- Last year’s finish: 11th
- First match: Saturday, August 16 10:00am ET @ Brighton
- Where they’ll be after five
- 7 pts. with 2W, 1D, 2L
Fulham appears to have shrugged off the “yo-yo club” label stuck to them after relegation in 2019 and 2021, but they’ve not quite graduated to “mid-table” status. Last season’s 11th place finish was certainly better than the year before (13th), but losing three of their last four isn’t exactly the type of momentum you want going into the break.
Transfer News
Fulham’s transfer window so quiet even the crickets have stopped chirping. The club has completed one signing, French goalkeeper Benjamin Lecompte. He’s not even a first-stringer; he’s been brought on as Bernd Leno’s backup. You’d have thought the entire soccer operations team took an extended vacation. Supporters are entirely justified wondering just what the hell is going on.
Ten players have departed Craven Cottage in the same spell, four out on loan and six permanent. Biggest among those is the Brazilian Willian, whose second term wasn’t the resounding success many thought it would be. Winger Lemar Gordon, who spent last season with the second team, opted to join League One’s Leyton Orient.
Season Outlook
Is it too much to ask that the club break last season’s points tally of 54? It shouldn’t be. On the flip side, will the defense be solid enough to not concede 54 goals like they did last season? Let’s hope so. If these two things come to pass, Fulham should finish in the top half and possibly be competing for a European spot. Unlike other squads, they do not have to integrate new recruits or a new system. There are no excuses.
Key Players
- Forward
- Raúl Jiménez, Adama Traoré and Rodrigo Muniz are the attacking trifecta that scored half of the teams goals last season. At minimum, they’ll need to be as productive.
- Midfield
- Silva’s preferred midfield attackers duo, Alex Iwobi and Andreas Pereira, are back.
- Emile Smith-Rowe will have to compete with them for minutes. He might be the club’s most expensive signing, but will need to generate more than last season’s 6g/3a.
- Serbian hardman Saša Lukić handles the defensive work above the centerbacks. He had 12 yellow cards last year, but only 0g/2a.
- And who could forget the heroics of super-sub Harry Wilson? The Welshman will need to make that type of impact on the regular and not just in stoppage time.
- Defense
- Antonee Robinson was hailed as a Trent Alexander-Arnold-esqe talent last year though his season was cut short by injury. His return will be a boost for the club (he registered 10 assists last season).
- Only 18 years old and 5’8”, Joshua King notched 2g/3a in 21 appearances for the Fulham second squad last year. Newly signed to a contract extension, he should be hitting the pitch for the first team more this season.
- All of them need to stanch the bleeding in the back.
- Goalkeeper
- Bernt Leno was (mostly) fantastic last season. Without his standout stops the team would have had a negative GD.
Other Bits
Many folks will be studying manager Marco Silva’s body language on the touch line. He’s been the gaffer for five years now, a long tenure in this day and age. When asked about this summer transfer window, the Portuguese gaffer has been politick but there’s an undercurrent of frustration in his replies.
Other Team Previews
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Aston Villa
Bournemouth
Brentford
Brighton & Hove Albion
Burnley
Chelsea
Crystal Palace
Everton
Liverpool
Leeds United
Manchester City
Manchester United
Newcastle United
Nottingham Forest
Sunderland
Tottenham Hotspur
West Ham United
Wolverhampton Wanderers
