Sunday Fulham Stuff - 14/04/24...

[WhiteJC]

Harris hits the net in Exeter comeback
Luke Harris scored a stunning volley as Exeter City came back from 2-0 down for the second time in four days – this time recording a remarkable 4-2 win at Port Vale.

The home side surged into a strong half-time advantage thanks to a superb strike from Ethan Chislett after the Grecians only half cleared a corner and a drive from Baylee Dipepa five minutes before half time. But the visitors, who took a point away from Leyton Orient on Tuesday night despite being two down heading into the last two minutes, were utterly transformed after the interval.

A deflected effort from Millenic Alli gave the visitors some home just before the hour before substitute Zak Jules drove into Ryan Woods' corner to make it all square ten minutes later. City weren't done there, though. Harris finished off a fabulous length of the pitch move with a sweetly struck shot after latching onto a chipped pass from Pedro Boges.

Alli made sure that the three points would be heading back to St. James' Park with his second of an astonishing afternoon; a routine close-range finish after Ilmari Niskanen had broken clear down the left flank and unselfishly squared it across goal. Exeter are now twelfth in League One, with 58 points from 44 games, after extending their excellent unbeaten run to eight matches.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2024/04/harris-hits-the-net-in-exeter-comeback/

[WhiteJC]

Predicted: David Moyes makes two West Ham changes for Fulham as key star returns
David Moyes looks set to make two West Ham changes for Fulham and a formation switch as a key star returns to the fold.

West Ham welcome Fulham to the London Stadium on Sunday all too aware what happened the last time they met.

At the start of December West Ham were battered 5-0 by the Cottagers.

And that was before the Hammers were due to play in the Europa League – let alone after a draining away tie against one of the best teams on the planet.

If David Moyes needed some smelling salts to revive his weary and thin squad, though, it comes in the form of the Premier League top six.

West Ham have a huge carrot dangling as Fulham come to east London.

Victory will see Moyes' side leapfrog Newcastle and Man United into sixth spot with five games to play.

That will be good enough for a Europa League place and a fourth consecutive season in European competition.

The Hammers have been hit by injuries and suspensions at the most crucial time of late.

And that will play a part in the manager's team selection again.

Edson Alvarez returns after being banned for the Bayer Leverkusen defeat – the third of West Ham's last four he has missed due to suspension.

Moyes has confirmed West Ham will still be without Jarrod Bowen and Alphonse Areola for Fulham.

And both Konstantinos Mavropanos and Kalvin Phillips are injury doubts too.

Some have suggested Moyes may make sweeping changes to rest his players for the Leverkusen second leg.

But there is simply too much to play for with that top six or seven well within reach.

So we predict Moyes makes two West Ham changes for Fulham as key star returns.

Nayef Aguerd will come in for Mavropanos in change number one.

And Alvarez will replace Aaron Cresswell with Moyes reverting to four at the back.

There is a case to say Moyes should keep the wingback formation.

The likes of Danny Ings, Ben Johnson and Maxwel Cornet should be pushing to play in these games following tough European nights.

Don't be surprised if they do feature in the second half if the team looks jaded.

West Ham fans will need to be patient with their team against Marco Silva's side.

Thursday night was 90 minutes of chasing the ball and that's not easy.

Predicted West Ham starting XI to face Fulham:
Fabianski, Coufal, Zouma, Aguerd, Emerson, Soucek, Ward-Prowse, Alvarez, Paqueta, Kudus, Antonio.



https://www.hammers.news/news/predicted-david-moyes-makes-two-west-ham-changes-for-fulham-as-key-star-returns/

[WhiteJC]

Report: Spurs target now 'increasingly likely' to leave club this summer
Football Insider have handed Tottenham Hotspur a boost in their pursuit of Tosin Adarabioyo by revealing that the centre-back is now likely to be available on a free transfer after rejecting multiple contract offers from Fulham.

Spurs are expected to add reinforcements at centre-back this summer and it has been reported by various sources over recent weeks that Adarabioyo remains near the top of the club's wishlist.

The latest to report that information was Football.London's Alasdair Gold, who revealed on Thursday that the Fulham star is seen as a good fit for Ange Postecoglou's set-up

He asserted that the 26-year-old is open to moving to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and is ready to compete with Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven and Radu Dragusin for a place in the starting eleven.

Spurs are interested in Tosin Adarabioyo
Football Insider have now stated that the Cottagers have made multiple efforts to tie Adarabioyo to a new deal but all have failed so far.

The outlet suggests that while Marco Silva's men remain hopeful of tying the Englishman down to a new deal, the player is now 'increasingly likely' to depart Craven Cottage as a free agent.

The publication adds that apart from Spurs, the likes of West Ham, Liverpool, Monaco, AC Milan and other Serie A clubs are also circling over the centre-back.

Spurs Web Opinion
Adarabioyo would tick almost all the boxes for Spurs as he is pacy, versatile, homegrown and also available on a free transfer.

However, the 26-year-old is going to have a lot of suitors to choose from and it remains to be seen if Postecoglou can convince him to come to Tottenham and fight for a place in the side.



https://www.spurs-web.com/spurs-news/report-spurs-target-now-increasingly-likely-to-leave-club-this-summer/

[WhiteJC]

'A fluid attacking system that uses wide triangles' | Fulham analysed
Formed by Hammers supporters Jack Elderton and Callum Goodall to offer their fellow fans in-depth but accessible analysis of their team and its players, Analytics United use performance analysis and data to examine how West Ham United can get the better of Marco Silva's Fulham this afternoon...

The big question for Fulham this season was over whether they could adapt and perform without their talismanic Serbian striker Aleksandar Mitrović. Prior to this season, 'Mitro' had scored over a quarter of the club's league goals in almost every season since 2018 and there were real concerns for Fulham when they lost him to Saudi side Al-Hilal in the summer. But Marco Silva's team have coped really well without him and have comfortably avoided any relegation battle by sharing the goals around the squad, with 16 different players getting on the scoresheet in the league. With the recent emergence of Rordrigo Muniz, now on eight for the season, they may just have uncovered the perfect long-term solution.

Muniz is a good entry point for discussing Fulham at the moment as the Brazilian striker has been on fire of late, scoring four goals in March and leading the line brilliantly for Silva's side.
One thing that Muniz has been able to add that Fulham didn't get quite as much of with Mitrović is the ability to drop-in and link play at a higher level – he might have just the one assist this season, but he regularly lays on shooting opportunities for teammates as his 1.21 key passes per 90 prove.

The 22-year-old is the focal point of a fluid attacking system that uses wide triangles and rotations to jumble opposing defensive shapes and create space. When Fulham ran out 5-0 winners in the reverse fixture at Craven Cottage, the third goal provided a good example of some of these rotations. Tosin Adarabioyo managed to nick the ball in midfield and as Willian chopped inside from the left, Antonee Robinson and Tom Cairney advanced beyond him which forced Tomáš Souček and Vladimír Coufal back into more passive positions. This then opened the space for Alex Iwobi, abandoning the right flank, to receive a square pass across the top of the box and shoot. Whilst Łukasz Fabiański was able to save that effort, Willian finally converted when Andreas Pereira fired the rebound back across the box.

In fact, this goal highlighted a couple of key elements to Fulham's attacking play and the first of these is the importance of the full-backs. Both Robinson and Timothy Castagne push forward as often as possible to take up advanced positions when Fulham have settled possession, whilst João Palhinha drops close to the centre-backs to provide the necessary cover in the event of a turnover (it's no wonder the Portuguese has racked up the most bookings in the league this season with 12). This use of the full-backs allows the wingers to come inside and perform rotations with the two eights – often Cairney and Pereira – which can create confusion for defending players over who to go with. If the defending team becomes too passive as a result of this uncertainty, players like Pereira can be left with too much time to show their on-ball qualities.

Pereira is the next clear player to focus on as the ex-Manchester United midfielder is the conduit through which most positive things run through. The Brazilian has eight assists this season and has played more key passes per 90 than any other Fulham player (3.14). Of the group of central midfielders at Silva's disposal, he is clearly the most creative with Cairney often focused on helping the side to progress through deeper build-up.

Silva protects his side against counter-attacks by asking the far-side full-back to come inside and sit narrower when they arrive in the final third. This stops easier routes to counter through the heart of Fulham's defence and, if the player in question is Robinson, then the American is often able to race back and help defend any more direct balls that travel straight over the top of the defence. Still, there are some frailties in the wide areas post-turnover and, although Fulham tend to defend in a classic 4-4-2, there can be exploitable space either side of Palhinha when his partner commits to a higher position in the press against opposition systems utilising a double-pivot.

These jumps from midfield can reform Fulham's shape into something of a 4-1-3-2 and this, in combination, with the available room on the flanks on counters makes the wingers' roles hugely important for any team looking to find and exploit Fulham's weaknesses. When Nottingham Forest took the lead in their 3-1 win over Fulham recently, it was a quick free-kick that found Morgan Gibbs-White in a 1v1 with Palhinha (Saša Lukić had committed to a higher position as described) before Gibbs-White played the ball in behind Kenny Tete where Callum Hudson-Odoi was able to cut inside and fire home. These are exactly the attacking patterns that can undo Fulham's transition to defence and it was another move like this that led to Forest's second in that game as Anthony Elanga sped into the space behind Tete once more.

It's likely that David Moyes will look to use players like Mohammed Kudus and Jarrod Bowen in a similar fashion and that counter-attacks will be a clear area of focus for chance creation. This pair could also help to create transition-like conditions in the final third by stepping in off their wings when Palhinha's partner jumps to support the press. This will ask questions of Fulham's defenders over whether they want to step in with the wingers and could open space for someone like Michail Antonio in the channels or Emerson Palmieri on the overlap.

What is clear is that West Ham will have to focus on creating from open play as Fulham have conceded just five goals from dead-ball situations this season, a number that only Manchester City can beat. Moyes' team will need a much-improved performance from the reverse fixture to get a result but certainly have threats in the right areas to cause Fulham problems.



https://www.whufc.com/news/fluid-attacking-system-uses-wide-triangles-fulham-analysed

[WhiteJC]

West Ham host Fulham today in what is a crucial game in our Hammers hunt for European football again next season.
David Moyes' side are firmly in the mix to obtain another season on the European stage, which would be our 4th consecutive year if successful, but there is a long way to go in the race.

Of the 6 remaining Premier League fixtures, today is considered a must-win if the club are to achieve the remarkable feat, and there will no doubt be a hunger for revenge following the 5-0 drubbing at Craven Cottabe earlier in the season.

West Ham go into this off the back off a vital 2-1 win at Wolves last weekend, so confidence is expected to be high as we look to take full advantage of a Fulham side deemed to be without much to fight for at this stage of the campaign.

Our Podcast co-host and club insider ExWHUEmployee admits that today is crucial, and wants to see a fast start from David Moyes' side.

"I seem to say this every week but another massive game for us," said Ex. "Fulham are there for the taking and 3 points is crucial for our league campaign.

"Got to start positive and hopefully we will get the result."

Our Hammers will be without Jarrod Bowen today, although Edson Alvarez is back from his European suspension in midweek.

There will be late tests for Areola, Phillips and Mavropanos for today's encounter.



https://www.thewesthamway.com/2024/04/14/late-test-team-news-as-host-says-hammers-must-take-advantage/

[WhiteJC]

Up next: West Ham United (a)
West Ham United away has hardly been a happy hunting ground for Fulham. Last season's defeat at the London Stadium still rankles: given that it was secured with two hand balls that would have been more appropriate in the adjoining Copper Box during the 2012 Olympics. Those with longer memories will remember how a swift start under Claudio Ranieri evaporated after Javier Hernandez punched in an equaliser. You have to go back to Upton Park and 2004 for Fulham's last away win and that came in the FA Cup against second-tier opposition. A glorious sunny afternoon at the Boleyn Ground in 2001, when Sylvain Legwinski and Steed Malbranque scored the goals, is the last time the Whites won a league fixture at West Ham.

Today would seem like a good time to break that 23-year barren run. David Moyes' men were beaten late in Leverkusen on Thursday night and there may be half an eye on the herculean task of repeating last season's European heroics against Xabi Alonso's stylish side next week. Moyes' risk-averse nature has not gone down well with the Hammers faithful, who will be expecting their side to be much more adventurous against the Whites than they were in Germany.

The hosts are likely not to risk Jarred Bowen, a regular scourge of Fulham, who didn't travel to the Rhineland as he seeks to make the swiftest possible recovery from a back problem. England international Kalvin Phillips strained a hamstring on Tuesday and could also miss out. Former Fulham goalkeeper Alphonse Areola is definitely out with a groin complaint, whilst defender Dino Mavropanos will have a late fitness test having limped off against Leverkusen late on. Edson Alvarez will return to the engine room having missed the first leg of the quarter final due to a suspension, but Moyes' approach is likely to remain the same regardless of the personnel. West Ham will be quite content to concede possession, which means the visitors will need to be much sharper in front of goal that they were eight days ago against Newcastle.

Marco Silva will have some thinking to do about his starting eleven – especially as the Whites have only picked up a solitary point from their last three games and that was courtesy of Premier League player of the month Rodrigo Muniz's added time acrobatics at Bramall Lane. Muniz will continue up front, but the composition of the side behind him will be interesting. The endeavour of Harrison Reed could add bite to a midfield battle that will be keenly contest, whilst the pace of Adama Traore could frighten the home defence. I'll be intrigued to see whether anything changes in the back four – especially with Issa Diop returning to his old stomping ground as Tosin Adarabioyo's recent displays have been somewhat below par.

Fulham fashioned enough chances against Newcastle to have won three games but were punished for a late defensive lapse. The pain in Stratford has been unrelenting, but at least we can rest safe in the knowledge that the Stockley Park official will be well rested. Darren England hasn't been called upon since the Luis Diaz offside debacle back in September – let's hope he's more on the ball this time round.

MY FULHAM XI (4-2-3-1): Leno; Castagne, A. Robinson, Diop, Bassey; Palhinha, Reed; Iwobi, Willian, Pereira; Muniz. Subs: Rodak, Tete, Adarabioyo, Lukic, Cairney, Wilson, Decordova-Reid, Traore, Jimenez.



https://hammyend.com/index.php/2024/04/up-next-west-ham-united-a-5/

[WhiteJC]

West Ham United v Fulham: match preview
It's back to domestic Preview Percy. We would have rotated him but we didn't sign anyone in the window and he'd just have got dizzy. Here's his look at Sunday's visit of Fulham...
Next up we play host to Fulham. Kick-off on Sunday is at 2pm and there's no official UK TV coverage, this one being played on the Sabbath due to our involvement in the Thursday Night League.


Buses replace trains between Witham and Billericay on the Greater Anglia main line And also between Upminster and Pitsea on C2C, who won't be serving Stratford all day either. Check before you leave and all that.

So Fulham then. Another club in the "meh" zone of the league where (Profit & Sustainability Rules notwithstanding) they are safe from the drop zone, and far enough from European places for that not to be a concern either.

The hot and cold nature of their season can be gleaned from a review of their last seven results which has seen them win three (2-1 away at Man Utd and 3-0 at home to both Brighton and Spurs, (a team from North London apparently), draw one (3-3 at Sheffield United, and lose three (3-1 away at Forest, 2-1 away at Wolves and, last week, 1-0 at home to Newcastle).

All of which has left them in 13th place. !4 points clear of the drop zone and a fairly hefty nine points clear of Palace in 14th, though the Glaziers do have a game in hand. They are also six places and nine points behind our good selves.

Daisy has had possible the most restful second half of a season ever, with so few clubs doing any business during the winter window. The only business they undertook was the loan signing Armando Broja, whose nickname of "The Slough Albanian" is one I have just made up.

Broja arrived from Chelsea until the end of the season. We were among a number of clubs linked with him in the past though his stats, admittedly distorted by a knee injury during the second half of last season, hardly shout out "prolific". He made 19 appearances across all competitions for the Pensioners this season scoring twice.

Unusually, particularly for this part of the season, they have a full squad to choose from with no reported injuries, a slight doubt over Broja having apparently been resolved. This means they are likely to start with top scorer Rodrigo Muniz up front. He has scored nine goals in 20 appearances across all competitions this season, eight of which have come in the league.

For those of you who like some sort of local angle they are also likely to field former Hornchurch schoolboy (Campion for those who are familiar with the area) Alex Iwobi who always seems to be at the heart of things whenever I see them on the box. It could be that he's rubbish the rest of the time of course. We just don't know.

And so to the wild and wacky world of Association Football. And it's been a bumper week for the Gods of Football Karma who seem to be catching up with liars and hypocrites involved with Sheffield United during the Tevez affair.

It wasn't all that long ago that their former chairman Kevin McCabe lost a tax case. This has now been followed up by Times journo Henry Winter losing his job. Winter you will recall was the star witness who took time out from shoehorning Shakespeare into match reports to state that Tevez was the sole reason we stayed up that season, despite a number of his match reports crediting Rob Green with MotM.

Whilst one is normally loath to rejoice at the prospect of anyone losing their job, I'm sure that his redundancy package will have softened the blow somewhat. Just to make you smile a bit more, Winter's departure comes only a year or so after Hammer Martin Samuel joined The Times. Karma indeed.

And if that wasn't enough, Sheffield United have been given a two-point deduction, having defaulted on multiple transfer fees. The deduction will apply to their next season in the Championship, or, in other words next season.

That hypocritical "fairness in football" stuff aged well, didn't it? I have no idea what Colin's ghostwriter Oliver Holt is up to these days but if I were he I'd be checking my bank balance. And whatever happened to ligneous actor Sean Bean? (Please don't answer that -I don't actually care).

And so to us. Well overall I thought that we were desperately unlucky to come away with a two-goal deficit the other night. The first goal was a shinner through a crowd of legs of the sort that had previously been blocked all evening. The second was just running out of steam.

Some excellent performances all over the pitch and some pride can be obtained from the fact that we made what is arguably Europe's best team at the moment look quite ordinary for large spells of the game.

Much has been made of the fact that Fabianski made nine saves over the course of the game and, yes, a few of those were superb. However, many of them were of the "routine get body behind the ball from a comfy long-distance effort" variety as well.

And think on this – how different would the tie have been had Kudus stuck that chance away, or had the referee had the bottle to award a penalty kick when the defender had Antonio's shirt over his head three times in as many seconds? Fine, as they say, margins.

The annoying thing about the whole shebang was how close we came to getting a draw with a squad so threadbare. Now I'm not saying that the likes of Fornals or Benrhama would have made a difference but the fact is that they were allowed to go in the window without replacement.

So with Alvarez suspended and Bowen injured the subs bench consisted of Ings, Cornet, a returning from Injury Aguerd, Ogbonna, Johnson and six kids, two of whom were goalkeepers. Given that we went with the only first XI we could have selected, there weren't a lot of options at the end.

On to this weekend and Bowen is a likely non-starter once more. Alvarez returns from his Euro-ban but Phillips' run of bad luck continues, presumably having run over a black cat whilst uttering the word Macbeth last week before accidentally kicking a team-mate in training and tweaking his hamstring.

Areola continues to be sidelined, while Mavropanos did not emerge unscathed from the trip to Germany and faces a late fitness test over some unspecified knock.

And so, to the prediction. Well on any given non post-European weekend I'd have plumped for us to win. However, the injuries in the squad plus the fact the midweek efforts will have taken its toll on those who were there.

It makes for an awkward selection issue with league position being promoted to our most likely avenue of returning to Thursday night action next term. Bearing that in mind I will err on the side of caution and elect to place the £2.50 that was going on Winter's leaving present on a draw. Make that 1-1 please, Mr Winstone.

Enjoy The Game!

When Last We Met At The Olympic: Won 3-1 (Premier League, October 2022
Pereira opened the scoring early and a few minutes later they hit the bar. After that they did nothing. The comeback started when Pereira, who had been warned about impeding Dawson whilst a corner was awaited, promptly impeded Dawson, throwing him to the floor in true "Life Of Brian" style then looking surprised when the penalty was given. Bowen converted the spot-kick. Scamacca, who had missed a few good chances, beat the offside trap to lob the keeper. The VAR check tried in vain to find a handball that wasn't there. Scamacca was replaced by Antonio who late on found himself one-on one with Leno who saved low to his left, then got into a muddle with Ream allowing Antonio to tap into an empty net.

Danger Man: Rodrigo Muniz

Top scorer and an awkward customer to deal with.

Referee: Stuart Atwell

In the name of all that is sacred: Why is this person still in a job?



https://www.kumb.com/article.php?id=44839

[WhiteJC]

Fulham And West Ham Boosted In Striker Chase
Panathinaikos are prepared to sell Fotis Ioannidis in the summer, amid interest from Fulham and West Ham United, if they receive decent offers, according to journalist Alan Nixon.

The 24-year-old attacker has netted 21 times in all competitions this season and has been attracting the prying eyes of clubs across Europe.

His performances have piqued the interest of clubs in the Premier League where Fulham and West Ham are interested in him.

The two Premier League sides are looking to add depth to their attack and they have their eyes on Ioannidis.

It has been claimed that Panathinaikos are open to letting the forward go in the summer window.

The Greek striker is keen to play in the Premier League and his team are prepared to let him fulfil his wishes, amid the interest from Fulham and West Ham.

Panathinaikos are ready to let him move to England in the summer if they receive good enough offers on their table.

They are likely to sell him if they receive bids in the region of £15m for Ioannidis in the next transfer window.


https://insidefutbol.com/2024/04/14/fulham-and-west-ham-boosted-in-striker-chase/642220/

[Arthur]

Rufus Brevett: 'It's been brilliant seeing what Europe has meant to everyone because the fans hadn't been used to watching the Hammers play at that level and it's turned into a truly great adventure.

'I played in Europe for Fulham in 2002/03, when we beat Bologna to win the UEFA Intertoto Cup before progressing to the UEFA Cup third round. There was a different atmosphere at Craven Cottage...'

Loftus Road, Rufus, good fellow, Loftus Road.

[WhiteJC]