Bleacher Report - Articles by Brandon Brown

Jimmy Bullard Makes Move to Hull City from Craven Cottage

Brandon Brown — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 15:40:01 -0500

Hull City have just announced the signing of Fulham midfielder Jimmy Bullard for a club record £5 million.

Bullard has been at Craven Cottage since the 2006 season. He missed a year and a half due to a knee injury picked up on Sept. 9, 2006.

He was an instrumental part of Fulham's relegation survival last year, as he was the heart of the team both on and off the pitch. He'll be missed by Fulham FC and its fans. I will definitely miss him and I wish him the best in his career.

Fulham's Season So Far: The Story of Roy's Boys not Getting the Job Done

Brandon Brown — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 04:54:52 -0500

After beginning the season on good notes, with wins against Arsenal and Bolton, Fulham looked to be on the right track to avoiding relegation troubles. While Fulham may not be in the relegation zone as of now, they are only out of it on goal difference. That is not a good sign of things to come.

Some of my fellow supporters try to spin the season so far to make things not seem so bad. They say things like, "Well we have given up fewer goals than x number of teams in the EPL, that has to count for something!" or "It's still early in the season."

I heard the same stuff last season when Lawrie Sanchez slowly watched us slip to a position that took the rest of the season to get out of.

While it may be easy to blame it on the players and claim this and that, I would say more blame should be placed on Roy Hodgson. After saving us Cottagers from the drop last season, he could do no wrong in our eyes. That was last season, and this is now. And now we worry about Oll' Roy's game time selections and strategies.

The biggest complaint is the lack of playing time American forward/attacking midfielder Clint Dempsey has had this season. The math just does not add up. He was last season's top scorer with a paltry six goals, but now he can't find valuable time on the field.

What boggles us the most is that he has been replaced by Zoltan Gera. While they both have one goal this season, it is easy to see that Dempsey is the more potent attacker and has created as many chances in a fraction of the time.

We hoped for a start for Dempsey after he came on late at Portsmouth and snatched a point with his goal. If nothing else, it would give Gera a chance to rest since they had three games in a week. But no, it was not to be.

The case of "Duece" is just the beginning. We've seen Hodgson go entire matches without using any subs. This does nothing but keep tired players out on the field, which leads to the inevitable late goal we give up and lose points.

As a fan of Fulham FC, I cannot take another relegation battle like last season. It's to the point when being relegated would almost be welcomed. At least then, one would hope we would be able to win away from Craven Cottage more than twice during Obama's presidency.

I could go on for some time about the current affairs at Fulham FC. Bullard's slump, Murphy's inconsistent play, our attacking ineptitude, etc etc. The one bright spot on the season has been our defense. The back four and the Aussie goalkeeper have kept the Whites in many games until the end. I, for one, do not fault them for our poor form. Hangeland, Hughes (Aaron Hughes), and Paintsil are doing admirably.

I expect a busy January transfer window, with Dempsey and others out, and more players coming in than really needed. Plan to see more good quality players sitting either on the bench or in the stands, and expect Fulham to be fighting it out with four or five other teams by the end of the season.

We are Fulham, and I love it.

Brede Hangeland Goal Gives Fulham Historic Win Over Arsenal

Brandon Brown — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 08:54:28 -0400

There is a word we use over at fulhamusa.com to explain why some things happen when they shouldn't—fulhamish. Yesterday's game against Arsenal was truly fulhamish.

No one really expected Arsenal to walk away from the Cottage with anything but a win. I, too, was one of those people. Anyone who could have predicted the outcome knew something the rest of us did not.

Saturday's game was ugly, there is no doubting that. But anyone who watched couldn't think Fulham didn't deserve the win. The Cottagers did everything they needed to do to win, with the help of some poor play from the Gunners.

In my pre-match article, I said the keys for Fulahm were Danny Murphy controlling the midfield and the back four to step up their game. They must have read my article, because that is exactly what they did.

Danny Murphy put in a MOTM performance. He put a stop to Arsenal's passing game in the middle of the field and made the right passes he need to. Simon Davies also had some great defensive plays disrupting passes.

To say Fulham's defense stepped up and was prepared for the game would be an understatement. Brede Hangeland's striker-like stab at Jimmy Bullard's corner kick gave Fulham only their second win over Arsenal—ever. The tall Norwegian kept the back line tight and made key defensive plays as needed. Summer transfers Toni Kallio and John Paintsil had good performances, as well.

I believe enough has been said about Arsenal's lackluster performance. They looked flat and made way too many mistakes. It wasn't until the 70th minute that the Gunners stepped up their game and realized this was no friendly.

Arsenal did show some moments of their usual brilliance, though. Emmanuel Eboue made some VERY dangerous runs up the middle of the field. His runs led Fulham's defense to make bad fouls and give Arsenal hope.

But it was not to be, as Robin van Persie's left foot could not produce the majic he is known for from dead ball situations.

The back four of Arsenal had a good game. Toure, Clichy and Sagna put in admirable performances. They were able to snub out most forward passes to Bobby Zamora and Seol Ki-Hyeon.

Both teams will look at this game and take a lot out of it. Fulham will want to continue their passing game and strong defense, and Arsenal will be looking to get their offense off on the right foot.

The Gunners will need their forwards and midfielders to really step up their games if they are going to be a true title contender this season.

Arsenal will next play Twente Aschende in a UEFA Champion's League match up on Wednesday, and Fulham will suit up against Leicester City for their first Carling Cup match of the season. Good luck to both teams in their upcoming games.

Fulham vs Arsenal: Can The Cottagers Outgun The Gunners?

Brandon Brown — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 06:37:00 -0400

Many Fulham fans would love to forget about the opening weekend to the 2008-2009 EPL season. While they came out strong with an early lead at KC Stadium, the "80th Minute Curse" from last season reared its ugly head again, as they eventually lost to new boys Hull City.

Sadly, things aren't going to get much better for the Cottagers this weekend, as Fulham welcome Arsenal FC to Craven Cottage.

This will be Fulham's home opener, so the Whites will be looking forward to the helpful support of their local fans. Last season, Craven Cottage was always a flurry of support—it seemed all of Hammersmith and Fulham was behind the team.

Both teams are going into the game with some key injuries, even this early in the season. Those injuries could be deciding factors for either side.

Fulham will be missing Andy Johnson, who has yet to play for the club since finalizing his move from Everton a few weeks ago. A knock he suffered in the summer is still nagging him, so Fulham manager Roy Hodgson is being cautious and protective of his investment.

Also missing from the home team will be Finnish goalkeeper, Antti Niemi and usual centre back starter, Aaron Hughes.

Arsenal, however, are missing players as well. Cesc Fabregas has an injured hamstring, as does Senderos. Also missing from the squad are Diaby, Eduardo, and Rosicky.

Fulham will have the tougher game, there is no doubt about that. Hopefully they can put aside some atrocious defending last week and stop Arsenal's passing game. They will need better performances from almost the entire squad.

Jimmy Bullard and Danny Murphy will need to control the midfield the best they can, and make quick accurate passes to Bobby Zamora and whoever else Hodgson puts up front.

Having said that, I expect Zamora to be the lone striker as Fulham will probably go with a defensively minded 4-5-1. A tie is not out of their reach.

Arsenal just need to do what they do best. Samir Nasri had a great EPL opener last weekend, and will be looking to build on his form with Arsenal. He will be the key player to watch, as will forwards Emmanuel Adebayor and Robin Van Persie.

The Gunners will most likely feel they are going into an easy game, and not be too concerned about injuries, due to their depth of the rest of their squad.

All in all, I am expecting Roy Hodgson and Fulham to play with some heart in front of the home crowd. Unfortunately, that might not be enough to stop the offensive firepower of Arsenal. Strong defensive play and maybe some luck could get the Cottagers a win at home, but a loss is far more likely.

Though with Arsenal playing a European Champions League match midweek, Arsene Wenger may field a slightly weaker squad giving Fulham the possibility to snatch a point.

My Prediction: Fulham 1 - Arsenal 2, with the 80th minute being the Cottager's bane once again.