Merely three days after their Carling Cup elimination against Arsenal in North London, Rafa's Reds are back in London for another tough challenge. Following their 2-0 dominance of Manchester United last weekend, the critics were not completely silenced. After all, the Reds still face the challenge of proving their consistency, particularly after their failure to overcome an Arsenal side made up of fringe players.

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It's been a while since I bored you with numbers, so:

These are the numbers for the season to-date.  What stands out?

Involvement: This is passes per minute on the pitch. It doesn't mean anything but it's a fair proxy for how much someone's doing while they're out there.

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Pretty much any Zoltan Gera performance you care to mention this season has involved lots of tentative short passes. He has been ineffective.

Then this happened against Arsenal:

What's this all about? Better teammate runs? Nobody defending him? Confidence from the Man City Thunderbolt of Thunderbolts?

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A wonderful performance gives Wenger a 'good' selection headache.

Arsenal's rookie goalkeeper Vito Mannone earned a '10 out of 10′ rating from his manager Arsene Wenger for his performance in the 1-0 win at Fulham.

With Manuel Almunia sidelined by a virus, and Lukasz Fabianski out with a knee injury, third-choice keeper Mannone started his second successive Premier League game on Saturday.

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Hodgson, though, was not discouraged. "It was a marvellous performance," he said. "I couldn't have asked for more from them, they played absolutely superbly. I have a pretty good idea now of which players I can trust."

Normally we wouldn't mind going out of the Coca-Cola cup, but for the first time in a long time Fulham are able to rest the first team without punting the game, and it has been refreshing to see the likes of Baird and Smalling show what they're made of.

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The English Carling Cup continued on Wednesday with several of the Premier League clubs playing each other in crucial matches including Manchester City v Fulham, Chelsea v Queens Park Rangers and Manchester United v Wolverhampton. Here's a recap of these matches along with video highlights.

Chelsea edges Queens Park Rangers 1-0 Video Highlights

Chelsea rested several of their regular starters as they struggled in the first half to get a lead on Queens Park Rangers.

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Back to the bread and butter:Â chalkboards!

Nothing really stands out about Saturday's game.  Perhaps the most notable point is what might be considered a complete absence of confidence in Zoltan Gera's play.  Here:

Have a look at those passes.  Very many (almost all) are backwards.

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Perth Glory 0
Fulham 5 (Johnson 16', Nevland 60', 64', 68', Andranik 83')
Crowd: 14,903
PERTH Glory were on the receiving end of a 5-0 trounching from English Premier League side Fulham, with forward Erik Nevland scoring a hat-trick within eight minutes, during their friendly match on Thursday. Click to continue reading...

1. Paul Scholes should definitely take up volleyball when he retires. We already knew he could spike and now we know he can block too. Perhaps indoor volleyball would be better than beach with your complexion, Paul. 2. The Premier League title race may not have been open again after Liverpool#8217;s victory over Manchester United, but [. Click to continue reading...

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Reuters - Hungary name squad for World Cup qualifiers - Mon Sep 29, 2008
- Hungary coach Erwin Koeman named the following 24-man squad for next month's 2010 World Cup Group One qualifiers against Albania and Malta. Hungary host Albania on Oct. 11 and visit Malta four days later. Click to continue reading...

1. West Brom are the best sponsor-less team in the Premier League We know this because they beat West Ham 3-2 in the big "your name here" showdown on Saturday. 2. £60+ million doesn't buy you a win It buys you an assist, and a sweet free kick. But Dimitar Berbatov and Robinho both tasted defeat on their [. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Andy Johnson (Everton), Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg), Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom), David Stockdale (Darlington). Notable departures: Collins John (NEC Nijmegen), Gabriel Zakuani (Peterborough), Steven Davis (Rangers), Eddie Johnson. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Borja Valero (Real Mallorca), Abdoulaye Meite (Bolton), Scott Carson (Liverpool), Marek Cech (Porto), Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen), Kim Do-Heon. Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham),. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Andy Johnson (Everton), Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg), Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom), David Stockdale (Darlington). Notable departures: Steven Davis (Rangers), Eddie Johnson (Cardiff, loan), David Healy (Sunderland), The club. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Borja Valero (Real Mallorca), Abdoulaye Meite (Bolton), Scott Carson (Liverpool), Marek Cech (Porto), Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen), Kim Do-Heon. Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham),. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Andy Johnson (Everton), Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg), Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom), David Stockdale (Darlington). Notable departures: Steven Davis (Rangers), Eddie Johnson (Cardiff, loan), David Healy (Sunderland), The club. Click to continue reading...

Craven Cottage (dopamine clouds not pictured)
2007/8 Review
On April 19th Fulham lost 2-0 to Liverpool and appeared to be sunk. Three wins later and they had hauled themselves from the morass, by virtue of a better goal difference than Birmingham. Manager Roy Hodgson, who had taken the post at Christmas, received the plaudits for their escape. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Abdoulaye Meite (Bolton), Scott Carson (Liverpool), Marek Cech (Porto), Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen), Kim Do-Heon. Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham), Martin Albrechtsen (Derby County). Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Andy Johnson (Everton), Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg), Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom), David Stockdale (Darlington). Notable departures: David Healy (Sunderland), The club did a massive purging after narrowly escaping. Click to continue reading...

WEST BROM Notable arrivals: Scott Carson (Liverpool), Marek Cech (Porto), Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen), Kim Do-Heon. Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham), Martin Albrechtsen (Derby County). Click to continue reading...

FULHAM Notable arrivals: Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg), Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom), David Stockdale (Darlington). Likely: Andy Johnson (Everton). Notable departures: The club did a massive purging after narrowly escaping relegation. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg), Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom), David Stockdale (Darlington). Likely: Andy Johnson (Everton). Notable departures: The club did a massive purging after narrowly escaping relegation last. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Scott Carson (Liverpool), Marek Cech (Porto), Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen), Kim Do-Heon. Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham), Martin Albrechtsen (Derby County). Per Ciljan Skjelbred. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg), Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom), David Stockdale (Darlington). Likely: Andy Johnson (Everton). Notable departures: The club did a massive purging after narrowly escaping relegation last. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Fredrik Stoor (Rosenborg), Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom), David Stockdale (Darlington). Likely: Andy Johnson (Everton). Notable departures: The club did a massive purging after narrowly escaping relegation last. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Scott Carson (Liverpool), Marek Cech (Porto), Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen), Kim Do-Heon. Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham), Martin Albrechtsen (Derby County). Per Ciljan Skjelbred. Click to continue reading...

Fulham have completed the signing of defender Fredrik Stoor from Rosenborg. The twenty-four year old defender has joined for an undisclosed fee. He has eight Swedish international caps. Stoor is Fulham manager Roy Hodgson's eighth signing of the summer following John Pantsil and Bobby Zamora from West Ham, Mark Schwarzer, Andranik Teymourian, Zoltan Gera, David Stockdale and Toni Kallio. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Scott Carson (Liverpool), Marek Cech (Porto), Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen), Kim Do-Heon. Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham), Martin Albrechtsen (Derby County). A bid for. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom), David Stockdale (Darlington). Likely: Andy Johnson (Everton). Notable departures: The club did a massive purging after narrowly escaping relegation last season. Included in... Click to continue reading...

Everton striker Andy Johnson is on the verge of a £12 million move to Fulham following a medical at Craven Cottage.
The 27-year-old has not travelled with the Everton squad to the United States on a pre-season tour and is about to become Fulham's record signing.
The money would allow Everton manager David Moyes to strengthen his squad and he is now likely to increase his efforts to sign Sporting Lisbon midfielder Joao Moutinho. Click to continue reading...

Notable arrivals: Scott Carson (Liverpool), Marek Cech (Porto), Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen). Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham) No defender on loan Click to continue reading...

FULHAM Notable arrivals: Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom) Notable departures: The club did a massive purging after narrowly escaping relegation last season. Included in the nine cuts was Carlos Bocanegra.... Click to continue reading...

WEST BROM Notable arrivals: Scott Carson (Liverpool), Marek Cech (Porto), Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen). Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham) Still brewing: With Carson and Cech arriving,. Click to continue reading...

FULHAM Notable arrivals: Bobby Zamora (West Ham), John Pantsil (West Ham), Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough), Zoltan Gera (West Brom) Notable departures: The club did a massive purging after narrowly escaping relegation last season. Included in the nine cuts was Carlos Bocanegra.... Click to continue reading...

WEST BROM Notable arrivals: Roman Bednar (Hearts), Luke Moore (Aston Villa), Gianni Zuiverloon (Heerenveen) Notable departures: Curtis Davies (Aston Villa), Kevin Phillips (Birmingham City), Zoltan Gera (Fulham) Still brewing: West Brom have become a late chaser of Liverpool keeper Scott... Click to continue reading...