Fulham is in 17th place after Saturday's tough 1-0 loss to Arsenal. Truth be told, I feel Fulham deserved at least a share of the points as the Cottagers were in control for large chunks of the match. But credit to Arsenal for holding on and getting the win in a tough place like Craven Cottage.
While I could ramble on and on about Fulham struggling in the league and dropping to one spot above the relegation zone I will not. Instead I will focus my thoughts on the contract of manager Roy Hodgson.
At present time, Hodgson's contract runs out at the end of this season. That in and of itself is a joke. We are talking about the manager who took over a club destined for relegation in December of 2007 and performed miracle work to keep the Cottagers in the top flight and just one season later engineered the club to an all-time best 7th place finish and a spot in the Europa League. If I were Mohamed Al-Fayed, Hodgson would have been given a multi-year contract extension the minute he walked off the pitch in the last game of the 2008-2009 season. Instead, we are in limbo as Fulham supporters wondering if Roy will be our man in charge at this time next season.
I can't stress enough how much Hodgson has brought to this club. Succeeding Lawrie Sanchez and Chris Coleman and cleaning up the messes those two created, particularly Sanchez was a big undertaking alone. But to take the club, add some fresh faces to the mix already at the Cottage and implement a team that is not only solid defensively, but one that is also a pleasure to watch with a nice passing game through the midfield. These characteristics in a team are ones we have not seen since Jean Tigana was in charge and Fulham was tearing it up in the lower divisions en route to a Premier League spot for the 2001-2002 season.
While I can't say I know much about the details about the contract talks, I hope for Fulham's sake that it is Roy who is holding up things. If it is Fulham that is stalling on a new deal the club should be ashamed of themselves for such a travesty. If anyone is worthy of a contact extension of all managers in the Premier League it is surely Roy. With the riff raff of Premier League managers at the various clubs throughout the league, Fulham has one that most clubs would love to have managing their clubs. We have him and we are not doing our best to keep him at Fulham for years to come. That really bothers me and I am sure it bothers Roy too.
I do not know what else to say other than to tell the club......SIGN ROY HODGSON TO A MULTI-YEAR CONTRACT EXTENSION NOW!!!
What are your thoughts on the Roy Hodgson contact extension? Is he worthy? Is Fulham right in prolonging giving him an extension? If you were Roy how would you feel? Let me know.
Comments
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Posted by mario on 09/28/2009
I'm an Arsenal fan through and through but I have to agree with this post. He has done remarkably with Fulham, they conceded less than us last season and although they are in 17th now they will surely finish in the top half. Due to City they may drop down a spot to 8th this year but even that's a great achievement considering how much they've spent. For Fulham's sake I hope he is offered a new contract and signs on the dotted line.
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Posted by Bradstow on 09/28/2009
I think MAF has got this one right. Let's wait and see whether Roy is doing another Blackburn.
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Posted by aussie John on 09/28/2009
Our Manager must be one of the most respected in the UK. Does not rant and rave like alot of them. Is not self promoting. Why would you not have him on a 3/4 year contract. Fulham have trouble keeping our good players when other teams show strong interests and have the money. The same will happen to the Roy when the likes of Man City, Spurs etc want to change managers after a few winless months. Lets keep him at the cottage
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Posted by denhen on 09/28/2009
He should be given the England national job. Unfortunately, politics prevents him the chance. Fulham has been blessed to have him. The only thing Hodgson needs is the supports from the Chairman/directors. If Wenger would to step up to Arsenal Board, Hodgson is the ideal replacement.
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Posted by David on 09/28/2009
Roy should be on a longer deal but perhaps he is not by choice. There war ethe rumblings he could get the job as manager of the Olympic team and I think he would jump at that in a heartbeat. I assume his dream is to manage England through a World Cup or Euro cycle. Perhaps he is waiting to see how Capello's team does in SA before signing. Maybe he thinks he is next in line.
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Posted by BadgerDawg on 09/28/2009
RH should have an extension, no questions about it. However, he has slipped in my eyes and many others by his stubborn refusal to do anything about our attacking options. BZ and AJ had (for them) good games and we still got nothing. We will not finish in the top half hoping for 1-0 wins and 1-1 draws. I still think Burnley and Birmingham are going to join Pompey for the bottom three, but we'll be closer to them than we will be to the top 7. The Wolves game said more to me than any other. Someone we could have targeted (Doyle) scores and we lose. Zamora blocks a possible goal and he was offside anyway.
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Posted by elliot on 09/28/2009
Roy needs to be here awhile longer. He's upgraded the overall standard of Fulham and needs a couple of more years to get that standard ingrained. I agree with BadgerDawg's comments, though, there's been some misjudgements this year. Nevertheless, this is part of the process of Roy finding the right formula for long-term success.
By the way, am I alone in thinking that Dempsey needs a few matches rest? He had, by far, the most rigorous summer schedule (physically and emotionally) of anyone on the squad and he doesn't look like his old explosive self.
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Posted by Jon on 10/01/2009
Since Roy Hodgson has taken over at Fulham, I've been highly impressed. A very good manager who can keep players happy and motivated to work hard, which Fulham do. To be honest, I would really like him to take over as coach of the USA. He knows how to get maximum effort and efficiency out of players, and if I'm the head of USSf or another small-mid level football nation I'm thinking "How can I get Roy Hodgson to take this team to the world cup?"
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Posted by Lord Snow on 10/02/2009
I don't think that Roy would want to go anywhere more high-profile with either a club or a national team. At Fulham, he gets to keep a low profile, does not have the pressure of being at a bigger club, and still has a chance to win every week.
Being a Patriots (NFL) fan, I liken this situation to how the Patriots approach Bill Belichick's contract: there is an understanding with the owner that both sides will get done and quietly. Hodgson does not seem like he likes negotiating through the media for players' contracts, why would he want to do it for his own?
Posted by Theo Mackie on 10/05/2009
We have had a tough schedule. Roy is not to blame.
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