It has been a frustrating summer so far for Fulham manager Slaviša Jokanović with the club’s hierarchy failing to land most of his transfer targets. Ibrahima Cisse, Marcelo Djaló and Aboubakar Karama are the only arrivals at Craven Cottage so far. Jokanović feels that more players need to be added to build on the club’s success last season.
Fulham were agonisingly close to securing a trip to Wembley but were beaten over two legs by Reading in the Championship play-off semi-finals last season. They played some of the most scintillating football in the division at times and were unlucky not to achieve promotion to the Premier League.
Remarkably, one of their stand out players from last season in the form of Kevin McDonald has been linked with a move to Championship rivals Nottingham Forest, managed by Mark Warburton. We take a look at why the club should keep hold of the 28-year-old midfielder beyond this summer.
Trust Jokanović’s judgement on transfers
Jokanović has publicly criticised the club’s policy on transfers yet again this summer and believes that the club’s hierarchy is totally ignoring all his opinions and thoughts. This has left him concerned that the club may sell some of his star assets this summer against his wishes, such as McDonald.
It is remarkable that a club such as Fulham would risk frustrating a manager such as Jokanović who has turned them from relegation fodder into promotion contenders. There is always the possibility that he could move elsewhere if another opportunity arose and this is a huge risk if Fulham continue to give him no say in transfers.
One of Fulham’s Star Players Last Season
McDonald was one of Fulham’s star players last season and would have won the club’s player of the season award if it was not for the outstanding performances from 26-year-old Tom Cairney. This just goes to show what a poor decision it would be to let McDonald walk away from the club this summer.
A Host of Championship Experience
Another reason to why Fulham should not consider letting McDonald leave this summer is because of the amount of experience he has at this level. He has racked up plenty of appearances at Sheffield United, Wolverhampton Wanderers and now Fulham. He is very highly rated by supporters of all of these clubs.
He made 33 appearances for the Cottagers last season, and without him, it is unlikely that they would have ended up in the play-off positions. He can also massively help out the club’s youngsters such as 17-year-old Ryan Sessegnon by passing on his experience.
Would Only Improve Their Opposition
If the club allowed McDonald to join Forest this summer, it would drastically improve one the squad of one of their Championship rivals for the upcoming campaign. This is something which should be avoided at all costs as you never want to improve those who you are competing against.
Forest boss Warburton will be hoping that Fulham’s bizarre transfer policy will work in his favour and see him land one of the most talented midfielders at this level. There is no doubt that if Forest managed to secure the signature of McDonald this summer, it would turn them into playoff contenders after a torrid campaign last time out.
