If you are from Boston you might remember the annoying phrase former Channel 4 Sportscaster Bob Lobel would say about players that left Boston. When Jonny Damon left to go to the Yankees he would show highlights of him and say "Why can't we get players like that?" This was Lobel's way of saying he wishes that player was still with a Boston team. I can't tell you how much that phrase ticked me off. How ironic is it that I will be using this phrase to describe a former Fulham player.
Diomansy Kamara left on loan February 1st from Fulham to Celtic. I am a fan of Diomansy and was disappointed by the loan move. I really didn't understand why Roy Hogdson would allow this to happen. We had some injuries with our strikers and to let one of them go on loan did not make sense to me. Shortly after the loan deal was complete it was revealed that Andrew Johnson would be out for the rest of the season. This would leave Fulham short on strikers.
Kamara I have fond memories of him during the relegation battle in the 2007 - 2008 season. He scored 2 crucial goals against Manchester City that definitely helped Fulham stay up in the Premier League. He was often injured, but when he did play he usually made some kind of impact. I noticed his impact even in the Europa League recently. I thought teaming him up with Bobby Zamora would give Fulham 2 strikers that could compliment each other. I could see the potential for better chemistry with Bobby Zamora than the combo of him with Andrew Johnson.
This discussion brings us to what Kamara has done with Celtic since leaving Fulham. On February 7th, Kamara scored his first goal with Celtic in the Scottish Cup against Dunfermline. He added his first league goal on February 13th against Aberdeen. In only a few weeks with Celtic, Kamara has scored 2 goals. Not bad for a player that hasn't had much action this year for Fulham. I will leave you with this question. " Why can't Fulham get players like that?"
Later this week I will have a preview for Fulham's Europa League clash with Shakhtar Donetsk. This should be an interesting game for Fulham. I will be curious to see what kind of team Roy Hogdson puts on the pitch in this matchup.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
It's the SPL. He scored against Dunfermline and Aberdeen - teams who, let's face it, would struggle in the Championship.
ReplyDeleteTo give you an indication of the difference in quality between that and the Premier League, Steven Davis has been hailed as one of the SPL's best players (and is the most recent winner of the player of the month award). The same Steven Davis that failed to perform at Fulham. Likewise, Robbie Keane has been distinctly average in the Premier League this season, and yet he looks like a god in the SPL.
Kamara has all the essential attributes to be a star in the SPL - a bit of skill, flair, and a lot of pace. Unfortunately, these along won't make you a success in the Premier League, where occasionally he has looked out of his depth and a passenger. Sure, he scored some very important goals for us, but generally he has been labelled as a disappointment in his time at the club. Since his departure, for some reason the fans seem to have elevated him from fourth-best forward to the best at the club!
I agree that it seems somewhat foolish to have allowed him to leave when it wasn't clear how long AJ was going to be out for. I like Diomansy and would like to see him back at the club when he returns - but by no means is he a superstar who has slipped through our fingers. He has been linked with a move away for some time now, and it appears that he in fact engineered the move away himself.
Oh, and it's Roy "Hodgson"!
Like your blog though - interesting reads. Will be sure to check it out more often.
I agree with every word of NickW's comments. Kamara isn't that great a loss. In fact, if you recall, during 07/08 he was a figure of serious derision on the terraces, because of his horrible first few months with the club. For most who attended those early 07/08 games, the memories are hard to shake - although the 2 goals at Eastlands were a good start.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate both of your comments. I know playing in the SPL isn't the same. I guess I was just disappointed that he went and shortly afterward Johnson is out for the season.
ReplyDeleteI also enjoyed watching Kamara when he played. Thank you both for your comments.