Player Ratings: Brentford 0-0 Fulham

Well, what do we say about that. I’m 100% certain that we are a better team than Brentford, with better players and a better manager, and for most of the game we showed it. Yet for the second time this season, we’ve failed to put the ball in their net. We probably deserved to win, albeit without creating a heap of chances, but we also probably deserved to lose to Palace; such is football.

I think most of our players put in 95% of a good performance, with the remainder being insanely frustrating; poor passes, poor crosses, and probably most gratingly, poor decision making. Makes it hard to rate some players, as their poor moments potentially overshadowed their overall good performance.

Bernd Leno

Just the two saves required from Bernd. Distribution was sound, command of the area was stable, it was the type of unremarkable performance from a goalkeeper that signifies you controlled a game. Another clean sheet, taking him to 10 for the season, pretty impressive for a team that haven’t always looked that defensively sound. 7/10

Timothy Castagne

A fairly trademark performance from Timmy. It’s clear Marco trusts him, and there’s a lot to be said for a player that guarantees you an above average performance every week. I was slightly concerned at times in the first half when he was up against Lewis-Potter, as he got beaten a couple of times. However, both in possession and out, he’s so steady and dependable, and was pretty faultless in the second half, but could maybe have provided us with more cutting edge in attack, something that we know he has in his locker. 6.5/10

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Issa Diop

Oh gosh, what are we going to do without Tosin? The answer to that question appears to be: defend better. I thought Issa was superb, overshadowing all of Tosin’s most recent performances. He’s shaken off some cobwebs that saw him look nervy in possession against Palace, and was so composed against the Bees. Dominant in the air, positionally perfect when the ball got into the box, and safe with the ball at his feet, what more can you ask for? Ivan Toney is supposedly set for a big move, Issa Drop might have knocked £5m off his price tag with that display. 9/10 Man of the Match

Calvin Bassey

Honestly, Bassey put a pretty good claim in for man of the match as well, but as the second half slowly petered out, same sloppy passing from Calvin put us under a bit of unnecessary pressure, but to be honest, I’m slightly nitpicking here. I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep saying it, we’ve got a gem of a player. So physically imposing, yet also nimble and with a great turn of pace. They shut Mbeumo and Toney out completely, with them managing just three shots in total. Expecting huge things from this boy next year. 8.5/10

Antonee Robinson

It was written in the stars; Jedi, on May the 4th, scoring a last minute winner in the West London derby. Unfortunately, Ant is not a gifted finisher, and never looked like burying that half chance at the death. He was one that was largely good, keeping Mbeumo very quiet, and providing a threat going forward. It was just that final ball, and a couple of rash decisions that saw him spun in midfield that marred a fairly positive performance. 6.5/10

Joao Palhinha

Another game where our enforcer hasn’t gone into the book; he may just avoid that dreaded three game ban. As tenacious as ever, with some great long, raking cross-field passes, setting us off on the attack. By no means spectacular, but he didn’t really need to be, just ticked things over nicely in midfield. 7/10

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Sasa Lukic

I really enjoy watching Sasa drive through the middle of the park with the ball at his feet. He’s not quick, but there’s something about his languid, slightly awkward gait, that makes it really difficult to stop him when he gets going. Thought him and Joao had the control of that midfield, but the right decision was made to take him off as the game started to get a bit stretched. A good performance from a man whose stock has skyrocketed in the second half of this year. 7/10

Andreas Pereira

I always tell myself to just accept that sometimes Andreas will make the wrong decision. Yet every time he does, I still get annoyed. Drove us forward really well, getting us into dangerous positions, before blazing a shot over, or picking the wrong pass. I get the feeling though, that there are few players that care more than Pereira, he’s always desperate to contribute, which weirdly can be detrimental at times, when you see his fifth shot sail into the crowd. 6/10 or 7/10 or maybe 5/10 – I’m really not sure.

Alex Iwobi

Fulham’s end of season slump seems to coincide with a dip in performances from Alex Iwobi. Mistakes have crept into his game, lots of misplaced passes and a lack of stardust in the final third. Most notable was towards the end of the game when he sliced a cross straight into the hands of Flekken, with at least four men waiting in and around the area. I still think he was fairly influential though, a constant outlet, with a lot of our play being funnelled through him. It’s been a long season for him with AFCON dissecting his debut season at club, but I’m a big fan, and I’m confident we’ll see him back to his best after a summer break. 6/10

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Willian

Christ. The first half felt like an episode of Traitors. 10 Fulham players united in one aim, putting the ball in the Brentford net, and Willian was doing everything he could to stop that from happening. Some dreadful passes gave Brentford multiple chances to launch counter attacks and we were just lucky that they are dreadful at football, as better teams would have punished us. Looked like a 35 year old who needed to put his feet up for a couple of months. 5/10

Rodrigo Muniz

Really not sure why he was taken off after just 64 minutes. Held the ball up really well, once again. His touch has developed almost unbelievably, the ball just sticks to him, and in a battle against two physical centre-backs, he was happy to go toe-to-toe and bully them back. We probably win this game if Roddy stayed on the pitch. 7/10

Substitutes

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Raul Jimenez

Right, let’s rip this plaster off. I’m trying to remain level-headed, but that miss was just inexcusable. I’ve watched it back about 15 times, and all I can think is that we’ve been robbed of a memorable Fulham moment. Traore sending a Brentford player flying, before setting it up perfectly for Raul to commence carnage in the away end, and instead he just leans back and spoons it disgustingly into orbit. I’ve never done this before, but I can’t bring myself to give Raul a rating, it doesn’t feel fair. It’s the only thing I’ll remember from his performance, and he’s getting enough pelters as it is. This felt like the beginning of the end for our Mexican. Rating redacted

Adama Traore

Enjoyed this cameo thoroughly. It feels silly, but why are Fulham and Silva so reluctant to just let the quickest man in world football do what he does best: terrorise full-backs. It’s a genuine cheat code, and I understand that his end product can be poor, but the fear he strikes into defences is an instant psychological win. I really hope he stays this summer, and that Silva allows him more time to impact games. 7.5/10

Tom Cairney

Good from TC. Got on the ball, made things happen, just a typically composed and aesthetically pleasing performance from one of the silkiest midfielders around. 7/10

Bobby De Cordova-Reid

Meh. I think the sub made sense, it just unfortunately didn’t work. Uncharacteristically poor decision making in the final third, and just didn’t really impact the game. Couldn’t give a toss about him giving his shirt to a Jamaican coach in the Brentford end, and if you do care, grow up. 6/10

Harry Wilson

Probably should have been brought on earlier. Been a bit of a rough season for Haz, I wish we could have Championship Wilson in the Premier League.