ACT NOW BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE, SHAHID KHAN.

The fat lady is singing, and for us Whites' fans the euphoria of that win at Wembley is one we need to remember more than ever. So where did it all go wrong? For this writer, the blame lies firmly at the hands of Shahid Khan and his nepotism towards his son, Tony. I will hear many arguments such as "He has ploughed money into the club" etc. But for me, that is not a solid argument. Unless we are all prostitutes we don't just simply go along with everything just because the man has billions of dollars.

Let's look at the facts. When Al Fayed departed there was a "Chelscum" style of hiring and firing managers, culminating with the joke that was Magath. So, there was a change of tack, promote Kit Symons from within. Kit may have been a nice bloke, but he didn't cut it as a manager (or whatever the modern terminology is). The powers that be stuck with him too long, and then there was the ridiculous managerless period whilst we waited for Slavisa to finish his European journey with an Israeli team. We should have stuck with Kit until Slav was available. OK, that may have been a little underhand and unfair on Kit, but if they knew Slav couldn't come until after Christmas why the change? Slav worked a miracle with the team, dragging us out of the relegation scrap, followed by two play-off positions, whilst instilling his football philosophy which was the "Fulham way". And, on top of this, he had to deal with having no say over transfers, as Ali Mac, Khan jr. and Kline played Football Manager style recruitment, signing players on stats and algorithms. Yet, Slav got us promoted, and still had very little say over transfers. I can just imagine a carpenter/joiner being given Poundland tools and being expected to make a Chippendale table with them. 

What was Slav given? A £30 million player off the back of one season with Marseille in the extremely average (apart from PSG and Lyon) French league, a £25 million player from Nice (hardly a European power) who was apparently wanted by Barcelona, and a few others, none of whom has any Prem. experience apart from Mawson and Chambers ( and he is on loan). Of the signings, none of them has set the world alight, except for Mitro, but he was ours anyway. Seri is a very poor man's Kante, Anguissa is average, Rico is no better than Betts, Mawson is becoming a "sick note", Bryan is a trier, but not quite up to Prem. level, Schurrle is a luxury player with occasional flashes of brilliance, Vietto is good technically but too lightweight, Chambers is probably the best of the lot, and the less said about Fosu-Mensah the better. 

I can just imagine the changing room at the start of the season. Slav had built a team playing football they enjoyed, and he had built a team that was bonding on and off the pitch. Suddenly all of these new boys were coming in  with their FIFA 19 stats. How must Kmac, Stefan Johamsen, Ayite, Kebano etc. have felt, knowing they would probably become bit part players? And what would it have done to team harmony and morale? Football is not like FM, players need to like each other and know each other. Any group of men will need to have a good interpersonal dynamic for it to work on the field. Even the shoe-ins like TC and Sess must have been a little pissed off to think that their mates would be ousted for the new boys. We all know what happens when the blokes who own the club spend big money, they will say "We paid £30 million for this guy, so play him". None of us know the truth, but I would bet that Slav was told to play certain players, when he knew that 4 or 5 signings with Prem. experience was a much better idea. I will accept that Slav had no plan B, but he had a football philosophy that we enjoyed, and with the signings he was given, I doubt a plan B, plan C, or plan D would have made much difference. I think we should have given Slav the season, and total say over transfers in January, and who knows what would have happened. Burnley went up with Dyche, stayed with him after immediate relegation, and look where they are now. 

So what do we get? Ranieri who seems to want to hack off TC and Sess. Playing TC out of position when he was the fulcrum behind our success last year, and publicly criticising a player who is FFC through and through, and stayed with us when he could have easily chased the big money with Spurs. And as for a plan B, that Slav was criticised for not having, I am still trying to work out if the Clown has a plan A. And, before people start saying compare his record with Slavs', nobody knows what would have happened if Slav had been kept. 

It is too easy for us all to slate the managers, and I am not even going to slate the new players. Good luck to them if they were given good salaries and the chance to play in the Prem. I am a massive Slav fan, but I accept he is gone. I am not a Ranieri fan, but I accept he can only work with what he is given. The real problem is how the club is run regarding transfer policy, and I also wonder how much say Ali Mac and Khan jr. have over who the manager selects. My brother fell out with my father when he worked for him, and they parted company. No nepotism when it comes to business, and that was a small business, not a football club who can make or break so many hearts. Shahid Khan, do the decent thing and get rid of your son, before he gets rid of the thousands of FFC fans who without us the club would not exist. TIME TO ACT, KHAN Sr. before it is too late. 

THE WHITES RETURN TO WEMBLEY.

Tomorrow sees Fulham return to Wembley, only 3  months after that magic day when we beat Villa to return to our rightful place in the Premier league. Whatever the outcome tomorrow, we will never lose the memories of that magic day back in May.

Tomorrow we face Tottenham Hotspur, in what will be one of our biggest tests of the whole season. The summer has been a busy period for the club, with no less than 12 signings, with 5 arriving on the final day of the window. Slav has the job of integrating these players into our footballing philosophy, and I for one do not envy his job. Getting the team to gel is no mean feat, and with so many new players it just amplifies his task. And, it is for that reason that I feel this is the perfect time to get this one (the match) out of the way. At the start of the season anything can happen as teams start to get under way. Full match fitness, world cup hangovers, etc. all enter the equation. If we were playing Spurs away in January, we would probably at best be hoping for a draw, and a loss would not be a surprise. In other words, if we lose tomorrow, it will be as most pundits would have predicted, so nothing much to worry about. It is always better to play the top six teams early on, meaning that once the team has bedded in, we are more likely to be playing bottom half teams later on. If we play established bottom half teams early on, while we are still gelling then we could be losing points that we could probably pick up once we have fully gelled. Tottenham may still be rusty, and with nothing to lose the team can go for it, whilst also giving the new boys some valuable playing time together. Whatever happens it will be a big experience that can only benefit the team in the long run.

Last week's opening game against Palace showed that players like Seri will quickly find their feet, and with a little bit of luck, or more clinical finishing, then the result could easily of gone our way. There were positives and negatives from last week's performance, but I did not feel at any time that Palace were that much better than us, they were simply more clinical and streetwise at this level.

It is early days, but there is nothing to fear for Fulham, and survival should easily be achievable once the new lads have settled in. FFC fans must not start thinking "doom and gloom" if we lose tomorrow, and we can only hope that the vast majority of the White's faithful understand that for the first 10 or so matches we are a work in progress. Tomorrow is a day to be enjoyed whatever the result, and in no way should we allow it to blur our memories of that win over Villa. 

Mitro's on fire.

FTID

COYWs

IN SLAVISA WE TRUST.

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© Nic Smith

EXCITING TIMES- PREMIER LEAGUE PREVIEW.

It seems like only yesterday, that the White Wall was dancing to "Mitro's on fire" in the stand at Wembley. It was a day that no Fulham fan will ever forget, winning at Wembley, and a few scores settled. That one match propelled the club to a new era, of increased TV money, increased faith in investment by the board, and increased hope for the fans.

So, what does the Premier league hold for the Whites, and what can we expect?

We all know that even with our board's backing, we are a long, long way behind Man City, Man U, Liverpool, Chelsea, Spurs, and Arsenal. They are the big six, with fan bases we can only dream about at the moment. Everton, with their new found money, and recently established clubs like Leicester, and to a lesser extent Burnley, should be our immediate, realistic aim. Breaking into the top ten would be a massive achievement for a newly promoted club, and Wolves will also be aiming for that. There are so many factors to take into consideration- how the new players integrate, what happens if there is a spate of injuries, is the squad deep enough in quality terms, etc. etc. Only time will tell.

The club has spent big, and wisely, and with Kline a distant memory, it seems Slav is having more say, even though Tony Khan always seems to take the credit. The new players are interesting, so let's take a look at them-

Seri- Highly rated and once on Barca's radar. He could be our "Kante", when he adapts to the Premier league.

Mawson- Another highly rated player, as shown by his previous England call up. He is good with the ball at his feet so will surely fit into the side well. He also has bundles of Premier league experience, given the amount of defending Swansea have had to do over the last couple of seasons. 

Le Marchand- A bit of a conundrum for me as to where he plays. Consensus has it that he is a CB, but in the friendly I saw he looks like he can also play LB. One thing that stood out for me, is that he is an excellent passer of the ball.

Schurrle- Getting him on a two season loan is a massive coup, and with his experience he can be a great addition, and I think once we forget the rabble he used to play for, he will become a fan's favourite.

Fabri- From what I have seen, he looks a little dodgy on high balls, although his distribution is excellent. But for me, when Betts is fit, he has to get the nod.

Chambers- Another excellent loan and he has bags of Prem. experience for a player so young. Whether he plays CB or full back won't matter as he can play both positions easily. Could be the big surprise now he is reaching his prime. 

Mitro- The fearsome, Serbian, beast needs no introduction and it was clear, last season, he loves our club and the Gaffer. This will be the season he shows that he is twice the striker that Benitez thought he was. Mitro will be on fire.

Needless to say there will be two more signings before the deadline, so we cannot blame the board for lack of investment this time around.

As much as I, and some other FFC fans enjoyed the Championship, and the intensity of that league, there would be no point in trying to win it if we didn't want to be in the Prem. I will miss the  Championship and trips to places like Barnsley, but we are now a Premier league club (Villa you are still in the Championship, enjoy it). I am certain that all of us are sitting trying to predict where we will finish, and all I can say is good luck with that. For this writer it all depends on how the new signings integrate, and whether Slav will adapt his style when needed against much stronger opposition. We will play our beautiful passing game, and we will win our fair share of games. However, i do not see us breaking into the top ten this season, nor do I see us scrapping near the bottom. Realistically, I  can see us finishing between 12th and 14th, and anything higher will be a bonus. Whatever happens, it will be one hell of a journey, and one that we will enjoy until next May.

Our facebook group- https://www.facebook.com/groups/FFC.Ambition/

IN SLAVISA WE TRUST

FTID

MITRO'S ON FIRE

COYWs

© Nic Smith

IS THE SEASON TICKET HIKE JUSTIFIED?

Fulham have just released the prices for the season tickets for 2018/2019, and there has been a very big increase in the prices. On social media there have been cases put forward, both for and against the price hike. For example my season ticket in H7 has risen from £349 to £599, an increase of £250. So, can the club justify this?

The argument for, would be, that for far too many years we have been excessively cheap as a football club, which is very true. Another argument would be for us to compete in the Prem. more revenue needs to be coming through the turnstiles every match. Both of these arguments would hold up very well in any debate, as the club not only wish to be successful, but also need to be sustainable as a business model. 
However there are arguments against this price hike. In reality we are a club with the same draw as Crystal Palace and a similar seat to mine would cost £480 at Selhurst Park, which is about £100 cheaper, and forget about the comparative locations of the two clubs. The main argument for me is, that even if £599 is a reasonable price for Prem. football at the Cottage, then a massive price hike in one go is unjustified. Many fans will look at the price hike and think "no thanks, that is too much of a jump". In the past few years there has been a nice increase in the amount of young adults coming to follow the club, home and away, and that should be welcomed as old gits like me won't be around forever. I don't believe that all these new younger fans are in jobs that pay fortunes, so will the new price deter them, also? Furthermore, we struggled to sell out near the end of our unbeaten run, so I am not sure whether we will sell out many times, apart from against the big clubs. I cannot accept any argument that the big fans will help fill the stadium, because I would rather have FFC fans in the ground than away fans. There will be fans with reasonable salaries, who will probably say it is justified, or take the attitude of  "I'm alright, I can easily afford it", but do they want to sit in a ground with no atmosphere eating salmon sandwiches with fans who aren't real fans? Or....maybe they do. On social media, earlier, a fan wrote that he had not taken up his early bird offer because he was skint at the time, and I fully understand if he is now thinking against renewing given the big jump in cost. 
I, personally, renewed with the early bird offer, so this price hike does not affect me, and in truth I would have probably still renewed, even on my poor wages. But, I also understand that there will be fans who are thinking twice about it now, especially as you can stream every Prem. game in your own home for free. 

In conclusion, I can see why the club have implemented this big increase, but I also think it will have adverse affects on the club in the long term. The club should have handled this better and not almost doubled the prices in one go. What should have been done is, steady price increases over the course of two or three seasons, where the effect would have been negligible and less noticeable.
Anyway, that is my two bob's worth and every single fan is entitled to draw their own conclusions (unless of course there are some typos on the club website......fat chance).

FTID 
COYWs
IN SLAVISA WE TRUST

© Nic Smith

JUDGEMENT DAY- COYWS

Hopefully this will be my last blog I write whilst the Whites are in the Championship. Some of you may have enjoyed my blogs, some of you will say " Who is this self righteous wan*er, spouting off his opinions about our club". Do you know what... we all have an opinion and who cares if we don't always see eye to eye... at the end of the day we are all one big happy FFC family. 

I was a teenager the last time Fulham were at Wembley...drinking in the King's Arms in the morning and being silly, attacking West Ham cars after the game outside the Golden Lion. Every single moment of those long ago years are cherished by me, and a few unnamed people who may read this blog were also there at the time. And now, the conclusion of an amazing season is upon us all...as the White's approach our own personal judgement day. 
I was going to write a match preview, but for superstitious reasons of my own, I cannot tempt fate. Before the Derby game, I predicted the score to myself (no, I cannot prove it), and I was correct. Again I have a feeling about tomorrow's result, and again I am keeping it to myself. It could be good news or it could be bad news, but I won't tell anybody. 
I have been buzzing all week, but today I didn't think about the match too much... maybe the anticipation has numbed me, but reading the posts on various social media has made me proud to be part of this amazing club, and even more so to be a part of our family of supporters, some of whom I still see from that day in 1975. It wasn't our time back then, but our time will come and we will be celebrating outside the Golden Lion, still being silly but without the aggro. 
Will I sleep tonight? Who knows and who cares? Tomorrow is all that matters, not my sleeping problems. I am certain many of you will be feeling the same, and like me you won't care as long as the boys go out and play at our best without fear. 
Is this all garbled nonsense that I am writing? Possibly, but I cannot think clearly as all I can think about is watching our beloved Whites at Wembley.
So I will end with a few phrases.........
FTID
COYWs
London's Original
Mitro's On Fire
and most importantly..
IN SLAVISA WE TRUST.

COME ON YOU WHITES.....WE BELIEVE.....
© Nic Smith

SLAV HAS IT EASIER THAN ROWETT

In the league a 1-0 win would have given Derby 3 points, but in the play offs it gives Gary Rowett a tactical dilemma. It is impossible to see how Derby can possibly "park the bus" for 90 minutes, as they did for the entire second half on Friday night. If we went 1-0 down, at home, in the first minute of any game we would still have faith that the Whites would recover to win. 

For Fulham, there is no tactical dilemma, other than not getting caught on the break, but that is exactly the same as any of our home games since Bristol City at home. Most teams have come and sat behind the ball, waiting for a counter attack. Only Sunderland played with freedom against us, but they were already doomed and had nothing to lose. Slav can tell the boys to go out and play our normal game, and not to panic. If after 60 minutes, it is still 0-0, then he can throw on AK, and other attacking options, but that is something the lads are already used to. So for me, Slav has the easiest of tactical decisions to make. 

Rowett on the other hand must decide whether to stick or twist, or something between the two. He may opt to try and get another goal, early on, whilst being cautious, and for me that is his best option. He cannot tell the Rams to attack us too much as he knows we will have lots of possession and we also like to play on the break. He could decide to sit back for the first 45 and frustrate us, but that is risky, because even against a tight defence we can still score, and after Friday Slav will know how they will set up to defend. The biggest problem for Rowett is what happens if we score late in the first half. A goal before half time, changes his tactical talk, and does he take the risk of leaving his defence more open whilst chasing a goal. A 1-0 home win in two legged fixtures is always the toughest result, other than a defeat. Even a draw is better than a 1-0 home win, despite the obvious advantage. Tactically Rowett has a massive dilemma on how to approach the game, and also on what contingency plans to put into action when Fulham score, as i believe we will. Rowett will know all of this, but it is still his dilemma.

I am not going to make any prediction regarding the score, because I do not want to tempt fate, and like all the Whites' faithful I am nervous as hell. I think that Derby will press us high up the pitch early on whilst keeping men behind the ball. I cannot see a repeat of the last 30 minutes on Friday when their furthest forward player was 10 to 15 yards inside his own half. Fulham will stick to their normal patient passing game early on, and many of our fans will get frustrated by it. We need to take our time and slowly force them to defend deeper, and we are used to doing that. I expect Derby to tire and as long as they do not get a first half goal, then they will defend deeper and deeper in the second half. Even though I am not convinced by AK, if it is 0-0 in the second half then it will be time for him to be thrown on, up top with Mitro, so that their big centre backs have more to worry about. Predicting this is difficult, but deep down, I have a feeling that after 90 minutes us Fulham fans will be thinking about going to Wembley to get one over on that Pikey they call Terry.

Whatever happens tomorrow night, we are Fulham, and we will always be Fulham.

IN SLAVISA WE TRUST
FTID
FULFORCE
STILL BELIEVE
COYWs

© Nic Smith

TACTICS- SLAV 1 PULIS 0

Fulham's 1-0 win at Boro' has been described as many things, most notably "a robbery". At least that is what Tony Pulis and the Boro fans are saying. Yes, on the face of it, Boro had the better chances and a good shout for a penalty, but even if I take an impartial stance, I think the Whites deserved the win. Why? for several reasons. 
Gestede and Braithwaite both had glorious chances to score, but neither did. People can argue all day long that Gestede finished badly, or that either should have shot earlier (or gone around the keeper). But, where is the credit for Betts when he came rushing out, made himself big and forced Gestede into a rush decision? Braithwaite's chance was tougher as he was not so much in the clear, and again Betts made himself big, and with Kalas closing down also, the chance became more difficult. There are 11 men on a football team and Betts is one of those. So, to say the two Boro strikers missed sitters, is an injustice to Bettinelli. Other than that, in a first half where Fulham didn't get going, Boro did not have a shot on target. The biggest danger in the first half came from the impressive Traore, who gave Sess a torrid time, but luckily his skill is not complemented by a good end product. 
In the second half, the Whites looked much better, and some of the passing and interplay was similar to the excellent results at the back end of last season. Then we come to the penalties. The foul on Braithwaite, by Kalas, was a penalty. But, if you see it from the ref's point of view, Braithwaite put his arm around Kalas' neck. I can imagine in normal time and from where the ref was standing it must have looked like "six of one, and half a dozen of another". The law states that if in doubt he cannot give the pen, and had Braithwaite not put his arm over Kalas' neck then the pen would have been given. Our pen, was soft, but the replays show that the defender's foot clearly made contact with Norwood's foot. Norwood had every right to go down, and he promptly gave us the win from the spot. So, two definite penalties, but one easier to give than the other from the ref's point of view.
We shouldn't forget that Sess and Kalas  both got into scoring positions, so we had our chances also. The possession stats of 63% to 37%, in Fulham's favour, are excellent given the talent at Pulis' disposal. Credit must be given to the FFC players for continuing to look for the win in the last 10 minutes,when many other teams would have shut up shop against a strong Boro' team. Every team needs a little luck, now and again, but I think the Whites' made their own luck yesterday. 

We come to the two managers and their tactics. I think Slav probably played Sess at left back to try and counter the pace and skill of Traore. In the second half, the introduction of Kalas for Ojo, who was not at his best, allowed Sess to move forward and Odoi to slot in at left back. It was also noticeable that Pulis moved Traore over to the left wing, which gave Sess and Odoi, less to worry about defensively. Why Pulis did this is a mystery, given the torrid time Traore gave Sess in the first half. Maybe it was to try and halt the forward runs of Ryan Fredericks, but only Pulis knows why. The end result of this switch, was that Traore was not a threat, and his only involvement was chasing back as Ryan marauded forward. Whether Slav made the switch before Pulis made his switch, I do not know, but I do know that Slav's switch worked and Pulis' switch did not work. 
All in all, whatever the players are feeling, even if they think we got out of jail, the fact they we won at one of our stronger rivals, will give confidence and freedom for the rest of the season. One word of caution, is that Burton are better away than at home, and Slav will be instilling in the players, the need for concentration and not to become complacent. The words "banana skin" spring to mind, but I have faith that the Slav and the lads will have already thought this.

MOM- Kevin McDonald. 

IN SLAVISA WE TRUST
FTID
COYWs

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© Nic Smith