Saturday Fulham Stuff - 08/04/23...

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Chelsea, Liverpool and Leicester are the Premier League's biggest FLOPS according to their wage bills... but high-flying Brighton, Fulham and Brentford have got serious value for money as they target Europe

    Premier League clubs had until the end of last month to submit their accounts
    This covered the 2021-22 season and included the wage bills of every club
    Sportsmail looks into the data to see who is overachieving and underperformin

Brentford are the Premier League club overachieving the most while Chelsea and Liverpool are getting very little value for money, according to their wage bills in the latest accounts released for the past financial year.

Top flight teams had until the end of March to file accounts for the previous twelve months, which essentially covers the 2021-22 season.

These figures have been collected via Companies House information and also from football finance expert Kieran Maguire.

Wage data for all teams bar Southampton and Leeds United was available and therefore their figures from the financial year covering the 2020-21 campaign have been used.

It must be highlighted how this data covers last season and since then, Chelsea are one of several clubs to spend significant amounts in the transfer market with a Todd Boehly-backed splurge to the tune of almost £600m.

Meanwhile, Newcastle have continued to invest heavily since being taken over by a Saudi-led ownership group, spending an estimated £170m on players like Nick Pope, Alexander Isak, Sven Botman and Anthony Gordon this season.

At the bottom of the table, Nottingham Forest have the lowest wage bill, but this is likely to have risen significantly after owner Evangelos Marinakis sanctioned spending of £160m on 30 new players since they returned to the top flight.

To begin with, Sportsmail collated a table of the league's wage bills with Forest's ranking 20th at £51m, while Man United had the highest, spending a whopping £384m on salaries.

Out of teams that competed in last year's Premier League, Brentford had the lowest wage bill at £68m - which ranked at 18th including the promoted sides Forest, Bournemouth and Fulham.

Thomas Frank's side had the highest positional difference compared to their wage bill, as they currently sit ninth, meaning theirs was plus nine.



Brighton - who have plenty of similarities with Brentford having come through the leagues with a distinct style of play and gone onto upset the established elite - also perform well, with a plus eight positional difference as they sit sixth after having the 14th highest wage bill.

Both sides continue to impress and are in the running for European football after fine campaigns.

Fulham are also performing admirably in 10th compared to having the 17th highest wage bill.

However, the figures for promoted teams are slightly skewed with their wage data taken from their time in the Championship - with the amount they're spending on salaries likely to have increased significantly since promotion. 

The figures are much more damning for Chelsea, with Frank Lampard's side having a wage bill of £333m - the fourth highest in the league as per last year's accounts - but they are languishing in 11th after a dismal season, giving them a minus seven positional difference.

These figures for the Blues are likely to be even worse when their accounts for the current season are released given their heavy spending.

It is also grim reading for Liverpool who are down in eighth despite having the second highest spend on wages of £366m - a minus six difference.

It has been an expensive season for both clubs, with each point they've earned costing them £8.5m.

Elsewhere, Leicester are enduring a tough campaign with Brendan Rodgers's former side in real danger of relegation in 19th, despite having the seventh highest wage bill.

However, it must be acknowledged they have lived up to this high wage bill over recent years with fifth, fifth and eighth place finishes in the past three seasons.



The Foxes posted a loss of £92.5m last year, which has no doubt been increased by the fact they've spent the equivalent of £7.3m per point this year.

Using this metric of pound-per-point, Brighton and Brentford's success can be demonstrated again, with the Bees the best-performing side as they have an outlay of £1.6m per point, while for Roberto De Zerbi's outfit it is £2.5m.

Within the current top six, Arsenal's impressive season is evidenced even more as despite having the fifth highest wage bill, each of their 72 points have cost just £2.9m.

Manchester City's wage bill is £142m more than the Gunners, costing them a whopping £354m - the third highest amount - and this means they are splashing out £5.5m for every point they earn - almost £3m more than their title rivals.

Newcastle are another one of the biggest overachievers with Eddie Howe's side in third while having the ninth highest wage bill, although as acknowledged earlier, these figures only cover one transfer window under their new owners and significant investment has since been put into the team.

Nevertheless, their £3m per-point spend and positional difference of plus six are among the standout figures.

Tottenham sit fourth which is impressive given their wage bill is the sixth highest. Although for supporters who are critical of Daniel Levy's prudent spending, this is likely to only add fuel to the fire.

Their £4.2m per-point is close to the average cost of a Premier League point across all 20 clubs which is £4.5m.

Moreover, in spite of their progress under Erik ten Hag this season, United's position in fifth is below par, given they have the highest wage bill in the league of £384m - almost twice as high as leaders Arsenal.

Overall, the figures provide several fluctuations between wage bills and actual position.

Crystal Palace are the only team to be in their 'expected' position, with the Eagles having the 12th highest wage bill and sitting in 12th after the weekend's victory against Leicester.

This gives hope to smaller clubs that in spite of bigger spenders elsewhere, it won't always guarantee success - and there are no better examples of that than Brentford and Brighton.



https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-11942645/Brighton-Brentford-biggest-overachievers-Premier-League-according-wages-spent.html

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Bernd Leno insists Arsenal's 'All Or Nothing' documentary wasn't what it seemed

Bernd Leno was involved in Arsenal's 'All or Nothing' documentary last season before leaving last summer and he has since revealed that the series didn't tell the full story

Bernd Leno has claimed that Arsenal's 'All or Nothing' documentary wasn't an accurate representation of what was going on at the club.

The German goalkeeper spent four years at the Gunners and was their no.1 before Aaron Ramsdale came in and took his place at the start of last season. It meant Leno spent the vast majority of the 2021/22 campaign as second-choice, while cameras were present at training and matches as part of Amazon's documentary.

They followed Arsenal around the country before producing a series of episodes, which started airing a day before the Gunners' opening day game against Crystal Palace last August. There were a number of different subplots, with Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang's departure and their Champions League chase amongst the biggest talking points from the campaign.

 However, Leno, who left Arsenal to join Fulham last summer, has revealed that the documentary didn't exactly tell the full story and picture it in the right way. Speaking about the documentary to Goal, the German shot stopper said: "I was there.

"You know, it's nice for the fans and for the people to see everything. But at the end of the day, I have to say this is not the reality. Some things were not 100 per cent true.

"This season there were also a lot of problems with some players and everything. And when you were inside and then you watched the documentary and then you see like I think, no, I'm not sure about that. But I think that's part of the commercial stuff."

Leno's time at the Emirates Stadium was up and down. He was brought in by Unai Emery and was a favourite under Arteta, winning the FA Cup and putting in some excellent performances, but a tricky start to the 2021/22 season saw him dropped for Ramsdale.

The 31-year-old conceded nine times in three matches against Brentford, Chelsea and Manchester City and Arteta decided to switch things up for their game against Norwich Ramsdale hasn't looked back.

Ramsdale has been a mainstay in the Arsenal side ever since and Leno chose to move on to gain regular game time at Fulham instead, where he has been excellent. But despite his harsh departure from the Gunners, Leno does not share any raw feelings.

"I don't have toxic [feelings] or bad energy for Arsenal," he told the Standard last month. "It didn't end in the perfect way, but my reception at the Emirates was really good. I get fans coming up to me saying, 'thank you for your four years... you were very good'.

"I was really happy with my performances. Even when they dropped me, I did nothing wrong. I came through the front door and I left through the front door. I still have a connection to the club."



https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/bernd-leno-arsenal-documentary-arteta-29660268

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Predicted: David Moyes makes four West Ham changes for Fulham after finally waking up over Tomas Soucek

We predict Hammers boss David Moyes makes four West Ham changes for Fulham after finally waking up over Tomas Soucek.

The season feels like it is on a knife edge for West Ham when they head to Craven Cottage to take on Fulham.

Win and West Ham can go up to 13th in the Premier League. Lose and they could be back in the bottom three with a host of tough games to come.

After the abysmal Newcastle thumping in midweek West Ham must now, in Declan Rice's own words 'put things right' against Fulham.

West Ham need to move on quickly from that horror show because Fulham is a game they should be looking to win.

The Cottagers will be without star striker Aleksandar Mitrovic and manager Marco Silva.

They are in no man's land in the middle of the Premier League with a European spot now extremely unlikely given the loss of their main goalscorer.

Fulham have also lost their last four games in all competitions heading into the match.

So make no mistake this is a huge chance for the Hammers to pick up only their second away win of the league season.

Predicted: David Moyes makes four West Ham changes for Fulham after finally waking up over Tomas Soucek
It is a third game in six days for West Ham so all eyes are on what David Moyes decides to do with his team selection.

We predict Moyes makes four West Ham changes for Fulham after finally waking up over Tomas Soucek.

He was certainly not the only player to let himself down in a West Ham shirt against Newcastle. And the big Czech's poor form is not all of his own making with Moyes having admitted his tinkering with the midfield dynamic is also to blame.

But there is no hiding from the fact Soucek also struggled against Southampton – the worst team in the league – and was substituted in that game as well as against Newcastle.

We believe Moyes will stick by Lukasz Fabianski in goal despite his error against Newcastle given he helped West Ham to all three points against the Saints and has been one of the team's most consistent performers over many years.

The utterly woeful Thilo Kehrer will make way for Vladimir Coufal at right-back in change number one. Coufal has been terrible this season too but is the best of a bad bunch in that position.

Change two will see Soucek dropped in favour of either Flynn Downes or Pablo Fornals, but most likely the former.

Maxwel Cornet will come in for only his second Premier League start for West Ham in place of Said Benrahma in change number three.

And Danny Ings will start up front in place of Michail Antonio with Moyes hoping Cornet can help provide better service for the striker where he is most effective – IN THE BOX.

Predicted West Ham starting XI to face Fulham:
Fabianski, Coufal, Zouma, Aguerd, Emerson, Rice, Downes or Fornals, Paqueta, Cornet, Bowen, Ings.

Official team will be announced at 2pm ahead of the 3pm kick-off.



https://www.hammers.news/match-preview/predicted-david-moyes-makes-four-west-ham-changes-for-fulham-after-finally-waking-up-over-tomas-soucek/

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West Ham: Predicted XI vs Fulham
The Hammers desperately need to pick up points.

West Ham United are in desperate need of some points when they travel to Craven Cottage to take on Fulham this afternoon.

David Moyes' side were embarrassed by Newcastle United at the London Stadium in midweek, but the board have kept faith in the Scottish manager as the man to steer the Hammers to safety this season.

Although they remain outside the relegation places on goal difference, a trip to high-fliers Fulham means that West Ham could be back inside the bottom three come full-time in west London today.

How should West Ham line up against Fulham?
Here is how Football FanCast expects Moyes to line his side up at Craven Cottage, with three changes from the side that started against the Toon on Wednesday.
(4-2-3-1) Fabianski (GK); Coufal (RB), Zouma (CB), Aguerd (CB), Emerson (LB); Rice (CM), Paqueta (CM); Bowen (RW), Fornals (CAM), Benrahma (LW); Cornet (ST).

Despite a horror show on Wednesday which saw Fabianski play a huge role in at least three of Newcastle's goals, Moyes will likely keep faith in the experienced 37-year-old between the sticks this afternoon.

However, there must be at least one change to a defence that shipped five, so Vladimir Coufal returns to the side in place of Thilo Kehrer, with Nayef Aguerd and Emerson perhaps lucky to keep their spots following their woeful displays in midweek.

Kurt Zouma, who scored West Ham's goal in the 5-1 thrashing, completes the defence as he starts alongside Aguerd.

Moyes has stuck with a midfield duo of Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek for most of the season but the Czech Republic international had a nightmare against Newcastle and was hauled off just after the hour mark, having managed just eight passes in his time on the pitch.

Therefore, Lucas Paqueta drops deeper alongside Rice to make room for Pablo Fornals, who earns a rare start in an attacking-midfield role, with joint-top goalscorers Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen starting out wide in the hope that they can rediscover their best form and inspire Moyes' side to an arguably unlikely three points.

The most controversial decision comes up front, as Moyes has failed to get a tune out of Danny Ings, Gianluca Scamacca and Michail Antonio as the lone striker so far this term, with all three often left isolated in the attack, as displayed in the Hammers' lack of goals this term, with just 26 in 28 games so far.

Therefore, Maxwel Cornet should be handed a rare start as a false nine, as his versatility and attacking qualities suggest that he could perform well in that role, with Kolo Toure labelling him "unbelievable" after his impressive run of form at Burnley last season.

Hopefully, if the Ivorian can drop deeper and get involved in the build-up, the Hammers will look far more dangerous in the final third and perhaps pick up an important result against Marco Silva's side.



https://www.footballfancast.com/west-ham-predicted-xi-fulham-premier-league-hammers-david-moyes/

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