Hello! Its been a while since I've done a Fulham Blog for a number of reasons, but I'm back now and will be doing these previews and reviews for every game again.
We're back from the International Break, and we are still yet to appoint a new manager- you have to assume the 5-Man Panel will be getting close to appointing someone as to put it into perspective- Kit was the manager for two games prior to Bolton, we then beat Bolton 4-0 which resulted in Dougie Freedman being sacked, and Bolton have appointed their new manager. I know we'll want to take our time over the appointment, but it could get to the point when it just harms Kits position at the helm similar to when Chelsea appointed Rafa Benitez as their "Interim" and you could tell the players weren't really playing for him for quite a while.
Now onto the game itself, we always seem to do well against Norwich *touch wood*, which makes me hopeful of getting something from the game tomorrow. When Orlando Sa gets you a point against them you know we're someones "bogey team". However different to prior seasons, Norwich look like the stable juggernaut in comparison to us. Norwich are sitting top of the pile and we're still in the Relegation Zone which hopefully won't be the case for much longer. However the League Position in our case I'd like to believe is a false position given we gave every other team a 7 game head start.
The Team Selection for the game is pretty straightforward in my opinion, with Amorebieta injured and the players Norwich have in Redmond I think Stafylidis dropping to Left-Back is a must as his pace could counter Redmonds. I've seen some people picking Kavanagh in their team with Stafylidis continuing in his Centre-Mid role, however with Kavanagh I'm not sold on him- and with a tricky winger like Nathan Redmond likely to be up against whomever we pick at Left-Back we need someone who has Pace in abundance. I also think with Russell Martin likely to be at Right-Back for Norwich we need someone who can make overlapping runs effectively. The other three defenders have picked themselves in my opinion; Burn, Bodurov and Hoogland. I'd be very surprised if there is any variation in these three.
Bettinelli should continue in goal and I think he will. Joronen going out on Loan was something I suggested in my Deadline Day Preview blog, as he'd shown himself to be a good shot stopper in the games against Wolves and Ipswich especially- however his distribution was atrocious and you could tell he was very low on confidence, which was symptomatic of our previous manager in my opinion. I saw an article over the International Break that we allegedly tried to get Mark Schwarzer on loan, and I think it'd be a good move on our part, he showed in the games he did get at Chelsea last season that he's still a very capable goalkeeper- and most definitely would do a job in the Championship and would provide a good person to learn from for Bettinelli. However if the article was to be believed the offer was rebuffed due to uncertainty over Cechs future, and I have no objections to Bettinelli continuing in goal.
The Midfield situation has become a lot clearer in my opinion after Amorebietas injury. As I've previously said, I'd have Stafylidis drop to Left-Back, therefore there is a Central Midfield spot open; which would bring in Hyndman. Hyndman is someone who I thought should have been starting instead of LVC prior to the Bolton game, however I think LVC has earned his place in the starting eleven; not to say Hyndman hasn't. However Kit clearly sees something in Stafylidis as a Central Midfielder as such that was the midfield three, but now (in my opinion) Stafylidis is required to drop back down to Left-Back Hyndman is the only worthy candidate to replace him in my opinion.
The Attacking Three is a little bit more complicated. I saw multiple articles that had quotes from Ruiz saying he wanted to leave in January, and his agent specifically quoted Werder Bremen. This brings up the old question of "Do you play a player who wants to leave?" In this case I think Yes. Ruiz is undoubtedly (on paper) the best player in the Championship. His performance against Bolton showed what he was capable of, and in the "big games" such as this one tomorrow I hope Ruiz can show what he's made of. The two that play in front of Ruiz is also a bit tricky in my opinion, however I can't see a reason why Rodallega and McCormack shouldn't continue, provided we have Woodrow and/or Smith to provide a physical presence we may need against a Defender like Michael Turner, however if we get our gameplan right and use Rodallega and McCormacks pace advantage we could be in for a good game.
Team I'd Pick for Norwich
Bettinelli
Hoogland Bodurov Burn Stafylidis
Hyndman Parker LVC
Ruiz
McCormack Rodallega
Thanks for reading, I'll be back with my Norwich review sometime tomorrow evening after I get back from the game. I hope you enjoyed reading, any and all feedback is appreciated.
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