by Frustration was the overwhelming feeling at Fulham not long ago. Although they were always easy on the eye under Marco Silva, they were throwing away too many games to waste and it seemed inevitable that their campaign would be defined by the sale of Aleksandar Mitrovic last summer.
Mitrovic’s departure was a heavy blow for Silva. It was difficult to recover from the team’s focal point and main source of forcing goals through a move to the Saudi Pro League. There was clearly a void in attack, a weakness more evident than when Fulham outplayed Manchester United last month and missed a number of chances in the second half.
Related: Raúl Jiménez starts Fulham’s five-star comeback against West Ham
At that point the discussion could not have been focused on Fulham’s recruitment issues. They had plenty of neat attacking midfielders but what about a finisher? Carlos Vinícius has never been a regular starter and Rodrigo Muniz is 22 years old. As for Raúl Jiménez, signed on a free from Wolves last summer, it looked like Mexico’s best days were behind him when he went 12 games without scoring for his new team.
Against all odds, however, the mood has changed since Jiménez grabbed a consolation goal in Fulham’s 3-1 win over Aston Villa on 12 November. After scoring 10 times in their first 12 league games, Silva’s side scored 16 in their next four games, a run that began with a VAR-inspired 3-2 win over Wolves two weeks ago and a 4-3 loss to Liverpool before the climax. in successive 5-0 thrashings of Nottingham Forest and West Ham at Craven Cottage.
It was a remarkable turnaround from a team that was in danger of slipping into relegation trouble before the Wolves game. Fulham were flowing. After Silva guided them to the Championship title in 2022 and kept them up last season, he looked gloomy. The Portuguese has always been restless, a reputation earned during short spells at Hull and Everton, and a fretful transfer window has raised concerns. There were overtures from Saudi Arabia and, after the Mitrovic saga, Silva’s mind could have gone astray if his influential midfielder João Palhinha didn’t see a move to Bayern Munich fall through on deadline day.
But Silva, whose side visit Newcastle on Saturday, is one of the most underrated managers in the top flight. He has created a motivated, organised, intelligent side without access to big funds and Fulham, who scored 106 goals when they won the Championship, are flying again. They were unlucky against Liverpool, who denied Fulham with four stunners and a late fightback, while Forest and West Ham looked pathetic.
Silva claims that his approach has changed little. A bit modest? Well, he has made some interesting tactical tweaks. The fall of the 36-year-old Tim Ream, who has been vulnerable this season, was a significant move and he started Tosin Adarabioyo and Calvin Bassey in central defense against Forest and West Ham, while another Tom Cairney has a bigger role.
It can’t be a coincidence that Fulham were more fluent with them in the team. Adarabioyo, who was sidelined with a groin injury, is excited to develop a partnership with Bassey, who has taken a while to settle since joining Ajax. Both were physically dominant against Forest and West Ham but are also capable of getting the ball out. Cairney may not be the fastest midfielder but he is capable of unbalancing any defense with one flick of his powerful left foot.
Behind the Scot the Pereira is in charge. Retaining the Portuguese midfielder was crucial for Fulham, who have a much higher win ratio with him in the side. His presence gave Silva confidence to omit the snappy Harrison Reed and use Cairney’s creativity alongside attacking midfielder Andreas Pereira.
Likewise Silva is entitled to point out that some individuals have improved their game. Pereira has stirred after a quiet spell and Harry Wilson, a versatile winger, was excellent when called upon. They lead with four assists, and the excellent Antonee Robinson flies forward from left back to create three goals.
Links are building. Robinson may have defensive flaws but he links up well with the evergreen Willian on the left. Alex Iwobi, who joined from Everton in the summer, has been excellent on the right with three goals in four games.
But the biggest difference came from Jiménez. He hasn’t been the same since suffering a horrific head injury in 2020. But his natural ability was never in doubt and Fulham have brought a different dimension to his clever link-up play. While everything was focused on playing against Mitrovic’s strength and finding him in the box, there is more variety with Jiménez. That said, it’s easier to feel positive now that he’s scoring. He produced two fine finishes against Forest, including a clever backheel, and got the ball rolling against West Ham with an emphatic header.
It is too early to suggest that Fulham should not look to sign another striker in January. However there is less need now. The substitutes have made a significant contribution and there have been nine different scorers in the last four games. Sharing the load means Fulham are finally ready to move on from Mitrovic.
