Source: Team_Talk
Johnson double impresses Jol
Fulham boss Martin Jol set his sights on tying Andrew Johnson down to a new contract after he his a brace in the 2-0 win at Odense on Thursday.[LNB] The 30-year-old's double helped the Cottagers end an eight-game winless run and secure three points in Group K of the Europa League at the Odense Stadion.[LNB]Johnson, whose contract expires at the end of the season, broke the deadlock with a first-half strike that snuck under former Everton goalkeeper Stefan Wessels, before scoring with a neat curling effort with two minutes remaining.[LNB]Jol said: "He is top scorer in Europe if you count qualification matches too. He was a handful tonight.[LNB]"He hasn't done it in the league but sometimes you have to give him the opportunities too.[LNB]"The second goal was unbelievable. The ball was high and he took it on his shoe.[LNB]"It was amazing. It came from nothing.[LNB]"We have offered him another two years so there is a lot of confidence in him.[LNB]"Sometimes it's better to start talking in December or January.[LNB]"Andy is a good boy and a good worker.[LNB]"He has one year left and hopefully we can change that. If not, it is in his hands.[LNB]"He is a team player and will give you his all.[LNB]"He was good for us today and Fulham has been good to him before my time here.[LNB]"He has had a lot of big injuries and didn't score a lot of goals last year, just two, maybe three. It's a good marriage, you know?[LNB]"I want Andy to be with us and stay here. I don't think there's a lot of difference [in the negotiations].[LNB]"We have spoken a couple of times in the last couple of weeks."[LNB]Johnson's brace has seen him rack up six Europa League goals in nine appearances.[LNB]Jol hinted such form could see him start Sunday's Premier League encounter with QPR, against whom he hopes the Cottagers will be more clinical.[LNB]"I'm 100% certain that if I start Andy he won't let anyone down," the Dutchman added.[LNB]"He is a true professional, he always plays with his heart and you can't say that of all the pros in football.[LNB]"We didn't do particularly well in first half.[LNB]"We have to look at every game again. If we'd scored against West Brom there's no problem. We have had five draws. It's ridiculous.[LNB]"It means we are good defensively but we couldn't put the ball in the net."[LNB]Many Odense fans felt the 2-0 defeat was harsh given the balance of possession and manager Henrik Clausen was also frustrated by the result.[LNB]"The situation in the group is where you'd expect it to be with Fulham and Twente the favourites," he said.[LNB]"I saw a lot of opportunities to get a point today but we didn't so that decreases our chances of going through.[LNB]"But there's a long way until December 14 and we still have two home games.[LNB]"Plus if we have a good day at Fulham we still have a chance to go through and I will be very happy."[LNB]On Odense's performance against Fulham, he added: "We played the way I want them to play.[LNB]"I was happy with the performance but not the result.[LNB]"They took their two chances well. This was a far, far better performance than our previous three games."
