The London Premier League round-up: Fulham, Spurs and West Ham
In Part One, Dylan Walsh looked at Arsenal, Chelsea and Crystal Palace.
Fulham – Brandon Prangell
Mitrovic has continued his good form for Fulham but their defence has let then down (Photo Credit: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
Slavisa Jokanovic’s Fulham side came into this Premier League season after claiming promotion from the Championship with immense excitement and intrigue.
Following a season in the second-tier of English football that saw the West London side play some exceptionally good football, Fulham went on to spend close to £100 million on new players for their return to the Premier League.
Jean Michael Serri, who was previously linked to Arsenal and Barcleona, was signed from OGC Nice for £27 million, as well as Borussia Dortmund winger Andre Schurrle who was brought in on a two-year loan deal. But even with all this quality, we haven’t even scratched the surface of who they have signed this season, it has been a car-wreck of a season so far for the Lilywhites.
Serri has yet to live up to his price-tag whilst new defenders Alfie Mawson and Calum Chambers are struggling to form a connection with any of the back four. The lack of consistency at the back has been a large reason why Fulham have underperformed massively this season.
Jokanovic’s tactics this season have also been way off the mark.
The Serbian manager is yet to pick his strongest XI due to injuries and having too much to choose from, which has lead to 68 changes to starting XI’s since the opening day of the season.
The cause for these changes are all down to how Fulham been performing in the league this season, which to put it lightly, has been awful. The Cottagers have only won once all season, a 4-2 win at home to Burnley, and have lost seven times already in the league, firmly putting them in the relegation zone already.
Fulham have a team of immense quality, but if Jokanovic doesn’t find a way to utilise what he has to work with, the West London side will go from one of the most exciting teams in the league pre-season to one of the most disappointing squads in recent Premier League history come May.
Tottenham Hotspur – Tom Hardy
Tottenham have had a mixed season despite a strong league start (Photo Credit: Tim Ireland/ AP).
After 11 games of Premier League action, Tottenham sit just one point outside of the top four following a season that has so far been mixed for the North London team.
Going into the season, fans were worried about a lack of spending in the summer transfer window after Spurs became the only team in Europe’s top five leagues to not sign a single player this past window.
This has led to Spurs’ squad depth to be questioned throughout the season. Depleted match day squads against the likes of Liverpool and Barcelona led to crucial defeats for the North London side.
As well as a lack of signings, the date for their new stadium to be opened has constantly been pegged back. It was initially meant to open for the aforementioned game against Liverpool, but has since been pushed back to 2019 leading to frustration from the fans.
Despite these negative signs for a team that might have reached its peak following three brilliant seasons under Mauricio Pochettino, it has been a great start for Tottenham so far in the league.
Spurs achieved their best start to a Premier League season in the opening 10 games that saw them just two points off first place, but the past weekend saw Spurs slump five points off the leaders Manchester City, who beat them Monday night at Wembley Stadium.
But even with this impressive fact, Spurs fans have still been left frustrated with how their team have done this season. Harry Kane, prolific as ever this season, is clearly in need of a break following a long summer with England during the World Cup, and injuries to star midfielders Dele Alli and Christen Eriksen have been felt hugely by the Tottenham XI.
A top four finish is still entirely likely for Spurs. With Arsenal finally showing signs of slowing down and Manchester United out of the race for Champions League football for now, it might come down to who falls on their face harder than who performs better on the pitch.
West Ham – Dylan Walsh
Manuel Pellegrini has overseen an upturn in form recently. (Photo Credit: West Ham United).
It’s been a season of ups and downs for West Ham so far, and we’re not even a third of the way though the campaign.
With the arrival of new manager Manuel Pellegrini and £100 million worth of new players in the summer, things were looking optimistic for the Hammers before a ball was even kicked, and just like Fulham, they have fallen flat-footed on their face.
After no wins in their opening four games, including a heart-breaking 1-0 win at home to newly promoted Wolves, Pellegrini was facing the sack before he had even had a chance to prove himself. And wouldn’t you know it, things turned around for the East London side.
West Ham went on to beat Everton away for their first win of the season in the very next game, and then went on to grab a vital point against high-flying Chelsea in a 0-0 draw at the London Stadium. Since their, things have started to look up for Pellegrini’s side.
An 8-0 win the League Cup against Macclesfield Town was followed up by an impressive 3-1 against Manchester United to round up an impressive September for West Ham. Although they are yet to win following this result against the Red Devils, two defeats and a draw away to Leicester City, the Irons currently sit 13th in the league table.
And unlike some of the teams in the capital, the majority of West Ham’s summer signings have proved to be excellent additions to the side. Club record signing Felipe Anderson has proved to be a big hit with the fans for his dazzling footwork and performances in big games, whilst Lukasz Fabianski has added a needed layer of quality in goal and has also come up big for the Hammers in vital games.
The early-season wobble looks to have passed at West Ham, and with a manager with a great Premier League track record manning the helm and a team of impressive talent and potential improving every week, the Hammers could challenge for a surprise top-half table finish.
