Fulham eyes recreating the magic
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AFP
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mart 07, 2009 00:00
LONDON - Roy Hodgson has been around long enough to remember the last time Fulham reached an FA Cup final.
That was 34 years ago and Hodgson was just a year away from embarking on a managerial career that has seen him fill 16 coaching posts in Denmark, England, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland.
Now 61, Hodgson has put all his experience to good use in lifting Fulham from the brink of relegation to within sight of European football in just over a year in charge. And he is relishing the prospect of derailing Manchester United's charge for an unprecedented haul of five trophies by pulling off an upset in a quarter-final meeting what is arguably the pick of this weekend's ties.
Fulham's run to the last eight has triggered thoughts of the club's last Wembley appearance, the 1975 final.
"This is my first time in the quarterfinals," Hodgson said. "It would be lovely if we could reach the semifinal and even better if Fulham could recreate the magic of 1975."
Hodgson was a spectator at Wembley that day as Alec Stock's side went down to a 2-0 defeat by West Ham.
"Fulham was in the old Second Division at the time but had just brought back Alan Mullery and signed Bobby Moore, people who boosted the team," Hodgson recalled. "I clearly remember before the game Stock was asked if he was worried about the game, as it was coming up against the famous West Ham team, which contained so many World Cup winners."
"His response? 'Not at all, we're going to have a thunderingly good day out!' The FA Cup is part of the Fulham tradition."
Chelsea will be looking to extend its winning start to life under Guus Hiddink to five matches. His influence has been clearly stamped on Chelsea that looks better organised than it did under Luiz Felipe Scolari. It is hard to imagine a Coventry side currently residing in the bottom half of the Championship delaying their progress to the last four.
Burnley will also fly the flag for English football's second tier although the giantkilling side is only at the fifth round stage. It visits Arsenal on Sunday, looking for a memorable double following their elimination of Arsene Wenger's youngsters from the League Cup in December.
Burnley also accounted for Fulham and Chelsea in that competition and has already beaten Premier League outfit West Brom in the FA Cup. Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal though appears to be on the up having put together an unbeaten run of 16 matches in all competitions.
The final clash of the weekend sees Middlesbrough travel to Everton.
Now 61, Hodgson has put all his experience to good use in lifting Fulham from the brink of relegation to within sight of European football in just over a year in charge. And he is relishing the prospect of derailing Manchester United's charge for an unprecedented haul of five trophies by pulling off an upset in a quarter-final meeting what is arguably the pick of this weekend's ties.
Fulham's run to the last eight has triggered thoughts of the club's last Wembley appearance, the 1975 final.
"This is my first time in the quarterfinals," Hodgson said. "It would be lovely if we could reach the semifinal and even better if Fulham could recreate the magic of 1975."
Hodgson was a spectator at Wembley that day as Alec Stock's side went down to a 2-0 defeat by West Ham.
"Fulham was in the old Second Division at the time but had just brought back Alan Mullery and signed Bobby Moore, people who boosted the team," Hodgson recalled. "I clearly remember before the game Stock was asked if he was worried about the game, as it was coming up against the famous West Ham team, which contained so many World Cup winners."
"His response? 'Not at all, we're going to have a thunderingly good day out!' The FA Cup is part of the Fulham tradition."
Chelsea will be looking to extend its winning start to life under Guus Hiddink to five matches. His influence has been clearly stamped on Chelsea that looks better organised than it did under Luiz Felipe Scolari. It is hard to imagine a Coventry side currently residing in the bottom half of the Championship delaying their progress to the last four.
Burnley will also fly the flag for English football's second tier although the giantkilling side is only at the fifth round stage. It visits Arsenal on Sunday, looking for a memorable double following their elimination of Arsene Wenger's youngsters from the League Cup in December.
Burnley also accounted for Fulham and Chelsea in that competition and has already beaten Premier League outfit West Brom in the FA Cup. Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal though appears to be on the up having put together an unbeaten run of 16 matches in all competitions.
The final clash of the weekend sees Middlesbrough travel to Everton.