Written before Fulham’s win over Nottingham Forest last night – three points that took them to sixth place in the Premier League, James MacGregor Palmer took a closer look at the Cottagers’ transfer business on deadline day.
After a slow start to their transfer window, Fulham’s transfer deadline day resembled the frenetic pace of their impressive start to the season on the pitch. Last Tuesday night’s impressive victory over a previously undefeated Brighton side was not met with complacency come Thursday. Fulham came away with four new arrivals, coinciding with the loan departures of Joe Bryan, Paolo Gazzaniga, and Terence Kongolo.
What do each of the quartet of new Cottagers bring to Marco Silva’s high-flying side?
Layvin Kurzawa
French left-back Layvin Kurzawa was the first confirmed deadline day arrival at the Cottage, coming in on loan from PSG. In a way he perfectly encapsulates Fulham’s deadline day business as a low risk acquisition who is, nonetheless, somewhat of a ‘mystery box’. Kurzawa made no appearances at all for PSG last season, having seen his involvement at the Parisian giants decline over a number of years. This means there is no data available for him from last season, so it’s hard to predict what sort of player Fulham are getting.
Kurzawa comes with pedigree though. He has been capped 13 times by France and, with Antonee Robinson playing well, he will be under no immediate pressure to start. His stats from the previous season suggest Kurzawa is an average full-back. His tackle rate (2.25 per 90 in 2020-21), defensive pressures (11.8 per 90), pass completion (87.4%), and dribble success rate (54.8%) all place him right in the middle of full-backs in Europe. One stat that sets him apart is his very high 24.1 touches in the attacking third per 90 in 2020-21. This, of course, probably has something to do with playing in a PSG team that dominates most of its domestic competition, but it is indicative of a full-back who is extremely comfortable pushing forward, if Marco Silva requires it of him.
Willian
Next through the door was a player very familiar to English football fans. The free signing of Willian was one which was anticipated by the fanbase after reports emerged he had been training with Silva’s side, but it was one met with mixed reviews. In truth, the 34 year-old would probably not have been signed if not for the injuries sustained by Fulham’s two best wingers, Harry Wilson and Manor Solomon, prior to the start of the season. The extent of the contribution he can make at this stage of his career remains to be seen, but seen in the context of a Fulham side who were forced to play 19 year-old striker Jay Stansfield out wide against Brentford, the move makes sense.
The last time Willian played in the Premier League – for Arsenal in 2020-21 – he actually posted the highest pass completion rate of his career (79.3%). Though his goalscoring output worsened, he still managed to contribute five assists. In spite of this, the signs of decline were clear – Arsenal were actually a better team without him on the pitch. Willian’s net plus-minus per 90 of -0.28 shows Arsenal conceded more than they scored when he played. This stat did improve dramatically at his latest stint at Corinthians in Brazil, but it is a concerning sign that he may no longer have the legs for the Premier League. Fulham fans shouldn’t expect Willian to automatically displace Neeskens Kebano or Bobby Decordova-Reid in the starting line-up.
Carlos Vinícius
Fulham’s third signing of the day was another Brazilian who departed the Premier League in the 2020-21 season. At £4.5 million from Benfica, Vinícius is another low cost, low risk signing who provides competent backup to Aleksandar Mitrović.
Vinícius’ brief stint at Tottenham Hotspur yielded one goal in just three starts, and some of the hype surrounding him after a spectacular 2019-20 season in which he scored 0.96 goals per 90 for Benfica has waned. But Vinícius was quietly impressive on loan at PSV Eindhoven last season, scoring six goals (0.49 per 90) and providing six assists in the Eredivisie.
Vinícius is a very similar player to Mitrović, providing a pretty much like-for-like replacement off the bench. At 6 feet 2 inches, he gives Fulham another physical presence up front when Mitrović needs a rest. However, during his first short stay in the Premier League, despite his size, Vinícius only won 35.5% of his aerial duels. There will be a drop-off from Mitrović to Vinícius, but the latter is definitely a low cost upgrade from Rodrigo Muniz, who will benefit from regular playing time on loan at Middlesbrough.
Daniel James
Fulham’s final confirmed signing was also perhaps the most exciting. Arguably, Daniel James is the only one of the quartet of deadline day arrivals who has a legitimate shot to start in a fully healthy Fulham team. Whilst Wilson and Solomon remain side-lined by injury, James is a good bet to start sooner rather than later.
James will be seen primarily as a winger but his versatility does enable Fulham to experiment with a different kind of player up front if a game requires it. His primary attributes are his pace and pressing – with 21.99 pressures per 90 put him in the 93rd percentile of wingers in Europe’s top five leagues. This is partially a result of Leeds’ high intensity play-style last season, but as Fulham have attempted to press teams from the front this season, James should slot in well.
James is a poor passer, attempting just 19.42 passes per 90 (putting him in the very lowest percentile of wingers) and completing just 64.6% of those passes (bottom 5%). But this shouldn’t matter too much in Marco Silva’s system. Aleksandar Mitrović serves as both the primary creative and finishing threat when regularly dropping deep to receive the ball before turning and firing passes to pacey wide players. Dan James perfectly fits this profile of winger, tasked with getting in behind the backline rather than dropping deep and cutting inside to aid the build-up.
Adding important depth
Kurzawa, Willian, Vinícius, and James are not flashy signings but, at a combined outlay of £4.5 million, they provide valuable depth for a team that was extremely thin. With these additions, Fulham now have a fully-fledged Premier League squad, and should be prepared to cope with injuries. James may well be the only one of the four who starts regularly, but they are all important acquisitions for a squad that sorely needed reinforcement.
