{"id":592735,"date":"2021-06-01T08:55:02","date_gmt":"2021-06-01T12:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/?p=592735"},"modified":"2021-06-01T06:55:35","modified_gmt":"2021-06-01T10:55:35","slug":"fulham-season-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2021\/06\/01\/fulham-season-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Fulham Season Review: A Campaign With Glimpse of Hope Ultimately Ended With Relegation"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 20\/21 Fulham season always looked likely to end in relegation. They kept fighting but the inevitable eventually caught them earlier than it should have. Performance wise, Scott Parker\u2019s side rarely looked a team destined for the Championship, but this is a results business. And when it came to results, Fulham just didn\u2019t get over the line enough times.<\/span><\/p>\n

Each game, they\u2019d be in the perfect position to strike, thanks to their modern-day approach of play, but lacked the end product and killer instinct to make it count. Come the end of the season, the only two people that came out looking better were Scott Parker and Ademola Lookman.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Parker took a Fulham side, not built for the Premier League<\/a>, and had them playing some of the best football in the bottom half of the table- even securing them some famous wins along the way. So, in a way, it proves that there can be good moments in a season of dismay; a campaign of relegation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Though, let\u2019s not hide away from the truth here, there were still plenty of moments to forget.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fulham Season Review<\/h2>\n

Moment to Remember<\/h3>\n

When thinking of Fulham\u2019s moment of the season, it\u2019s hard to look past their win at Anfield. Liverpool<\/a> were on a torrid run of form at the time in the Premier League, but looked back to themselves in Europe. Many expected the Reds to finally get back on track against Parker\u2019s side.<\/span><\/p>\n

Instead, Fulham added to Liverpool\u2019s Anfield woes, inflicting a 1-0 defeat courtesy of a Mario Lemina strike. In truth, it could have been more, too, with Parker\u2019s side often cutting through a vulnerable Liverpool team with ease. And that is how they played for the majority of the season. They just did not get enough results to compliment their style.<\/span><\/p>\n

There was a stage when it looked likely that they\u2019d stay up and Newcastle United<\/a> would, instead, face the drop. Yet, when it came to crunch time, the Cottagers lost their form completely to all but end any hopes of Premier League football.<\/span><\/p>\n

At one point, they went on a five game unbeaten run which included a draw with Liverpool at Craven Cottage. But, how many points did they accumulate in that run? Five. Five games, five draws in five must win games. That statistic, right there, sums Fulham\u2019s season up.<\/span><\/p>\n

Moment to Forget<\/h3>\n

As alluded to before, it was a season that showed promise but ended with the negativity of relegation. Therefore, naturally, there were plenty of moments to forget. <\/span><\/p>\n

The most heartbreaking moment came with four games to go against Burnley<\/a>; the game that confirmed their place in the Championship; the game to put an end to their slim hopes of survival. It should have been a winnable game, but, by this point, the Fulham heads had clearly dropped. They had confined themselves to relegation and the loss just confirmed it.<\/span><\/p>\n

The first-half goals from Ashley Westwood and Chris Wood meant that it was over relatively quickly. There was no Fulham comeback. By this point, you probably couldn\u2019t have even convinced the Fulham players that they were capable of netting three times in one game.<\/span><\/p>\n

In fact, the one time they did score three goals was in a 4-3 loss to Leeds United at the beginning of the season- proving just how difficult Parker\u2019s side found it in front of goal.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fulham Player of the Season<\/h3>\n

Finding a player of the season in a relegated side can be difficult, but not in this case. Ademola Lookman easily takes the award. He was the one bright spark in a relatively dim Fulham side. After a good season, he\u2019ll be hoping to get an opportunity back at parent club RB Leipzig or maybe even a permanent move back to the Premier League. The 23-year-old was involved in eight goals.<\/span><\/p>\n

Had he been around better players, Fulham could have survived. If other loanees such as Ruben Loftus-Cheek turned up, Scott Parker would still be a Premier League manager.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fulham were not relegated due to the system they play or the manager they have. They were relegated because not enough individual stood up and made themselves counted when needed the most. It should never be an easy task to pick a player of the year, but such is the failure of the players around him, Lookman takes the award with relative ease.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fulham will hope to bounce back at the first time of asking again next season, but it will be a hard task in the Championship, as they know all too well.<\/span><\/p>\n

Whether Scott Parker<\/a> or other players will be around to play in England\u2019s second tier is anyone\u2019s guess. Fulham will certainly hope that, at the very least, Parker sticks around for one more season.<\/span><\/p>\n

Main Photo
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>