Fulham - More out Than In?

Now that we`re about to enter the close season, albeit still waiting to see if our gentlemanly behaviour has earned us a place in the UEFA Cup, we`ll no doubt be speculating about possible signings this summer.

Unfortunately, we have this strange feeling that Roy Hodgson may have to do a tremendous amount of wheeling and dealing before the new season starts.

There`s no doubting that Mr Al Fayed dug deep last season to provide first Sanchez and then Hodgson with sufficient funds to go out and bolster the side. Unfortunately some of those players brought in, especially by Sanchez, were simply not up to the task.

Sadly, this has left us with a squad of players that far exceeds, in quantity, the size of many other Premier League squads. A fact not lost on Roy Hodgson who during a recent interview, offered the following quote,

"It is not easy at any stage to have a group of over 30 top professionals to manage."

There is also the added problem of complacency. Yesterday we featured some remarks from Jimmy Bullard indicating that we finished the season in an awesome manner. As supporters, we have to ask if this wonderful finish could have a detrimental effect. Could the fact that we took twelve points out of the last fifteen available be used as leverage to suggest that the squad is good enough to consolidate it`s position next year?

Clearly it is an intriguing question.

Here at Vital Fulham we`d suggest that the answer is purely down to ambition. Do those who run the club, financially, want to see us progress, possibly move up to mid-table security on a regular basis whilst also pushing hard in the domestic cups, or are they simply content to scrap their way to Premier League survival every season?

On a personal level, I believe that Roy Hodgson isn`t a man who`d even contemplate resting on his laurels, that Roy will be keen too push this club onwards and upwards. Therefore expect Craven Cottage to be a hive of activity this summer although looking into that quote from Roy, we believe that there are likely to be a few more leave than arrive as Roy looks to trim his squad down to a workable size.