Fulham’s defence isn’t Slavisa Jokanovic’s only problem – the attack has big issues to solve The perception that Fulham are at least good going forward has been challenged in recent matches

Fulham’s 1-0 away loss to Huddersfield on Monday was tough viewing for fans of the London club. Not just because of the significance of the match, touted as an early relegation six-pointer, and not just because it represented the club’s eighth match in the Premier League without a win and their fifth successive league loss.

It particularly stung because it appeared to represent a departure from a beloved club philosophy of attractive, passing, possession football. Fulham started the season opting to continue the attacking style which earned them promotion from the Championship and while it was much-documented that their defence was leaky, pundits often noted the team were capable of goals and stylish goals at that.

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In many ways, this popular appraisal has become a fallacy of late. Fulham have only scored four goals in their last seven matches against Huddersfield, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Arsenal, Everton, Watford and Manchester City. Some tough games, sure, but for an attacking side there were more goals there than a mere four. In those matches, Fulham have seen their shots on target and total number of efforts dwindle as they’ve struggled to break down defences and have increasingly worried about conceding.

It is perhaps due to this lack of potency in attack that the calls for manager Slavisa Jokanovic to be shown the door have become louder in recent weeks. Many fans wouldn’t have minded the losses to Everton, Bournemouth and Huddersfield as much had Fulham shown more going forward.

So why have their goals dried up and how do they try to fix this?

Championship attacking style and Premier League signings

Fulham’s Championship promotion was earned primarily by the goals of Ryan Sessegnon and Aleksandar Mitrovic. Many of these were team goals, as Fulham passed through sides and created close-range chances for their attacking wide man and striker to get on the end of.

This season, Fulham have controlled less of the ball in matches and have consistently conceded more goals due to the step up in quality of opposition. With less time on the ball and more of a need to score when they have it, the attack has a lot more pressure to find the net than it did in the Championship.

Mitrovic started the season with a bang and dwindled, while Sessegnon has seen less game time in a forward position due to a raft of new signings, of which André Schurrle has contributed most to the goal tally.

There are some issues with the way the squad has gelled following the introduction of the new attacking signings. Schurrle, while contributing goals, takes a very high number of shots from range and from wider positions. Occasionally he comes up with some magic, and as the second top scorer in the squad he can rightly point to a return on the gamble. However, in opting to shoot early and frequently, passing moves are stopped in their tracks and Fulham’s momentum dissipates.

Luciano Vietto, meanwhile, has proved a Jokanovic disciple of sorts. He’s technically brilliant and he often fulfills the role of a creative link and an ‘out ball’, due to his ability to hold and exploit space. However, he’s not yet proven a goalscorer. Jean Michael Seri is more of a playmaker and while he contributes to attacks, he’s more a specialist in chance creation – a department in which he has struggled lately.

In terms of attackers who were not summer signings, Aboubakar Kamara has pace and strength in abundance but lacks technical ability and a composed touch, as well as a certain ruthlessness in front of goal. Ryan Sessegnon is clinical when given a chance. There has been a perception he is not ready for attacking duties in the Premier League, which is incorrect – he tests the keeper as much as Mitrovic or Schurrle when he starts in attack, and he takes fewer shots off target in doing so. He will also often set up goals for his teammates.

Other sources of Championship goals such as Floyd Ayité, Neeskens Kebano and Stefan Johansen have featured infrequently, as Jokanovic seems to have deemed them to be of insufficient quality for the Premier League. Tom Cairney is a creator and, while capable of long-range strikes, has also been injured for a large part of the season.

Then there’s the main man.

Mitrovic’s funk

The Serbian has avoided criticism for a number of matches as he has been feeding off scraps. He’s seemed frustrated with teammates for his service and, to a degree, he’s justified in that anger.

He has to look at his own standards too, however, which have been slipping by any scale. He has only registered one shot on target in his last five Premier League matches. Teams now know he’s a threat and try to shut him down, aware that Fulham have a reliance on him.

This is not to suggest that Mitrovic is at fault for Fulham’s recent lack of goals. It highlights how dependent they were on him in the early stages of the season and how reliant they are on him as a finisher.

Without him on top form, as we have established previously, Jokanovic has very few support acts to fall back on.

There is some hope

Things look bleak for Fulham at the present – they are rightfully bottom of the league and have lost some matches which were designated by commentators as winnable and critical.

However, they can take some heart in the state of the league. While the top teams have been steamrollering all the lesser sides, the other end of the league has also seen a cluster developing in terms of points.

Fulham are bottom, but they are three points off 14th. They are also the side with the second highest number of goals in the above chart with 11 (Burnley have 12, Cardiff nine, and Crystal Palace eight).

The attack has been less successful recently as defensive issues have hit headlines and Jokanovic has turned his attentions to shoring up the back five. Sessegnon has increasingly featured as a left-back, while centre-backs have been chopped and changed to find the most stable line-up.

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If Fulham are to stay up they will have to confront some hard truths. That their defence is simply always going to concede, that passing through Premier League teams is far less easy than their Championship equivalents, that signing 12 new players in a window will inevitably cause disruption and tactical incoherence.

Some suggestions

Stop rotating the defence all the time and play centre-back pairings with consistency. Maxime Le Marchand and Alfie Mawson seem like a natural partnership and the two best performers this season, while Denis Odoi and Tim Ream have familiarity from the Championship.

Keep Vietto as a creative influence wide right and allow Sessegnon to challenge Schurrle for the starting position at left wing. Goals will come for Sessegnon as he acclimatises to Premier League football.

Play Cairney and Seri consistently in the midfield and allow them to develop a partnership, while André-Frank Zambo Anguissa adjusts to the role of a defensive midfielder. If needs be, drop Seri further back to give him some cover and play a 4-2-3-1.

Sign a left-back in January. Sessegnon is a natural attacker and will step up, but if Joe Bryan gets injured there is no cover and the team will suffer as it has in recent weeks.

Lastly, continue trying to attack. This team are in no way built for defensive, long-ball football as the complete lack of incision in more withdrawn recent matches has shown.

If Fulham’s leaky defence is going to send them down this season, they may as well have some fun and score some goals in the process.

@LouisAlexDore