Under the spotlight: Can in-form Fulham push for continental qualification?
A sense of momentum is starting to build at Craven Cottage.
Fulham put in their most complete performance of the season in last weekend’s 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest — their third consecutive victory in all competitions.
So can Marco Silva’s side mount a surprise push for Europe over the final months of 2024/25?
Ahead of the Whites’ clash with Crystal Palace on Saturday, we’ve put upwardly-mobile Fulham under the spotlight.
A statement performance
Fulham have pulled off some impressive results of the course of this season.
The West Londoners recorded a memorable 2-1 derby win against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, beat fellow European hopefuls Newcastle United home and away, and dented the title hopes of Liverpool (1-1) and Arsenal (2-2) with draws in consecutive weeks.
But Silva’s outfit had endured a challenging period on home soil before facing Nottingham Forest — failing to win in four attempts at Craven Cottage, including disappointing draws with relegation-battlers Southampton (0-0) and Ipswich Town (2-2).
There were no such struggles last Saturday, though.
The Whites amassed an eye-catching 21 shots against Nuno Espírito Santo’s high-flying outfit, while only allowing eight attempts on Bernd Leno’s goal.
If anything, the 2-1 scoreline flattered Forest, who lost the xG battle by 3.51 to 0.6 on the banks of the Thames.
This was a statement win against a team in the mix for Champions League qualification — and could well be a key milestone in Fulham’s own assault on the Premier League’s European spots.
Surprise stars
Silva has a penchant for improving previously underperforming talents, as evidenced by veteran winger Willian’s return to form across two seasons in West London.
He has recently re-signed with the Whites, of course, but it is two of the Portuguese tactician’s other charges who are catching the eye.
Speed merchant Adama Traoré, often criticised for a lack of end product, was in sensational form against Nottingham Forest.
The former Wolves man, 29, ran riot down the right flank, winning more attacking duels than any other player (7), completing the most dribbles (6) and — notably — completing the most crosses (4), one of which resulted in an assist for Emile Smith Rowe’s opener.
Raúl Jiménez, 33, then set up Fulham’s second of the afternoon, representing his 12th league goal contribution in 2024/25 (nine goals and three assists).
He is another player who has recaptured his form under Silva, having looked like a spent force at the top level after suffering an horrific head injury while at Wolves in 2020.
A commendable record of 0.47 goals per 90 is almost exactly in line with his average xG of 0.49, but the Mexican’s combative play in the final third has been just as crucial.
Fulham’s No7 ranks inside the Premier League’s top 10 players when it comes to both aerial duels (6.3) and loose ball duels (5.25) attempted per 90 this term.
Top performers
Not all of Fulham’s top talents are flying under the radar, with left-back Antonee Robinson garnering plenty of attention.
The 27-year-old is reportedly attracting admiring glances from England’s elite clubs — and it’s not hard to see why.
No top-flight player has attempted (138) or completed (58) more crosses this season, resulting in eight assists.
For context, that puts him third in the division’s assist chart, behind only Bukayo Saka (10) and Mohamed Salah (13).
Team-mate Saša Lukić’s contributions have perhaps been less well documented, though, despite the Serbian’s key role in the centre of the park.
Lukić’s importance to Fulham was encapsulated in his display against Nottingham Forest when, remarkably, he completed 100% of his 46 passes.
A master at regaining the ball before progressing play, only Timothy Castagne (20) completed more forward passes than the 28-year-old last weekend, while nobody could match his five shot assists across the 90 minutes.
European aspirations
The question now for Fulham is whether they can add a degree of consistency to a season of highs and lows.
Silva’s eighth-placed outfit have often performed well against offensive-minded teams, because they are arguably at their best when in transition.
But breaking down low blocks has been another matter entirely, with the Cottagers sometimes looking ponderous in possession.
Saturday’s opponents Crystal Palace fall somewhere between the two extremes with 11.96 passes per defensive action (PPDA) — and Fulham will take confidence from a 2-0 victory when the teams met at Selhurst Park in November.
The Eagles were woefully out of form back then, though, and have broadly been playing well of late, despite losing 2-1 at home to Everton last time out.
And Saturday will be the Whites’ last home match before a testing pair of away trips at Wolves and Brighton, either side of an FA Cup clash with Manchester United.
A positive set of results in that run will certainly have the Fulham faithful dreaming of a place in Europe next term, in the knowledge that eighth spot could be enough for continental qualification.
There are exciting times ahead, then, with the potential for 2024/25 to be a truly memorable season in SW6.
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