Fulham v. Sunderland [R]

With Toon drawing today, we're not in the relegation zone.

:banana: :banana:

(sorry, but with the sox loss and the pats going to lose tonight... gotta find joy in one sports team)

 

Not very many, though. How many scoring chances, combined, did F5 and Zamora have on Saturday? One, Zamora's shot from a really narrow angle near the end line to Gordon's left? When Man United or Arsenal score four goals in a match, it isn't (generally) because they've created four scoring opportunities and converted them all, it's because they've created ten or fifteen and converted a portion of them. Even your tip-top finishers like Ronaldo or RvN or Inzaghi don't bury every chance they have. And since our finishers aren't as good as those guys, we're not winning many matches if we only create three or four scoring chances per match.

And as poor as Gera was against West Brom, and again against Sunderland, what message does it send if Roy pencils him in again to start at Portsmouth on Saturday? There has to be accountability.

 

Agree. Gera has missed quite a few chances this season.

On the flipside, it is an unfair to make a comparison between the two when Dempsey has one start and a handful of 10-15 minute cameo appearances.

My feeling is that Dempsey brings a bit more creativity to the attack than Gera does. Subsequently, I think Clint's instincts probably run counter to what Roy is trying to implement.

If Dempsey is to be assigned the super-sub role, then the substitution needs to come earlier than the 75th minute...

 

It's understandable for CD to try too hard to impress and rush his chance, when he's getting limited PT. Otherwise, he looked good on the ball and linked up well.
Timmy's comment about us being a poor man's Arsenal is "spot on." We are looking for ways to Brazil the ball down the middle. It's a "pipe dream". You can't ram the ball down a Premier League defense' throat. You have to out-flank the d, and send in dangerous balls from the wing. How can such a simple concept be completely missing from Fulham's attack. Wake up, roy, before it's too late.

 

I did a little follow up on the shots and goals this season compared to the first seven games of last season and the statistics are telling in my opinion.
................................................................%........% Goals....% Goals
2008/2009...............................On.............On............to.............to
............Goals..........Shots.......Goal...........Goal.........Shots.......On Goal
Bullard......0..............23............5...............22%.........0%.............0%
Zamora.....1..............17............5...............29%.........6%...........20%
Gera.........1..............15............3...............20%.........7%...........33%
Davies......0..............12............2...............17%.........0%.............0%
Johnson....0................9............3...............33%.........0%.............0%
Murphy......1...............7............1...............14%........14%.........100%
Hangeland..1..............5............2...............40%.........20%..........50%
Ki-Hyeon....1..............5.............1..............20%.........20%.........100%
Dempsey...0..............5.............2...............40%..........0%.............0%
Pantsil.......0..............2.............0.................0%..........0%.............0%
Konchesky.0..............1.............0.................0%..........0%.............0%

Totals........5...........101...........24...............24%..........5%...........21%

2007/2008.12...........82............46..............56%.........15%..........26%Thru 7

2007/2008.39..........437.........222...............51%..........9%..........18%Full Season

If statistics don't lie then the answer for our problem is putting more shots on goal. I was really surpised at the difference in shots on goal this season-to-date versus last season. Someone e-mail Roy and tell him that training today should consist of shooting practice, shooting practice and more shooting practice.

 

Long ball has a higher shot-on-target percentage than possession ball, but 1) produces fewer shots and 2) is unable to retain a lead.

What I would like to see if Fulham attacking with more pace...quicker movement and passing before the defense has an opportunity to settle.

 

I like Wingplay as well...i.e., the "Classic English" style that Coppell runs at Reading. However, we're doing European style, which CAN work in the Premiership, but requires a faster buildup than we're doing now.

 

Jimmy B shooting every time he sees the net is not helping matters,I can see the point comming when the team plays around him just so other people see the ball!!!!!!

 

Agree. This seems to go unoticed.

Jimmy shoots at will, but has been off-target more often than not.

Looking at Barry's table only drives that point home...

 

The problem with the plan to attack with pace is that the team is slow other than Andy Johnson, what with EJ and Hammer out on loan and Kamara injured. Demps, Gera, Murphy, Bullard, Davies, Zamora, Nevland, Seol - none of them are winning many out-and-out foot races with the faster defenders in the Premier League, let alone while dribbling.

 

You guys are analyzing this way too much, whatever happened to just saying

We're rubbish!

 

Attacking with pace is more about speed of play than speed of foot.

 

Because were not!I sat though the Derby game last year,we are SO much better than that this time around

Jimmy has to learn to pass,AJ needs game time and we need a bit of steel in the middle-this is all very do-able and we are in a different class to last years shower!!!!