Fulham Football Club

• Nickname:Cottagers
• Founded:1879
• Manager:Martin Jol

• Ground:Craven Cottage
• Capacity:26,600

Hodgson urges UEFA decision

10 May 2010 - 08:32:05

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Fulham manager Roy Hodgson believes that UEFA should consider postponing Wednesday night's Europa League final due to ongoing travel problems caused by the volcanic ash cloud drifting from Iceland.

Hodgson was speaking after an under-strength Cottagers side were beaten 4-0 at Arsenal, with weather forecasts suggesting that a change in wind direction could hamper Fulham's travel plans.

He commented: "We are worried, because they are always talking about changing wind direction and having to play this game on Sunday does not give us too much alternative.

"It is all very well people saying change the flights, but we can only change that until tomorrow.

"We are talking about 40 people and a lot of kit - it is not like someone going on a package holiday, it is a major operation.

"We are training tomorrow morning and I am not expecting to race around and try to contact the players now to say 'you had better bring your bags for 9 o'clock tomorrow morning'.

It could be very problematic and I only hope we have the luck to see the ash cloud disappear from the airspace between England and Germany.

"It is a very, very complicated matter and while our administrative team are working on it as best they can, to some extent we are going to be very much in the hands of the aviation authorities.

"If Madrid are also in that situation, UEFA should show some transigence, rather than the usual intransigence and try to find a solution which helps us both by postponing the game until we both can fly there.

"You would be placing the game with thousands and thousands of English and Spanish fans not able to go, which I would say is another reason for UEFA to reconsider."