Hi guys, my names Nick and I used to be a member of the old 606 days(some of you may remember me) on the fulham forums. I actually watched and read a lot of comments and posts but have never really got involved until now, hence mayday and the Jol problem. Thought I would just like to cast my views to you guys and see what opinions we share. For one, as Im sure most people do, I do believe Jol should go. I am a big fan of him as a manager and when he was appointed I was very happy and confident, but it seems within the last few months its not been the squad thats the problem, nor the players coming in, but Jol himself. I for one am a believer that the players need to buy into the philosophy of the manager and believe in but this seems to have deteriorated over the last few months and perhaps completely dissapeared sadly. Having been a Fulham fan for a good 15 years or so(Im only 18 myself) I've been lucky enough to view the lows as well as the highs of the club. Although we have had many brilliant players in the past I do believe that this group of players we have at the moment are the best we have had during my lifetime of following Fulham. The likes of Berbatov(world-class in my opinion), Kasami(perhaps to become world-class), and Stekelenburg(world class) to be the backbone of the team is brilliant. Looking through the squad my one point to which we are failing would be the general age of the squad. This has been in the media coverage a fair bit and I'm sure most Fulham fans would be encouraging and spurring on people to include the likes of Kaca and once Frei to play and be a part of the first team as much as they could have done. Although we do have a fantastic academy set up run by some very talented coaches that seem to be providing some cracking players(lets pray we hold onto them) I do feel that we also need to buy some youth to integrate into the squad rather than it to happen 5 years down the line to late. Now, assuming that a majority want Jol out I for one would love no one other than Sean Dyche to be put into the head role of management. Some may feel that Meulensteen may be set up to take over the reigns if Jol does go but this is if Rene wouldn't feel comfortable doing so. I feel Sean is a brilliant manager who has done a stellar job at Burnley and I really feel he would suit the mould of Fulham, a likeable man who does the hard work. Looking at the bookies for the odds on who could become the next manager, the top few listed are: R.Di Matteo B.Bradley O.Solskjaer T.Pulis C.Coleman I instantly would write off Pulis(time of writing seems like he is going to Crystal Palace) and Chris Coleman(although he's doing a good job with Wales I would rather not have him back for a second spell). I hardly think Fulham are an attractive propisition to Di Matteo, and hardly likely he would go on to manager Chelsea's local side, so would most likely write him off as well. This would leave Bob Bradley and Mr.Solskjaer. I personally wouldn't mind either, Ole is having great success with Molde in the Norweigan League while Bradley did lose his job for not qualifying for the WC2014 with Egypt, although his record with USA speaks for itself. I have attended many of the games this season, including a dream start away to Sunderland(although we played s***) as well as Crystal Palace away and a majority of the home games, and I can tell you I haven't once really been impressed with the squad or the way they played this season. I do think Mr.Khan needs to start reaching into his pocket and signing players if we are to stay in the BPL, but on current form I cant see it myself and all I can see is a depressing season in the Championship in 14/15. Thats if things dont change. If things were to change I do think we need a major reshuffle within the team. I feel the weak parts of our squad tend to be: LB - Richardson is absolute poo and had a shocker against L'pool, while although I do like Briggs, he doesn't quite cut it to be playing as our first choice. CM - Sidwell again doesn't cut the grade for me personally and needs to be replaced. If we were looking at potential players to replace these two, I would draw up a list of names such as: Mark Noble - Cracking player who we have been known to show interest for by making a few cheeky low bids but I feel he distributes the ball well while also having a decent tackle on him. Steven N'Zonzi - He's Young! But also a very accomplised tackler of the ball, he may have a bit of a temper but I feel he would also come at a fairly cheap price in today's market. Anderson - Pricey option but seems to fallen out of favour with United, wages may kick but should get him cheap in transfer value and from what little I've seen on him would better our very own Iniesta(sigh) Will Hughes - Very long shot but I am a massive fan of his and I do think he is going to be a brilliant player in a few years, and feel even though he would be expensive it would be worth the fee if he did come. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alexander Buttner(loan or permanent) - Great player, remember seeing him on his debut and he scored a screamer, may be a bit hefty in price but who cares about money in the situation we're in. Jetro Willems - Very hopeful more than realistic but this kid is fantastic and has youth on his side, he does play for PSV but may well be tempted by the BPL. Ryan Bertrand - (loan or permanent) - Again another player fallen out of favour at a large club and having played in the CL final is more than talented to play for us. These are just a few names off the top of my head but needing these sort of players is vital if we are to improve and stay in the Premier League(how depressing does that sound) Anyhow would love to hear your guys views and as a new user would like to get to know you guys and hopefully I'll write some more articles! Cheers, Nick.
Hi Nick. Welcome to the board. You talk a lot of sense but for me I still believe Jol is the man for Fulham. There are several reasons for this personal opinion that I think need to be taken in to account. 1. He's on contract until the end of the season. Although wages aren't an issue for someone like Jol I still think the club should stop hedging their bets and back him properly and put faith in him. If they don't or won't then they should find a replacement. They won't do that as they will have to offer the new manager better terms than they want to give Jol. So in the back of his mind he might be thinking that he'll do a good job this year but not have a job at the end of it - does that make sense, probably not? 2. The change of owner definitely meant funds were not available (that may have been promised, we don't know) in pre-season. He has had to make do with loans deals and free transfers for players who still have something to offer but aren't young. He has always said that a club like us doesn't have the funds to go and get some top younger players in.This doesn't help with stability, unity and cohesion on the pitch. 3. There is now a much better coach in place that will work with Jol and shares the same values (and language!). So worth waiting over the coming months to see how it all pans out. Also, the club wouldn't invest in the Steen if they were going to get shot of Jol (unless he has a falling out with Ali Mac) but they seem to have a very good relationship. I really hope the boo boys give Jol and the team a break and start to get behind them. I do agree that the quality of football hasn't been what we have expected from a Fulham team, although I do remember so poor games before you were even born - LOL! This is all part of being a Fulham fan for me. it's a roller coaster ride every year with glimpses of brilliance (Berbatov) and some amazingly frustrating football at other times! Personally I think the quicker that Berbatov leaves the better. I don't like saying it as he is top drawer but he needs to play with players of similar quality and I think this is the element that he finds frustrating and why we end playing with 9 outfield players every game. Jol does need to have the balls to drop him and work a system that isn't revlved around him. This is where the Steen can help I think, either getting Berbatov on board (he scored a lot of goals last year so he can do it) or tell him to shove off. Jol is not perfect in any way but he is Fulhamish and loyal to Fulham IMO.
Welcome Nick. I guess we now need to give 'Dutch Duo' time. That said, Jol has left them a mountain to climb to win the fans back. A start, as Craving said, would be stop automatically playing "favourite" players like Berbatov. Agree with your view of Richardson and Sidwell and that looks like a very tidy short list for the January window.
Cheers for the response, good to have an insight from someone. I do like the fact that you think if we all put our faith in him and back him things will go right but unfortunately I have backed him strongly for a majority of his tenure but now I just feel its come to a stage where its best for both parties to part. Jol's had a tough battle with the media and thats not fun, he seems very motionless whenever on the touchline whether we're winning or losing and I just feel the players dont have it in for him anymore, I remember seeing the Cardiff game a few weeks back and neither plays nor Jol acknowledged each other. You make the point about the change of owner and money, surely the whole point of having a new owner, was as Mr.Khan said 'progress to the next level' whatever that may be, and I do presume that means spending, not lack of it. I think all of that is out of context now we're fighting a relegation battle so I feel he doesn't have much hope but to spend, perhaps not much but on younger players(not on the calibre of Will Hughes perhaps who would cost £££). I am intrigued over Rene coming in and I do hope its for the best and results do change, hopefully the international break has come at a great time for us but we'll just have to wait and see. It does seem he has moved in either to help or replace Jol, time will tell. I do understand what you're saying about Berbatov completely but I feel that he's a sort of player that installs fear into the oppositions defence, rather than facing Andy Johnson and Zamora(hardly the fear factor) but he can do magical things with the ball which quite simply no one else can, it'd be a shame but if we do shift a hefty wage out and a good transfer fee perhaps that will install the club into spending. Out of interest when you say 'doesn't have the funds to get some top youngsters in', by that I presume the widely known prospects? Who would you see as realistic replacements/signings of young players/players to install that will help us this season?
He's not doing anything there that quite a few people haven't felt like doing to Ruiz at some point this season to be honest.
Welcome back, Nick. The issue of replacements for Jol was discussed at length on other threads, and I won't rehash my thoughts again. Of the names you mention, Solskjaer is the only one I'd be happy with and even he is less experienced than I think we ought to be going for. I suspect it's irrelevant now though. The Meulensteen appointment means the new partnership has to be given time. Jol is safe for the short term. I'm like you though - I've been a strong advocate of Jol, but thought (pre-Meulensteen) that his time had come. I can see the double-dutch combination turning things around, but I'm not sure Jol will ever recover his relationship with the fans, sadly. I suspect that there will be a new man - possibly, though not necessarily Meulensteen - taking over in the summer.
Hi Nick, great post - in agreement with the majority. I don't know to much about Sean Dyche but a manager who works hard and wants to prove something would be ideal. Jol knows he can walk into another job, probably on a higher salary with a bigger budget and I get the sense he uses our limited resources as an excuse for results. I'd be keen on Glenn Hoddle - he seems a good candidate to help import our academy talent into the first team. Some questionable statements in the past but he is a good manager with a particular style of play. I'm not so keen on Anderson. I used to be a big fan of him, and at a different time I'd be delighted for him to join. But as things are now, he would be another passenger in defence. Noble would be a great buy, good solid player. I suspect he would need to take a wage cut and not sure we could get him from West Ham. N'Zonzi not a bad option but I'd like to see Boateng get a real chance, I though he looked strong in pre-season. Jol seemed to write him off quickly, like he did Kasami at the start. Given our weak centre and lack of positional discipline he seems like someone who can just do the dirty work and protect the defence.
We were in for Noble when West Ham were in the Championship, and he didn't want to come then. He's a Hammers fan and it seems that he just doesn't want to leave them. I like him a lot and agree that he'd be good for us, but I can't see it happening - if he wasn't interested when we were a step up and a way back into the Premier League, it's hard to see why we would be more attractive now that West Ham are in the same division as us.
Hi Nick, welcome back. Good post. I am one of the many in Jol out camp. But that was before Rene. I am willing to give him a chance to show that coaching was the needed change. But I believe more changes are needed like dropping Berba and selecting the best team not the best 11 on paper...
Thanks for replying Silk, I can tell you though I wouldn't give Boateng a second in the squad. I went to the game away at Sunderland, and although he only played for 65 minutes and thats all I've seen on him, he was dire. Always gave away the ball and didn't look confident when he had possesion, im just glad we got him on a free!
I was referring to the fact that we couldn't afford younger players that were attracted to clubs like Spurs in the summer. Young and talented players come with hefty price tags that are out of Fulhams price range. It re-enforced the fact we could only go in for older players on loans and freebies. Not sure what we paid for Stekelenburg or Reither though. Not youngsters though? I've also mentioned that we should use the youngsters we do have a lot more.
Yeah understandably the likes of Eriksen and co we cant attract due to wages and co but was just thinking that we now have a much better established academy and youth system we would be able to prise some players to us where we would be able to guarantee the best development for them possible. The one thing about Jol I do like is that he seems to have crazy knowledge about Holland so as well as bringing over some potential stars of perhaps 16/17 year olds, but he could also bring over a few up and coming 20/21 years olds, much like Kasami and grow them into players who would be able to play for us. A few years back I didn't think we had much appeal at all but now I feel we do and we should make the most of it!
Looks like Anderson is playing down any thoughts of a move, well for now anyway: " Anderson insists he isn’t unhappy at Manchester United despite playing a bit-part role in the early stages of the season. The 25-year-old has struggled to nail down a regular first-team place after struggling with a string of injuries, and was limited to 17 Premier League appearances last season. Anderson, who moved to Old Trafford in a £20m deal from Porto in 2008, has been linked with a switch to struggling Fulham in the January transfer window. However, the Brazilian still loves the Red Devils and is determined to do everything possible to force his way into contention under David Moyes. “I have played only two games this season and I tried to do my very best for the team. But it is very hard when you only play a small part now and then,” Anderson is quoted as saying by Manchester Evening News. “But I am not unhappy. I am enjoying it and I know I will be ready whenever the manager picks me. I haven’t spoken to David Moyes about my situation because I think I have a good situation at the moment. I love this club and I have been here for over six years. I am only 25 years old and I have about seven years football left in me. I have time on my side and I am happy at Old Trafford.” Source: http://www.thesportreview.com/tsr/2013/11/man-utd-transfers-anderson-unhappy-fulham-speculation/
I'm not a particular fan of Anderson and the move so I'm not majorly bothered if he doesn't come, but I'd rather him than no-one! By the way anyone going to the game on Saturday?
Hello nick, Great post. Some interesting points raised. Like others have already said I think that khan will retain the services of Jol for now. The arrival of meulensteen raises some interesting questions in itself.... Just how good a coach is he ? RVP rates as the best in the world, whilst the Brondby extracts suggest he has some fairly outrageous methods. How much time has Jol been spending on sizing up the opposition pre game ? If the coaching has been consuming his time does that mean our strategic planning for the opposition has been reduced, could this explain some of our dire performances ? Who governs who ? Meulensteen has already pointed out that the decisions are made by Jol, but does his opinion carry much weight ? I guess as fans we will have to wait and see how it develops, I really hope it does. As much as Jol has wound fans up I still retain he is a decent man that is dare I say very fulhamish. I would love to see will Hughes but I fear he has caught the attention of many bigger clubs than us. Noble, Anderson, n'zonzi are not for me. Creative flair is what we need, someone who is willing to drive forward and create space. Unfortunately no names jump out but I guess and hope meulensteen may know a few from his united ties. Whatever happens over the next few months, I really hope we see some passion and commitment to the situation we are in. I truly believe that we have quality players who should be able to take us to much higher places, let's some fresh coaching gets us there.
Cheers for the response frogman27, by the sounds of it Rene is quite the coach and has been praised by just about everyone so hopefully its a good appointment that'll do some work, Tarrabt just recently posted on twitter saying he's had the best 6 days of training ever so only positive things coming out! Agree with Will Hughes, I only posted it out of hope but was just making the point that I think if we are to grow as a club, which Shahid has said then we need to be targeting players such as these and helping them develop into players through our academy and youth system which seems to be the best in the country as of at the moment. I hope so too!
Welcome Nick Not sure I'd go for any of those managers, Di Matteo at Chelsea seemed to let the senior players rule and dictated to him. Not sure if Bradley could manage the riggers of the Premier after International management which isn't as intense. Same with Solskjaer it would be a gamble, I'd like to see him take on a Championship side before getting convinced he has what it takes. As you say Pulis not for me, Coleman again has gained experience but not sure about his ability as a Premier manager. If Khan wants to go to the next level I'd go for Hiddink along with Meulensteen, but I think he will stick with Jol till end of season unless in the next 4 games we lose them all. Apart from Will Hughes (18) who again not tested enough for me like our U21s, the others aren't for me. Don't agree with Richardson and Sidwell being a problem, our biggest problem is no creative midfield. If I was to pick players who are more of a problem it would be Senderos, Kacaniklic, Berbatov, Ruiz, Taarabt. Some players I'd put to you are Chung Yong Lee from Bolton Holtby from Tottenham Sigurdsson from Tottenham Maarten Martens from AZ Alkmaar
Cheers for the response, thinking Huddink would be a great appointment if we could get him, but I see no reason why he would come to a club in our current crisis, especially if we do end up falling into the trap of relegation. I agree Senderos, Tarrabt, Ruiz and Berba do create occasional problems, but for phone Phillipe has believe it or not a few decent games and definitely betters Hangeland at the moment(even if he is injured). Berbatov just seems lazy and if Barca are interested I would ship him regarding we have a replacement in line. Ruiz I believe just needs time, no reason to panic over him, and Taraabt in general has been a big dissapointment, I was excited when we got him thinking he was the sort of player to change our season for the better but just hasn't worked out for him. All good prospects the ones you mention, I see no reason why either Holtby or Siggurdson would drop down when they have key roles within Spurs, Maarten Martens would be good but be hard to get hold of, and not particularly a big fan of Chung Yong Lee, but to be fair I haven't seen the fella a great deal. Here's an idea, Ryo Miyachi anyone?
