Football update
Our 3 football correspondents miffed to miss their Sunday slot update us on their teams
ALAN TANNER
With Fulham lying bottom below Blackpool, a team that going into the season had only 6 registered players, the description shambles is the one most fans apply. I would like to know the answer to these questions:
1) Why did Shahid Khan buy the club?
2) Why, when he knew so little about our club and football, did he dispense with a Fulham board who knew both well and had run the club. efficiently?
3) Why appoint a manager whose best days were 12 years go in a different league?
There have been so many poor decisions but let’s take one: goalkeeper. Brian Clough reckoned a good keeper was worth 15 points. We had two: Stekelenberg and Stockdale. The latter had done well at Hull to achieve promotion. We now have tried 3 keepers this season and not one is better than the two discarded.
Shambles.
On Wednesday we play league leaders Nottingham Forest. One would like to think another sterile defeat will send Magath packing but he has achieved such a strong power base that either Khan can dismiss him or Magath can sack himself. As Magath has as much confidence in himself as disparagement for others this only leaves Khan.
Shambles.
IVAN CONWAY
Brighton lost in an entertaining 3-2 game at Brentford. Hyppia has brought in 11 new players so introductions are still taking place. We have a problem up front as Ulloa’s goals have not as yet been replaced. Most of our goals are coming from set plays by defenders: Greer on Saturday. We have many options in midfield with Teixeira looking impressive and Holla a good acquisition, but the new strikers Colnuga and Baldock have yet to score. At the moment the play-off position we achieved in the last 2 seasons looks beyond us.
STEFANO URSOLINI
We too have a problem with goal scoring. Rossi is out again probably till the New Year. We had many opportunities against Genoa but did not take them and the game ended goalless. We have kept Caudrado, which is important, but Ilacic and Babacar do not look prolific scorers. We have achieved fourth these last two seasons but I doubt if we will do so this.
