hey all just got back from the match and it was great fun, the atmosphere was awesome. when we got the penalty everyone went nuts the mcbride chant is great! brian...mcbride...brian...mcbride we are the fulham boys...we all support the fulham wish i lived here!!!
How did McBride only get a 6 from Sky? I thought he was better than that. Helguson probably was better but they were both terrorizing the Boro defense.
It kind of funny considering how washed up he was last march or so ... I wish supergambi were still around - ok, not really - but kind of.
Just watching Radzinski playing that left midfield... and just picturing Deuce in that hole... I couldn't see Dempsey not scoring at least two goals with the chances he had. As for the match ratings, I thought Rosenior and McBride got a bit of the shaft there.
Is Bruce Arena "supergambi"? 'Cos Bruce didn't play him (not last March, but March, 05) vs. Mexico (late game sub) or Guatemala.
There was some poster - supergambiota or like that - argued incessantly that McBride was washed up, terrible, called him McInjured, constantly argued that Razov was by far the better striker etc. etc. Anyway, this was pre-02 I think. Bruce was pretty loyal for the most part, tho although one could argue he never really found McBride's best line-up this last go round. Good for McHead. If there was ever an American player you want to do well, it's Brian. Nice that our most recent successes in England are the quintessential "character" guys: Reyna, McBride, Lewis as well. Even Convey seems to have "sacked up" for the moment.
man I love Fulham. Just can't explain it....its my team. And McBride is a legend. But why does my team have to make every match so damn close? In reality, this is an advantage, because Skysports shows alot of Fulham....they know that when Fulham is involved, it will be close and interesting, with the potential for lots of goals. Coleman even knows it (said so in his interview). So I will take the TV coverage. the game will be on TV Saturday, though I might actually go myself - only a 4 hour train ride. Come on You Whites
Agreed. Yanks aside, Fulham plays a scrappy game, too often with emphasis on the crappy part, but they are still fun to watch. Coleman definitely seems a players coach.
'Cuz, basically they suck. Or, at the very least, play down to the level of the opposition. Every other game or so, anyway. The good news was that Boro is really bad. Regardless, when was the last time you saw so many crummy clearances, give-aways, letting the ball bounce situations, mis-hit sky balls, passes to nobody, etc., etc.? The good news was in McBride's play. He did his usual nice job (despite the Sky rating). Boca also performed well in midfield. I thought Routledge and Brown were disasters in terms of ball possession and defensive activity.
Agree with everything but "they suck." They're average. With Boa Morte they have some bite but w/o him they're muckers with Helguson and McBride scrapping for bits. 'Boro back line was frightening at times. Botched about every thing they got near. McB's goal was cool in that old-school style of his....tee it up and bang it. Nothing too slick but on target. That header he took facing away from goal would have been one for highlite reel - great diving save by the big Aussie. It ain't Chelsea but on a Monday nite with dinner Fullham will do just fine. That stadium is cool/unusual. The people in the first rows look like they are almost eye-level with that raised pitch? Trying to imagine that's a good thing? Players get thrashed a bit when they go over touch and roll down into the boards.
My goodness were 'Boros defenders slow to close down McBride on that turn. It look like something you'd see in a mediocre MLS matchup. He should have never had the time to get THAT shot off. Fulham are poster boys for middle table, EPL mediocrity. Their professionalism (see McBride) + team spirit get them thru, but their 'game' to me is as much borderline relegation than anything else. Always nice to see Brian pick up his goals. I would like to see a Helguson/McBride run for a few games- I think the Iceman is ready to start doing something there, and give the team a lift. I also like watching teams try to cope with those 2 in the air. No one seems to be able to fully snuff them out. -10 GF/GA. Yikes.
The EPL announcers love McBride. I think that it's because he works so hard and that he's one the few strikers who doesn't spend half of the game moaning that he was fouled.
I agree that Fulham does not put on a fundamentals clinic every match, but they do not suck. When at full strength, they are definetly in the top 10-12 THIS year. look at what they have done with what they have; I mean, Boca at midfield? come on. but he has played his role well. I really should go to the match on Saturday, but I just don't want to deal with th London holiday crowds.
Really good for an American striker. As an EPL center forward, he's pretty average, maybe a shade above (and that's no knock on Brian- at 34, that's pretty impressive to still be 'average' for EPL). His defensive workrate makes up some for the fact that he's always been an average, occasionally better than average scorer at this level.
You are right, they do not suck and they are "average." But it is an amazing "average" to the extent that they seem to be able to muddle along, compiling a record good enough to stay up, yet look so bad so much of the time. Even Reading didn't look that bad last weekend when it lost. A bit more consistency by Fulham and who knows what they might do? Actually, I like Volz and Boca in the midfield. Volz already plays much like a midfielder and it's really good experience for Boca. He might actual settle down the center of the Fulham game. They really need that.
passing, knock-downs and runs are not defensive workrate. They are part of being a complete offensive player.
We're all talking about how bad-to-average this team is... but just imagine if there weren't a slew of injuries. -If Bullard, who was looking total class at the beginning of the year, didn't have a career threatening knee injury. -If Boa Morte hadn't been hurt for the majority of this year... he's probably yet to play a game at 100% -If Bouba Diop, Jensen, Niemi, Quedrue, Christanval, Bocanegra and Elliot(who's out for the year now as well) hadn't all had injuries over different portions of the season, most of them for significant amounts of time (I know I'm probably forgetting someone). This isn't a team who's reserves, like Chelsea or Man Utd, could challenge for a spot in Europe. There were FIVE changes to this side from the last game... some of it had to do with bad play, but most of it probably had to do with injuries. We can love Moritz Volz all we want, but you don't put an outside back in central midfield unless there really are no options. The fact that they can pull off wins like this while everyone's hurt, and before they can bring in winter reinforcements, is a testament to Cookie Coleman and the players themselves. It's impossible to question the team's workrate and desire... that's why they're able to win these s'crappy' games. I have no sympathy for Boro's two big injuries last game, knowing that, if Fulham were fully healthy, there would've been at least four or five different players starting the game.
Not sure, but I think Bruce may have been implying Brian doesn't really have a great work rate on defense...if that's what he means, Bruce certainly has a long and shining career in soccer analysis ahead of him...