Fulham's Martin Jol dismisses rivalry with former Tottenham boss Juande Ramos

Posted Thursday, August 18, 2011 by YAHOO Sport

Fulham boss Martin Jol has moved quickly to end all suggestions that there is bad blood between him and Juande Ramos because of the Spaniard replacing him at Tottenham in 2007.

"He was there for 10 or 11 months and moved on and then ended up in Ukraine. So it's something to think about," quipped Jol on Ramos career after White Hart Lane.

The Dutchman was sacked as Spurs manager just a couple of months into the 2007-08 season, with Ramos hired as the replacement at White Hart Lane. However, unlike Jol, who experienced two successive top-five performances in English football, Ramos failed to replicate those achievements.

The two former Spurs managers will meet each other in the first leg of their Europa League play-off at Craven Cottage. This time, Jol will be managing his new club, Fulham, and Ramos is in charge of Ukrainian club Dnipro.

"We are confident, but 0-0 will not be the best of results. We need a cushion to go there because at home they are strong. We'll need a good result."

Jol was eager to give the visiting Ukrainian side credit, believing that the Ukrainian league is growing.

"They play well. I was there last year playing Dynamo Kiev. I think it is a strong competition," said Jol. "It's a good team, if you know the level of football over there [in Ukraine]," said Jol. "They've got a couple of good teams, very strong teams.

He added, "Dynamo Kiev and Shaktar Donetsk are the best two, then Dnipro. They play a high tempo, technically skillful [football]. It's a very good footballing team.