Positives and Negatives: Fulham 2-2 Bournemouth

Hardly a classic, a Fulham side that looked, at times, as hungover as many of the Fulham faithful following the Whites’ Boxing Day heroics.

All in all, Fulham left the Cottage with a slightly fortunate point, but when you’re 2-1 and seemingly in the ascendency, you have to see out, what would of been a massive win against another side gunning for a European spot.

Positives

Striking By Committee

Another game, another goal for Fulham’s striking contingent. Raul worked hard throughout the first half especially, being key to Fulham looking to add further numbers in midfield, making a difference on and off the ball, helping Harry Wilson be the talisman for numerous of Fulham’s breaks forward. Despite feeding off scraps, Raul certainly deserved his goal.

Bassey’s overlapping runs

Fulham’s defensive trio proved effective in helping Marco Silva’s men deal with a deluge of first half pressure. Alongside this, Calvin Bassey’s marauding overlapping runs from left centre-back helped create an overload on the left side, causing issues all day for Bournemouth right-back, James Hill.

Captain Cairney’s impact

With the midfield struggling to get a hold of the ball, Tom Cairney once again proved his role as super sub is deserved. Cairney’s presence in the middle of the park helped Fulham gain control of the ball, having their best spell of the ninety when Cairney was pairing Lukic, a point where Fulham perhaps deserved to score a third.

Harry Wilson, he’s done it again

There are few better players in world football than second half Harry Wilson. In a differing role to his normal position out wide, Wilson impressed immensely in a more free role inside, being the centrepiece of numerous Fulham attacks, including his goal, while being both influential in build up and working off Raul Jimenez off the knock down.

Eighth at the halfway point

With Fulham sitting in what could be a European spot come May. On course for 58 points, a club record, if Fulham produce a second half of the campaign as good as the first half was, a fight for Europe is more than possible.

Josh King again, ole ole

In a shorter cameo than seen in recent weeks, Fulham’s newfound starboy excelled in the few minutes he received, using diminutive frame to beat numerous Bournemouth defenders.
The more minutes the young man gets, the better he will get, if season doesn’t see himself in starting contention every week within the next few months, I for one, would be shocked.

Negatives

We can’t see games out

Fulham’s inability to see out games may well be what sees us look back at 2024/25 with a feeling of what could have been.

If Fulham could have held on against Everton, and against West Ham, Marco’s men would be sitting in fifth, level on points with the other team in Fulham, something that will no doubt make the difference at the business end of the season.

Consistency needed

Despite being unbeaten in seven, Fulham have no back-to-back wins since early November, and while rebuttals of a recent tough run of fixtures is certainly valid, building up a consistent run of wins instead of draws is what separates upper mid table to the European places.

Pereira’s not an eight

Andreas Pereira was yet again ineffective in a deeper midfield role, both chasing shadows and misplacing passes until Tom Cairney replaced the Brazilian. Fulham found it difficult to battle against an industrious duo of Billing and Christie in the Cherries’ midfield.

Missing Sander Berge

The absence of Sander Berge was exceedingly noticeable, the physical stature of Billing would have been perfectly counteracted with another Scandinavian in the middle.

Not only Berge’s ball winning prowess was missed, as Fulham lacked someone to help the whites get up the pitch in the transition, with Bournemouth doing a terrific job in pinning the home side in their own half.

Someone to break the lines, like Sander, was hugely missed, as the Cottages became too reliant on attacks from out wide.

Diop and Andersen exploited

Throughout the 90, Andoni Iraola side identified balls in behind Joachim Andersen, as a weakness for Fulham, coming ahead with Evanilson’s second half strike, as Fulham yet again came out the second half flat.

Putting aside his mistake for Bournemouth late leveller, Issa Diop was seen as the trigger for Bournemouth’s press from minute one, with the Frenchman struggling to effectively play the ball into Fulham’s midfield duo.