Are we primed for a Raul Jimenez Indian summer?

Raul’s goal on Saturday had me thinking: how do you summarise his time at Fulham so far? 

When the enigmatic forward joined from Wolves last summer, you’d be kidding yourself if you truly believed the Mexican was the man to fill the Mitrovic-shaped hope in our front line. His talent was undeniable, given his track record of Premier League goalscoring. But he was seemingly unable to reach the same heights of his Wolves pomp following the horror injury that almost cost him his life. It’s remarkable really, that Jimenez even played football again; the fact he even returned to a pitch is a real testament to the man’s character.

All this said, his early showings for Fulham were undeniably frustrating. Did we expect too much as a fanbase? Were we spoiled by years in the presence of a talismanic frontman, bullying centre-backs and shrugging off challenges with Cantona-esque abandon? Perhaps. 

The groans around the Cottage became louder as the patience around his ineffectiveness in front of goal began to grow. That was until the faith shown by Marco Silva came good: the Purple Patch™ had arrived. Braces against West Ham and Forest, including that backheel had us believing that Prime Raul was back. 

But, as is often the way with Fulham, our optimism was met with a healthy dose of reality after an absurd red card and subsequent suspension against Newcastle (where he decided to channel Místico at the Arena México and put his arse through Sean Longstaff’s head) and injuries allowed Rodrigo Muniz to cultivate his own Purple Patch™ from the Premier League allotment. You can’t always get what you want, but give Marco time, and you might find: Rodrigo Muniz.

Although Jimenez finished the campaign with another brace against Luton, following Muniz’s glowing end to the season we all fully expected to see the Brazilian front the line in 2024/25. However, Marco seems to have invited Jiminez back into the fold and given what we saw on Saturday, it seems the Mexican is ready to grab that chance with both hands. 

Raul’s goal on Saturday was his 48th in the Premier League: a slick move started by Andreas Pereria, kept in brilliantly by Emile Smith Rowe, and finished off through Raúl’s impeccable positioning and timing. Right place, right time, 1-0. 

That goal moves him to 138th on the all-time Premier League goalscoring leaderboard, tied with Freddie Luungberg, Ian Rush and Bukayo Saka, and moving him ahead of such Premier League greats as former teammate Willian, Philippe Coutinho, and *ahem* Bobby Zamora.

My take-home following this weekend is that, if he can keep fit, Raul can – pardon the cliché – “do a job for us” this season. While Muniz is superior in his link-up play and perhaps the more natural fit in Marco’s system, against West Ham Raul showed what he can bring to the side; goal-scoring instinct. Perhaps we should be viewing Raul as a viable alternative to Muniz, not a second choice option, and I fully expect him to feature in rotation for Marco. 

If he can sort out some of the more irritating aspects to his game, namely his tendency to drift to the right for no apparent reason and his penchant for pointless rabonas, plus sharpen up his finishing, then he could be cooking on gas.

Another thing to consider is at the age of 33 he’s no pollo de primavera, and this could feasibly be the last season we see him feature in black and white if he fails to impress, given his contract expires at the end of next summer. With this in mind, Raul Jimenez has a point to prove and will be fighting for his career if he wants to earn that option for a 12-month extension. Saturday’s showing was encouraging, but not world-beating. However, I expect there is much more to come this season from a man who’s overturned the odds before.