Summer '08: Ins and Outs

Lork posted this on Friends of Fulham, pretty interesting with regards to Johnson:

 

Wait, so the unsubstantiated and unsourced rumors printed in various English newspapers are untrue? No way!

I decided this morning that we should try to sign Rolando Bianchi from Man City. He's way down on their depth chart, even though he's done nothing but score goals over the past couple of years.

 

So Shaun Wright-Phillips is significantly faster with the ball than without it? (Faster than anyone else with the ball, even?) I thought that was just a figure of speech when commentators said that about a player.

 

I like Bianchi as well. The problem with him is he wants to get into the Italian squad and he probably can't do that if he comes to Fulham. My guess is that he is headed back to Italy.

 

Yeah, that's also what I've been reading, unfortunately. Though, I have to wonder if Roy might be able to use his Italian connections to help him out a bit.

 

In other news, Hull is close to signing Marlon King --

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story ... nd&cc=5901

Let's see --
Craig Fagan, late of Derby County, 'nuff said,
Geovanni, had his moments last year for Man City, scored the only goal of the game in their home fixture agaunst Man United,
Bernard Mendy, no longer any great shakes,
George Boateng, 33 years old in September and he was on the decline for Boro last year,
King, someone who I would have taken for Fulham in a perfect world when his name came up in rumors in the past,
and Tony Warner.

Hull worries me a little. I think they have signed too many stiffs to avoid relegation this year, but it isn't beyond possibility that they will do enough to stay up and make the Ws life that much harder. I didn't give them a chance for staying up in May, now I just got fired up a little more for the first game of the year against them.

 

Stoke even added someone half decent. West Brom too. It should be a very fun year.

 

What happened with King? We decided not to sign him after the physical, and Wigan I guess doesn't want him back. Is this an act of desperation for Hull?

 

Who did Stoke sign besides Carson? He can't score gaols for them, and that is the issue for them.

 

West Brom signed Carson, not Stoke. Pretty good price too; I would've taken him for £3.25M for sure.

Stoke signed Kitson, who can score some goals for them.

 

I have changed my mind on Johnson. I say bring it on. Hopefully he can recapture his Crystal Palace form minus the dives. At least we'll have a player that has proven that he can score at this level. I hate him with a passion, but if he's going to score goals for us, then whatever.

 

I agree FFC24. If AJ can stay healthy, I believe he is better than anyone we have and will help us.

 

I think he will be an asset for us and the usual pain in the ass for everyone else to play against. A good replacement for what McBride brought to the table.

The price is steep. But who knows where the market actually is at this time of inflated prices for players?

 

I still hate the idea of signing Andy Johnson, but in trying to find a silver lining, I've decided that he's actually quite similar to Cristiano Ronaldo in many respects. Short, fast, dives, ball hog, can't shoot.

 

I just laughed out loud at my work terminal :shock:

 

Calling the diving Johnson a replacement for what McBride brought to the table is an insult to McBride.

 

Is it possible for a player to gain a reputation that they just cannot shake? Last season was my first to watch the EPL and I watched as many games as I reasonably could and had no preconcieved notions about any EPL players. After Fulham I proably watched more Everton games than any other team because I love watching Timmy in goal. AJ became one of the Everton players I enjoyed watching because he changed the match almost every time he stepped on the pitch. He was fast, streched the defenses and worked hard to get the ball. I never noticed him doing a lot of diving. In fact I would say he went down far less than Dempsey did during the games I watched. I guess it is possible that I didn't notice him diving or perhaps he choose not to dive in the games I watched but it is also possible that he is just stuck with the reputation as a diver.

 

I do think he has toned it down a little in the past couple of years, probably out of necessity, as the refs had caught on and weren't giving him as many penalties and free kicks. Unfortunately (for him, at least), diving was a huge part of his game, so his production has suffered greatly. Here are his goals and times fouled per 90 minutes, since 2003:

Code:

Season	G/90	F/90
03/04	0.725	2.124
04/05	0.568	2.272
05/06	0.515	2.059
06/07	0.365	1.557
07/08	0.293	1.855

 

Nice stat! That G/90 stat is, I think, especially telling. It would seem to indicate that he is in serious decline. I think £10 million for him would be a disaster. We could get three decent players for that.

 

AJ in??

http://www.evertonbanter.co.uk/2008/07/ ... ve-go.html