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Fulham’s relationship with strikers since relegation to the championship has been fairly bumpy. Ross McCormack justified his price tag by keeping the club up for 2 seasons. Moussa Dembele aided him in 2015/16, but the same can be said for Hugo Rodallega the season before that. When Dembele and McCormack were sold, the club needed an out and out striker. The loan deal for Chris Martin from Derby made sense for both parties, but Steve McClaren’s return at the midlands club prompted him to go on strike. The world’s strangest loan eventually came to an end, and signing strikers was a priority in the summer of 2017. The chosen 2: Rui Fonte from Braga and Aboubakar Kamara from Amiens. We’ve seen enough of them so far to judge them, so how do they differ and do they satisfy Fulham’s striking needs?

Rui Fonte had been a bit of a journeyman prior to his time at Braga. That being said, from Arsenal youth to Benfica and Sporting Lisbon, there’s no doubting his pedigree. He settled at Braga, perennial Europa League participants and often called Portugal’s ‘4th team’. After making his loan deal there permanent, he was given the captain’s armband. The captaincy developed Fonte as a player and a person. Being such a key figure at a club like Braga would make it surprising to think he’d join the championship, but Fulham was the ‘perfect club’ for Rui, in his own words, although he mainly wanted to be closer to older brother and role model Jose, at West Ham. His commitment to Fulham though cannot be questioned.

Given the number 9 shirt for the first time in his career, Fulham fans expected him to be the natural striker the club had been after since McCormack’s departure. What they got wasn’t exactly that, but a more advanced forward than the championship’s typical brawny striker. Fonte himself said he’s comfortable playing as either a lone striker, or behind the striker, in the number 10 role. Most Fulham fans would likely see him more as the former, but that role is non-existent in Jokanovic’s 4-3-3 system. While both Fonte and Kamara have already been sidelined for long periods at Fulham due to injury, Fonte has been selected to lead the line more often by Jokanovic, and has done well in the role. A highly encouraging debut against Sheffield Wednesday, being one of the few Fulham bright sparks, an excellent goal at Ipswich, a crucial assist at QPR, winning a penalty against Preston. All done as a lone striker. There should be no doubt over his ability to be Fulham’s main striker yet some prefer Kamara. In reality, Fonte offers so much more than Kamara does. However, the self proclaimed AK47 has improved ‘so much’ according to Ryan Fredericks and a MOTM display at Nottingham Forest proves that.

Built like a bull and being a former 110m Hurdler, Aboubakar Kamara is an exceptional athlete. Arguably the quickest striker in the league, and only beaten for Strength by Kenneth Zohore, Kamara should on paper be scoring every game. However, the word ‘raw’ is used to describe him frequently and rightfully so. The technical side of his game is very undeveloped, and the coaching team need to help him improve his technical aspects, especially when you consider he’s playing for a team that plays intelligent, sophisticated Football. However, goals at Forest and against Boro have shown that he knows where the net is, so it’s certainly worth giving him game time. Games like Leeds away and scream Kamara and the last 20 minutes of any game when his fresh legs, immense strength and hunger to bully defenders will cause back lines problems. He is a typical defensive forward, where his contribution when Fulham don’t have the ball is almost more important than what he does when he have it. He’s unlike any other Fulham player in that regard, and is a fantastic option to have in the championship.

So, could Jokanovic play Fonte and Kamara together? A 4-4-2 is certainly a rational option, given its solidity of 2 banks of 4, aiding defensive organisation, a major weak point of Fulham. 2 centre midfielders would limit creativity though, so a 4-2-3-1 is worth considering, with Fonte as a CAM/no.10 and Kamara as a lone striker. Regardless of the role he plays, Fonte will get forward and be just as much of a goal threat, if not more of one than Kamara in such a system. If the 4-3-3 continues to be used though, Fonte should get the nod to start. During his time in Portugal, Fonte gained a reputation of being surprisingly good in the air and scoring from all kind of crosses. Being barely 5″11′, his heading skills catch the eye, and in Fulham’s system where the fullbacks bomb forwards and swing in crosses, there is good reason to think we’ll score a considerable number of goals this way. The signing of Rafa Soares, statistically superior to Scott Malone in every department, could prove to be a shrewd one, given Soares’ exceptional crossing ability and Fonte’s conversion rate from crosses.

This system favours a false 9 up front, similar to Roberto Firmino’s role at Liverpool. While Firmino and Fonte are very different players, the space for the lone striker to drop deep and aid in the build up play is there. This suits Fonte very nicely, so I personally believe there is potential for Jokanovic to convert him to being a False 9, just as he did with Cairney as a proper Centre Mid and McDonald a defensive midfielder. Jokanovic prioritises technical players, and isn’t afraid to show it- Fonte started against Sheffield Wednesday just 36 hours after joining the club. Kamara though is always worth bringing on late in the game, and will help the team a great deal. Fonte’s vision, off the ball movement when in possession and threat from crosses makes him a unique player, and is in my opinion, the most intelligent footballer at Fulham since relegation and certainly one of the best football brains in the championship. Although a couple of Portuguese football journalists have suggested that Fonte could get better with age like his brother has, he will soon enter the peak of his career so he is the best bet to lead the promotion push. Don’t forget however that Kamara is just 22 years old, so there is frightening potential with him and if he keeps improving on his current trajectory, the Whites have a mighty player on their hands.

Viva la Rui, Up the AK.

Thanks for reading.

You can follow me on twitter: @SlavisasMate

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