Source: Telegraph
Fulham captain Simon Davies 'buzzing' for Bobby Zamora
Zamora scored his first League goal in more than 29 hours in Sunday's 2-0 win over West Bromwich Albion and has been backed to make up for lost time, beginning against the Welsh side, particularly as the prize is a quarter-final home tie against Manchester United. [LNB]Fulham lost 3-0 at Old Trafford last Wednesday and Roy Hodgson, their manager, is still unhappy with the scheduling of the replay, just two days after Sunday's Premier League game. [LNB]Simon Davies, the Fulham captain, believes Zamora's first League goal since September could be the start of something special. [LNB]"We're buzzing for him," said Davies. "He's been unlucky on a few chances and more important for us is what he brings to the team. He has a presence up there. [LNB]"When he's playing well he gives us a new dimension, we play off him and he can get defenders around him to allow space for other players, as Andy Johnson has already found this season. For him to get that goal is great and hopefully they'll flow now. [LNB]"You can see he's been down a bit. We keep telling him he's such an important part of the team. Obviously strikers get judged on goals, but he's something we didn't have last year when Brian McBride was injured. [LNB]"It makes such a big difference to a footballing team like we try to be as when you have a big man up there who can get hold of the ball it brings the midfielders into play, we can get up there and play like we did today. [LNB]"We are hoping it could open the floodgates for him. He's probably scored the easiest chance he's had and he's missed some good chances but today he was right there. I'm sure strikers go on confidence and hopefully he can go on now."[LNB]Of the visit of Swansea, Davies said: "If we play like we did last Saturday [the 1-1 draw at Swansea] it will be very difficult for us again. It will be a different game as we're at home, we'll have the crowd behind us and we'll be on the front foot more. [LNB]"Hopefully we can test them. That was the most disappointing thing – we didn't get out and test their back four last time. We feel that if we can do that with the players we've got going forward we'll be able to create chances. If we play like we did on Sunday we're confident we'll get the result."[LNB]Davies, as a Welshman from Haverfordwest, has already received an element of ridicule over the failure to win at the Championship side. "I lived an hour west of Swansea when I was growing up," he added. "It was the closest team to me. Before the game it was me texting saying, 'We'll be giving you a roasting' and I got egg on my face on that one. Hopefully there are a few things we can put right."[LNB]Hodgson remains unhappy with the timing of the replay, adding: "We have a high-energy game and ask a lot of our players. With only one day's rest it is going to be hard for the players to give the same level of performance again."[LNB]When asked who Sir Alex Ferguson would prefer to face in the quarter-finals, Hodgson was honest: "I wouldn't have thought he'll be losing too much sleep over either of us." [LNB]
