Hey! Another blog incoming, this is as the title suggest a Transfer Window Preview where I'll talk about a very important window for us as a club- I'll combine incomings as well as likely outgoings with a combination of media speculation and hopes to give us the best chance of launching an assault on the Top 6.
Incomings
Matt Ritchie (Bournemouth)- I was talking about signing him in the Summer and of course he's gone on to have the most assists in the League and be generally good. There's been links in the media quoting a fee of £4million for him and as I'll discuss later we should have that coming in from the sale of one player so the money- and financial fairplay implications won't be an issue. In fact the only issue I can see as to why we wouldn't be able to sign him would be his desire to leave a team that have an almost guaranteed spot in the Playoffs for a team who's massive aspirations as it stands will be to creep into 6th. With Kacaniklic coming back (no section for him as its a recall) Ritchie would provide the perfect Right-Sided player so we can fit Kaca into a traditional 4-4-2 that'll suit both.
Lee Chung Yong (Bolton)- If we don't sign Matt Ritchie we should definitely explore other options with regard to a Right Winger. LCY is another player I've been harping on about for a long time on this blog and is a player I'd very much like to see in a White (and grey striped with random orange bits) shirt. Again he would provide a definite balance to the team, and in comparison to Ritchie probably a bit more pace however I would still prioritise Ritchie as this season he's proven himself to be more effective and when we're pushing for the Top 6 we need effective players- not to say LCY isn't, just less so. Although there isn't a quoted fee for LCY like there is Ritchie I can't imagine he'd cost more than £3 Million so would be a very viable option for us and with Ruiz 99% going (more later) the traditional 4-4-2 is looking to be the obvious option as such a quality right-sided player is required, another option we could look at is Boros Albert Adomah or another alternative that would qualify under the "Quality Right-Mid" umbrella, and this need was all but confirmed when we played Fofana on the Right against Brighton.
Speaking of Fofana...
Seko Fofana (Man City)- Yes, this counts because his loan expires on January 31st. On the one hand as I've referred to earlier with Bryan most likely going and us going to a 4-4-2 to properly incorporate Kacaniklic- Fofana's spot may be under threat which would mean extending his loan becoming unnecessary. However, if City were happy for him to be part of a rotation system and not being a guaranteed starter we could really use Fofana in our push to get as high up the table as possible. He's proven in the games against Leeds and Sheffield Wednesday his undoubted quality and a midfielder of his ilk will most definitely be a good option to have. As I keep saying the most likely scenario we go to is a 4-4-2 and (injury notwithstanding) Christensen and Parker shouldn't be dropped under any circumstances, however as we've seen in the Championship the games do come in massive clumps sometimes and we need Parker to be on top of his game every time he steps on the pitch so we will have to rotate him out for some midweek games/weekend games which may be deemed a lower priority/we can win without him.
Chris Baird (West Brom)- The signing of Baird will give us a very versatile option. We've seen with the Hoogland injury and Kay Vosers sudden death we've been left with Zverotic and Grimmer as our Right-Back options, while Grimmer has played well on occasion he's also shown his level of inexperience at this level and doesn't look entirely comfortable- yet. Signing Baird, who can play Right-Back as well as Centre-Back and Holding Midfield would be a good way to add experience to the team as well as signing someone who understands what Fulham is about already, and is willing to fight for the badge on the front- not the name on the back. As with Fofana we will need to rotate Parker sometimes so Baird could also fill in at Centre-Mid when we need to do that if needed and the same goes for Defence. Wages would be an issue, and I've seen some people saying they would see it as a step back re-signing someone but we definitely need to add experience to the team as going into the run-in of the season we'll need to keep cool heads if we are in and around the Playoff spots.
Kyle Naughton (Spurs)- As with Baird he will provide a good Right-Back option, and he will be a very good Right-Back and would definitely be a good addition to the team and with DeAndre Yedlin coming back to Spurs in January (work permit permitting) Naughton will very much be surplus to requirements at Spurs. If you look at an "everyone fit" scenario at the minute I'd rank Hoogland as our number one Right-Back- but I'm still yet to be convinced by him in a defensive capacity. His impressive goal tally aside he hasn't been a good "Right-Back" in my opinion and his lack of pace is definitely an issue. Then we see Grimmer who as I've already said has impressed- but is still showing clear signs of inexperience and if we are serious about pushing for the Playoffs we need a Right-Back who's fully ready now, which Naughton definitely is, another option I've seen discussed is Chris Gunter who would also fulfill the role just as well and either would really be acceptable.
Freddie Sears (Colchester)- This is a link I've seen recently and is one of the weird rumours that could be true, but you don't see any solid reasoning as to why they would be. Sears was one of the most hotly touted Youth Players not so long ago, but because of a number of circumstances his career has largely stalled. Despite Colchester's position Sears has still shone scoring over 10 Goals already. As I said though, I don't see a reason as to why we would sign Sears- and why he would want to sign for us in all honesty. As I'll write about later I'm not giving much credence to the McCormack Rumours and I think Hugo will stay until at least the Summer and with Woodrow and/or Dembele, Sears wouldn't even be guaranteed a spot on the bench.
Contrary to what most people believe, I don't think we should be prioritising a Centre-Back. In an "everyone fit" scenario I think we have a really good back four with the addition of a Right-Back;
Naughton, Bodurov, Amorebieta, Stafylidis
I think that back four is easily Top 10 worthy and possibly Top 6 and with Shaun Hutchinsons resurgence in the last few games we have a lot of different options that will be good depending on the circumstances with regard to opposition and injury from Hutchinson and of course Burn.
Outgoings
Bryan Ruiz- Perhaps the most obvious outgoing we have this January is Bryan. I don't think any logical Fulham fan expected Bryan to have pulled on a Fulham shirt again- especially after the World Cup he had. But, as such we've added another 3 Months to Bryans Fulham tenure but I can't see it becoming 5+. If the media is to be believed Werder Bremen are in for him again and I'd happily accept anything north of £4million for him as I highlighted with Matt Ritchie that'll give us a decent amount of money (assuming we reinvest it) to get a suitable replacement.
Lasse Vigen Christensen- A Common theme for these next few will be "I Can't see it happening" but as there have been links made I'm almost obligated to talk about it. In Christensens case Aston Villa was the main link I've seen- and I'm sure there have been some others. However, I Can't see it happening- considering Christensens contract runs until 2017 it would have to take an extraordinary bid to take him off our hands. However, considering how well Kit knows Christensen and vice versa- and Christensen not being guaranteed first team football would mean it would have to be a special set of circumstances for LVC to not be in a Fulham shirt come February.
Ross McCormack- Opening gambit for this is I'm not putting any validation to these rumours, but I would be wrong to completely ignore them given the fact they're rumours that have come out from the Papers- which is more than some of the other players I'll have discussed in this blog. I saw two different stories, one that Derby were preparing a bid- which I highly doubt given Derby's financial constraints and we were willing to listen to offers from Premier League teams for McCormack, which is more likely but teams that would actually benefit from McCormack in the Premier League would most likely not be able to afford him.
Hugo Rodallega- I saw some links this week, of Rodallega going to a La Liga team. However, once again I don't see a likely scenario where we get rid of Hugo and where Hugo would want to go. He loves being loved, and with the way he's currently playing (despite his recent dip) with a team thats partially built around him with a solid partnership with McCormack in the City of London where presumably his family is settled it would have to be an extraordinary set of circumstances for us to sell him- and for him to want to go.
Dino Fazlic- Yes, he still exists. A Grand Total of 0 Competitive minutes for us says it all- when he couldn't get a minute with "his" ridiculous rotation policy it says a lot for him as a player and I would expect him to be sold for a nominal amount, loaned out or simply released at the very latest this summer.
Mark Fotheringham- What to say about him eh? Unfortunately he did get minutes with "his" ridiculous rotation policy to the detriment of the team and my sanity. As with Fazlic I would expect us to get to sell, loan or release him by the Summer- and I would expect a Low End League 1 or any League 2 team to want him.
Adil Chihi- Despite Shahid Khans Lamborghini exploits, I can't see Chihi being a Fulham player for much longer. His cameo against Cardiff being his sole appearance for the club and I would expect us to sell him for a nominal fee to free up wages and squad space..
Kay Voser- Contrary to some reports, he didn't die on his way back from the Reading game despite not being seen since. With Zverotic, Grimmer and Hoogland already above him in the pecking order with the potential addition of a Right-Back there simply isn't room for Voser and as with the four names preceding I expect we'll sell him for a nominal fee in order to free up squad space and wages.
Thomas Eisfeld (Loan)- Despite Eisfeld coming in from Arsenal in his minimal appearances for the club he's far from impressed, and with the other midfield options we have- and the further options we have potentially coming in I can't see a scenario where someone like Eisfeld, who does have a decent pedigree about him being happy to play for the Reserves/U21s and I would expect us to Loan him to a League 1 team or abroad as he is still relatively young- and he has shown enough quality the times I've seen him play for Arsenal to make me think he has something that could add to the team.
Adam Taggart (Loan)- Taggart is a highly rated prospect, and with the right set of circumstances he could be in the first team. However with the Hugo and McCormack partnership currently flourishing with Woodrow and Dembele on the bench I can't see a set of circumstances where Taggart slots into the first team this season. As such I'd loan him out to a League 1 team to get proper match experience in English Football this season.
Chris David (Loan)- Similar to Taggart, Chris David is a player who is highly rated- but for a variety of reasons he hasn't factored into the first team plans under Kit. However, a player of David's quality is too good to simply get rid of as such I'd loan him out- most likely to the Eredivisie where he can develop his game.
Patrick Roberts (Loan)- This might be contrary to what some people think, but I don't see Pat Roberts as being ready yet. Yes, he has undoubted dribbling ability and general talent- but he's still very naive in a football sense and needs to streamline his game a great deal before he's ready to play a regular part in the Fulham team and a loan to a team in League 1 that plays "good" football would enable this development- as Roberts sitting on the bench isn't doing anyone any favours.
There are some other players who I would loan out if we were to bring in some of the players I suggested, for example if we do bring in Kyle Naughton I'd loan out Grimmer to further his development with Hoogland providing Right-Back cover for us and if we hit another injury crisis we can just recall Grimmer as we did in November
Most of these players are surplus to requirements, and between getting rid of at least 75% of these players and bringing in a minimal amount of quality players once we come out of this window we'll hopefully have a more streamlined squad with quality options.
My Hopeful Team come February (Everyone Fit)
Bettinelli
RB, Bodurov, Amorebieta, Stafylidis
RM, Christensen, Parker, Kacaniklic
McCormack, Rodallega
Bench:
Kiraly
Hoogland (Potentially coming in to play as a DM if holding onto a lead)
Hutchinson
Fofana
G.Williams
Hyndman
Woodrow
This team will provide us with the best chance of getting to the Playoffs in my opinion and if we were to have this team and with further options of players like Burn, Dembele and Zverotic we'll have a good depth in almost all of the areas of the team and give us a really good chance of stealing a Playoff spot. While the team quoted above is a long shot, its not entirely beyond the realms of possibility.
Thanks for reading as always, I'm of course open to other suggestions/alternatives there are of course some other players that would be on the outgoing list but these are the notable ones in my opinion and with a Fulham transfer window theres always a signing that nobody has heard of or anticipated so we need to brace ourselves for that one. Thanks again, I haven't made my mind up as to when I'm going to put this out on New Years Eve or New Years Day so either way Happy New Year.
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