David Stockdale had a superb afternoon keeping Chelsea at bay in the early kick-off at Stamford Bridge but the England hopeful was quick to salute his defenders for their application in the 1-1 draw.
Stockdale produced several outstanding saves to earn Fulham a point and the goalkeeper, recently recalled from his loan spell at Ipswich, admitted it was important to return to defensive stability after the horror show against Manchester United before Christmas.
I think as a principle Fulham have always defended well and we wanted to get back to that today. The lads admitted we didn’t defend well against Manchester United and we came out wanting to put things right today. I thought we played very well and that’s all credit to us.
There may have been a lot of saves but there were also a lot of blocks and tracking back so Chelsea couldn’t get round us. It’s not down to one person – it’s a team performance and we all did well.
The unfortunate spine injury to Mark Schwarzer gives Stockdale an extended run in the side and a terrific opportunity to seal a spot in the England squad for the summer’s Euro 2012 tournament. A few more performances like this and he should make the plane to Ukraine and Poland, although Stockdale is focusing on keeping his place in the Fulham side at the moment.
I got a good run on loan at Ipswich and I’d like to thank them for that and hopefully it’s all part of me doing well for Fulham. I’ve just got to keep going and play for as long as the manager puts me in.
Every time I get called [up by England] it’s exciting – I’m just going to play for every squad and not look too far ahead. It’s not about England at the moment; it’s about me cementing my place in the Fulham team.
