Peter Crouch has decided against a move to Fulham and instead will team up with old friends Harry Redknapp and Jermain Defoe at Tottenham it was announced on Tuesday. While it would have been nice to get Crouch on the books at Craven Cottage it was not to be.
Fulham can now fully focus on their trip to Lithuania for their Europa League opener against FK Vetra. The Lithuanian club advanced to the third round of qualifying by defeating HJK of Helsinki in the second round Grevenmacher in the first round.
Thursday will be the first leg in Vilnius followed by the return match at Craven Cottage on August 6th. Obviously it would be great for Fulham to get past Vetra and into the next phase of this competition. After playing so well during the last season to qualify for the Europa League, it would be devastating to crash out so early.
What are your expectations for Fulham in the Europa League? How far do you think they can go?
Comments
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Posted by David on 07/28/2009
I think they will perform well at the beginning as their starting core is rested. As soon as the burden of multiple matches each week starts you will see Roy be forced to decide between the Prem, FA Cup , and Europa. Europa will loose out and thus they will crash out earlier than necessary because they didn't strengthen the squad enough during the off season to compete on all fronts. Like the teams that competed in the Uefa Cup last year, besides Man City, they will more or less be forced to field a reserve team for the compitition because they don't want to fall behind in the Prem. Unless there are more signings forthcoming that is how I see it playing out. Maybe they get out of the group stage but anything past January would be a suprise.
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Posted by Elliot on 07/28/2009
Fulham has the class to advance deep into the competition due to their Premier League experience. They can perform similar to City in last year's competition. However, the toughest competition by far, will be the first rounds, beginning with Vetra. Playing in Eastern Europe is always bizarre, especially amidst the summer cobwebs. I envision the team growing stronger as the competition goes along...IF they get the chance. It's times like this when class of coaching comes in, with how he injects a mindset of confidence into the team...it's time for the Hodgson experience to shine.
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Posted by BadgerDawg on 07/28/2009
Crouch made a huge mistake...no Europe + no guarantee to start = out of England squad for the WC.
We should have no problems with the first couple of rounds of Europa. After that, it will depend on what squad RH puts out there. If we're as thin as we are now, my guess is that he will put the bench out there and we will lose just as Villa did last year.
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Posted by Theodore Bennett on 07/28/2009
Aloha Tom!
Maybe you could explain the Europa format as it is new to me and then I could give a more informed opinion on how far Fulham could advance? Crouch out. Who is in? Is Eddie Johnson having a good pre-season?
Mahalo!
Ted
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Posted by Derek on 07/29/2009
Now what? Can't take a chance with the present strike force. We need a double figure striker to balance the squad and we need one now. I trust that Roy is working on this.
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Posted by Rick in Chicago on 07/29/2009
Slightly disappointed at missing out on Crouch. Now go get Altidore.
Even though we are only a season removed from the depths of near relegation, I don't think we'll soon be going back there. I think Fulham should do all they can to advance in Europe. I think the chances are very slim of a top 7 finish given Man City's spending and the fact that Tottenham should be better. If survival is not a question, what does it really matter if you finish 9th vs. 13th or 14th? A great run and maybe even a win in Europe would be one for the ages for a team like Fulham.
As others have commented, they need a lot more depth still. I trust Roy is working hard on getting some more players in.
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Posted by Nick on 07/29/2009
I've been disappointed all of the off season. With our spot in the Europa league I thought for sure we would make one big signing.... we will struggle without a legit strike force. Somebody must compliment Andrew Johnson, actually reverse that. We need Andrew Johnson to compliment somebody else. Make it happen in the front office!
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