FoF MOTM & POST MATCH: Fulham 2-3 Chelsea = Josh King

[Twig]

I think the main issue with the team tonight was that the left side was a complete mess. Both offensively and defensively. Cuenca had an awful performance, but he was mainly on island because of the lack of cohesion further up the pitch. Palacios was all over the place and had no understanding of his relationship with Jedi both going forward or defending. If Jedi is bombing forward you have to play a left wing with more discipline/positional awareness.

I thought this was incredibly naive of Arbeloa. Anyone who has watched any tape of Fulham playing over the past 5 years will know that one of our greatest strengths is the interplay between Robinson and whoever is playing on the left wing. It has been our main source of attacking threat for years now. Why start a kid out of position when we have other capable more experienced options. I like Palacios andI think he has a bright future but I think it was a huge mistake for Arbeloa to start him on the left tonight. I actually think it cost us the game.
 

Absolutely this.

[Twig]

Forget about RW and RB we need to concentrate our time and money on a RCB (and midfield if time and money permit).  Assuming AA realises that he needs to play a specialist LW with Robinson or Sess (whichever starts as LB) then with Bassey playing at LCB I think that sorts the left side. With the left side sorted and a new RCB we should be much better balanced defensively.

Long term I'm convinced we need a new keeper and try to sell and replace Muniz but those are projects for the future. Iwobi is a conundrum as I'm not really sure where he fits or whether we need him?

I'm not giving up on Berge he has shown previously he has ability but I think he needs time to understand AA' system and how he fits it.

[Neutral Zone Ultra]

For me the poor performers were Berge, Cuenca, Robinson, Leno, Bassey and Bobb and Iwobi.

Bobb looked a lost boy everytime he got into the area. Robinson is a shadow.

King great, Garcia looks good. SC will be a starter over Berge soon and as for Muniz, i think his time is over as 2nd choice to JKA

I thought Bobb was good. Looked a threat going forward and shouldn't have come off

Agreed thought Bobb did well but he really needs to take more shots in decent positions. Especially against a dodgy keeper like Sanchez.

[Bronaldinho]

Was an absolute rollercoaster, and I enjoyed it to be honest - Chaos, sure. Was it perfect? Nope, but a lot of reasons to be positive.

I put a lot of thoughts down here if you are keen: https://thecravencorner.wordpress.com/2026/08/25/well-that-was-fun-arbeloa-chaosball-brings-excitement-back-to-craven-cottage/

[junior white]

For me the poor performers were Berge, Cuenca, Robinson, Leno, Bassey and Bobb and Iwobi.

Bobb looked a lost boy everytime he got into the area. Robinson is a shadow.

King great, Garcia looks good. SC will be a starter over Berge soon and as for Muniz, i think his time is over as 2nd choice to JKA

I thought Bobb was good. Looked a threat going forward and shouldn't have come off

Agree, I was surprised he was taken off. King and Garcia were our two best performers on the night, good mentions for Bobb, Bassey playing out of position too.

Less said about Cuenca the better

[LittleErn]

For me the poor performers were Berge, Cuenca, Robinson, Leno, Bassey and Bobb and Iwobi.

Bobb looked a lost boy everytime he got into the area. Robinson is a shadow.

King great, Garcia looks good. SC will be a starter over Berge soon and as for Muniz, i think his time is over as 2nd choice to JKA

I thought Bobb was good. Looked a threat going forward and shouldn't have come off

Yeah I thought he looked a handful, and wasn't it him who teed up GG in the first half on the edge of the six yard box?

I agree Bobb was good but I thought he cut inside a bit too often and maybe held on to the ball a tad too long. I didn't see any of the incisive passes he made in the World Cup though.

[demeant0r]

I agree Bobb was good but I thought he cut inside a bit too often and maybe held on to the ball a tad too long. I didn't see any of the incisive passes he made in the World Cup though.

I think the cutting in was part of AA's tactics

[LittleErn]

I think the main issue with the team tonight was that the left side was a complete mess. Both offensively and defensively. Cuenca had an awful performance, but he was mainly on island because of the lack of cohesion further up the pitch. Palacios was all over the place and had no understanding of his relationship with Jedi both going forward or defending. If Jedi is bombing forward you have to play a left wing with more discipline/positional awareness.

I thought this was incredibly naive of Arbeloa. Anyone who has watched any tape of Fulham playing over the past 5 years will know that one of our greatest strengths is the interplay between Robinson and whoever is playing on the left wing. It has been our main source of attacking threat for years now. Why start a kid out of position when we have other capable more experienced options. I like Palacios andI think he has a bright future but I think it was a huge mistake for Arbeloa to start him on the left tonight. I actually think it cost us the game.
 

Absolutely this.

It was noticeable that Robinson sprinted into space on the left so many times and was ignored by whoever was on the ball. That being said, not sure what would have happened if he had got the ball - his crosses are suspect and his shooting is worse!

[LittleErn]

It makes you wonder why we sold Diop.
Having 2 left footed CBs did not work for me and Iwobi struggled playing a deeper role.
Robinson was too far up the pitch some of the time.
But positive aspects too.

The problems were with Cuenca and Berge not Bassey. They were generally stranded like islands in the stream with the play flowing past them. I think that neither is suited to the new style - having CBs wide apart only works if they are fast and mobile.

[LittleErn]

Forget about RW and RB we need to concentrate our time and money on a RCB (and midfield if time and money permit).  Assuming AA realises that he needs to play a specialist LW with Robinson or Sess (whichever starts as LB) then with Bassey playing at LCB I think that sorts the left side. With the left side sorted and a new RCB we should be much better balanced defensively.

Long term I'm convinced we need a new keeper and try to sell and replace Muniz but those are projects for the future. Iwobi is a conundrum as I'm not really sure where he fits or whether we need him?

I'm not giving up on Berge he has shown previously he has ability but I think he needs time to understand AA' system and how he fits it.

Regrettably, I don't think he does fit it.

[SerbianLad]

(and midfield if time and money permit).

We absolutely need another midfielder. We sold Lukic and got Charles, but we were already a midfielder short last season.

[General]

Watched the highlights back and wondered if Cuenca was arguably at fault for all three Chelsea goals?

First goal he headed out straight to a Chelsea player when he was under a bit of pressure admittedly, but could've played an easier ball to Palacios on the wing. Then for some reason is in the left back position and didn't reposition himself to get goal side of Pedro, which is a) schoolboy and b) lazy

Second goal he gets turned very easily and burned for pace by Lacroix. His inability to hold Lacroix up leaves Bassey feeling he has to cover him (where's the confidence in your colleague?), although positionally the rest of the team were all over the place.

Third goal though, Berge holds up Joao Pedro and, with plenty of time to assess the situation and also looking straight at Palmer in front of him, he for some reason decides to double mark Pedro and not follow the run of Palmer, leaving him completely free to take on Leno.

[The Cravenette]

Watched the highlights back and wondered if Cuenca was arguably at fault for all three Chelsea goals?

First goal he headed out straight to a Chelsea player when he was under a bit of pressure admittedly, but could've played an easier ball to Palacios on the wing. Then for some reason is in the left back position and didn't reposition himself to get goal side of Pedro, which is a) schoolboy and b) lazy

Second goal he gets turned very easily and burned for pace by Lacroix. His inability to hold Lacroix up leaves Bassey feeling he has to cover him (where's the confidence in your colleague?), although positionally the rest of the team were all over the place.

Third goal though, Berge holds up Joao Pedro and, with plenty of time to assess the situation and also looking straight at Palmer in front of him, he for some reason decides to double mark Pedro and not follow the run of Palmer, leaving him completely free to take on Leno.

Agree with the 3rd goal whole heartedly. I watched some highlights when I got in and couldn't believe how he glanced at Palmer but just let him run. It was terrible defending.

I also thought Leno should not have come out like he did for the second. Once Lacroix cut it back Rogers could pick his spot into the open goal. With Leno there he would have at least had a chance to save it.

[Bassey the warrior]

Let's give the players time to adapt, including Berge. We badly need that rcb, but I'm not ready to write off the other positions yet. I'd also question how urgent it is to bring in a rb, I've been very impressed with Castagne this pre-season, I'd sooner we go all out on a premium rcb.

[Finnans Right Peg]

Has to be king, but castagne played well as did Garcia who never stopped working

[General]

Let's give the players time to adapt, including Berge. We badly need that rcb, but I'm not ready to write off the other positions yet. I'd also question how urgent it is to bring in a rb, I've been very impressed with Castagne this pre-season, I'd sooner we go all out on a premium rcb.

Andersen will be back for the next game. Let's hope it makes a difference

[The Cravenette]

It will be interesting to see what team AA puts out on Thursday. Marco tended to take cups seriously (eventually) but with the high intensity seen last night I find it hard to believe many of those players will play Thursday and again on Sunday.

Andersen will get a run out, as will Muniz, Tete, Sess, Reed I guess. I wonder if we will see more youngsters.

[Colton F.C.]

Plucky Fulham certainly gave the other team a game.  However the other team seemed to be able to cut us to pieces at will.  They then fell somewhat into states of lethargy and let us back in.

I doubt we will see much lethargy from Sunderland or even AFC Wimbledon.

MOM Josh King, but dead on his feet for last 20 minutes.  Should have been subbed for his own protection.

Gonzo - Right time! Right place! Right player?

[FFChris]

The difference between the two teams was Cole Palmer.  If he was in black and white we would have won the game!  Berge and several others could not handle his ability to turn quickly and his change of direction.  At least we won't have to play against him every week.

[susiescw]

Josh was brilliant and stood up well to that Chelsea Bully Boy Reece James. As for the game yes far too poor defensively but Chelsea were very lucky to have 10 men on the pitch. If they'd been given the two red cards (accepting it was the same guy) or even one that they fully deserved it would have been a different game.