Fulham have started the season well and have their eyes set on three points at Portman Road this afternoon. Alex Jones takes a look at the Cottagers ahead of their Premier League clash against Ipswich Town...
Premier League stability
Fulham spent a number of years as a yo-yo club, too good for the Championship but not at Premier League level. For a club that reached the final of the UEFA Europa League back in 2010, this was frustrating. They were relegated from the top flight four years later and then spent four seasons in the second tier before bouncing between the two divisions.
Much of the criticism was aimed at their recruitment policy. The Cottagers were able to build incredibly strong Championship teams, but then discarded many of the players that got them to that point in favour of big-money signings, many of whom struggled to adapt to the Premier League after impressing abroad.
A dominant campaign in 2021/22 saw them stroll to the Championship title. They were listed as one of the favourites to be relegated straight back down, but finally found the right formula to be successful at the highest level.
They’ve now become a consistent face in the Premier League – this being their third consecutive season at the level. They finished 10th and 13th in their last two campaigns and will aim for a top-half finish this season.
Summer signings
Fulham spent north of £80 million without add-ons or bonuses this summer. They’ve not moved to overhaul the team, but rather to improve the areas where they need extra quality.
A sentimental move for Ryan Sessegnon kicked off the transfer window. The versatile left-sided attacker came through their youth system before starring for the first team and sealing a big move to Tottenham Hotspur. However, his time in North London was hampered by injuries. As a result, he left at the end of his contract to return to his boyhood club for free.
Emile Smith Rowe arrived from Arsenal at the start of August, becoming the Cottagers’ record signing at around £30 million. He was considered to be one of the best young players in the Premier League during his time at the Emirates Stadium but struggled for regular minutes.
Defender Jorge Cuenca was signed from Villarreal the following day, with towering midfielder Sander Berge making the move from Craven Cottage a couple of weeks later.
They then made a move to re-sign centre-back Joachim Andersen, who had a loan spell at Fulham before moving to Crystal Palace from Lyon in 2021. His impressive stint with the Eagles attracted big interest, with Marco Silva’s side winning the race to acquire his signature.
The manager stressed that his side wanted one more addition on deadline day, which he described as ‘the last piece in the puzzle, a wide player in attack’. They got that on deadline day, snatching Reiss Nelson from Ipswich. The Arsenal winger looked set to move to Portman Road on a season-long loan, but had a change of heart at the last minute.
A huge gap
Despite all the positives, Fulham had to deal with a significant blow when they lost João Palhinha to Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.
The two teams initially reached an agreement back in January, with the Portuguese midfielder travelling to Bavaria to have a medical and sign the deal. However, Fulham sanctioned it so late on deadline day that it ended up falling through, forcing the player to return to London.
Bayern weren’t going to let that happened again, re-negotiating the move and pushing it through all the way back on July 11th. In that time, the 29-year-old has represented his country at Euro 2024 and made his competitive debut for the club, albeit that he was an unused substitute in their Bundesliga opener away at Wolfsburg.
He'll be a big miss for Fulham this season. He was their star man, a player who covered a lot of ground while also being a physical presence and someone who can pick a pass to start something from nothing.
They’ve kept Saša Lukić in a deeper role, partnering him with Andreas Pereira to play Smith Rowe as the no.10. The addition of Berge could see them change things around in the coming weeks, however.
The season so far
Fulham have done about as well as they could’ve hoped after two league games and a Carabao Cup tie.
They began the season with a daunting trip to Old Trafford, facing Manchester United in the Premier League curtain raiser on a warm Friday night. They battled hard and defended bravely, creating good chances on the counter. In the end, Joshua Zirkzee’s late strike saw them fall to a defeat against Erik ten Hag’s men.
A week later, they returned to Craven Cottage against newly-promoted Leicester City. They took an early lead through Smith Rowe but were pegged back by Wout Faes shortly before half time. However, their pressure told in the end, with Alex Iwobi bagging the winner with 70 minutes on the clock.
A Carabao Cup tie at Birmingham City gave them a chance to rotate the squad. Raúl Jimenez’s penalty came just four minutes before former Ipswich target Jay Stansfield doubled the lead against the side he was on loan at last season (ironically before sealing a reported £15m+ move back to the League One club on deadline day). It ended in a comfortable 2-0 win at St. Andrew’s.
After those three matches, they sit 10th in the Premier League table and have a cup trip to Championship side Preston North End to look forward to thanks to their victory against Birmingham.
Who could start?
Silva confirmed in his pre-match press conference that Fulham have no injury issues in their squad. That means everyone will be available for their trip to Suffolk.
Continuity has been key for Fulham, so it’s hard to see them moving away from the lineup that they’ve had in their last two league games. That’ll see former Arsenal shot-stopper Bernd Leno starting behind a back line of Kenny tete, Issa Diop, Calvin Bassey and Antonee Robinson.
In midfield, Lukic is expected to start alongside Pereira, with Smith Rowe playing a bit further up. He’ll probably have Iwobi on his left and Adama Traoré on his right, with Rodrigo Muniz leading the line.
They might not pose the same threats as Liverpool and Manchester City, but they boast a lot of quality and experience in the starting lineup and on the bench.
Possible XI: 4-2-3-1: Leno; Tete, Diop, Bassey, Robinson; Lukić, Pereira; Traoré, Smith Rowe, Iwobi; Muniz
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