Fulham’s early-season troubles have left Álvaro Arbeloa staring at a fixture list that already carries the feel of November, even though the campaign is scarcely out of its boots. Two points from six matches has put the Cottagers at the foot of the Premier League, with Hull City due at Craven Cottage before a trip to Coventry City — the other promoted sides now looming large.
In the dressing room
| Fulham’s position | Record | Next fixture | Following fixture |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bottom of the Premier League | 2 points from 18 available | Hull City, home | Coventry City, away |
The sense around the club is that Arbeloa has been handed a project rather than a six- or seven-match audition. Fulham have recruited Gonzalo, César Palacios and Manuel Ángel, three players the manager knew from Real Madrid, and the work has plainly been shaped with his ideas in mind.
That does not make the table any kinder. Fulham began the season with an expansive approach and conceded three goals at home in successive London derbies, losing 3-2 to Chelsea and Crystal Palace. There was a more settled look before the international break, however, as they drew 0-0 with Liverpool and 1-1 with Manchester United. In both matches, Fulham were considered to have had enough of the game to feel they might have taken more.
Then came the bruising trip to Ipswich Town. Fulham led 1-0 with three minutes of normal time remaining but lost 2-1 to the newly promoted side. They had been the better team for the opening hour, yet the late turnaround brought scrutiny of the manager’s attempts to see out the match. Charles was withdrawn for Manuel Ángel, a more creative option, and Fulham were punished in the unforgiving manner of this division.
Matches against the clubs around you are usually called six-pointers. They rarely feel like one until the final whistle; this one did.
A club that has changed its standing
Javi Pereira, who knows Fulham from two successful promotion campaigns, believes the club’s recent rise should not be forgotten amid the difficult start. He worked under Slavisa Jokanovic when Fulham went up in 2018, then served alongside the sporting department during Scott Parker’s promotion in 2020. He had previously reached the Premier League with Watford and Jokanovic in 2015.
The 2018 play-off final remains the one that stays with him: Wembley, an Aston Villa team containing John Terry and Jack Grealish, 90,000 in the stadium and the vast financial prize attached to promotion. The 2020 success came in the Covid era, with only a small number of people present, and felt altogether different from being on the touchline.
Pereira describes Fulham as the finest club at which he has worked: family-minded but highly professional, attentive to detail and respected across the game as London’s oldest professional club. In his view, they are no longer merely a side travelling between divisions. Under Marco Silva, they have put together five straight Premier League seasons and generally secured safety without great alarm, earning respect not only as an institution but as a top-flight team.
Experience may matter now
The former Alavés and Levante manager feels Arbeloa should concentrate entirely on Hull before looking towards Coventry. He also believes Fulham may need a greater reliance on players familiar with both the league and the group.
Alex Iwobi and Calvin Bassey are among those he would look towards, with Joachim Andersen, Rodrigo Muniz and Sander Berge also named as figures who could provide authority in a tight spell.
Gonzalo is regarded as the most developed of the three recruits from Real Madrid, while Palacios and Manuel Ángel have had little top-flight experience. All three arrive with the expectation that follows a Madrid upbringing, but Pereira’s assessment is that they need time to acquire the standing and rhythm required in the Premier League. He sees them as signings for the medium to longer term rather than immediate solutions.
Pereira’s view from beyond the Cottage
Pereira, 60, is keen to return to management after spells across several countries. His most recent work in China included Henan Jianye from 2020 to 2021, Henan Songshan Longmen between 2022 and 2023, and Shanghai Port, whom he guided to the Chinese Super League title in 2023.
He considers China an important chapter, offering a different football culture and a successful project, and says his next job must be an ambitious one in which he can make a difference. He was also considered for the China national-team post and believes the country’s hopes now rest heavily on Antonio Puche’s under-23 side, who finished third at the Asian Games. China have not appeared at a World Cup since 2002, but Pereira sees young players with quality who may yet mature in time for the 2030 qualifying campaign.
He has also kept an eye on his former Spanish clubs. Levante, under Luís Castro, have impressed him with their character and their second half of last season, as well as a recovery against Sevilla from what appeared a lost position. He expects a fight for survival but believes they have players capable of competing at the level.
Alavés, meanwhile, are viewed more optimistically. Pereira feels Quique Sánchez Flores has transformed the side and should steer them clear of danger, perhaps even towards a higher finish if their improvement continues.
For Fulham, though, the immediate horizon is much narrower: Hull at home, Coventry away, and a need for points before unease becomes the permanent occupant of the dressing room.
