Fulham have publicly stated that new manager Rene Meulensteen has given attacking midfielder Bryan Ruiz permission to speak with a ‘number of clubs’. It is believed Real Betis, in particular, have offered to take the Costa Rican international on loan for the rest of the season, offering Fulham a fee of £750,000 to do so.
During his time in West London, Ruiz has shown flashes of genius that seemed to justify Fulham bringing him in from Dutch side FC Twente in the summer of 2011, but consensus seems to be that such ability has been too rarely enjoyed by the Craven Cottage faithful.
Furthermore, in previous seasons Fulham have enjoyed much more measurable success than they are currently enjoying, allowing flair players such as Ruiz – as well as others such as DimitarBerbatov – more freedom to express themselves. This season, with the club in the depths of a Premier League relegation dogfight in which no team has truly been cut adrift, it is the grittier side of Fulham’s character that needs to be prioritised. The work rate of players such as Steve Sidwell and impressive youngster PajtimKasami is currently a much more valuable asset than the undoubtedly technical ability that Ruiz displays.
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