FANTASY FOOTBALL TIPS

On this episode of Cottage Talk we will be looking back at the Everton loss on Saturday and the dramatic Fulham victory on Tuesday against Liverpool at Anfield.

We will also have a preview of the Sunderland match and will play an interview I did with Michael Graham of the Roker Report.

Please do take a listen live or later to the latest episode of Cottage Talk.

On this episode of Cottage Talk, we looked back at the Fulham loss to Everton on Saturday. We then discussed the dramatic victory Tuesday Night for Fulham against Liverpool.

Next, we talked about Roy Hodgson becoming England manager this week. We wrapped up the show by looking forward to the Sunderland match on Sunday at Craven Cottage. We also played an interview we did with Michael Graham of the Roker Report.

Please do take a listen to the latest episode of Cottage Talk.

Listen to internet radio with cottagetalk on Blog Talk Radio

Bryan Ruiz is a footballer that is difficult to fathom at the best of times. He’s something of an enigma, really; one that is capable of genuinely quite sublime mastery of the ball and an awareness of his ability to turn a game on its metaphorical head. But, he is also prone to a frustrating lack of urgency and, at times, appreciation of the pace of the English game and these mercurial traits have become a disconcerting phenomenon. We, as fans, have acknowledged as such and so has Martin Jol in his ever-decreasing faith in the Costa Rican.

However poorly we think of him, though, there is still that sense of boundless inherent potential that makes you feel as though the £11 million spent on him was somewhat worthy. Perhaps next season he can turn that feeling into something solidified and proven and there is hope, all around Fulham, that he can conquer this league and all that it throws at him. He just needs to, as they say, step it up.

By far his most compelling moment in the white of Fulham continues to be his divine chip over Everton’s Tim Howard as we, in vain, battled from a goal down against Everton only to hand them victory in the match’s dying minutes. As the ball slowly progressed through the air and into the net there was a short but sharp belief that Ruiz was indeed someone who could set Craven Cottage alight with some sort of lesson in footballing aptitude, but the impression, unfortunately, faded quickly.

It faded as every game passed and it retreated in a similar fashion to his very own intensity. It was almost as if his job was done and his mark on England was set in stone. It wasn’t, of course. It was anything but.

If, however, in the likely absence of both Moussa Dembele and Clint Dempsey next season, Ruiz can find some sort of desire to succeed from within then there is no reason as to why England cannot prove to be his oyster. Papiss Cisse was a man in the same remit as Ruiz, with acclamation in tow from his days at SC Freiburg, but with a heady aura of self belief and unquestionably limitless ability, he has stormed into the Premier League and been anointed king. Was there really too much difference between the cosmic goal of Cisse on Monday evening and Ruiz’s most cherished moment against Everton?

You can argue either way but you cannot deny the talent in Ruiz. It is there and merely needs to be exploited, both by his manager and by himself. Jol needs to offer him a freedom of expression that some of the best servants to the game have been granted and he also needs to instil some self belief into a man that is quite palpably lacking in confidence and charisma right now.

His current injury, of course, has not helped proceedings but it has at least withdrawn him from the heated limelight. We’ve all been quick to jump on his back when it hasn’t quite gone to plan and perhaps the pressure has taken it’s quite damning toll on the man but then, we must of course ask why, if he cannot take the burdens of Premier League football, he agreed to travel to England in the first place.

And that is perhaps the most worrying issue that must be addressed with Ruiz. He must bypass his most pressing concerns of adaptation to this new way of life and play in the way in which he was born to and the way in which we all know he can. If he succeeds in such a role then he will succeed at Fulham.

All he needs, then, is at least an ounce of belief in himself and what he stands for and what he can do on a football pitch. Given those remedies, there could well be a new candidate for Premier League king come next season.

At first they were just rumours but the talk is beginning to strengthen. The latest club to have solidified their interest in Clint Dempsey appears to be Liverpool, with chairman Tom Werner declaring his admiration for the American midfielder.

Over recent months Dempsey has been linked to clubs all the way across Europe but the feeling has been that Arsene Wenger and his Arsenal team have had to most authentic impetus to lodge a bid over the summer months. It is said they have sent scouts to track Fulham’s key player and they have reported back to Wenger favourably.

Having yet again topped Fulham’s scoring charts and appearing in the higher echelons of the Premier League’s top scorer list, despite plying his trade mainly in midfield, Dempsey is considered to be having a career defining season that has, undoubtedly, perked the ears of many top clubs. Liverpool are but the latest.

Werner’s appraisals were short but they were equally sharp: “We never talk publicly about our transfer targets,” said the Liverpool chairman. “However, any team would be lucky to have Clint Dempsey playing on their squad.”

Quite the acclamation. However, it will remain to be seen as to whether a move to Merseyside would interest Dempsey, who has regularly spoken of his desire to play Champions League football. The only European football at Anfield next season will be the Europa League and Dempsey is a player already aware of the arduous nature of such a campaign.

Whether Werner’s eagerness to declare an interest in the player will spark a similar reaction at sides such as Arsenal and Tottenham, both of whom have been linked with Dempsey in the past, remains to be seen. What is a virtual certainty, however, is that these rumours will come to the surface come June.

Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer has backed new signing Pavel Pogrebnyak to fill the hefty void left by Bobby Zamora.

Zamora moved to rivals Queens Park Rangers on deadline day, but the departure was quickly countered with a move for VFB Stuttgart striker Pogrebnyak. The Russian was at a loss of form in Germany and Jol signed him up on a six month deal.

The outcast looks good for the former Zenit man, however, after he netted on his debut in a 2-1 victory over Stoke City, and Schwarzer clearly feels the forward has great credentials.

“Pavel has had one game and the signs are positive,” the Australian told the Daily Star.

“In training he has been very good but it will take someone special to replace Bobby in the long term.”

Schwarzer then went on to bemoan the loss of Zamora, but he definitely feels that Fulham’s new singing is in a similar mould to the departed English international.

“It’s always difficult when you lose big players and Zamora scored a lot of goals and his link-up play was invaluable.

“Pavel has all the attributes to do that. We’re confident he can get better and better. He looks very good and has fitted in easily.

“His work-rate was excellent and, although you probably didn’t see his ability on the ball, his finish was top class.”

Time is a precious commodity but you have to feel that Andre Villas-Boas of Chelsea doesn’t have much of it left to spend. Money, yes, he can certainly dispense that all he wants, but for every minute that passes by he’ll be counting and dreading its conclusion.

No surprises there though – not with a chairman more trigger happy than Bruce Willis at least. However forthcoming Roman Abramovich may be, however, there is a sense of disarray at Stamford Bridge that can’t be nonchalantly corrected with loyalty in some vain attempt to correct past misdemeanours. The chairman must act now or risk the security of what has now become one of the English Premier League’s most reputable football clubs.

Villas-Boas has always had a rather supreme Curriculum Vitae to fall back on when the times have been tough in South West London. His feats at Porto, not least of which being a season undefeated in what is a misleadingly difficult Portuguese first division, are impressive beyond any reasonable doubt. He brought home the Europa League too, but let’s be honest, as much as all in England would like him to be, he’s no Jose Mourinho. There’s only one of them and he seems up for a return to these shores in some form as it is.

And how would Villas-Boas fare up against such an undisputed great? Not very well, you have to believe. For all the assurances that came with the young Portuguese manager, none have stood the test of time and pressure. His unwillingness to lose was quickly quashed by a resilient Manchester United side within weeks of the season’s opening – a team who Chelsea have never looked even close to catching since.

The tactical nous for which he so famed is non-existent in the stringent challenge of English football. Everybody seems to have an answer to Chelsea’s threatening assets – and there are many – but Villas-Boas cannot seem to counter the quality of other sides. He has the likes of John Terry, Michael Essien and Fernando Torres at his disposal and yet victories are at a premium while defeats are becoming somewhat of a regularity.

He just can’t seem to cope. Perhaps – and the idea was banded about heavily even before he had landed in London – this is just one step too far and one stage too early in his career. The 34 year-old is young, after all. He is still learning his trade and is that something Chelsea really want, even in their so-called ‘transitional phase’?

Because that is what the excuses come in the form of right now. They are all about a younger team and about working for the future. That’s all well and good, but you just have to look at Arsene Wenger to see that, while there may be benefits of this method, the drawbacks carry great severity. Transition can be done without decay but Villas-Boas clearly hasn’t taken such a fact on board.

The signings of the likes of Romelu Lukaku have perhaps proved to epitomise his reign the most. He’s a Belgian talent hailed for his boundless ability, but he hasn’t even seen the light of day at Stamford Bridge. £13 million was his price tag, and six league appearances surmounting to 88 minutes on the pitch his reward. That just begs the question as to whether Villas-Boas’ celebrated transition is even in motion.

Chelsea, quite simply, are looking a shadow of their former selves and even though the masses try to paint over the cracks with talk of necessary changes and required upheaval, you can’t help but see the holes that are left. They are gaping and they need to be filled. Villas-Boas won’t do that.

For, while Abramovich has made many managerial mistakes in the past, and while he has been oh so hasty with his big red button, he needs to remove Andre Villas-Boas and he needs to do this for the good of the club into which he has invested so heavily.

“Who needs Zamora when you’ve got the Pog?” was the inventive chant of the Hammersmith End as our new Russian striker opened his account at Craven Cottage. It was an interesting debate to enter – even though it was probably created with rhetoric in mind. Once he had left the fray with an injury-induced exit in the second half, Fulham became a sterile unit incapable of creativity. They were already missing their new number seven in a way that Queens Park Rangers’ new signing can only dream of.

And so the post-Bobby era truly began. It was a statistically sound entry into new territory but the 2-1 scoreline did little justice to how tense the last few minutes were. As Pavel Pogrebyak left the the field, Stoke pushed forward and Jol’s men couldn’t muster anything resembling an innovation in the middle of the park. Pulis’ side continued to push right up to the death but the home side and their new forward had the last laugh in the end.

The game began tentatively for Fulham who appeared somewhat weary of going beyond enemy lines. Matthew Upson gave Murphy a reason not to, tackling the captain firmly yet fairly.

It took a while for the game to settle but when it did, the Whites were the ones to benefit. John Arne Riise had a shot from long range but the effort was tame and was halted by Pogrebnyak. He turned and finished astutely, with Sorensen giving up on a shot that ended in the top left hand corner.

Pulis’ men attempted to respond immediately but a Kenwyne Jones strike that went out for a throwing epitomised their early efforts.

Thomas Sorensen then showed Jones how it’s done with an unfortunate own goal. Clint Dempsey struck the ball with superb venom from around 30 yards, only for it to hit the underside of the bar and then the back of Sorensen before rolling into the net. Fulham were playing well and were deserving of their 2-0 lead.

A Marc Wilson foul gave Danny Murphy the opportunity to put the game beyond doubt with a free kick on the edge of the area. Murphy struck the ball well but it travelled just past the post.

The second half began as a tepid affair but ended on a contrasting note. Neither goalkeeper was tested in the early stages and it was Pogrebnyak’s removal that changed the tide of the pressure.

Simon Davies replaced him and, once again, Fulham were without a recognised striker. The Potters reacted accordingly and three quick fire changes put the game back into the balance. Ricardo Fuller was the most popular player to come on, judging by the away fans’ reaction. It was his blocked shot that led to the corner from which their solitary goal came.

Ryan Shawcross was the man who placed a header past Mark Schwarzer and suddenly Fulham became jittery and appeared to panic.

Peter Crouch nearly exploited what was now a frantically organised back line, but he fired over from a good position. The away side continued to dominate but it was a Dempsey break away that concluded the game. Sorensen’s luck was such that the ball managed to round him in the dying seconds of the 5 minutes of extra time and when Dempsey tried to apply a finish from a tight angle, only the post denied him. The home support rued the miss but were cheering moments later as the final whistle went.

Who needs Zamora when you’ve got the Pog?

According to TalkSport, former Barcelona and Arsenal midfielder Alexander Hleb is not training at Motspur Park and is not about to join the club.

Reports were suggesting that Martin Jol was keeping a very close eye on the Belarussian and after Barcelona terminated his contract in January, invited him to train with the Cottagers ahead of a possible move.

A source, however, is suggesting that it simply not the case, and a move to Russia is more likely.

“He has been released by Barcelona but is not training at Fulham,” said the source.

“The transfer window is closed in England, but there are other countries where it is now open. There is likely to be a solution until July and it will go from there.”

Dickson Etuhu has stated that, in the absence of midfielder Steve Sidwell, he’d like to claim himself a place in the first eleven – starting with Saturday’s tie with Stoke City.

The Nigerian midfielder, signed from Sunderland, played his first game of 2012 for the Whites against Manchester City at the weekend, and while the match may have gone against him, he feels he can push on and win a solidified first team place.

Despite the 3-0 defeat, Etuhu also went on to praise the fans for their commitment to the cause.

“For me it was quite difficult obviously being my first game in a while so I felt it in my legs a little but it’s nice to be back involved,” Etuhu told fulhamfc.com.

“Our fans were great as always last weekend. We like when they come and support us away from home and we really appreciate it.”

Etuhu has been pushed out of the team by a consistent pairing of captain Danny Murphy and partner Steve Sidwell, but with the latter’s injury concerns, Etuhu has spotted an opportunity and plans to take it.

“I can build from that [game against City]. Obviously in this week’s training I’ve got to try and push on and get my fitness up but I’m looking forward to the game at home against Stoke. That’s probably the more important one for us and hopefully we can get the three points.

“It’s always tough when you play Stoke but we believe we can win at home. We’re looking to obviously go and win our home games and I’m sure that if we play the way we can we’ll do that.”

West Bromwich Albion forward, Simon Cox, offered his opinion on the departure of Bobby Zamora to Queens Park Rangers and suggested that, despite being our top goalscorer from his midfield position, Fulham will not rely too heavily on American, Clint Dempsey.

The striker, a player we were regularly linked with under Roy Hodgson, feels that there are other players at the club who will give Martin Jol plenty of options.

“[They will rely on Dempsey], as well as Andy Johnson as well as the new lad [Pavel Pogrebnyak] who has come in,” Cox said.

“So I don’t think they will be reliant on one or two players.

“There are good players in that side and I think they’ll be fine.”