Hodgson Relishing Group E Finale 
With Fulham looking to progress to the knockout stages of the UEFA Europa League, only FC Basel stand in the Whites' way.
Just a point separates the two teams in Group E and with Roma already through, Wednesday evening's encounter is a straight shootout for the second qualification spot. Basel start with the advantage meaning only a win will do for the Whites.
And Roy Hodgson, speaking at the pre-match press conference on Tuesday evening, was looking ahead to the match with great anticipation.
“It’s nice to be going into the last group game in a wonderful stadium against a good European team knowing that if we can win the game we will go through,” he said. “It’s an exciting end to the group and I think we’re one of the few groups in the competition in which there’s still some interest going into the final game. So we’re really looking forward to tomorrow night and I know the players will give their best.
“I’ve been very pleased with the performances in Europe. The matches against Roma didn’t go our way and we suffered badly at the hands of refereeing decisions, but these things do happen in football.
“We’ve done our best to overcome it and we’ve done our best to overcome the injury situation too, losing people like Andy Johnson, Joe Kamara, Simon Davies, Dickson Etuhu and Danny Murphy in the competition.
“But it’s been good in the sense that it’s given other players on the fringe a chance to show what they can do and we’ve become stronger as a group and stronger as a football club as a result.”
Hodgson had been hoping to introduce Andrew Johnson back into First Team action on Wednesday evening but unfortunately the striker did not travel after experiencing some discomfort.
"We were probably too optimistic. He was so anxious to get back into the fray that unfortunately we went along with his enthusiasm," Hodgson explained.
"I don’t think it’s a major pull. It was a movement which caused a sharp pain, so we’ve taken the decision not to risk him and instead leave him back home having treatment and possibly training. I’m hoping it was to do with the scar tissue following the recent operation rather than any major problem in the pelvic area, because he’s getting close to full fitness.
"If he’s pain free then he’s certainly fit enough to be able to play a part in the [Man United] game."
---
European Journey 
With Fulham looking to qualify from Group E of the UEFA Europa League, the experience of Danny Murphy, himself a former UEFA Cup winner, will be of vital importance.
The Whites need a win to leapfrog Basel into the final qualification spot and Murphy, for one, is hoping that Fulham can continue their European adventure on Wednesday evening.
Speaking during Fulham's pre-match press conference on Tuesday, Murphy said:
"This journey this season has been great for all the lads, especially for those who maybe haven’t experienced it before. So hopefully the journey will continue after this game.
"When you reach certain stages of your career, i.e. playing in the Premier League, in European competition, or for your country, then you want to play in the best stadiums and I’ve been fortunate to do that. It’s nice to be able to say I’ve played in these places."
Should Fulham qualify from Group E, the next round of Europa League matches could place the Whites up against a number of clubs who dropped out of the Champions League. However, Murphy was quick to warn against looking too far into the future.
"Personally, up until recently I’ve been concentrating on getting myself fit and so I don’t allow myself to think that far ahead," he said. "And I think as a team and a Club, perhaps it’s unhelpful to think that way because first and foremost we’re focusing on having a good Premier League campaign, combined with the Europa League, rather than looking at which teams are dropping out of the Champions League and who we might meet in the future.
"Having said that, if we are successful tomorrow night it would be a wonderful reward to play one of Europe’s top teams. But, I always think that if you’re in European competition, it’s nice to play big teams from abroad, rather than teams like Liverpool or Chelsea, or Man United who we’re lucky enough to be able to face regularly in the Premier League."
ვარჯიში "სენტ იაკობსზე" (მგონი ეს ქვია

)







როიმ ერთ-ერთ ინტერვიუში აღნიშნა რომ მისთვის პრემიერლიგა ბევრად უფრო მნიშვნელოვანია. მაგრამ, რა ვიცი, ნუთუ ამ ტურნირზე არ ღირს ბოლომდე დახარჯვა?! ჯერ ერთი რომ ისტორიულია - პირველად ტარდება! მერე ისეთი არგი გუნდები არიან გასულები და ლიგიდან ჩამოყრილები რო... ფულჰემი - იუვე! ჟღერს აი!
მოკლედ აბა თქვენ იცით!!! მთელი ძალებით! შეძლებთ!!!
---
P.S. Lennon7 აუცილებლააად!!!
This post has been edited by MEDS on 16 Dec 2009, 20:56