Fulham are currently enjoying a six-match winning streak and have not looked back since their 1-4 defeat to Coventry City. Following the opening day draw against Middlesbrough, Fulham brushed off challenges from Huddersfield, Millwall, Hull, and Stoke to take an early lead at the top of the table. Going into the current international break, Fulham have won six consecutive Championship fixtures, smashing home 21 goals and conceding only once against QPR, Cardiff, Forest, West Brom, Blackburn, and Peterborough.
Although the bulk of campaigns since then have come in the top-flight, it might come as a surprise to recall that Marco Silva’s men are currently on Fulham’s best run for over 20 years.
In a display of cut-throat attacking football, Fulham brutally drubbed 10-man Blackburn Rovers 7-0 on the fourth of November, a result that proved that Fulham can be the most relentless team in the league.
It’s been somewhat of an explosive start by the Cottagers, with goals flying in from the off. With an average of nearly three goals per game, Fulham have the best attacking record in the division. Fulham arrived fresh to the Peterborough United game last week from a 7-0 midweek drubbing of Blackburn, which took their tally to 24 goals on the road this season, as the Championship’s leading scorers took on the EFL’s leakiest defense, which had conceded 31 times. The visitors quickly settled into their rhythm, dominating early possession, but managed just one attempt before the break as Fulham started strongly after the break.
The above visual shows us the shot map for Fulham from their last six games. The visual indicates that Fulham have had a high number of shots on goal and have managed to keep most of their shots on target.
A fifth straight clean sheet helped Marco Silva’s side remain two points behind leaders Bournemouth. The consistency of Fulham’s defense has also been a significant reason for their excellent start to the season. Captain Tim Reem has been a solid performer at centre-back in a defense that has kept seven clean sheets in the opening 17 games of the season. The above visual shows us the duels won by Fulham in their last six games. Fulham have won most of the duels they have attempted and have been able to deal with the attacks the opposition attempted. They have kept five straight clean sheets and have put up an impressive performance defensively. The fact that they are scoring more goals, gives breathing space to their defenders and can play without any pressure on them.
One of the main reasons for the prolific start by Fulham has been the form of Alexander Mitrovic, who hit an impressive 20 goals in his first 17 games of the season. The form of Mitrovic doesn’t come as much of a surprise, as he’s been scoring goals for fun in the Championship for years. However, his consistency has been much improved, which is likely to be a result of the other attacking players around him, such as Harry Wilson and Bobby Reid. The Championship goalscoring record was broken last season by Brentford’s Ivan Toney, who scored 31 goals. Mitrovic has every chance of breaking the record this season.
Fulham look destined for the Premier League once more. Bournemouth are a more complete side with former Cottagers manager Scott Parker in charge, but Marco Silva is doing what he does best, entertaining all who watch, with an excellent attacking setup that defies many of the deficiencies behind it. They aren’t the best team, but they are extremely good going forward, and that will only continue to serve them well soon.
