Thursday, March 20, 2008

Fulham Travel to Newcastle This Weekend

Every one of the remaining eight matches is important for the Whites as they continue their battle to avoid relegation, but the match against Newcastle, at St. James Park, is one of the crucial "six point" matches that can make or break Fulham's chances to avoid the drop. Manager Roy Hodgson discussed the match and the locale:
“We know it’s going to be a tough game but we’ve got ourselves in a tough position so unfortunately every game is a tough game. We can look at it in it’s a difficult task in a cauldron and it’s going to be hard for us but we can also look at is as a great opportunity. As a great chance to break the hoodoo – and that’s what we always do."

Hodgson is confident his side can end their away day blues against the Toon Army this weekend and get within touching distance of 17th place. Three points ahead of Fulham’s forthcoming basement battles against Derby, Sunderland and Reading would really put things in the mix, and as Hodgson pointed out, Fulham have been no pushover on the road recently.

“My players are going into it with confidence. You might not call Bolton and Blackburn cauldrons but we know they’re difficult places to play and we certainly haven’t done badly in those places. I think there’s a lot of experience in the team and that counts in these matches. I think the fact that people have been there before and used to playing at this level or something similar – that’s important.
Hodgson senior players will no doubt play a crucial roles in the next nine weeks, and leaders like Brian McBride, Jimmy Bullard and the emergecne to Brede Hangeland in the back have improved the performance of the Cottagers.

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