires and winning possession over and over again, returning Fulham to the front foot on a regular basis. The freedom that Reed is now afforded by a defensive bastion of the quality of the Portuguese has added further strings to his bow, and if Gareth Southgate isn't paying attention yet, he should be.

The mazy dribble that meant Reed ended up on the assist list was something to behold. Composure, vision and determination in absolute spades, with the final pause to evade Luke Ayling on the byline perfectly timed to make a goal inevitable from the pullback. It's a mark of Reed's game rounding out even further, and whilst this World Cup will come too soon for Harrison to profit from his form this season, it's surely only a matter of time before a debut international call-up is in the offing for our diminutive, dominant number six.

Brazilian boys balling
When Andreas Pereira and Willian both signed in the summer, there were plenty of eyes rolled across the board by other Premier League fans – not least by Manchester United and Arsenal supporters – but both are thriving within Marco Silva's Fulham system. It's a mark of our head coach's ability and setup that he has been able to incorporate and improve two players who many had written off at this level, but major credit needs to be given to both that they have joined the club, got their heads down and proved their point.

Let's be fair – neither are perfect. In the first half there were plenty of gaps behind Willian that Leeds looked to exploit, and only another very good game from Antonee Robinson in that channel stopped more damage from being done in those areas; while Pereira was guilty of spurning a gilt-edged chance to give Fulham the lead when one-on-one with Meslier – telegraphing his shot instead of either teeing up the onrushing Harry Wilson, or even feinting to go round the keeper, which seemed the better option.

But we don't demand perfection. Willian's mesmeric ability on that left hand side caused problems all game long, with most of Fulham's thrust fed through him in one way or another, and his goal capped off what has been a truly brilliant week for him in a Fulham shirt. Meanwhile, Pereira's dead-ball ability caused havoc in the penalty box for Leeds on numerous occasions. But he is no mere specialist with nothing else to offer – he hassles and harries, draws fouls, leads the press and leaves everything on the pitch, and he has quickly become a keystone of the way that this side play.

Attacking patterns of play
Talking of which, something that's really caught the eye of late is the variation that Fulham can deploy in the way that we attack. We're a long way from the one-dimensionality that meant we only scored 27 times in the league in 2020/21 – a total that we're already close to matching with our 22 goals in 12 games. In fact, if we were to keep this rate of scoring up, we're currently on course to notch 70 this season.

This comes from Silva's inventiveness in the final third. Simply put, this Fulham side know how to attack. Whether it be through first-phase set piece deliveries (like the first goal), second-phase reworks (like the second), late runners arriving in the box for byline cutbacks (like the third), early crosses from deep, flatter crosses from wide, scything counter-attacks through the middle or long-range attempts, the variation in Fulham's testing of opposition goalkeepers has been a joy to watch, and means that opposition managers are still guessing which way we're going to hurt them.

It's not bad for a team 'over-reliant on a target-man who can't cut it in the Premier League'. Oh, and that fella's joint-second in the Premier League scoring charts, if you were wondering.

Negatives
Defensive frailties remain
There's not all that much to complain about, but coming off a really good clean sheet on Thursday night, it was a shame to see our tendency to concede big chances and sloppy goals returning at Elland Road. The first goal is a bit of a mess all round. Yes, Leeds get a bit lucky with the looping deflection, but Robinson's slip allows Jack Harrison way too much time, and he should probably have scored himself. Tosin should probably do a little bit better with winning that header at the back post as well.

There were a few very heart-in-mouth moments in the second half, especially at 1-1, and too many of them were of our own making. Aaronsen's cute chip which narrowly landed over the bar came directly from a Mitrovic pass back into a dangerous area that went straight to a Leeds player. The late goal that briefly set nerves on edge comes from a muddle on the edge of the box that Joe Gelhardt forces his way through, and a narrowly wide strike from Luke Ayling came from switching off at a free-kick.

There is always an element of risk-and-reward with the way that Fulham set up under Marco Silva, and there can be absolutely no doubt that we remain one of the most entertaining sides in the division. In fact, there's obvious shades of Kevin Keegan's 'if you score two, we'll score three' philosophy within this side – but equally, it would be nice to win games by more than a one-goal margin a little bit more of the time.

One final positive
With that said though, nobody can doubt the spirit and endeavour of this Fulham team. Not since the Roy Hodgson days have we seen a Premier League incarnation of Fulham possessed with this self-belief and obvious joy in playing for the shirt. The club is united, fans are daydreaming, and Marco Silva has built a team that not only plays to each others' strengths, but also plays for each other as well.

Three unbeaten, back-to-back wins, and Everton up next at the Cottage. There's absolutely no reason we couldn't make that three wins on the spin, even with the Toffees in resurgent form under our old nemesis Frank Lampard. Bring it on – these are heady days.



https://www.fulhamish.co.uk/post/2022-10-24-positives-and-negatives-leeds-united-2-3-fulham/

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Willian: Unbelievable Feeling

Willian was absolutely delighted to score his first Fulham goal, not least as it proved to be the winner against Leeds United.

"It feels very good, an unbelievable feeling," he said. "I think we deserved to win, we created so many chances to win this game.

"We showed our quality, we showed that we need to always play together, with and without the ball, and we did that.

"It's not easy to play here against them. I think we showed character at 1-0 down. We kept calm, we had the ball, had possession, we created chances and we deserved to win."

The three points moved Fulham above Liverpool into seventh in the Premier League, but the 70-cap Brazil international is looking no further ahead than Everton at the weekend.

"We have to go step by step, game by game, week by week," he explained. "We have another difficult game to play, so let's do it."



https://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2022/october/24/willian-unbelievable-feeling/

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6 longest gaps between two Prem goals as Willian scores 553 days after his last

Willian had to wait 553 days to end his Premier League goal draught - but his year-and-a-half wait seems a drop in the ocean compared to the longest droughts in England's top flight

It's been over a year since Willian last found the net in the Premier League - and after a trip to Brazil and back, the winger struck gold against Leeds.

Before the 34-year-old's strike for Fulham, Willian's last goal came for Arsenal against West Brom in early May 2021. There were 553 days between the two strikes - but that doesn't even scratch the surface of the longest waits between Premier League goals.

In fact, Willian's measly 553-day wait pales in comparison to some players who waited over 3,000 days between goals in England's top flight. And Daily Star Sport takes a look back at the six longest waits for a second goal.

6 - Peter Whittingham - 3234 days
The late Cardiff midfielder netted his first Premier League goal for Aston Villa - where he had emerged through their academy - in 2004 against Portsmouth.

However, Whittingham fell out of favour at Villa and soon found himself dropping down divisions in search of first-team football. He netted for Cardiff against Hull, 3234 days after his first strike - but only 16 matches later.

The Englishman tragically passed away aged 35 in 2020 after an accidental fall when out at a pub in Wales.

5 - Simon Charlton - 3433 days
When Simon Charlton netted for Southampton to send the Saints ahead against Manchester United in 1995 - he would have not expected to wait almost 10 years for his next Premier League strike.

Charlton played in 164 top-flight games before he netted again - but that was for a newly-promoted Norwich side. Charlton had dropped down a divisios before earning promotion with the Canaries.

The left-back fired Norwich level against Portsmouth in 2004, earning the Canaries a deserved point.

4 - John Oster - 3444 days
Lasting 11 days longer than Charlton, John Oster also went just under a decade without finding the net.

As a youngster, Everton plucked Oster from Grimsby - giving him his chance at the big time in the late 1990s, and he found the net against Barnsley in 1997. However, he was soon moved on by the Toffees, prompting something of a journeyman existence.

Oster got his second chance in the top-flight with Reading in 2007, where he netted a consolation goal in a defeat at Middlesbrough.

3 - Andy Johnson - 3563 days
No, not that Andy Johnson, the original Andy Johnson once went on a spell of over 10 years without a Premier League goal.

After graduating from the Norwich academy, Johnson netted for the Canaries in 1993 against Middlesbrough. However, Norwich were relegated a couple of seasons later and Johnson subsequently bounced around sides in the second-tier.

He re-emerged with West Brom as they were promoted in 2001, but it wasn't until 2003 that he netted again - this time against Bolton at the Hawthorns.

2 - Cristiano Ronaldo - 4504 days
While many players on this list dropped down divisions before making their return to the Premier League, Cristiano Ronaldo rode off into the sunset to claim multiple Ballon d'Ors and Champions League titles before returning to the Red Devils.

Ronaldo had netted against Manchester City in May 2009, a month before he left United. The megastar would go onto play two more times for United before leaving for Real Madrid.

And almost 13 years later, Ronaldo returned to Old Trafford, finding the net in his first game back against Newcastle.

1 - Matt Jackson - 4935 days
Matt Jackson has the unenviable title of the Premier League's longest goals drought, having waited 13 years between top-flight strikes.

Jackson first found the net in 1993 for Everton, but he had to wait until 2006 - and a move to Wigan - until he troubled the onion bag again. That goal came in the form of a late winner against Charlton.

Almost 5,000 days after his last Premier League strike, Jackson ended his drought. It was the last professional goal he ever scored with the right-back retiring the following season.



https://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league-goal-willian-fulham-28315417

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Fulham Women face Watford in FA Cup first round
Fulham Women's reward for coming from behind to beat Maidenhead United in the FA Cup yesterday is a trip to Watford in the first round proper.

Steve Jaye's side beat Maidenhead 3-2 yesterday thanks to a goal from Tia Foreman and two from top scorer Helen Ogle to progress through the qualifying round. They will face Watford, who are currently top of the WPL Premier Division South on Saturday 13 November – with kick off time to be confirmed.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2022/10/fulham-women-face-watford-in-fa-cup-first-round/

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Nottingham Forest to battle Fulham for midfielder – Should make offer 'in coming days'

Nottingham Forest are set to compete with Fulham to sign São Paulo midfielder Pablo Maia, according to claims from Brazil.

Lance bring that information, in a story saying the Tricolor continue to demand around €10m to let the player go.

It's said that after Fulham's bid, which had been worth around €7.5m and was already turned down, Nottingham Forest communicated that 'they should make an offer' for the midfielder in the coming days.
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So before any consideration of reaching an agreement with the Whites, São Paulo want to see what's coming from the Tricky Trees and look for the best deal.

Lance highlights that Pablo Maia has been 'monitored by English clubs' since his performances in Copa São Paulo, Brazil's biggest youth tournament, this year.

Nottingham Forest's links with the 20-year-old have indeed been around since August, when it was first reported that they 'promised' to make a bid for him.

Even though that apparently didn't happen at the time, it seems Fulham's attempt is something that convinced them of finally joining the battle to avoid losing him to their Premier League rivals.



http://sportwitness.co.uk/nottingham-forest-battle-fulham-midfielder-make-offer-coming-days/

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Man City Away Tickets

Follow Fulham away as we take on Champions Manchester City in our final away fixture before the World Cup break!

Marco Silva's side travel to Etihad Stadium on Saturday 5th November, kick-off 3pm, looking to make it back-to-back away victories in the Premier League.

Tickets for this match are priced at £30 for adults, £18 for juniors and £25 for concessions, and are on sale to supporters with a booking history (max. 4 per person). Supporters can secure their seats online at tickets.fulhamfc.com, by calling 0203 871 0810 (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm) or in person from the Fulham FC Ticket Office (Mon-Fri 9.30am-4.30pm).

Further information can be found on our matchday information page here.



https://www.fulhamfc.com/news/2022/october/24/man-city-away-tickets/

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Everton defender Nathan Patterson has 50 per cent chance to play v Fulham

Everton defender Nathan Patterson now has a 50 per cent chance of featuring against Fulham, according to injury expert Ben Dinnery.

The Scotland international returned to full training last week and is now in contention of making a return for the Toffees.

He last played on 18 September, when Frank Lampard's side enjoyed a 1-0 victory over West Ham at Goodison Park.

Minutes off the bench

Patterson took some time to get used to proceedings at Everton but he now has become a key first-team player under Frank Lampard.

His absence has clearly been felt in the last month and it has not affected results a great deal but the manager would certainly want him back.

He offers the side more going forward than Seamus Coleman and also has the legs to track back and cover up defensively.

With Patterson, Lampard can also consider playing a back three as the 21-year-old is more than capable of playing as a left wing-back.

The Scotsman could go on to be the club's first-choice right-back for the better part of the decade if he keeps improving as he has over the last few months.

We cannot wait for him to return to action and help the Toffees win football games.



https://www.goodisonnews.com/2022/10/24/everton-defender-nathan-patterson-has-50-per-cent-chance-to-play-v-fulham/

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Charlton boss Garner believes there is a lot more to come from 'really talented' Fulham loanee

Charlton Athletic boss Ben Garner believes there is a lot more to come from Fulham loanee Steven Sessegnon.

The full-back, who has featured at left-back and left midfield under Garner, has made nine League One appearances during his time at The Valley so far.

Sessegnon, who won the England U17 World Cup as a youngster, missed games against Cambridge, Wycombe, Bolton, Forest Green and Fleetwood with a hamstring problem.

The Addicks have been unbeaten since the former Plymouth and Bristol City loanee came back into the starting line-up for the 1-1 draw against Oxford United.

"Really well. I think the key has just been keeping him fit," Garner told the South London Press when asked how he believed the 22-year-old had developed since joining the club.

"Sess has come in and really brought into the football side, but also the sports science side.

"For example, his strength has really improved in terms of what he can do, and that will play a key part in keeping him fit and having him more robust and available for more games.

"I really like his character.

"He's an energiser, Sess – he's always positive and he's always around people in the group.

"He's a really talented player. I think there is a lot more to come from him with more games and more time on the pitch."

The Addicks host bottom-of-the-table Milton Keynes on Tuesday evening.

"They are a really good team, with a good manager and were in the playoffs last season," added Garner.

"They lost a couple of key players in the summer and they've had to rebuild – a lot of recruitment. They have a really talented squad – some hugely experienced players within their ranks and also some really exciting young players.

"They have a clear identity and a clear ethos as a football club, by no means can we take Milton Keynes lightly."

PICTURES: KEITH GILLARD



https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/charlton-boss-garner-believes-there-is-a-lot-more-to-come-from-really-talented-fulham-loanee/

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Marco Silva raves about former Manchester United man Andreas Pereira

Fulham manager Marco Silva has lavished praise on "outstanding" summer signing Andreas Pereira.

The former Manchester United midfielder signed a four-year deal at the promoted side with the Londoners having the option of extending his deal by a further 12 months.

The one-time Brazil international had spent 10 months back in his homeland on loan at Flamengo, but after the Brazilian side opted against signing the versatile midfielder on a permanent deal, the Cottagers brought him to Craven Cottage.

According to Sky Sports, United have a 20 per cent sell-on fee inserted in the deal, with Fulham paying £8m up front and a further £2m in add-ons.

Marco Silva raves about Andreas Pereira
Prior to his summer's move, Pereira's last competitive appearance for the Reds came in August 2020 and as well as Flamengo, Pereira had loan spells with Lazio, Granada and Valencia during his time at the Theatre of Dreams.

The 26-year-old's decision to leave Old Trafford on a permanent deal was the best move for all parties.

He didn't form part of Erik ten Hag's plans and Fulham's number 18 is getting the regular first team football he craved.

Manchester United are not missing Pereira by any stretch of imagination, but credit where credit is due, the ex-Red Devils has made an impressive start to life in west London.

As well as starting all 12 of Fulham's Premier League games this season, Pereira has provided one goal and four assists.

Only Bernardo Silva (5), Alex Iwobi (5) and Kevin De Bruyne (9) have provided more assists than Pereira in the top-flight.

Speaking after his side's 3-2 win against Leeds United, which Pereira laid on two assists, Silva was full of praise for the man who played 75 times for Manchester United.

Silva said: "He has been outstanding this season. I know a lot of people had doubts when I decided to sign him but I knew his qualities and his character.

"Even last season we had a conversation about his future, but it wasn't the right moment for him to join us. He's a key player on and off the ball and with set pieces. Two assists this afternoon. A top professional who is enjoying himself at the moment in a white shirt."

Manchester United travel to Craven Cottage to face Pereira's Fulham on 13 November.



https://www.unitedinfocus.com/news/marco-silva-raves-about-former-manchester-united-man-andreas-pereira/

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Fulham's trip to Leicester moved back by 24 hours
Fulham's January trip to Leicester City has been moved back by 24 hours in the latest round of fixture alterations announced by the Premier League.

The Whites will now kick off at the King Power Stadium at 7.45pm on Tuesday 3 January – ensuring that no club plays within the 48 hours of their previous fixture as the league wishes to protect players' recovery time.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2022/10/fulhams-trip-to-leicester-moved-back-by-24-hours/

[Bassey the warrior]

Nottingham Forest to battle Fulham for midfielder – Should make offer 'in coming days'

Nottingham Forest are set to compete with Fulham to sign São Paulo midfielder Pablo Maia, according to claims from Brazil.

Lance bring that information, in a story saying the Tricolor continue to demand around €10m to let the player go.

It's said that after Fulham's bid, which had been worth around €7.5m and was already turned down, Nottingham Forest communicated that 'they should make an offer' for the midfielder in the coming days.
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So before any consideration of reaching an agreement with the Whites, São Paulo want to see what's coming from the Tricky Trees and look for the best deal.

Lance highlights that Pablo Maia has been 'monitored by English clubs' since his performances in Copa São Paulo, Brazil's biggest youth tournament, this year.

Nottingham Forest's links with the 20-year-old have indeed been around since August, when it was first reported that they 'promised' to make a bid for him.

Even though that apparently didn't happen at the time, it seems Fulham's attempt is something that convinced them of finally joining the battle to avoid losing him to their Premier League rivals.



http://sportwitness.co.uk/nottingham-forest-battle-fulham-midfielder-make-offer-coming-days/

I can't see why Forest would be interested, they are already packed with centre midfielders. If we can agree a fee, I expect him to come here. Question is, is he any good?

[LittleErn]

Positives and Negatives: Leeds United 2-3 Fulham

With CamRam on Dad duty (and firstly, a huge congratulations to Cam and his lovely wife Lucy!), Jack Collins steps into the breach to look at the ups-and-downs from what was a stunning result in Yorkshire that moved the Whites up to seventh (!) in the Premier League table.

Elland Road hasn't been a particularly happy hunting ground for Fulham of late. You have to go back almost eight years to December 2014 to find our last win in Beeston, when a solitary Hugo Rodallega goal was the difference between the two sides.

But that didn't matter on Sunday, as Fulham took the game to Leeds, and recorded the win, which means that in October the Whites have already equalled our tally in the win column from our last attempt at a Premier League season. That's a positive in itself, but there are plenty more to pick from.

Positives
The irrepressible Harrison Reed
Fresh off the back of his second league goal of the season against Aston Villa, Harrison Reed could well have added a third in the opening minutes of this one, having a strike brilliantly blocked on the line by Marc Roca. His presence though, was keenly felt throughout the entire game – not only with a stunning assist for Willian's goal that put daylight between the two teams – but also in the centre of the park, where his tireless workrate off the ball and ability to drift into the right areas in possession meant that Leeds couldn't really lay a glove on him.

Reed's relationship with Palhinha is the bedrock of this Fulham team – the Portuguese provides the anchor, and off him Reed buzzes around putting out fires and winning possession over and over again, returning Fulham to the front foot on a regular basis. The freedom that Reed is now afforded by a defensive bastion of the quality of the Portuguese has added further strings to his bow, and if Gareth Southgate isn't paying attention yet, he should be.

The mazy dribble that meant Reed ended up on the assist list was something to behold. Composure, vision and determination in absolute spades, with the final pause to evade Luke Ayling on the byline perfectly timed to make a goal inevitable from the pullback. It's a mark of Reed's game rounding out even further, and whilst this World Cup will come too soon for Harrison to profit from his form this season, it's surely only a matter of time before a debut international call-up is in the offing for our diminutive, dominant number six.

Brazilian boys balling
When Andreas Pereira and Willian both signed in the summer, there were plenty of eyes rolled across the board by other Premier League fans – not least by Manchester United and Arsenal supporters – but both are thriving within Marco Silva's Fulham system. It's a mark of our head coach's ability and setup that he has been able to incorporate and improve two players who many had written off at this level, but major credit needs to be given to both that they have joined the club, got their heads down and proved their point.

Let's be fair – neither are perfect. In the first half there were plenty of gaps behind Willian that Leeds looked to exploit, and only another very good game from Antonee Robinson in that channel stopped more damage from being done in those areas; while Pereira was guilty of spurning a gilt-edged chance to give Fulham the lead when one-on-one with Meslier – telegraphing his shot instead of either teeing up the onrushing Harry Wilson, or even feinting to go round the keeper, which seemed the better option.

But we don't demand perfection. Willian's mesmeric ability on that left hand side caused problems all game long, with most of Fulham's thrust fed through him in one way or another, and his goal capped off what has been a truly brilliant week for him in a Fulham shirt. Meanwhile, Pereira's dead-ball ability caused havoc in the penalty box for Leeds on numerous occasions. But he is no mere specialist with nothing else to offer – he hassles and harries, draws fouls, leads the press and leaves everything on the pitch, and he has quickly become a keystone of the way that this side play.

Attacking patterns of play
Talking of which, something that's really caught the eye of late is the variation that Fulham can deploy in the way that we attack. We're a long way from the one-dimensionality that meant we only scored 27 times in the league in 2020/21 – a total that we're already close to matching with our 22 goals in 12 games. In fact, if we were to keep this rate of scoring up, we're currently on course to notch 70 this season.

This comes from Silva's inventiveness in the final third. Simply put, this Fulham side know how to attack. Whether it be through first-phase set piece deliveries (like the first goal), second-phase reworks (like the second), late runners arriving in the box for byline cutbacks (like the third), early crosses from deep, flatter crosses from wide, scything counter-attacks through the middle or long-range attempts, the variation in Fulham's testing of opposition goalkeepers has been a joy to watch, and means that opposition managers are still guessing which way we're going to hurt them.

It's not bad for a team 'over-reliant on a target-man who can't cut it in the Premier League'. Oh, and that fella's joint-second in the Premier League scoring charts, if you were wondering.

Negatives
Defensive frailties remain
There's not all that much to complain about, but coming off a really good clean sheet on Thursday night, it was a shame to see our tendency to concede big chances and sloppy goals returning at Elland Road. The first goal is a bit of a mess all round. Yes, Leeds get a bit lucky with the looping deflection, but Robinson's slip allows Jack Harrison way too much time, and he should probably have scored himself. Tosin should probably do a little bit better with winning that header at the back post as well.

There were a few very heart-in-mouth moments in the second half, especially at 1-1, and too many of them were of our own making. Aaronsen's cute chip which narrowly landed over the bar came directly from a Mitrovic pass back into a dangerous area that went straight to a Leeds player. The late goal that briefly set nerves on edge comes from a muddle on the edge of the box that Joe Gelhardt forces his way through, and a narrowly wide strike from Luke Ayling came from switching off at a free-kick.

There is always an element of risk-and-reward with the way that Fulham set up under Marco Silva, and there can be absolutely no doubt that we remain one of the most entertaining sides in the division. In fact, there's obvious shades of Kevin Keegan's 'if you score two, we'll score three' philosophy within this side – but equally, it would be nice to win games by more than a one-goal margin a little bit more of the time.

One final positive
With that said though, nobody can doubt the spirit and endeavour of this Fulham team. Not since the Roy Hodgson days have we seen a Premier League incarnation of Fulham possessed with this self-belief and obvious joy in playing for the shirt. The club is united, fans are daydreaming, and Marco Silva has built a team that not only plays to each others' strengths, but also plays for each other as well.

Three unbeaten, back-to-back wins, and Everton up next at the Cottage. There's absolutely no reason we couldn't make that three wins on the spin, even with the Toffees in resurgent form under our old nemesis Frank Lampard. Bring it on – these are heady days.



https://www.fulhamish.co.uk/post/2022-10-24-positives-and-negatives-leeds-united-2-3-fulham/

This article is spot on for me. Covers everything I thought and saw during the match. You can never relax as a Fulham supporter but the euphoria of a good win is all the more enjoyable because of that!

[Woolly Mammoth]

There is a strong sign of genuine consistency, and that will be the key to keep us in the top half.
That is due to good management and the players buying into his system of play.