Fulham set to appoint Martin Jol as manager
Fulham have turned to a familiar face in a bid to fill the huge void left by the departed Roy Hodgson: former Tottenham manager Martin Jol.
The 54-year-old left England in 2007 after a three-year stint at White Hart Lane, and is now poised to quit Ajax in order to return to the Premier League with the Cottagers.
Matching Hodgson’s fine achievements from the past three campaigns will be no mean feat for the former Netherlands international – let alone surpassing them.
The west-Londoners survived near-certain relegation to the Championship during Hodgson’s first six months in charge, as he took control with the club languishing deep inside the drop zone. He then guided them to a remarkable seventh place finish in his first full season, before last season’s heroics in Europe as Fulham reached the Europa League Final under the new Liverpool manager.
Jol, though, who is still a cult hero at Spurs, is perhaps the ideal candidate for the vacant position at Craven Cottage.
Despite just falling short in the race for the Eredivisie title earlier this year, Ajax were still arguably the best team in the Netherlands. By scoring a hugely-impressive 106 goals, the iconic Dutch side were certainly the most attractive outfit in the league, but were pipped to the post by Steve McClaren’s FC Twente.
Before that he ventured to the Bundesliga for a one-year spell at Hamburg where, once again, he showcased his credentials by guiding the club to a fifth place finish in the division, as well as a semi-final appearance in both the Uefa Cup and the German Cup.
But it was at Tottenham were he continues to be recognised and remembered among people in England.
Jol had a fine relationship with the players, supporters and media, but was sacked by Spurs in October 2007 when it became apparent that Juande Ramos was available - although this hardly proved an inspired piece of business by the Tottenham board.
The big Dutchman almost led Spurs to a fourth place finish in the Premier League, but missed out on a Champions League spot on the final day of the 2005/06 campaign when half the Spurs squad were struck down by illness. Nevertheless, Jol had still secured Tottenham their highest league finish since 1990.
His fondness for English football was apparent right up until his hostile departure from north London. And as opportunities to manage in England’s top flight are rare to say the least, Jol has understandably jumped at the chance to return.
He’s even been prepared to sacrifice taking charge of Ajax in the Champions League – should they advance through the qualifying rounds - for the job at Fulham, which outlines the extent of the incredible job Hodgson had done before him.
The likes of Sven-Göran Eriksson, Ottmar Hitzfeld and Bob Bradley were all rumoured to be in contention for the position at the Cottage, but it’s Jol who’s emerged as Fulham’s favourite because of his previous experience managing in the Premier League.
If he does take the reins as expected, Jol will be under-pressure from everyone at Fulham, along with himself, to keep the club at the level they’re out now - maintaining their status as a top-half team.
Fortunately for Fulham fans, Jol is a man rarely flustered. Always calm, cool, collective and insightful, the Cottagers may well have landed themselves the closest thing to Hodgson without it actually being the wily old Englishman.
And based on the impact he had during his tenure at Spurs, it won’t be long before the Fulham faithful have created their own rendition of the hit song “I love Martin Jol”.
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