Gotta think Villa will be promotion favorites along with West Brom next year, but.....we know how that goes.......Sunderland....
Yeah, we do. Leeds has been saying making the return was inevitable for about 10 years now. Only Newcastle has really delivered among those making the claim. It's 24 teams, only 2 make it guaranteed, plus 1 of a 4 team playoff. That's a volatile circumstance.
yup, and its not a fun time down there. These were two of the "prettier" teams playing today, and there was some bone crunching ball in there.
he came up to challenge grealish I think and got posterized but still pressured him enough to give another defender time to make a challenge. Only weak moment I recall
Fulhamerica moves on up, 1-0 playing last 25 minutes a man down. Reamerica did what he was there to do.
Hero Today, Gone Tomorrow. Today Ream and Kevin Mc were huge. But they're going to need some upgrades if they plan staying in the Premiership. Fulham's owner is a Pakistani billionaire though, and in interviews he had said he was done with Fulham if they didn't get promoted, which means he was ready to invest if they did.
Glad to see Fulham (and Ream) back in the EPL. Always had a soft spot for Fulham since watching Dempsey play for them from about 2010-2012 was some of my first real exposure to the Premier League.
Your lack of confidence is inconsistent with the Fulham fans views it seems. In the upgrade thread people think he’s fine and this is some more: http://www.friendsoffulham.com/forum/index.php?topic=65755.0
They are entitled to their opinions, but they are colored by his club player of the year caliber Championship performance. My perspective is more zeroed in on Hex-level and above internationals and Cup games. I think his inadequate speed of thought at the highest levels makes him your quintessential 4A player. He'll have to do a lot more defending there than in the Championship where Fulham were 2nd best in goals scored. Could pass out of the back, and under less pressure.
I don't think anyone is or was expecting him to do amazingly in the Premier League, but I don't think he was awful either. Here are opinions from all the Bolton fans I could find who posted in this thread early on during Ream's first spell in the Premier League. Obviously, a bit of a mixed bag I'll admit, but everyone at least seemed to acknowledge potential.
Very happy Fulham - always seems like a spunky little can-do club. I hope Ream can translate his game to the EPL. I'm also a bit concerned about his speed of thought/play. It always seems a tad slow to me. But I hope I'm too pessimistic and he doesn enough to keep his spot and keep Fulham up.
Tim did not get the hero treatment after the game, but he was the hero. He upped his game when they went down to 10 men. Was very strong the last 25 minutes.
The USMNT lineups that Ream has been a part of play more into his performance than his ability. The best USMNT lineup he has been a part of is likely equal to a mid level championship side. He played three hex games with the worst USMNT lineups since the 80s. His slowness of thought was likely wondering if he should cover Bradley’s lost mark, Gonzo’s lost mark, or cover the gapping angles of Howard’s goal posts. He killed it in the Championship against teams that are likely better than Costa Rica, Panama, and T&T’s B team. Many times a defender is only as good as his backline partners and his were shit in the Hex
You forgot to add a pinch of Zusi, a dash of Villafaña, and some expired Howard. Combine vigorously and viola: shit backline as stated above
He was getting beaten 1 v. 1 by Urena and getting caught in possession at the back vs. Costa Rica. He got beat in the air to a header on a long throw at Panama. That's on him. He struggled throughout the Gold Cup in 2015. Costa Rica at home and Panama on the road are tougher match-ups than you'll see in the Championship. Not many Panamanians have pedigree because of their visibility or lack there of in Central America. The average USNT Ream played w/ had significantly more talent than you'd see in the Championship. We're talking MLS standouts, top 5 league rotational players, solid Mexican league starters, etc. He was part of the problem and we saw that repeatedly. Happy for him and his opportunity, but we need to do better than sometimes leaning on a player at his level's contribution. He'll play in the Premier League next season, but so did Morales in the Bundesliga. It's somewhat circumstantial. People make too much of it.
I think that at 5:25 of this video clip...I would have shown a red card instead of the yellow: https://www.fulhamfc.com/first-team/2017_2018/play-offs/final/aston-villa/match-action