Summer X-Fer speculation

I'm on record here as being the first to say that McBride is out of Fulham come summer.

He is useless in the Coleman strategy... i dont know what CC thought when he recruited him, but it's apparent to me that there's no fit there. If Cookie doesnt send him out, Brian will ask out.

Not really a knock on Coleman.. or McBride, though I feel sorry a little for Brian.

Too bad he has spent the last four years in teams that dont suit him.. Preston, Everton and the US team being his only bright spots.

OTOH, Columbus finally has a lineup of talent/skills that could use him.. and I might not be surprised to see him back.

 

Agreed....he has too much talent to sit on the bench and would be probably be suited to playing every week for a Championship team where he would be a hero.

 

I know it is early and we do not know who will be relegated, but I think Norwich City is going down. That being said, I think a great signing would be Canary midfielder Damien Francis. He has easily been the best player on the team this season. He can hold the ball well, he disperses the ball well and he can score. I am not sure how much he would cost, but I bet no more than 3 million pounds. What dos everyone think of Francis?

 

Francis isnt that good plus, Fulhams midfield is a top 7 midfield if everyone is healthy. Huckerby might not be that bad of a signing though.If West Brom go down to Championship a good signing could be Robert Earnshaw.He could be a 15 goal a year player. Also Robson Pnte from Leverkusen. He could be alot of money but, with Donovan at Leverkusen they might sell him for less than they would if Donovan wasnt there.Jefferson Farfan from PSV could be a player that can be a 15 goal a year. Damarcus Beasley would be a good signing. Bobo Balde another good signing. Bernard from Newcastle.There are alot of players that Fulham could sign in the Summer.

 

I like Francis and I think he has been a quality player. I agree that if Fulham's midfield is healthy they are good, but the chances of them being healthy are not good. Thus, I think Francis would help us out. What don't you like about him? The fact that he is not American?

Your definition of goal scorers is just outlandish. Just yesterday you were saying that Collins John could and should score 20 goals a season and now today you are saying Robert Earnshaw should score 20 a season. That is a lot of goals my friend.

I think you are a wishful thinker at times in your analysis of players. Be realistic about things. Especially goal counts.

 

I dont really care if your American or not i just dont like Francis.Huckerby maybe. Or Ashton maybe Green.Earnshaw can score 15-20 goals a year. This dosent mean all in the league. I said John Could score 15-20 and he can if he started.Thats not unrealistic. If a player is good then i would say go and try and get him to come to Fulham but, Francis isnt that good. I mean if it was to help with Depth then ok but, not to start.If Boa Morte leaves Fulham should try and get Damarcus Beasley from PSV.Beasley has like 8 goals and 10-12 assists for PSV.He could play as a Left Midfielder or like what Chelsea plays with a 4-3-3 and be the forward on the left.He might be alot of money but, it should be a good signing.Fulham need another forward in the summer. Cole will be 34 and if Mcbride did leave Cole and John would be the only forwards.Fulham could try and get Johnson from Palace if they go down to Championship.

 

I would like us to try and get Beasley if Boa leaves. he is playing well at PSV. I just hope Boa does not leave.

As for Francis, that is cool. We are not all gonna agree on things. If you do not like him, that is your opinion. That is what makes this board fun.

 

I suppose Beasley's okay... but I dont really rate him all that much.

Eindhoven came to Cols to watch when the Fire played us, and we put Chris Wingert, a rookie, on him and Wingert shut him down. .. and not just by roughing him up, which is also a vulnability he has.
Chris is a good player and started most of the season but he WAS right out college, while Beasley was a US team regular.

Still, if he gains some weight...

 

I wonder how much it would take for PSV to sell him? Any ideas?

I a do think he is a bit weak in terms of his strength and such, but he is quite fast and he also tracks back very well on defense. While I have not watched one PSV match this season as I do not have ESPN Deportes, he seems to be playing well in the Eredivisie. While it is not the EPL, it is a much better league than the MLS.

On a side note, as a Fire fan, I think Beasley mailed it in and gave up when he did play for the Fire earlier in the 2004 MLS season. He did not seem to care or be working hard. He just wanted to go to Europe it seemed like. That may be why he was lackluster in the C-Bus. Who knows. Just my two cents worth.

 

Well if Boa left he would probably go for 4.5 mil maybe more depending on how good he does in the last 2 months.Beasley might be too much because PSV just got him last summer.Plus he is a very important player to the team.Beasley has done very well at PSV and in CL.Hes an ok defender when he has to defend. I mean if Boa is talking about how he would like to go to a bigger club and Newcastle offer Coleman should sell. Its better to have players that want to be there than to have players that just want to leave.Beasley would be a good player to get if Boa did leave.

 

Heres a list of players that would be a good signing for Fulham.

RB

Steve Cherundolo(Hannover 96)

Central Defense

Bobo Balde(Celtic)
Robert Huth(Chelsea)

RM

Robson Ponte(Leverkusen)
Wayne Routledge(Palace)

CM

Lee Bowyer(Newcastle)
Van Bommel(PSV)

LM

Damarcus Beasley(PSV)

Forwards

Derek Riordan(Hibernian)
Eddie Johnson(FC Dallas)
Jermey Menez(Sochaux)
Soloman Kalou(Feynoord)


Well Fulham have 4 keepers so they dont really need another keeper. Crossley might leave though because Fulham signed Drobny and Flintney could be the 3rd keeper.Still they would have VDS,Drobny,and Flintney.They dont really need a RB. Volz is a good defender but, Cherundolo has been doing well with Hannover 96. Central defense is where Fulham need a player or 2. Balde would be a great signing.If Malbranque did leave then Fulham would have to get another player. Routledge would be a good signing. He might be somewhere like 3 mil.Van Bommel from PSV would be alot of money but, could probably start and be great in the central midfield. I mean Fulham would have Diop and Van Bommel starting thats a great central midfield plus Jensen on the bench.Now they need a forward.Cole will be 34 and Radz 32 and if Mcbride leaves that means they would have only 3 forwards.And 2 of them would be over 30.Eddie Johnson would be alot of money.But, is fast can score and has scored on every International team for the US(U-20 Senior etc).Derek Riordan has 15 goals in the SPL. Menez is 17 and has done ok with Sochaux.Kalou is doing well with Feynoord.

 

Fulham's concern should be for a striker this summer. The management needs to invest in a young player, and not bring in old ones that are out of their prime such as Cole, Radzinski and McBride. I agree with the above postings. Crystal Palace's Andy Johnson would be a great acquisition. He is similar to Saha with his pace, knack for goal and dominance in the air. Johnson is a great target man. Another Johnson would be Eddie Johnson, however; I think that he's too young for the EPL. He hasn't face stiff competition. He scored goals against weak Central American and Carribean teams for the US. MLS defenders aren't nearly as good as their EPL counterparts (sorry). Johnson would need time to adjust to the pace and quality of the Premier League, but if developed and used right, I think that he could become a regular first-team player in 2-4 years. Two more forwards of notability are Mateja Kezman and Peguy Luyindula. Luyindula is a natural goal-scorer who's had his up and down at Marseille. I feel that he's in his prime right now and he'd make an immedieate impact. Kezman hasn't been receiving enough playing time at Chelsea to showcase his talents.