Hello! We've had a week off from the crushing disappointment- now we're firmly back in the mixer with three games coming up in quick succession. The game tomorrow is the first of 10 Games that could shape our immediate and long-term future, and it really is a fight or flight scenario for the players.
I think its generally accepted Blackpool are down, mind you they were effectively down before the season even started. I'd make the argument that everyone from Huddersfield (17th) down could still realistically go down- but the teams in immediate danger are obviously Millwall and Wigan; then Brighton, Rotherham and of course us. Given the run of games we have, especially with the run of Wigan and Rotherham at Home followed by Blackpool away in Mid-April I think we should be aiming for a nice round 50 Points that should be enough to stay up with. I've seen a lot of people reacting to the Millwall sacking of Holloway, and while I'm not discounting them- the combination of their run-in; and with respect their lack of quality in quite a few areas means I'm more worried about Wigan's potential to overtake us. The thing I've said quite a few times over the last month is "If we can't get *X* number of points we don't deserve to stay up" and I believe that its applicable here- because if we play like a 8 Point worse team the Wigan and Millwall we deserve to go down.
Now onto the game tomorrow; Sheffield Wednesday are in pretty good form at the minute- winning 3 of their last 4; but I have a hope that Wednesday will be starting to wind down now that they're safe and comfortably Mid-Table; without having a sniff of the Playoff Hunt.
Bettinelli will of course continue in goal, I said it in my Bournemouth Review- and I'll say it again now; Bettinelli wasn't largely at fault for any of the 5 we conceded last Friday- but conceding 5 won't do much for his confidence, so I hope along with the defence they put in a much more reassured performance tomorrow.
Speaking of the Defence, the big news yesterday was the Loan Signing of Michael Turner- who in my opinion was exactly the kind of signing we needed. While I've praised the pairing of Bodurov & Hutchinson I've always conditioned it with the term "far from perfect"- and Michael Turner is exactly the kind of player we need in the heart of our defence both short-term to get us over the line and hopefully Long-Term. Obviously with Turner coming in he'll be playing without a shadow of a doubt- so the question turns to who do we drop out of Bodurov and Hutchinson. It could honestly go either way- and I would support either being dropped- however just from a personal preference I'd keep Bodurov in the team just because he's been a more consistent presence over the course of the season- but as I said it could go either way. In Kit's Press Conference he said with the exception of Kacaniklic and Christensen that we didn't have any injury issues- so on that note it would appear Richards and Stafylidis are fully fit, so in my opinion they should be brought back in.
The Midfield is really frustrating from my point of view, taking Derby out of the equation we've looked really stagnant in the Midfield area since we played Derby's biggest Rival in January. The injury to Kacaniklic doesn't have that much of an impact on the team- because as I've said a few times they system we're playing doesn't suit him anyway. The Christensen injury is more of an impact on the team but he hasn't looked all there since he returned from injury so its not as big of an impact as it would have been the other side of Christmas. With the run of fixtures we have, and the need for points I think we need to prioritise our Home Games- as such I'd keep Parker away from the team for tomorrows game with an eye on Leeds. This opens up a spot in the DM Position- which should go to Hoogland, him starting at Right-Back against Bournemouth I'm hoping was out of necessity with the Richards injury- because unless you were unaware he should be played in the Midfield. The two midfield spots in the three should go to Tunnicliffe of course and Sean Kavanagh. I was really debating Fofana instead of Kavanagh for this game but I can't discount the natural width Kavanagh offers the team. It goes without saying Bryan Ruiz should start in the #10 Role- and whether people like him or not, he'll be a key player to our success or failure over the next 10 Games.
The Striking Situation is interesting once again, I said in my Bournemouth Preview that I thought Rodallega was just winding down the clock on his Fulham career- and he may have been told he's not getting a new deal; and I think his performance last Friday gave a lot of credence to that theory. In my opinion McCormack is a given- and its a fight between Smith and Woodrow for the place alongside him. I've really rated Woodrow when he's played as of late, while he got a knock against Watford I still would have started him against Bournemouth unless his leg was hanging by a thread. That said we can't deny the partnership between Smith & McCormack does work- and Smith's goal last Friday was the only highlight from a Fulham perspective. As with the Bodurov/Hutchinson debate I wouldn't mind seeing either of the guys start- and its entirely up to Kit, once again purely from a personal view I'd start Woodrow because bringing Smith on would add another dimension to our attacking play if need be- and draw defenders in when they're a bit more tired- which in turn would create space for others.
Team for Sheff. Wednesday
Bettinelli
Richards, Turner, Bodurov, Stafylidis
Tunnicliffe, Hoogland, Kavanagh
Bryan
McCormack Woodrow
Its crazy when you look back at the reverse fixture just before Christmas- because at the time it looked like we were poised for a push on the Top 10, with a view to the Playoffs- and we of course had overtaken Wednesday on goal difference as a result of the 4-0 Win. We're now 18 Points and 10 Places behind them- and I think thats as damning as any other stat on our performances since Christmas.
Thanks for reading as always, this game as I've said is 1 of 10 that could determine our Long-Term future; we do have the players to keep us up comfortably- whether or not they can perform is a whole other thing. In short the players need to fight for the clubs future, because while Wolves managed to bounce back for every Wolves there's a Bradford. Thanks again for reading, and lets hope the players are up for it- because its going to be one helluva fight.
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