The Tanner Report

Our comfortable victory over a poor Norwich side will have caused some selection problems ahead of Arsenal this Saturday. Some of our so-called key players like Berbatov were rested so that he, Scott Parker and Clint Dempsey were not too fatigued for the Arsenal game. The problem is that this side performed better without them. Of course a scratch Norwich is not the same as the league leaders.

Everyone was pleased to see the return of Brede Hangeland, 41 goals have been conceded in his absence. Alongside him was the equally tall Dan Burn who did well to achieve our first clean sheet in 9 games. I so much prefer the zest of Burn,  Kacaniklic and Kasami, all of whom had  excellent games and are 23 or under, to the older players that run out of puff and cannot play 2 games in a week.

One interesting feature of the game is that technical director Alan  Curbishley came down to the dug out during the game. Messages can be easily conveyed, but his seems an obvious statement of authority in front of the cameras. Players get confused when they do not who the boss is. Older fans liked me will recall then Chairman Jimmy Hill leaving the director’s box, striding the pitch at half  time to give the half time  talk, as well as manager Don Mackay..

Still I must not be a Moaning Minnie. This was an excellent performance which, aside from the opening salvoes when Snodgrass of Norwich struck the bar, Fulham fully dominated. Sadly it was watched by few. I can recall standing at a packed Filbert Street, Leicester, in 1974 when cup replays attracted full houses and a charged atmosphere .