Saturday Fulham Stuff - 23/09/23...

[WhiteJC]

Crystal Palace: Hodgson must unleash 'superb' £55k-p/w Guehi alternative
Roy Hodgson's side welcome Fulham to Selhurst this afternoon, with one name having the potential to star again after a strong performance.

Crystal Palace are back in action this afternoon, as the Eagles welcome Fulham to Selhurst Park in what is set to be an equally contested London derby.

Roy Hodgson will be back on the sidelines after missing his side's trip to Villa Park due to illness, with the club confirming that the 76-year-old led training this week ahead of today's match-up.

It's expected to be an exciting affair with both sides from the capital level on points at this stage in the season, as the Eagles look to return to winning ways after losing painfully late to Aston Villa last time out.

It looked for the most part of the second half that Odsonne Edouard's goal would be the match-winner for Palace, however Villa scored an equaliser three minutes from time, followed by two painfully late goals in the 98th and 101st minute to win 3-1.

The south Londoners will be desperate to restore their form against their London rivals, with a few tweaks to the squad possible following the Villa defeat.

What is the latest Crystal Palace team news?
After suffering an injury during the international break, star centre-back Marc Guehi was absent from the squad that travelled to the Midlands last time out.

While the concerns are not said to be of a serious nature, it's still unknown as to whether the Englishman will be fit to feature against Fulham this afternoon.

In other injury news, Jordan Ayew was forced to withdraw before the half-hour mark against Villa, with no update as of yet over his fitness ahead of the clash.

Jean-Philippe Mateta was introduced in a like-for-like substitution during the fixture, with the Frenchman in with a chance of starting against the Cottagers.

Should Chris Richards start against Fulham?
In an ideal world, Hodgson would have Guehi fit and ready to play against Fulham, however, the 23-year-old's injury was described as an aggravated hip problem, suggesting that the defender could benefit from an extended rest period.

Luckily for the Eagles, last summer's £8.5m signing of Chris Richards stood in during the Englishman's absence, and had a positive game at Villa Park, despite conceding a controversial penalty.

The United States defender was praised by the popular Palace podcast HLTCO on Twitter X for his "superb" performance, where the account dubbed him a "very capable" centre-back.

During the game, the £55k-per-week ace recorded six clearances, blocked two shots and made one interception, as well as winning two out of three of his ground duels and maintaining a passing accuracy rate of 83%, via Sofascore.

The American had a stellar game in what was his first appearance of the season, with his composure at the back outweighing the disappointment of the penalty conceded late in the game.

By fielding Richards, Hodgson could relieve the threat that Marco Silva's team can provide going forward if the 23-year-old can replicate the level of his performance against the Villans last week.

The former Bayern Munich man could be the ideal cover for Guehi going forward, with the Englishman's injury creating the opportunity for the United States international to show his worth at Selhurst Park.



https://www.footballfancast.com/crystal-palace-team-news-chris-richards-premier-league/

[WhiteJC]

Jay Stansfield call looms for John Eustace as Birmingham City curse strikes again
Alex Dicken lists his talking points from Birmingham City's 0-0 draw with Queens Park Rangers in the Championship

Birmingham City endured another frustrating 90 minutes in front of goal as they were held to a goalless draw by Queens Park Rangers on Friday night.

Scott Hogan missed the gilt-edged chance in the second half at St Andrew's as Blues' winless run stretched to four Championship games. Blues' excellent start to the season has been tempered by a gruelling six days in which they have taken one point from a possible nine.

Blues now have eight days to rest and recover for their next fixture against Norwich City - who are the most prolific team in the Championship right now. The frustrations of the last week must now be put to bed.

Here are our findings from the draw with QPR at St Andrew's...
Blues need to find killer instinct
Here we are again. This has been the theme of recent weeks. Blues have been creating chances and not taking them, and the draw with QPR was no different.

While none of Blues' first half chances were clear-cut, the Hogan one shortly before the hour-mark most certainly was. It was a chance a confident striker would have taken. Jay Stansfield most likely would have.

It was a similar story against Preston, where Blues dominated the ball and had the lion's share of the shots without scoring more than their opponent. Hogan missed a similarly big chance before Watford's late show at Vicarage Road last weekend.

Blues need to start scoring when they are on top in games. Far too often Blues lack the ruthlessness some of their Championship rivals possess and pay the price for it. This week should have yielded at least seven points, instead Blues have one.

Stansfield up top, anyone?
Stansfield was dropped back to number 10 to accommodate Hogan's return to the team. While the on-loan Fulham forward continued his own sequence of strong performances, it is difficult to say Blues were better for his switch of position after his replacement's costly miss.

We saw how effective Stansfield can be when deployed as a striker against Preston. Eustace has himself said that Stansfield's long-term future could be as an out-and-out number nine.

The clamour for Stansfield to play at centre-forward will only grow now. By playing Stansfield up top, Eustace can fit another one of his attackers in the three behind the striker - and get the most lethal finisher at the club in more goal scoring positions.


Jay Stansfield encourages Birmingham City fans during the 0-0 draw with QPR at St Andrew's

Ruddy back to his best
 Blues were the aggressors against QPR, but they had to rely on John Ruddy more than Eustace would have wanted. The goalkeeper made one stunning double save from Sam Field at the beginning of the second half before thwarting Lyndon Dykes late on with a save QPR manager Gareth Ainsworth thought was Gordon Banks-esque.

It was a performance Ruddy needed after some criticism for his recent showings. Ruddy was disappointed with Preston's winning goal on Tuesday and he didn't cover himself in glory for Kevin Nisbet's free-kick in the draw with Millwall before the international break.

"John is a very good, experienced goalkeeper," Eustace commented. "He will be disappointed with a couple of goals he has conceded this season, for sure, but tonight he showed his class and that is what top goalkeepers do."

Blues are hamstrung again
Keshi Anderson's injury is a point of concern. The winger pulled up shortly before half-time and needed to be replaced.

It was confirmed after the game that Anderson suffered a hamstring injury. He will join fellow hamstrung players Ethan Laird and George Hall on the sidelines.

Fortunately for Blues, Siriki Dembele has returned from his own hamstring injury and will be the obvious candidate to replace Anderson in the starting XI against Norwich. Unfortunately for Blues, the hamstring injuries keep on coming.



https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/stansfield-birmingham-city-qpr-highlights-27772679

[filham]

Pleased to see that a new contractor is in place to complete work on the new stand. A new programme will be available with a target completion date.
Can this date be made public.

[WhiteJC]

Up next: Crystal Palace (a)
Fulham make the short journey to Selhurst Park this afternoon as they bid to match their best-ever top flight start having edged past lowly Luton Town at Craven Cottage in the week. Standing between Marco Silva's side and matching the achievements of Chris Coleman's apparent relegation fodder in 2003 and Roy Hodgson's upwardly mobile climbers in 2008 are Hodgson himself and Ray Lewington. The former Fulham manager has made a swift recovery from the illness that prevented him taking charge of Palace's defeat at Aston Villa last weekend, with both he and Lewington assured of a rapturous reception from the travelling supporters today.

Hodgson, still going strong at 74, rescued Palace from serious strife when he replaced Patrick Viera last April and felt the love from every corner of Craven Cottage after an entertaining 2-2 in Fulham's penultimate game of last season. The Whites have never beaten an opponent managed by Hodgson, who shared a bit of mutual appreciation with Silva when working as an analyst on the Whites' win at Palace last Boxing Day. The Palace recovery was – in typical Hodgson style – built on home form: the Eagles have amassed fourteen points from seven league fixtures at Selhurst Park since the start of his second spell in charge, but they are also more adventurous, allowing the talents of Ebere Eze – once on Fulham's books – to shine.

Hodgson appears to unlocked a new level to Odsonne Edouard's goalscoring talent. The former Celtic centre forward has scored five times in six matches this term, having managed seven strikes in 37 matches last season and nine in 42 appearances in 2021/22 having moved south of the border after scoring 88 goals in 179 games at Celtic Park. You can see plenty of Bobby Zamora, whose poor goalscoring return in his first campaign at Craven Cottage was compensated for by his work ethic and hold-up play before he become one of the continent's most consistent performers as Hodgson's side embarked on that remarkable run all the way to Hamburg (twice).

Palace can match Hodgson's points haul from his first spell in charge in 2020/21 – ten from eight games – with a win this afternoon and they will be a tough proposition on their tight pitch and buoyant home following. The Hodgson sides have always been built on a strong foundation and Marc Guehi is available to partner Joachim Anderson at the heart of their back four this afternoon. Winning a midfield battle that will likely need Joao Palhinha and Harrison Reed to get the better of Cheick Doucoure and Will Hughes will be essential to stopping Eze, who has embarked on the most dribbles in the top flight this term, from working his magic.

Silva won't be able to work from the template that saw the Whites stroll to success in SE25 last December as Hodgson's side won't be as criminally wide open as that Palace team proved to be. The Portuguese head coach's selection will be interested, especially as he has publicly professed his satisfaction with the fact that Aleksandar Mitrovic, a scorer at Selhurst last season, was not replaced at the end of the transfer window. Silva told the press on Thursday that Raúl Jiménez's first Fulham goal 'is coming, whilst also lauding the impact of Carlos Vinicius who scored within three minutes of replacing the Mexican last weekend. That Vinicius, who finished the season so strong, made his first appearance of the season in mid-September with Rodrigo Muniz preferred to him seemed strange – but the Fulham head coach insists all three of his senior strikers will share the load and he has different options for different opponents. Rumours that Vinicius was being punished for damaging captain Tom Cairney's windscreen at Motspur Park with an errant shot are unfounded.

The Whites have struggled to be clinical or creative this term, with Andreas Pereira undoubtedly affected by his broken leg and Willian impacted by injury at the start of the season. The two combined to set up the winner against Luton, although dynamism was also added by the introduction of Alex Iwobi just after the hour against the Hatters. Fulham's keep-ball looks stylish and can be slick when played at pace, but risks looking laboured and lacking a punch when it isn't accompanied by imagination and penetration. Tim Ream did supply his first Premier League goal last December – on the same day that the American extended his Fulham contract into an eighth season – and the St. Louis' native is clearly in good goalscoring form having poached an equaliser at Manchester City earlier this month.

I don't think the ageless centre back will be moonlighting at the other end of the pitch any time soon, but his presence alongside Issa Diop – who completed the most passes of any player in the Premier League this season as the Whites sidefooted Luton into submission last Saturday – is pivotal to helping Silva's side enjoy the lion's share of possession. He should have his compatriot Antonee Robinson back at left back this afternoon despite Timmy Castagne's encouraging home debut. The one plus point from Fulham's struggles in front of goal post-Mitrovic has been their penchant for clean sheets away from home. They've amassed seven since returning to the top flight, which is a tribute to the sort of defensive organisation that many of his detractors said Silva simply couldn't manage as well as super Bernd Leno in goal.

MY FULHAM (4-2-3-1): Leno; Tete, A. Robinson, Diop, Ream; Palhinha, Reed; Wilson, Willian, Pereira, Jiménez. Subs: Rodak, Castagne, Bassey, Cairney, Iwobi, Decordova-Reid, Harris, Vinicius, Muniz.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2023/09/up-next-crystal-palace-a-3/

[WhiteJC]

Fulham were ready to pay €15m for striker who has outscored Haaland & Mbappe
With just five goals so far in the 2023/24 Premier League season, Fulham remain one of the lowest scorers in the division.

It's fair to speculate that had they still had Aleksandar Mitrovic in the side, their output in terms of goals might've been significantly higher at this stage.

Despite their poor showing in front of goal, the Cottagers are in a reasonable enough 10th position and with seven points, just five behind Brighton and Hove Albion in fifth.

Whilst they clearly miss their former centre-forward, they were never a one-man team and are going about proving exactly that.

It's been revealed too that they were willing to pay €15m for a player that is currently European football's hottest striking property.

Stuttgart's Serhou Guirassy was the subject of an enquiry from the west Londoners as they sought to replace Mitrovic, but as Sky Sports Germany note, the player himself decided against the move.

His 10 goals in 2023/24 per WhoScored, make him statistically better than Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe at the time of writing.

No doubt that Marco Silva will be rueing the fact that the player couldn't be persuaded to move to Craven Cottage given how well he has begun the current campaign.

Depending how well they're doing by the opening of the January transfer window, there's nothing stopping Fulham making another approach though.

Once a player knows they're really wanted that can often change their minds, and you never say never in football.



https://www.caughtoffside.com/2023/09/23/fulham-were-ready-to-pay-e15m-for-striker-who-has-outscored-haaland-mbappe/

[WhiteJC]

Leno: 'I have enjoyed Fulham from the first day'
Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno has insisted he has 'never regretted' moving to Craven Cottage.

The German international has given a detailed interview to the Times' Alyson Rudd where he expresses sympathy for England goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, who has been ditched for David Raya, as Leno experienced the ruthlessness of Mikel Arteta himself. Leno revealed that he was told he had to leave the Emirates after being dropped after the first international break last season:

"When I wanted to fight for my place, the goalkeeper coach said, 'You have to leave the club'. When he said it wasn't about performance, I knew straight away I had to leave. I don't know if they didn't want two strong keepers. I had one year left on my contract so it was the last time to make money off me. I knew that they [Fulham] were twice down, twice up in a row but when I spoke to the manager I had a very good feeling. He convinced me to come. I never regretted my decision, I have enjoyed Fulham from the first day."

Leno, who has been outstanding since moving across the capital, revealed that he was jealous of Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson for scoring a Premier League having only ended up in goal because his under 7s side failed to turn up. But he is clear that his main job is keep the ball out of the net.

I don't think about stats too much ... I have no idea about this stuff. The only thing I know is the goals conceded column in the table. I would say my biggest strength is my shot-stopping, one-v-one reflexes. In my opinion, goalkeeping should about 75% shot-stopping. Of course, even we try to play from the back. It all starts with the keeper. But you can ask our manager, the priority is to have a keeper who can save goals because we are not Man City. Ederson gets one or two shots per game and we get five, six, seven. Mainly, my job is to save goals"



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2023/09/leno-i-have-enjoyed-fulham-from-the-first-day/

[WhiteJC]