From the Opposition: No Stroll By The Thames
Written by Jack J Collins on 17th January 2019
With Fulham’s London derby against high-flying Tottenham Hotspur coming up, we spoke to Ian Waterhouse from Spurs for Life to get a lowdown on what the view is from North London, ahead of their trip to the banks of the Thames.
As a Tottenham fan, one glance at the table should leave one with a feeling of confidence heading into this weekend’s contest against Fulham.
Despite spending £110 million in the summer, things just have not worked out for the Cottagers this season and there is almost a certain irony that the one club that was lambasted by so many for not spending a single penny is currently enjoying life occupying third place in the table.
However, before I get too cocky, there is a general feeling among rival supporters of Fulham, that it is only a matter of time before that expensively assembled squad turn good and someone (most probably Tottenham) end up on the receiving end of a Fulham thrashing.
After all, it was only in 2011 during an FA Cup tie that the Cottagers inflicted a 4-0 defeat on Tottenham.
Talking of irony again, Danny Murphy and Mousa Dembélé were on the scoresheet for Fulham that day with one a former Spurs player and the other a current Lilywhite (at the time of writing!)
And so, to the weekend’s fixture, what are the facts we need to know about the game and what can we expect?
Tottenham are reeling from defeat to Manchester United last weekend and the news that star man Harry Kane is set to be on the side-lines until March due to ankle ligament injury.
That is good news for Fulham but before we wave the white flag it is important to note that Tottenham’s back up striker Son Heung-Min has netted the same number of Premier League goals as the Cottagers top scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic with eight.
However, the news is still a devastating blow for the immediate future for the Lilywhites with Kane set to miss the Champions League double header with Borussia Dortmund (ah, there’s always next season).
Despite this unexpected good news for the home side, even Claudio Ranieri himself must know that this is a game he probably just wants out of the way as quickly as possible.
That FA Cup win at the Cottage was Fulham’s only home win over Tottenham since November 2008 with the home side winning just one of the 12 Premier League matches between the two since.
The last two top flight games between the two has seen the Lilywhites win 3-1 and it is hard to see any other result than another Spurs win over their London opponents.
Ranieri is yet to weave his magic at Fulham and the problem is time is running out.
I for one hope Fulham avoid the drop as Craven Cottage is one of the nicest grounds to visit for atmosphere and a cracking pint by the Thames, but if the revival can just wait until after this weekend then that would be just grand.
