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Definitive Player Ratings

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Hello!

All too frequently not nice viewing. I used the word ‘lottery’ in relation to previous outcomes at Craven Cottage and I stand by it. Fulham are not a great footballing side. What they are is a rag bag collective of players that occasionally get them out of a scrape playing on a pitch that reminds me too much of the Library.

The narrow ping pong table of a pitch created a scenario whereby v d Vaart and Modders achieved little and the almost totla absence of anything resembling a centre back on our behalf allowed players like Zamora occasionally look like Lionel Messi.

9.893 Clips from Brad’s performance will be undoubtedly be used in goal keeping classes up and down the land. His reactions were superb but he must be wondering how in his ‘dotage’ he’s having to put such punishing shifts!

4.675 Any chance we can lose the daft complicated feints and just whip a cross in, mate? Not a great performance at either end of the pitch.

6.678 Raging Kaboul in a china shop. Not his finest hour. He exemplified the fiasco. Some sterling hoofs, but these routinely landed at the feet of Fulham players. More thought required next time out, please.

6.789 Decent performance but far from the class he owes himself, let alone us. But then he was too frequently fire fighting single handed.

6.321 If I was pushed to sum him up in one word it would have to be unremarkable. If it was two words, the pretty unremarkable. He’s Tweeting and column writing like a trooper, now let’s see him play like one.

6.456 Cracking little goal, but that was almost the sum total of his contribution. We lacked width. He’s a winger. I don’t think the jury will be out long.

6.210 Another quiet game bar a Boys Own save off the line. He was hemmed in and we desperately needed to – but failed miserably – to do anything to change our shape or personnel to fix that. Poor possession.

7.100 He was overrun. Modric should have been swapped for Sandro at half time to help shore up the gaping hole in the centre of the park, but wasn’t. I’m unconvinced that the brutal assault by the thug Sidwell did much to boost his mood.

6.987 Top quality ball in to force the goal. But aside from that and the glorious pass to Azza he wasn’t 100% there. Poor possession.

  5.999 Frustrating game. He just couldn’t get into it. Fulham suffocated him and our shape did little to offer him air.

7.459 I genuinely admired him out there. Pav, Defoe, Crouch etc would have all stay up there waiting for the ball to break. But Ade played selflessly. He knew the ball had to be pulled out of the quagmire and he went in to do his bit. Never a threat, but he played intelligently.

  7.890 Got the break, buried it. I stand by my praise of Adebayor. That man is a team player as well as a talented finisher.

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153 comments

  • Spurchrisd says:

    Hard to fathom what the game plan was second half. Our midfield evaporated allowing far too much pressure to fall on the back four.
    Get well soon, H.

  • dutchman says:

    3 Points!

  • Highgatespur says:

    Totally disagree with Walker – who made the first goal ? We have got to accept that all our players will not be turning 10/10 performance every week! Comments like: ‘only contribution was clearing off the line’ and ‘ scoring a goal’ doesn’t make sense. It was 3 points to Spurs – celebrate . I am sure the coaches will review and come back with solutions (hopefully) ie we need Sandro in next to Parker for the away games !!!!
    COYMS

    • dutchman says:

      A sublime pass from Adrian Bayor..?

    • PLN says:

      Your comment is a paradox Highgatespur, you are effectively saying that we shouldnt judge a player on one moment of play, but start your comment by saying that Walker was good because he set up the goal…

      • Highgatespur says:

        You have misunderstood PLN games are made of critical moments – like setting up a goal, like clearing off the line and scoring a goal !!! I fail to understand why people would denegrate the performance so much – would they rather we lost yesterday… yes it was handball by Walker yesterday – I’m gald he had the nouse to do it – it paid them back for the push by Sidwell… btw I didn’t say Walker was good – surely he deserved more than 4 ? how does setting up the first goal equate to that ? I’d much rather have that than likes of Hutton in there… good to scores but fairness seems to be good as well… I’M SOOOOO glad we won !!!!

        • PLN says:

          Obviously people wouldnt rather we lost, however if we all had the same opinion as you, i.e. “We won, that’s it” then sites like this wouldnt exist to engage in conversation/discussion on what went wrong/right in each game.

          “It was 3 points to Spurs – celebrate . I am sure the coaches will review and come back with solutions”

          I’d rather debate and hear other people’s view on our performance.

        • sniftywoof says:

          its better to have a bad day and win 3-1 than to hammer Blackpool have some 27 attempts at goal and lose 3-1

    • TonyRich says:

      Barring the goal, Walker did some poor defending near late on – gave away cheap free kick at the side of the area. Not to mention the handball in the area. Walker will have to be better when Agbonlahor is running at him… Disagree about Lennon – definitely played better than Bale. The author forgot that Lennon assisted Bale’s goal too – and assisted Bale’s previous 2 goals too. Currently Lennon is joint top for Spurs League assists – despite missing some games already. Given that Bale only had 2 official assists in the league last season, Lennon’s 3 assists is good going…

      • jerkinmahjurgen says:

        ‘Tis great reading your well-remembered positive posts. If we do sell him it’ll have to be to Liverpool. He must be worth about £60m to them judging by their recent transfer deals.

  • PLN says:

    I found more joy working out which player was which in the pictures above than watching that second half performance, was scary stuff, not withstanding that we were at the opposite end from all of the scrambling so could barely see the sheer chaos developing in and around our six yard box.

    Walker really disappointed me with the lack of early ball into the box, he beats the man so easily, then tries a ridiculous cut back which gets cut out and sets off a counter attack.

    That said, Fulham have never played that well in their history, i had to fast forward through their 10 minute spells of possession as i was getting bored.

    • SpurredoninDublin says:

      I was not over-impressed with Walker, but I will say this about the first goal, if you look at the Fulham player who was going for the ball, he lacked the urgency that Walker had.

      Don’t know whether to credit Walker for the effort, or criticise the Fulham player? I’d like to see what will happen if Walker and Lennon gel.

  • bale says:

    i thought bale played really well :)

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