Fulham’s amazing transformation under Roy Hodgson just keeps reaching new heights and sending their fans in to raptures. I know I’ve written about Roy Hodgson and the fact that the British press have virtually ignored his career until he took over at Fulham, but no-one could have expected this level of improvement from the Cottagers.

2 years ago they were all but relegated from the Premiership and when they went 2-0 down in a league game against Manchester City, they were technically down. Amazingly though they recovered and won that game 3-2, going on a run that saw them survive on the last day of the season. Now here we are in April 2010 and they have a Europa Cup Final to look forward to in 13 days time.

I’ve been sick and tired of people doing the Europa League down, for Fulham and their fans it is a monumental achievement and they deserve to celebrate long in to the night. The achievements of Roy Hodgson can no longer be ignored by the British media who will no doubt be jumping on the bandwagon as we speak, propelling the Fulham manager to demi-god status. They’re about 10 years behind but they’ll never let on just how much they’ve underestimated the like-able Londoner.

As much as Fulham’s European success has been a revelation for the club, it has cemented the managerial abilities of Hodgson. He has taken London’s smallest Premier League club to their first ever continental final and achieved something that some more celebrated English managers have not achieved. I’m truly delighted for them, for him and the Fulham fans.

After the game, Hodgson said “After going a goal down against the run of play I think we made a major piece of history here tonight in a very special atmosphere. We have beaten a very good team and I’m drained after the emotional roller-coaster. I think lots of teams would have lost their discipline and shape, but we stayed strong.”

They’ve seen off more famous and illustrious opponents throughout this cup run and just when you thought they’d come a cropper, they found hidden reserves of mental strength and fortitude to fight back in every knock out tie. Shaktar Donetsk, Roma, Juventus, Wolfsburg and now Hamburg have fallen when all common sense told you that Fulham couldn’t or wouldn’t beat them. They did and with such lovely football too.

Of course, they’ll now face Athletico Madrid who have put Liverpool out tonight, which I’m delighted with. Not disrespecting Liverpool, but now all the build up in the UK will focus on Fulham, which is what they deserve. If Liverpool had made it, we would have had constant coverage of Benitez’s miserable and moronic press conferences which I’ve seen more than I deserve to over the last 5 years. Now Fulham and their fans can bask in the next two weeks as the excitement builds towards Hamburg.

They must be in shock, stunned as they’ve seen the transformation of their team in such a short space of time. Enjoy it Fulham fans and I truly, really want you to win the cup. Congratulations to all of you. Now get drunk!

• Everyone off the Coach, It’s Time for a Kick About

Not one of the four clubs competing in a European semi this week could manage an away win. Fulham came closest away to Hamburg as they set themselves up with a pretty decent chance of progressing through to the Europa League final with a 0-0 draw. The other three all lost.

Coincidence?

Or, were the incredibly long journeys by train, coach, canoe then train again possibly to blame for the players performances?

As midweek turns into the weekend, I can only look back in disapproval on the silly exploits of UEFA allowing these ridiculously long journeys (24 hours for Liverpool and Barcelona, 17+ hours for Fulham, over 2 days for Lyon) to those all important European semi finals for the four away clubs. Some of the news headlines went something like this:

Arduous Trek Will Not Affect Liverpool

Liverpool, Fulham begin long journey to semifinals

Barcelona bemoans bus trip to Milan

Roy Hodgson’s men bond during ‘never-ending’ journey

You get the picture. We’ve all been inundated with stories of Mt.E. (no point spelling it out, you can’t pronounce it anyway) affecting air travel across Europe. Hell, when the Frightened Rabbits can’t make it to the Coachella festival in California, not to mention Fulham being forced into a roadside kick about to keep fresh, something is amiss in the world.

So why didn’t UEFA step in and postpone these all important matches until clubs could resume their normal method of air travel? Should UEFA make the four teams who travel next week to the return legs take the same route and mode of transportation as their opponents took? Surely UEFA must recognize the advantage they’ve handed the home teams during the first legs.

You may be thinking to yourself, “these are professional athletes, some of the them world class. Shouldn’t they be able to overcome a long coach trip and perform up to their highest standards?” And a valid point that would be, however, in a match this important, this critical and with so much on the line, UEFA has to assure the playing field is as level as possible. Ask yourself this question, when will Fulham find themselves in another European semi?

All four clubs who participated in midweek away ties have been dealt a band hand by UEFA. They dropped the ball by not acting when they had the chance and should have postponed the first leg ties until air travel resumed. There’s not a chance in Nyon, Switzerland they’ll restrict the 2nd leg away clubs from air travel and have thus given a slight advantage to those four clubs.

Good luck to the remaining English clubs left in the Europa league and hopefully the best team will win over the course of the 2 leg ties. No thanks to UEFA for not standing up and making a tough decision when they needed to, and let’s hope their lack of a pair ultimately doesn’t hinder the four clubs who were forced into those long, arduous journeys.

Liverpool and Fulham square off today in their respective Europa League clashes despite the best effort of that Icelandic Valcano. But There are plenty of stories coming out of England today. A major decision on Portsmouth European hopes draws controversy, Manchester retains title as world’s most valuable club and Bobby Zamora gets another endorsement for the World Cup.

Pompey Denied Europa League

Even more bad news was delivered to the south coast this afternoon when the FA and Premier League denied Portsmouth application to be considered for the Europa League. The FA Cup finalists will be relegated to the Championship at the close of the season and are in financial shambles after entering into administration, a first for any EPL club. Despite their poor season Portsmouth would have qualified for the Europa League by reaching the final of the FA Cup against Chelsea.

“We will go to UEFA and explore every avenue before we admit defeat,” said club administrator Andrew Andronikou in a statement to ESPN. “We are still a member of the Premier League for a few more weeks at least and they should be championing us. I think it’s quite a shambles. There are rules and regulations but there is also football protocol and the way they have approached this subject means they must have made a significant U-turn in the last 24 hours.”

Manchester United Named World’s Most Valuable Football Club

For the sixth year in a row Manchester United have been named the most valuable club in the world according to Forbe’s magazine. The Red Devils, who are worth an estimated $1.84 billion,  beat out second-place Real Madrid, estimated value around $1.32 billion. Other English clubs to place in the top 20 were Arsenal (3), Liverpool (6), Chelsea (9), Tottenham (12), Manchester City (19) and surprise inclusion Newcastle (20), who recently achieved Premier League status for next season.

Van Nistelrooy Hopes Zamora Makes England Squad

Hamburg striker Ruud van Nistelrooy has joined the increasing chorus of players and managers recomending Bobby Zamora for the England World Cup squad. Zamora, who’s inclusion in the World Cup squad was fodder for jokes not six months ago, has impressed for Fulham this season with 14 goals in all competitions. ”I think Capello doesn’t look at fashionable things – he just looks at the effectiveness more than anything else,” the Netherlands international said. ”He’s definitely a candidate now. He’s very important for the team. He holds the ball, he’s a team player, works hard and he’s an all-round striker.”

Arsenal, Manchester United, Fulham and Liverpool are all flying the flag for English clubs in Europe

This mid-week is European week, which means Arsenal, Manchester United, Fulham and Liverpool will be playing for semi final spots in The Champions and Europa Leagues.  Always an eternal optimist – no sooner when the draws were announced I was thinking of the possibility of two all English finals.  Now I am not betting man, not even when it comes to a lucky dip on the National Lottery I still decide to key my hard earned £1 coin and not risk it. But I was amazed at the odds on bookies websites over 125/1 I was almost temped to have a flutter and chuck a Lady Godiva on it!

At further assessment you can see what the task that is in hand for our English flag bearers;

Manchester United: A shaky performance against Bayern Munich and was owed to good goalkeeping from the Dutch Master Van De Saar.  Bayern are a very good side with the power and attacking wing flair of Ribery and Robben, the precision and determination of Van Bommel and up front with Olic, Muller and Klose. They will cause problems but even without Rooney and especially since losing momentum in the Premier League race a buoyant home crowd and with the European experience in the team I still expect United to turn it around, but they will need to score 3 goals as Bayern will hit the back of the net.

Arsenal: Without question the hardest task (and the longest odds) of all the EPL teams to have to go the Camp Nou and win will be one of Wenger’s greatest achievements.  Despite no Fabregas, Arshavin, Gallas and now Song there is still hope as Pique and Puyol (suspended) and Ibrahimovic (injured) all missing and Iniesta still a doubt. Barcelona will give you chances, especially without their 1st choice central defensive pairing, and Barcelona are not invincible in the Champions League, something that Russian side Rubin Kazan discovered after beating them 2-1 back in October. Both teams have their key players missing but the difference of who wins could be which central partnership (Marquez and Milito or Vermaelen and Campbell/Silvestre) communicates and works together better.

Liverpool: The most frustrating team of the 2009-10 season, this could be one of their most un-achieving season yet still win silverware.  As with their last tie against Lille The Reds and FT (Fernando Torres) came back well and need the same recipe. Benfica are a better side and have beaten Liverpool before in Champions League round of 16 in 2006 – and have quality stars including Argentines Pablo Aimar, Angel Di Maria and Javier Saviola. But with home advantage, a noisy Kop, G & T (Gerrard and Torres) and with them needing to score Liverpool should progress and hopefully get that magic tie against Valencia.  Just don’t expect them to do it the easy way!!!

Fulham: one the most improved sides in the Premier League and since their ‘Harry Houdini’ escape against The Old Lady of Juventus. In Zamora, Dempsey, Murphy and Duff they have attacking options and will fear no-one – more than enough quality to nick an away goal. Wolfsburg have had a difficult season as Champions and are in mid table of the Bundesliga and recently suffered a 5-1 home defeat to bottom side Herta Berlin, there only league defeat in their last 7 games. Still have quality upfront in Dzeko and Grafite but Fulham have enough to sneak a score draw that will see them through.

Yes people it is still possible, here’s to being one step closer to the all English European finals, or am I (being English) just that little bit too optimistic?

While Fulham needs a win in Basel today to advance to the knockout stage of the Europa League, Roy Hodgson doesn’t seem to think this is a must-win game for his club. He told reporters on Monday that he planned to run out the reserves for this match, saying that his club “didn’t enter the competition to win it anyway” and was much more focused on “doing well” in the Premier League.

This, of course, gets back to that old argument about what competitions have “meaning” and whether the Europa League, by any name, will ever be considered a worthwhile trophy by Premier League clubs. It also begs the question — why shouldn’t Fulham take a shot at this trophy?

Hodgson clearly isn’t concerned about preserving Fulham’s league status, what with his side already amassing 23 points in 16 league matches. He specifically said Fulham’s priority was “doing well in the league,” rather than just staying up. With so many subpar clubs in the lower half of the table, though, Fulham really has to do little more than maintain its current form for a top-10 finish. So why does Hodgson automatically assume a few European nights might jeopardize that?

Perhaps Hodgson values league success more because of the monetary rewards. Last season, the difference between Fulham’s 7th-place finish and Manchester City’s 10th-place finish was approximately £3.3 million in merit payments. That number will likely be higher this season. However, Man City decided to pursue a Europa League run last spring, reached the quarterfinals and won more than £4.4 million in market pool and prize money for their efforts. That made up the difference and then some. It would take only four extra ties in February and March for Fulham to get to that point.

Perhaps he’s concerned that his squad doesn’t have the depth required to pursue the Europa League. That was Martin O’Neill’s excuse concern last season when he started Aston Villa’s reserves against CSKA Moscow in an attempt to exit the UEFA Cup knockout stage early and focus on winning in a Champions League bid within the league. Guess what? Villa collapsed in the spring anyway. Not competing in Europe did little to prevent O’Neill’s shallow side from becoming fatigued. Would it really be so different for Fulham?

In justifying his disdain for the Europa League, Hodgson told reporters that his side played these European nights in part “for the joy it would give our supporters.” You know what else might bring joy to Fulham supporters? More European nights. Fans might say they don’t care much about secondary cup competitions; that changes when their club takes a big scalp or makes a long run. Ask Middlesbrough supporters how much they enjoyed traveling to a UEFA Cup Final. Ask Blackburn supporters how much they enjoyed seeing their club knock off Chelsea in the Carling Cup quarterfinals a few weeks ago. Ask Portsmouth supporters how much they relished winning the FA Cup and seeing AC Milan come to Fratton Park a year ago for a UEFA Cup tie. Why deny supporters a shot at Juventus? Or perhaps another shot at Liverpool, a club Fulham has already beaten at home this year?

Managing a relatively small club like Fulham often requires the sort of pragmatism Hodgson is displaying here. Still, the Cottagers’ boss is not stopping to consider that success in a cup competition can build his players’ confidence and help fuel their success in the league. He’s also failing to consider that a trip to the Europa League quarterfinals could be just as financially rewarding for Fulham as finishing a few spots higher in the league table. Instead, he seems intent on minimizing his players’ injury risk by limiting the number of non-league ties they play. Perhaps this will prove wise in the long run, but one can’t help but think that Hodgson, like O’Neill a year ago, is playing with scared money, and we know what they say about that.

It can’t be much fun to be a football fan in the city of Liverpool these days. With Sunday’s Merseyside Derby approaching, the red side has fallen out of the Champions League and is slipping from its Top Four perch, while the blue side is so decimated by injuries that it’s can’t even stop Hull City from scoring. Reveling in the schadenfreude of the other side’s struggles is really tough when your side seems to be struggling just as badly.

Then there’s the whole prospect of Liverpool and Everton sharing a stadium, something that must make supporters of both sides want to jump off a bridge into the River Mersey just to avoid ever seeing it happen in their lifetimes. Phil Brown probably won’t be there to stop them, either.

Before the “San Scouso” gets built, though, Liverpool FC needs to get its own house in order, and they seem to have figured out something that the supporters need to remember — dropping to the Europa League this season is not the end of the world. Finishing below fourth place in the Premier League is. Yes, the Reds won’t get a shot at Champions League glory, but in terms of cash flow, the Europa League could be just as rewarding.

Liverpool’s already gotten its cash from the Champions League Group Stage. That adds up to €9.1 million in UEFA prize money, not including what they might get at Fiorentina in December. Then there’s the TV “Market Pool” cash. Last year, Liverpool got €10M from that. This year, they get a little more. (Hat tip to The Offside for those numbers.)

So what would have happened if Liverpool had gotten through? Clubs in the round of 16 get €3M each. Quarterfinalists gets another €3.3M. That’s probably as far as the Reds would have gotten this year.

They can make up that €6.3M by reaching the Europa League quarterfinals. The market pool cash in the Europa League kicks in when clubs reach the quarterfinals. Last season, Werder Bremen and Manchester City brought in €4.6M in TV cash for reaching the quarter finals, plus another €420,000 in UEFA prize money. Liverpool’s huge worldwide TV audience means that number could be bigger. That covers the Champions League Knockout Stage losses.

Plus, winning the whole thing — and if Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard are healthy during the stretch, that’s a real possibility — will bring in another €4M or so. So financially speaking, winning the Europa League is the same getting to the semifinals of the Champions League, and it comes with a trophy and another €1.4M appearance fee for the UEFA Super Cup next August.

Plus, there is the real possibility of another Merseyside Derby in the Europa League Knockout Stage. Oh, and if you’re a Liverpool or Everton supporter in America, you’d hear Ray Hudson call that game on GOLTV. Tell me that wouldn’t be must-see TV.

So missing out on the Champions League Knockout Stage this year is not the disaster it seems to be. Missing out on the Champions League Group Stage next year, however, would be. Simply put, Liverpool must finish fourth in the Premier League. Don’t rule out their chances, either, because the other contenders for fourth place — Aston Villa, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur — have a history of dropping points they shouldn’t drop, especially late in the season. One good hot streak could put the Reds back above all three of them in a hurry.

Of course, if Liverpool fails to finish fourth but wins the Europa League, maybe they can ask UEFA for special dispensation to the Champions League again. Hey, it worked once before. It might even lead to the Europa League becoming a more “meaningful” competition in the long run.

Then again, what means more to Liverpool supporters right now than beating Everton on Sunday? There’s no better salve for your team’s woes than knocking off a arch rival.

UEFA Europa League, formerly the UEFA Cup

With four games of the Premier League campaign left, Fulham are leading the ‘race’ for seventh place and for the Cottagers it will be a rare European adventure. This would of course be via the all singing, all dancing UEFA Europa League.

This ‘new’ competition was created by reformatting and re-branding the ailing UEFA Cup. Normally to fans of most teams, seeing their beloved club in participate would be something to look forward to. But it appears that until the latter stages of this competition hardly anyone actually seems interested. My memories of the UEFA Cup in recent years seem to have followed a similar pattern. watch the final but pay little/no attention to the barely watchable early rounds that in recent years have thrown up classic encounters between European giants like Bolton Wanderers and Aris Thessaloniki.

No direspect to the teams mentioned above but I do wonder how many neutrals actually tune in to ITV4 to watch these games? Granted in the latter stages of the competition when the bigger clubs like Manchester City and Hamburger SV rip into each other we are once again interested. 

The major problem with the UEFA Cup/Europa League, is that it is without doubt a second class competition. This is likely to be down to the hype that surrounds it’s bigger sibling the Champions League. I am fully aware that UEFA are in business to make money but even the Champions league appears to be losing a bit of prestige. “How so?” I hear you ask. Simple, the name of the competition is the Champions League. How many champions actually participate? The last time I checked, teams that finish second, third and fourth not champions.  

It seems a bit unfair on teams from the ‘lesser leagues’ that win their domestic title and then have to go through the qualifying rounds and invariaby don’t get the chance to play at Old Trafford and the Nou Camp etc while a team from England that finishes 12 points from top gets the likes of Real Madrid and Inter Milan in their group. This being said, it would be hypocritical of me to back that statement 100 percent. After all, I’d sooner watch Liverpool vs Real Madrid than watch Llanelli take on the likes of  NSI Runavik.

One of UEFA’s strategy to make the UEFA cup more exciting was to drop third placed Champions League teams  into the competition. What a lovely kick in the face that is for the teams who have been in the competition from outset. I can understand that the likes AC Milan at Fratton Park last year was genuinely exciting but most of the time you would expect teams from Greece and Norway to drop into the Europa League. Again this approach is what makes it such a second class competition in the first place. I don’t believe for one minute that Europa League will ever hold the prestige that it did in it’s previous guise as the UEFA Cup in years gone by. Quite simply the standard of many of the teams isn’t good enough as the better teams have already participated in the Champions league – even if they finished fourth domestically. And in any case, managers will rather turn their focus to the Premier League and the FA Cup.