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We’re basically out of the race for Europe, our manager’s got a foot out the door and we’re two days away from a dead-rubber against already-relegated Wolves.

It’s not been the most exciting week to be a Fulham fan - so imagine the joy when the first details of next season’s kit were leaked online!

Footy Headlines says our home shirt for next term will feature “a bespoke embossed graphic pattern” that “pays tribute to the club's deep and historic connection with the River Thames”.

It brings back memories of our famous tribute to the iconic Craven Cottage brickwork (which is literally just brickwork) on our mint green 2022/23 away kit that we wore [checks notes] zero times.

So iconic is the Craven Cottage brickwork that Standard Liege in Belgium also paid homage to it. Weird.

Anyway. It’s a slow week and we need content - so here are four other historic connections Fulham could have paid tribute to on the new home shirt.

1. Billy the badger

Who else? Emboss that giant nocturnal bastard on our chests for the world to see. He mugged off Avram Grant, he delayed the start of the second half against Aston Villa because he was too busy breakdancing like an absolute G, and he even found his long-lost sister through 23andMe earlier this season (whatever happened to her? #FindBella).

2. The Hammersmith End bogs

Imagine how chic it’d be to introduce streaks of yellow to the home shirt, symbolising the rivers of piss that stream through the troughs of the smelly, overcrowded, corridor-like toilets in our home end. You’d get more looks than you do when you line up to relieve yourself 30 minutes into the first half.

3. The neutral end

Heal the world, make it a better place (no, the Jacko statue isn’t on the list. This website has “articles for the thinking fan”, thank you very much). In a time of global division, what better way to show solidarity among football fans than by having two hands clasped together in a show of love and respect to symbolise the harmony that once existed deep in the Putney End?

4. Rollover hotdogs

What’s everybody’s favourite half-time snack? Oh, beer? Fair enough. Can I interest you in a Rollover hotdog? It’s been a Craven Cottage staple for years. The tangy mustard. The sausage, made from lips, arseholes and whatever else they could cobble together from a pig. Pure footballing heritage. And, if that connection wasn’t strong enough already, we do love to rollover when a side needs a win. Boom and a tish.

I think we can all agree that the club’s missed a trick here. Still, I’m super excited to see what other club sporting an Adidas Aeroready template will pay tribute to the Thames next season. My money’s on Eintracht Frankfurt.

George is joined by Jack on the Thursday Club to reflect on the current mood surrounding the club during this uncertain period, look ahead to Fulham’s dead-rubber match at Molineux, and answer your listener emails.

Guests:

George Cooper

Jack Collins

Producer:

Freddie Cooper

Listen on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music or Pocket Casts

Guests:

George Cooper

Jack Collins

Producer:

Freddie Cooper

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And now, the end is near. And so I face the final curtain…

The season is over (and no, I’m not getting sucked in, Joe Sansom). So, naturally, speculation surrounding Marco Silva is intensifying.

The engine of the managerial merry-go-round is cranking into life and the wheels are starting to turn.

An £8m-a-year offer is on the table from Fulham. That’s double current Marco’s annual salary. But money has never been Silva’s primary motivation. It’s personal progression.

Which makes the growing number of options available to him all the more tempting. And makes it almost certain he’s off (in my mind at least).

First, there’s Benfica. A return to his home country is an obvious pull, but not as strong as the chance to once again manage in the Champions League. With Jose Mourinho looking set to return to Real Madrid, this is the most obvious and likely option.

Then there’s Chelsea. They’re reportedly after Xabi Alonso, but are said to be “keen” on Marco. He’d certainly be keener on them, and would likely opt for them over Benfica, should he get the chance, even without European football. Every manager believes they’re the one who can fix the giant basket case.

Despite their Europa League run, Nottingham Forest are reportedly making eyes at Marco. Evangelos Marinakis is a long-time admirer and is said to be keen to change his ways and find a man in the dugout who he can back long term. They have history, though - which could work in Forest’s favour (or against them).

So, if money is unlikely to be a deciding factor, what about greater control over transfers? That’s apparently also on the table for Silva as the club becomes increasingly agitated to tie their man down.

The seeds of that control are already evident. Players like Oscar Bobb and Kevin were reportedly Marco calls. Neither have made the impact he’d have liked so far (we’ll give both the benefit of the doubt here). Is control enough to keep Silva in SW6? I’m not sure it is.

The most concerning element of this whole saga is that it doesn’t seem like we’re planning for the long term while we wait for an answer. Reports claim we’re interested in former Chelsea left-back Filipe Luis if Silva walks. A man who’s barely 100 games into his managerial career. He’s won silverware, but the caveat is that it came at Brazilian giants Flamengo. It’s not lighting my fire.

That flame isn’t going to be stoked any further by reports we’re set to offer Raul Jimenez a short-term deal for next season.

Look - I agree with everything that’s been said about Raul. He’s been fantastic value, perhaps even a cult hero. But where’s the vision? Where’s the forward thrust? We are treading water.

Jack Collins rightly replied to my previous piece calling for Silva to make a decision by reminding us all we still had work to do. Well, there’s no more work to be done.

So I say again: make a call, Marco. Yes, you’re a man who prides himself on doing it ‘your way’, but it’s time to show this club some respect. No one would begrudge you calling time on a five-year project at the end of your contract. You have successfuly shed the tag of a manager whose head is on a swivel and could leave at a moment’s notice.

Whatever you decide, do it soon. Don’t taint your legacy by damaging your relationship with the fans.

Jack and Joe are back to break down Fulham’s defeat to Bournemouth, discuss why this summer could become a major sliding doors moment for the club, and react to the growing rumours linking Marco Silva with a move to Benfica.

Guests:

Jack Kelly

Joe Sansom

Producer:

Freddie Cooper

Guests:

Jack Kelly

Joe Sansom

Producer:

Freddie Cooper

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I’ve been looking at Fulham’s most recent set of financial reports and found out some very concerning numbers related to Fulham’s ticket sales. You can also look at the reports - just go here to start. This is the first in a series of (shorter) articles I’m going to write about what I’ve found in the financial reports.

Fulham files reports on its finances for the previous financial year to the UK Government in the spring. Last month, it released data about financial results for last year (2025). The club offers comparisons to results for 2024 in these statements.

The ownership structure for the club is somewhat complicated in terms of financial reporting (more to come on this) - i.e., there are several different financial entities. For this piece, I’m relying on the 2025 report for “Fulham Football Club Limited”, which is the entity that runs the club (essentially).

The club reports on several key metrics for the year in the report because “the directors consider these (indicators) to be the most useful measure of performance as they link the on-field performance of the team to financial results achieved by the company.”

One of these key metrics is total attendance and, as you can see, the report notes that from 2024 to 2025, the team increased its attendance by 2,515 people per game. Presumably, some of this increase is due to the Riverside Stand opening up fully in 2024/25.

Someone who’s friends with Alistair Mackintosh might say “Good job, attendance is up!” However, further in the report, the club states the following:

As you can see from above, the club’s revenue from “gate receipts” went down from £18.39m in 2024 to £18.01m in 2025. Gate receipts include revenue from season ticket sales (according to the report) and, I am assuming, matchday ticket sales.

And, this happened despite total attendance increasing from 461,916 to 509,689 from 2024 to 2025.

Now, while I do have an MBA (and am a former business journalist), I am not an accountant and could be missing something. But, it looks like the club reported somehow making less money in 2025 from ticket sales while increasing attendance. They made less while charging more to get into the Cottage (and having more seats to sell).

I don’t know about you, but the one argument I at least understand about higher ticket prices (I don’t agree with it but I do understand it) is that because of looming SCR rules, the club needs to do everything it can to generate more revenue including higher ticket prices so it can bring in the players we need to compete, continue to stay up and, hopefully, get better and get to Europe.

I personally don’t think the amount of revenue generated by higher ticket prices is worth the trade-off of losing longtime fans, the impact on the atmosphere at the games (by having so many one-off tourists attending games instead of real fans) and the negative impact on the community, but I get it.

I don’t get raising ticket prices and losing money. This is a lose-lose situation. If true, it means the club has been alienating fans for no reason and actually making itself less financially secure as a result.

To be clear, the report does not state why gate receipts decreased in 2025. One clue as to what might be happening is found in the “deferred income” section of the report

As you can see, deferred income from “season ticket sales in advance” decreased from £9.19m in 2024 to £8.96m in 2025. Of course, the team could simply be changing how and what it accounts for deferred income, but it does seem strange that the team is reporting making less money from selling advance season tickets despite having more inventory and more expensive season ticket packages (e.g. more than £3,000 for a season ticket in the Riverside). So, possibly, higher prices - or other factors - could be negatively impacting season ticket sales and total sales.

Looking back a bit, you can see that this could be the start of a trend. Advance season ticket sales have been declining since the club increased its prices by 18% for the 2023/24 season and while they overcame this loss for that season, with overall gate receipts, potentially, the continued negative impact of higher ticket prices meant that the club lost money as of the 2024/25 season (when the club raised prices by another 4%).

It’s kind of incredible when you put all the data for the different seasons, side by side.

Attendance has gone up but the club is making less money. It looks like Fulham made a mistake by increasing ticket prices so dramatically and ended up alienating its existing fanbase while not finding a new one. And, then after that happened they have not really tried to repair the damage done with long-time fans. Perhaps, the club fixed things for the 2025/26 season, somehow? We will see.

Regardless, the club should explain what happened and have an honest dialogue with the fanbase about the effect of higher prices on revenue and the club.

Fulham’s pricing strategy may be backfiring not only for the fans (i.e., those who can no longer afford to attend games) but also for the club’s financial performance, which would be really unfortunate and stupid.

If anyone else, who is an accountant (or affiliated with the club) can explain what is happening and how the new ticket strategy is working (or not working) to help make the club stronger and more sustainable financially, please do so in the comments.

C’mon Fulham (we can do better than this)!

George is joined by Luke, Dom and Oscar to reflect on a devastating defeat to Bournemouth, where Fulham’s European dreams came crashing down. The team discuss Joachim Andersen’s ridiculous red card just before half time, Fulham’s continued inability to create clear cut chances, and what this result could mean for Marco Silva’s future at the club, including whether it might finally be time for a managerial change this summer.

Guests:

George Cooper

Luke Resch

Dom Betts

Oscar O’Kane

Producer:

Freddie Cooper

It’ll take a long time to recover from Saturday.

It was a unique and ultimately disgusting cocktail of circumstances - when Timothy Castagne’s excellent footwork drew the red card tackle from Ryan Christie, I was cheering in the stands, but in the back of my mind I had the most Fulhamish thought of all: “I wonder how we’ll manage to throw this advantage away.”

In my most pessimistic brain, I thought maybe we’d concede a freak Cherries goal against the run of play, and they’d resolutely defend their way to all three points. It would have been horrible, but I could have just about handled it.

But even in my worst nightmares, I never thought we’d Joachim Andersen’s tackle on Adrien Truffert barely 10 minutes later (Adrien Truffert, btw, one goal in 3,200 minutes this season). Potentially the greatest act of stupidity we’ve seen from a Fulham player on the Craven Cottage pitch since Kamara fought with Mitrovic about who’d take a crucial penalty against Huddersfield in December 2018.

There’s almost nothing else to say about the game after that: much like the 2-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge in August, where Josh King’s incorrectly disallowed goal was the only talking point from the game, Andersen’s red card feels like the only thing worth discussing. We looked at the gifthorse and slapped it across the face, and the whole game hinged on that moment. Yes, we could discuss Silva’s baffling substitution of Tom Cairney or the much-awaited return of Kevin, but it all feels a bit secondary.

I don’t want to pile on the negativity, but Europe’s over, isn’t it? Sammy and I spent a long time last week pouring over the permutations in the Thursday Club, but only one permutation ended up being necessary: we had to beat Bournemouth on Saturday to have a chance. The only optimist left in the Fulhamish camp, Joe Sansom, has drawn up the scenario where Fulham can still get into Europe, but even he’s admitted that it’s not going to happen. A 3.8% chance, apparently…

It’s a fractured fanbase as attention turns towards the summer, especially around the future of Marco Silva. For what feels like the first time in five years, the fan sentiment around Silva seems to be leaning into the red; we’re unhappy, let him go. “It’s not like he wants to be here anyway!”. As the action on the pitch peters out for the season, the noise around the manager feels even more heightened.

Last week I spoke on the Thursday Club and the Quick Take about how I feel about Fulham being Marco Silva’s back-up option. Honestly, like a lot of Fulham fans, I’ve found the press conference quotes a little bit galling: on Friday when he was asked about his future, he said “It’s always (about) what is best for the club.” Rightttttt...

But that doesn’t take away from my core belief: yes, I am alright with Fulham being Marco Silva’s back-up option, if I really drill down into it. I’ve spent my life as a Fulham fan - it would be my dream to walk out of the tunnel or stand in the dugout, of course it would be - but that’s emotional and based upon years of my own and my family’s history, and I wouldn’t expect our players or manager to feel the same.

I understand our position in the food chain of the Premier League. We’ve missed out on Europe four years in a row, and not made it to Wembley either. I understand, objectively, wanting to move to a club which has competed for trophies and is regularly in European competitions. In my heart, of course I hate it. I hate to think that our manager's mind is elsewhere, and it makes my stomach churn to think that ‘elsewhere’ might be the wrong half of SW6.

We received a comment about how this mentality - the mentality that, through gritted teeth, I’m alright with Fulham being Silva’s second-choice option - is holding Fulham back massively. I just can’t get on board with that. Firstly, I just don’t think fans’ mentality has any impact on the direction of the club: beyond making a lot of noise in the stands (on that, I try my hardest with my limited vocal abilities), there’s nothing we can really do to impact outcomes on the pitch. Secondly, and this isn’t comfortable, but I think we should be targeting ambitious managers who think that they can do better than a mid-table club like Fulham in the long term.

And thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, it’s easy to blame the public figurehead at the club, but I don’t think our lack of ambition comes from Silva. Yes, he has made calamitous mistakes during his time as manager, like against Southampton in the cup in March (not on Saturday though - that comes down to Andersen). For me, that doesn’t feel like the whole story. The number of players that have been improved or rejuvenated under Silva - Mitrovic, Kebano, Ream, Odoi, Willian, Jimenez, Lukic, Wilson, even Muniz for a time - doesn’t feel like a coincidence.

Fulham doesn’t have the high-efficiency transfer strategy of Bournemouth, Brighton, and Brentford - I don’t know whether that’s down to lack of elite-quality data-analysts, or ownership interest, or something else. Most of Fulham’s departures have been ageing players who we’ve wrung every last drop out of. Many of our big-money, younger, signings have arrived without a pre-season and sufficient time to embed. With the obvious caveat that he hasn’t always been perfect, we can credit Silva with so much rejuvenation during his time at Fulham - and, arguably, he’s overperformed consistently at Fulham.

When we talk about Fulham’s lack of ambition, I worry that we’re looking in the wrong place.

Yes, let’s talk about Silva, who clearly wants to move elsewhere - and that doesn’t feel good. But let’s also worry about a jumbled transfer strategy and a new manager being thrust into the helm. Apart from Marco Silva, the Khans haven’t got a managerial appointment right since Slavisa Jokanovic.

If I’m being honest, I’m starting to worry…

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These ratings are going to read like an obituary; a farewell to an era that will be looked back on fondly, in time, but yesterday probably hit its lowest low.

It was evident from minute one that Fulham had turned up. The virus seemed to have been shaken, the players were out to prove a point. We had the upper hand and played some lovely stuff. Fulham were still unable to create clear cut chances but the signs were really positive.

Ryan Christie’s clumsy challenge on Timo rightly saw him walk and we were ready to win the first of our three must win games. What happened 10 seconds from the end of the half thumped all of the energy out of the ground and we never recovered. 11 v 11 Fulham were the better team, 11v10 was a godsend, 10v10 was a death sentence.

Bournemouth showed that they possess that edge that we lack and it’s why they are unbeaten in 16 and getting ready for a European adventure. The only positive really is that the new European Entry/Exit System is a nightmare and I hope they all get stuck in massive passport queues on their lovely trips.

Once again, for these Player Ratings, we’re also giving you the scores voted by Fulham Fanalyists on the excellent Fanalysis app.

Download the Fanalysis app for free here: https://onelink.to/hjvnj8

Bernd Leno

I’ve seen questions over whether Bernd should have saved Rayan’s deflected pot shot. I’m going to flash my goalkeeper’s union card and say that he’s unsighted and then wrong footed by the deviation, and therefore I won’t mark him down for it. I will mark him down for his distribution however, which at times put his teammates under unnecessary pressure against a high energy Bournemouth side.

Fulhamish Rating: 6/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 58/100

Timothy Castagne

The first half hour of this game was quite funny as both sides clearly saw the opposition’s right back as their biggest weakness. This meant Timo was constantly targeted with balls in behind him which I thought he dealt with well actually. His cross for Muniz merited an assist; possibly the only good cross we put in all afternoon. A solid, unremarkable performance, which is ok.

Fulhamish Rating: 6.5/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 64/100

Joachim Andersen

Unforgivable. An utterly disgraceful challenge that is totally inexplicable given the context of the game and the fact that he is one of the senior leaders in this side.

You can analyse this game to the nth degree, you can criticise Fulham for their impotence in front of goal, criticise Marco Silva for stale tactics. Ultimately though, there is one player who I see as solely responsible for the result yesterday and that’s Joachim Andersen

His season is defined by an inexcusable red card in the biggest league game of our season and a pathetic foul in the box in the biggest cup game of our season. Those two actions will not be forgotten.

Fulhamish Rating: 0/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 9/100

Calvin Bassey

I think it’s poor the way that Calvin dips his shoulder towards Rayan’s shot and he’ll be disappointed with the half-hearted effort.

However, one of the few players that I think deserves credit today, particularly in the second half. When down to ten men, Bassey didn’t just fulfil the role of two players, but arguably three. He carried out his centre-back duties, alongside playing as a left-back and even left winger when we had the ball. He was desperate to spark some inspiration into our performance and I commend him for that. He’s a player who wears his heart on his sleeve and I think we need more characters like him.

He’s by no means been perfect this year, but finding him a quality partner will go a long way to firming up our back line next season.

Fulhamish Rating: 7/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 69/100

Antonee Robinson

The Jedi of old, but the unrefined version, not the player of the season edition. Defensively I thought he was good, with Bournemouth having little joy down his flank. It was reassuring after his calamitous afternoon in North London.

Going forward it was a horrible throwback. On numerous occasions he marauded forward into troubling positions before delivering woeful crosses. Four crosses, none of them found a white shirt. When your game plan is so strongly built around your left-back creating chances, it falls flat if they’re unable to capitalise on the space they’ve found. The cross that went out for a goal kick when we were chasing the game which was subsequently greeted by numerous boos sums up his performance.

Fulhamish Rating: 5/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 52/100

Sasa Lukic

A mixed bag from Sasa. Definitely an improvement from the Emirates but not at the levels that we saw against Villa. Weirdly, I thought he was poorest when Fulham were on top in the first half, unable to reliably control the ball and retain possession.

In the second half he improved and tried his best to get Fulham ticking, clearly frustrated at the lethargy in our approach. He was utterly gassed by the end and took one of the most feeble corners you’ll ever see; he looked dejected when he realised he’d only just about kicked it as far as the 18-yard box.

Fulhamish Rating: 6/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 63/100

Tom Cairney

I wasn’t sure if it was a game that would suit him as a result of the tempo that the Cherries play at. I was wrong. He played 27 more passes and had 19 more touches than any player on the pitch today, on either side.

People may say that they were all sideways but I thought Tom was the metronome that we needed and it was his teammates lacking the finesse and guile that he has that cost us, not TC controlling the midfield. Did exactly what was asked of him and we lost control when he was replaced.

Fulhamish Rating: 7/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 63/100

Harry Wilson

A performance that has prompted a lot of fans to say “thanks for everything, but if you want to go, that’s fine by us”. He was largely anonymous with no real urgency or intent when he had the ball.

It’s the sort of performance that wouldn’t garner many opinions, but when he’s flirting with other clubs during this pivotal part of our season, it’s a very bad look.

Probably the best decision Silva made today was dragging H off after 60 minutes, something hasn’t done much this season.

Fulhamish Rating: 4/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 49/100

Samuel Chukwueze

Samu was the sacrificial lamb for the post-match Riverside appearance and he contributed more in his conversation with Ivan than on the right flank.

He roamed about the pitch far too much, crowding central areas and leaving us without an attacking presence out wide. He’s making life easy for full-backs at the moment, refusing to take them on and always taking the safe option.

Where he really screwed up was for the goal. Robinson delegated Rayan to our winger as he dealt with Adam Smith. The lack of effort he shows to close down their mercurial talent was an embroidered invite to have a shot, which he gladly accepted to drive his side towards Europe.

I’m now firmly in the “do not sign” camp, as the electric Samu we saw months ago feels like he was on a hot streak, rather than a true depiction of the player he is. Maybe another manager will change that.

Fulhamish Rating: 4/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 58/100

Emile Smith Rowe

Looked forlorn at half time when he walked over to the subs bench in his trackies. He was unfortunately the obvious substitution but that wasn’t a slight on his performance.

He was energetic and found good pockets of space, that caused Bournemouth problems. He set the tempo with his press which was great to see.

However, I think I’m setting the bar too low for what we should demand from Emile. Those should be non-negotiables what we need is a spark and he’s not providing that to a high enough standard. Another tidy display but he needs to start finding ways to seriously impact games.

Fulhamish Rating: 6/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 63/100

Rodrigo Muniz

Yikes. 858 minutes, one Premier League goal. If you’re scrambling to remember that goal, it’s because it was on the 16th August, our first game of the season.

He has struggled with injuries and I feel so bad for him because he is such a likeable guy, but these performances are rough to watch. The header that he shunts wide is one that he gobbles up when on song, and his holdup play was so far short of Raul’s, who we sorely missed today.

We won’t be seeing €40m bids for him this summer, so I think we should get around him and try and inspire the player that, when at his best, is more than good enough. We’ve said it so many times since he joined the club but he’s in one of those patches where he simply needs a goal.

Fulhamish Rating: 4/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 44/100

Subs and Manager

Issa Diop

Did fine, but I think he dwelled on the ball far too long, especially when we were desperate for a goal. The silver lining of the Andersen red card is that Issa will get these last two games to further prove that he should never have been dropped and is a better option than the Dane.

Fulhamish Rating: 5.5/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 63/100

Kevin

Can’t help thinking how different the past couple of months could have been had this little dancer been fit. He’s so raw and he will frustrate with poor decisions and/or execution, but he made a difference when he came on.

We finally exposed 35-year-old Adam Smith at right back and his flair finally made us look vaguely threatening. Such a tough first season, but this kid could fly over the next few years.

Fulhamish Rating: 6.5/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 69/100

Oscar Bobb

Shock horror, Bobb plays in his preferred position and looks like a good footballer. He needs to improve his weaker foot but today he looked like a player that we signed from Man City.

Some of the interplay and intelligence that he showed out on the left was exciting, and like Kevin, it raises my hopes for future performances. Gutting that after some delightful jinking he skied his shot over the bar, when it was begging for him to just curl it into the corner, but we undoubtedly improved when he replaced Wilson.

If Wilson is to leave for pastures new this summer, which feels very likely, then Bobb should start instead of him for our final two fixtures.

Fulhamish Rating: 6.5/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 62/100

Josh King

It’s been apparent for months, but this is the guy that you built the next era of Fulham around. He is an immense talent who has an unfortunate knack of being impossibly unlucky.

He tried his best when he came on to bring some pace to our play but his work ethic to chase all the way back and stop Bournemouth going two up was the perfect depiction of a player who cares so much about our club.

How his thunderbolt doesn’t go over the line, I’ll never know, but he’s an absolute star who we need to allow to shine.

Fulhamish Rating: 6.5/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 68/100

Jonah Kusi Asare came on too late to be fairly rated, but it was nice to see him.

Marco Silva

We are witnessing the end of a marvellous era. The second best Fulham manager of my lifetime, who I will always love. It’s just such a shame that it’s going to end meekly, with a lot of distaste among the fans.

He will get criticised for today, but for 48 minutes and 50 seconds, he was curating a vital win. His leading centre-back let him down, but he does keep picking him despite ample evidence showing that he shouldn’t.

In the second half he didn’t find the solutions we needed. We needed our manager to get us over the line and in the last 15 minutes we played some truly abhorrent football, with a totally incoherent assortment of 10 players. He might have had the best of Iraola from the beginning, but he was out-coached by the end.

This has still been a positive season for Fulham and fans would do well to not take 50+ Premier League points for granted. Since joining Marco has fixed a club that could only dream of finishing 17th to one that is disappointed to not finish seventh. He’s become a victim of his own success in some ways, but this is another year that will be remembered for a limp towards the finish line while others find their second wind and dash past us.

Fulhamish Rating: 4.5/10
Fulham fans on Fanalysis: 48/100

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Another game ends in defeat, another week ends with Fulham rooted in midtable, another season appears to be ending with our club watching our contemporaries take themselves into Europe. One of them, Bournemouth, are the victors today - a 1-0 win pushing Andoni Iraola’s soon-to-be-former side another step towards the hallowed ground of midweek football on the continent. A promising start to the afternoon turned sour, as a temporary man-advantage was evaporated by an utterly avoidable red card for Joachim Andersen, and our familiar feebleness in the face of a challenge let Rayan strike a goal for Bournemouth to turn into victory. Marco Silva cut a forlorn figure on the sidelines - our season shows ominous signs of petering out entirely.

First Half

Unbeaten since January, Bournemouth arrived at the Cottage with solid ambitions of Europe - possibly even the Champions League - ringing in their ears. Fulham would need a stronger performance than their whimpering afternoon at Arsenal if they were to realise their own continental ambitions. Thankfully, the London sunshine stirred a bit of life in the team, and we started confidently with the ball, moving nicely around the pitch and earning a couple of corners that gave Cairney and Wilson the chance to strike volley at goal, albeit to no avail.

Bournemouth aren’t in such a lofty position through chance, and Iraola’s tactics weren’t stumped through our possession. Long aerial balls from technicians like Senesi swung into our final third, attempting to advantage Castagne with the pace of Evanilson, Tavernier and Truffert probing our flank. Their physical proficiency let them activate their moves when they successfully stole the ball from us, moving tenaciously in midfield and working the ball quickly to their forwards. Scott did this well, working a quick ball to Tavernier that was blasted over by the winger, and another that Rayan might have burrowed into shooting position with had Robinson not diligently warded the winger out of play.

But these were against the run of play. Cairney’s reintroduction brought us a smoothness across the pitch, anchoring the team in midfield and keeping Bournemouth chasing the play. The sight of US national coach Mauricio Pochettino in the stands seemed to lift Robinson, who had some of his old energy back travelling down the wing. This let Chukwueze play a more flexible role, getting into attacking positions on both wings to force open cracks in Bournemouth’s defence. With Lukic prowling around productively and Smith Rowe linking play around the attack, Fulham moved into a range of dangerous positions across the half.

Not for the first time though, our forwards couldn’t find the edge. Castagne, enjoying his best run of form for some time, overlapped behind Tavernier to take a pass from Castagne on the right wing - his cross was delectable, travelling straight into Muniz’s path, but the Brazilian’s finish was blunt and knocked the ball wide of the post from a very scorable position. His stature was proving difficult for Senesi and Hill to handle, but the execution and selection of his touches was wayward - an elaborate bicycle kick from a Lukic corner looked fancy but didn’t trouble or even reach Petrovic, and needed more from the striker. Wilson struggled too - his footwork got him into good positions but hesitating in pursuit of the perfect shot let Truffert, and even Scott on one occasion, catch up and snuff out the move.

Yet Bournemouth offered us a lifeline. Castagne had been productive down the right and midfielder Christie tried to eliminate the danger with a slide tackle on the fullback. It was rough, travelling several metres with his feet off the ground, and his studs planted into Castagne’s heel. Referee Andy Madley awarded a yellow card; VAR’s intervention allowed him to see the danger of the challenge, and the sanction was upgraded to a red. It was a huge boost for Fulham, and looked to send the hosts into the break with the wind in their sails. We might have taken the lead - the eventual free kick was worked short by Wilson and Chukwueze, before the former lifted a nice ball into the box that Andersen’s header looped into the bar. Moments later, some industry from Robinson led to a long shot from Lukic with enough power to force Petrovic into a dive. Everything looked set up to give Fulham a chance to flex their advantage over Bournemouth in the second half.

If only football was so kind. With the half almost over, time ticking away in the stoppages, a clever turn from Tavernier on Castagne led to Andersen throwing himself at Truffert to stop the move. Madley awarded a yellow, Bournemouth’s players furiously swarmed the referee, and the replays demonstrated why - Andersen had leapt off his feet, both feet off the ground, and though he’d managed to take the ball, enough of his feet had struck Truffert to cause serious damage. VAR’s intervention was inevitable, and to our dismay the red card was produced for our centre-back, our first of the season. He trudged off, deflating our mood, and had Rayan put his header from Tavernier’s freekick on-target instead of wide the atmosphere may have been terminal.

Second Half

Our advantage had dissipated in minutes and despite being level with our visitors the nature of the red card felt like a critical blow. Bournemouth had withdrawn a peripheral Evanilson for the industrious Tyler Adams, bolstering their midfield - to introduce Diop, our sacrifice was Emile Smith Rowe, perhaps unfortunate to be swapped out given his performance had been better than his fellow attackers. It was a quick restart, too - a Bassey run along the left saw Rayan divert a ball away from Wilson for an early corner, and from the clearance Truffert took play from his own half all the way to our goal, moving from a wide right position to take an effort at goal that Leno had to smother. There was more space on the pitch through the double dismissal and the players tried to make the most of it. Robinson, showcasing more of his pace, collected a pass at the halfway line and ran beyond Smith, turning Hill in the box, but the defence had closed up the space to the degree that the left-back’s eventual shot was take with his weaker foot and easily dealt with.

This space, however, suited Bournemouth’s athletic runners more than our patient possession. There’s something to be said about the lack of genuine pace in our team, the raw ability to barrel forward with a few touches, and with the levers of control weakened our grasp on the game started to slip from where it had been in the first half. A pointless yellow card from Muniz pulling Senesi down seemed to be the catalyst - Bournemouth flooded forward, eating up the grass in our half by pushing their fullbacks up and stepping into our half with intent. Wilson found himself outmuscled on the wings (with his complaints for a foul ignored), letting Tavernier move the ball centrally for Kroupi for the young Frenchman to turn and shoot at goal. It beat Leno, and only the crossbar could stop the shot going in.

It was a stark warning, and one Fulham failed to heed. Senesi carried the ball out of defence, playing it to the productive Truffert in an advanced position on the left. He crossed the ball deep, slightly too far for Rayan to reach, but Smith collected it on the right flank, moving it back to Rayan tucked slightly more centrally. Striding just enough away from Chukwueze, the winger made the angle and blasted the ball straight at goal, deflecting off Bassey with enough of a degree to fly beyond Leno’s dive. The goal sucked the life out of the team for a moment - Chukwueze had the ball stolen from him by Rayan on the wings, feeding Tavernier for a shot Leno had to stop, and a clever pass from Truffert let the winger work himself past Diop and angle an effort Leno again needed to repel from the goal.

We needed changes, and a Robinson cross shanked behind the goal brought them. Kevin and Bobb arrived for a tired Chukwueze and a flat Wilson, and injected a little more dynamism and speed into the wings. Bobb was involved immediately, cutting inside from Truffert and playing a one-two with Lukic to have a shot from inside the D, but in the rush lifted it too high. A bit of energy in midfield gave us the impetus we needed, and Kevin’s eagerness to get involved put Bournemouth on the back foot at last, forcing Adams, Scott and the pacey front line backwards to support the defence and taking the pressure off Diop and a valiant Bassey. Finding a bit of space, Cairney slammed a shot into Adams for a corner, and Bobb did similar from a volley following its clearance. A clever combination from Robinson and Kevin eliminated Rayan and took the Brazilian away from Smith, but the cross was caught well by Petrovic, who also punched a Kevin shot and a Castagne cross over his bar.

King arrived for the fatigued Cairney and took his energy straight into the game, linking up nicely around the pitch and playing a direct set of passes across the pitch. Arguably his defensive contribution was his biggest impact: a scuppered corner let Kroupi break from defence, moving the ball onto Rayan before Robinson could haul him down, Rayan drove forward, skipping into the box around our team before Castagne tackled him as he aimed for goal, and but for King’s clearance away from Adams and block from Truffert’s shot in the rebound, we’d have gone 2-0 down.

The game had become increasingly scrappy - yellow cards for Lukic, Scott, Robinson and King punctuated the half, and a Bournemouth triple substitution let them pour their efforts into disrupting our play and carrying them across the finish line. In all honesty another day might have seen them extend their lead - a brilliant pass through the lines by Hill saw Adli latch onto the ball in the box, felled by Leno in the aftermath and demand a penalty, only denied by an offside flag. Our dominance of possession was shut out by a well-organised Bournemouth, who were undeterred by us pouring our players forward in the knowledge that we weren’t able to react quick enough to the pockets of space left available.

Kusi-Asare arrived for Castagne in a desperate attempt to find the equaliser as time slipped away. A deluge of cheap free-kicks and half-hearted corners were spurned by us in the closing stages, some failing to clear the first man, most well defended by Bournemouth, all failing to cause trouble for Petrovic. Bournemouth, again, produced more from their counter attacks against our open defence, Unal sliding a cross across the box that would have been an easy tap-in for Adli in any other circumstance. With minutes to go in stoppage time, a long throw from Robinson was bundled out of a congested box, Bobb headed it rightwards for King to overlap, the youngster wriggled away from the noise to angle his body and blast a shot over Petrovic, smacking the underside of the bar… and bouncing narrowly in front of the line, letting Bournemouth head the ball away. The resulting corner produced another long-throw, the long-throw produced a foul, and Bournemouth’s free kick produced the final whistle, and another defeat for Marco Silva.

Game over?

Is that Andersen’s last game for Fulham? There will be a non-zero portion of the crowd that believe it ought to be. You won’t find many more obvious catalysts in football his sending off today - from flexing our muscles against a panicking Bournemouth to killing the mood of the team and putting Bournemouth back into contention. His individual errors have plagued us all season and there will be serious questions about his suitability for us as a starting centre-back from here, particularly given the contrast to the performance of Calvin Bassey, whose confident athleticism kept Evanilson and Kroupi from goal on multiple occasions today.

It’s a shame, because I actually think the backline was alright if you ignore the Dane. Robinson had a much improved game handling Rayan and Castagne fought valiantly along the wing to divert the energy of Truffert and Tavernier across the game. Even the goal relied on an element of luck, taking a deflection off a player to confuse Leno, and Bournemouth only started to seriously challenge the keeper after the red cards and with Fulham chasing the game. They were let down by the static play of the players in front of them - not for the first time, our energy was far below that of our opponents, leading to a lull that Bournemouth were able to advantage in their stronger period around the goal. Cairney, much as we love him, is not the man you want cleaning up around the box in the face of danger, and distance covered and danger defused by Scott and Adams demonstrates the difference.

On this point, there are serious concerns that have to be held about our attack. For as much as Andersen holds a lot of the blame for his error today, far too much of the match was spent listless and unproductive, cautiously moving the ball around without enough impetus to challenge our opponents. Muniz wasted his early chances and was shut out of the game by Hill and Senesi. Wilson has played dozens of games consecutively and has seemingly run out of magical moments, leading to deeply vapid and ineffectual moves along his wing. Chukwueze’s quality took place 50 metres away from the goal, and he lacks the confidence to take on the keeper - contrast this to Tavernier and goalscorer Rayan, and a major part of our recent goal paucity can be realised. Smith Rowe, the best of the front four, was missed in the second half, and whilst Cairney looked cool on the ball his legs can’t be trusted for a full game any more.

Things were better with the youngsters on - Bobb showed his Guardiola tuition on the wing, Kevin at least has the inventiveness to try and take on the full-back directly and King understands where to be for positive play to take place - but they aren’t reliable goalscorers, and the fact we’ve lost so many points this season in marginal games like this demonstrate it. The team are lacking the extra gear that takes them from a mid-table team to seriously competing for the European spaces like Bournemouth, Brighton and Brentford are, and the fact we are within touching distance both on and off the pitch makes it infuriating to watch.

The Bourne(mouth) Identity

On the topic of Europe, Bournemouth are two games away from wrapping up qualification entirely. 55 points leaves them in 6th, still in touching distance of the absolute-guaranteed Champions League places, and despite Iraola’s imminent departure a fantastic side has been built for his successor to work with. We read a lot about smart transfer policies and Bournemouth certainly have one - every player that started today fits the profile of the modern Premier League footballer, with physical strength, pace on and off the ball and technical flexibility to move around the pitch with comfort and ease. They haven’t lost points in the absence of Semenyo, they didn’t miss certain suspended right-backs, and if coveted assets like Scott or Kroupi are pinched their conveyor belt of talent on the bench is well-placed to take the stage and continue the action themselves.

It wasn’t all smooth-sailing today, of course - Christie dented his good start with a horrific challenge, spared the scrutiny only because Andersen did similar minutes later, and if the team are to play European football next season they will need to erase such errors from the game. For all the pace and energy the finishing was poor - taking Evanilson off, whilst probably the right call, did mean a bolt from the blue from Rayan was needed to finish one of the chances the visitors produced, many of which could have given them an easier finish.

But it matters not - the overall acumen from the team is strong, be it Kroupi’s flair, Tavernier and Rayan’s pacey runs, the intelligence and versatility of Scott, the general-like presence of Adams, the diligent defending of Hill and Smith or the vision and awareness of Senesi and Truffert. It’s a great team, and they are about to achieve something we’ve dreamed of for some time in a far quicker turnaround. If Marco Silva wishes to stay on as our manager then one can only hope he learns something from the pragmatism and energy of our opponents today, because the Premier League exists for teams like this to advantage, and we are being left behind in their wake.

It’s clear that despite some thinking that Fulham’s season would be done and dusted by March, we’re now into the merry month of May, and Fulham’s season is still alive and kicking - with three games to go!

Last weekend was awful. A miserable evening in north London (forever) where the game was sewn up by half-time. Slumped in my seat, I had to endure the Arsenal fan’s joy, while reading through justified angry and disgruntled comments from the Fulham faithful.

I had to regrettably miss a David Bowie tribute act evening that night at the Half Moon in Putney (of Fulhamish live podcast fame) due to the evening kick-off. The performance from Fulham lacked any Starman in black and white, with Marco Silva’s side constantly under pressure at the Emirates.

But, because of the ridiculous nature of this season’s Premier League, Fulham still have a shot at the big time - Europe. It’s still on but, for about the millionth time, this is their last chance. We have to win. Some have explained that a draw is fine, as long as we win our next two. That may be the case, but I’d much rather be walking out of the Cottage tomorrow with all three points.

Not only is Europe still on, but all three of the UEFA competitions are up for grabs. Permutations upon permutations upon permutations. Sifting through them all will make your head spin, but there’s a narrow and small chance that we could be seeing Scampi and Peas football at the Cottage next season. But, we have to pop those unbeaten Cherries - they haven’t lost in 15 Premier League games.

Onto the press conference. Some big news regarding our favourite Brazilian winger: Kevin is back in contention after a lengthy spell on the sidelines. Only Alex Iwobi and Ryan Sessegnon will miss tomorrow afternoon’s game.

"Sess and Iwobi will be out. Everyone else is available”, said Silva.

"Sander had the illness, he's been suffering a little bit more - he's trying his best, he will be in contention. Raul didn't train for the full week because of the same thing. Kevin is back in contention.

"We've been squeezing the maximum out of Raul. He's been doing his best for the team. Kevin took a very difficult injury, which broke his momentum. Now he's back, maybe not in his best physical condition, we need him for the next three games.

"To lose Alex and Sess at this stage of the season is a big, big blow - for our left-hand side. It's not a moment to complain or cry about it. We have other solutions."

Silva emphasised how important this game is. Fulham need to try and replicate the type of performance shown in our last home game against Aston Villa, rather than what we saw last week against Arsenal.

With so many teams vying for the European places, clubs will drop points on a weekly basis - Fulham need to pick themselves up from last week and bounce back. Three points will see them go within a point of Andoni Iraola’s side.

A defeat will probably end hopes of European football. But, Fulham have two home fixtures, with a final away game sandwiched in-between, against already relegated Wolves. Fulham’s form at Craven Cottage has been strong this season, and Silva wants the Fulham fans to push his side as we reach the final three hurdles of this campaign.

“It's the most important (game) - It's a very, very important game for us. I want us to bounce back, I hope the fans are with us from the first minute, we need them to be with us”, Silva added.

So, fingers crossed for tomorrow - come on you Whites!

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As the title of this week’s Thursday Club notes, Saturday is the last chance saloon when it comes to Europe. Lose, and we’re cooked - that we can all agree on.

Sammy wrote earlier this week that nine points - and no fewer - will get us into a European competition this term. I think seven could do it, but six certainly won’t.

But Bournemouth haven’t lost a league game since 3 January, when they lost to Arsenal - who they then beat at the Emirates later in this run. It’s incredible when you think about it.

It’s even more astonishing when you think about all the players they sold in the summer - famously raking in £200m in the process - and the fact they lost Antoine Semenyo in the January window. It shouldn’t be possible.

This is all before we mention that their boss, Andoni Iraola, publicly announced his intention to leave in the summer. Historically, that’s a kiss of death; football is littered with examples of that, from Alex Ferguson’s first retirement announcement in 2001 to Arsene Wenger in 2018 and Jurgen Klopp in 2024. It’s even happened here, with Jean Tigana being told he’d be leaving the club in the summer of 2003, before being shown the door a month later.

That sort of clarity can be a detriment. But so can uncertainty. I’ve written before about how Marco Silva’s future has become a millstone. I still subscribe to that school of thought. Our last six games read: two wins, two draws, two losses. It is the perfect summary of our season - and symptomatic of our current relationship with our boss.

Bournemouth’s recruitment to replace the £200m exodus speaks for itself. Our recruitment, though impressive in many areas, is slower and based more on stringent negotiation and brinkmanship. We’re not as nimble in the market; not as fluid.

Then there’s the progress away from the pitch. It’s not as important to many, but it’s worth mentioning as it further illustrates the Cherries’ well-oiled lean machine. A swift announcement of premium brand Vitality as it’s front-of-shirt sponsor ushered in the post-gambling era, while a club-record deal with Hummel shows that Bournemouth are determined not to stand still in any area.

But as good as it’s going down south, we have to be the party poopers this weekend. We’re more than capable of winning, but a draw would also give us a fighting chance in our final two games. And that’s where the opportunity lies. Bournemouth have drawn 16 times this season - the most in the top flight this term and their highest number in 20 years.

We shouldn’t play for a point, of course. Our form at Craven Cottage is what’s brought us to the dance in these final three games. And with our own series of stories entering their final chapters, we must focus on writing happy endings.

But when the dust settles on 2025/26 and we look at where we want to go in the future, we could do a lot worse than looking at our opponents this weekend.

Sammy is joined by Elizabeth on the Thursday Club to have the final word on Arsenal, preview the our clash at Craven Cottage against European-chasing Bournemouth, and discuss the growing rumours linking Marco Silva with a move to Chelsea. They finish the episode by answering a selection of listener emails.

Guests:

Sammy James

Elizabeth Barnard

Producer:

Freddie Cooper

Guests:

Sammy James

Elizabeth Barnard

Producer:

Fred…

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“To murder my love is a crime, but will you still love a man out of time? - Elvis Costello, Imperial Bedroom

Recently, I came across a chart that I found concerning. I’m republishing here with a link to the article in which it appeared (which I recommend reading).

What the chart shows, based on the two dimensions of direct speed and passes per sequence, is that Fulham - with a payroll of £77m - under Marco Silva is playing the same style of football as Man City, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool. Clubs with payrolls (not including bonuses) of £235m, £185m, £144m, and £177m respectively.

The question is, given new SCR rules and if Fulham truly want to take the next step, can we afford to keep on trying to play like Man City, Arsenal and Liverpool with a budget half the size?

The other thing you can notice from the chart above is the non-big six Premier League teams with similar budgets to Fulham that are ahead of us in the table, namely Bournemouth, Brentford and Everton, are all grouped together on the other side of the chart. They play direct and fast and not slow and intricate football.

One could argue that perhaps Fulham has found a market inefficiency and is purposely not competing for players with other mid-table clubs. But, I actually think the opposite is happening. Fulham - because of its style of play - needs to compete with the likes of Man City to get the midfielders and wingers you need to make a “slow and intricate” style of play work in the present day Premier League, while other teams seem to have realized it is cheaper and more practical to buy, direct and fast players.

And, because of SCR, Fulham will no longer be able to afford buying highly skilled older Premier Leaguers, we may soon find it more and more difficult to get the personnel needed to make this approach work.

Marco don’t press

I am a Marco Silva person. I love the guy. He’s been amazing for Fulham and I’ve wanted us to keep him. And, when I started writing this piece, I was simply trying to better understand how we played under Marco and so started looking at Opta and, as I said above, what I found gave me pause.

For example, did you know that Marco doesn’t really press (and has not for a few seasons)? Fulham is last in the league in terms of sequences pressed (per game).

Now pressing is down overall in the Premier League but it is notable how seldom Fulham presses.

And, as we don’t have the best players for slow and intricate play, like Man City or Arsenal, and don’t have a system designed to take advantage of quick turnovers or direct speed (that come from pressing or other types of more direct play), it means that we can, and often do, struggle to get the ball into the final third in a good position to score.

As a result, Fulham ends up generating a lot of low value shots when we do get into the final third. This is evidenced by Fulham’s relatively low xG per shot. Because, by the time we do get the ball into the final third, we are often trying to take a shot against a settled defense.

When you look at the impact of Fulham’s slow direct play along with xG per shot, you can see that Fulham ends up far away from the likes of Man City and Chelsea because we lack the talent to consistently produce high value shots from slow intricate play.

And, while we do better than other teams, like Villa, on this score, we don’t have lots of players that can convert low xG shots into goals (apart from Wilson) while teams like Villa have many that can do this (not surprising given their £143m payroll).

Fulham, because we don’t have ways to go direct and fast and because we don’t have elite midfielders and wingers, needs to rely on other ways to get the ball in the final third and score.

So, we put in a lot of crosses and do other things like bring in Joachim Andersen, who is very good at making long passes into the final third. We have also tried to add more speed and dribbling on the wings to give us more threat when our slow and intricate play does get the ball near the goal (with the addition of Kevin and Chukwueze, for example).

Perhaps, one of the reasons why Fulham have often struggled to win later in the season is tied to this style of play. Our skill players are older (e.g. Tom Cairney) and can and do wear down. Additionally, we necessarily have a more limited bench than other teams because of our financial situation.

So, we get stuck trying to make Silva’s system work with Harrison Reed in the midfield. This means that it gets harder for Fulham to, with its slow and intricate type of play, to get the ball into advantageous situations later in the season. It also makes it easier for other teams to stop us from doing so (when we are worn down and playing with less than ideal personnel).

And, I worry that Marco’s insistence on pushing forward with his slow and intricate system even when the team doesn’t have the players to execute it is wearing thin with our players.

Sometimes, like against Arsenal, it seems like the team just shrugs and gives up even though they are professionals and clearly want to win. Yes, Silva still is passionate and encourages them to “be brave” but it seems likely that Harrison knows he is not going to beat Declan Rice on the ball no matter how brave he is. And, the rest of the team also knows that they can’t “Man City” top competition when they are outmanned even if they really, really want to.

Where do we all go from here?

I wonder if one of the reasons why Marco hasn’t left Fulham is because, in reality, his style of play is mainly attractive to a very small, elite group of teams in the Premier League that have the financial means to make it work.

He is not a good fit for other teams with budgetary limitations who don’t want to play “slow and intricate” football with limited talent. So, as others have noted, if he does want champion league football, he’s likely going to need to go Europe where his modified possession-oriented style of play is a better fit and easier to execute. I hope Marco gets his wish. He deserves it.

I also now hope that Fulham will move on from Marco because I don’t think it is likely that his style of play will get us to the next level with the new financial restraints.

Yes, I do enjoy our attractive style of football and worry that many of the players he’s recruited are going to possibly be bad fits in a new more direct system but waiting longer to make a change is not going to make things easier. Because, unfortunately, it does look like Marco Silva might just be a man out of time.