Michael Brown has been impressed by makeshift midfielders Carlos Bocanegra and Moritz Volz as he looks to return to the Fulham team following injury.
Fulham’s injury problems have seen defenders Bocanegra and Volz played out of position – and with some success until Saturday’s 3-1 mauling at Manchester City saw them hauled off in the second half.
But while Brown has hailed their overall contribution, he knows his return to fitness after nearly four weeks out with an ankle injury means one of them will be dropped.
“They’ve done really well. They’re not midfielders but Boca and Volzy have both been excellent lately and we were looking quite solid up until last Saturday,” said Brown.
“They helped the team out massively and it just goes to show that if anyone is asked to play anywhere in this team, the lads will be straight up and put in a shift.
“The last few weeks have been difficult for me. We originally thought I would be out for only a week or two but it’s actually taken a lot longer.
“The injury was a bit more complicated than I first thought. In the end I had to have an injection to get rid of some fluid. But I’m nearly there.
“The injury was just one of those things. I came out and blocked a shot when we were playing Wigan and in the process I badly jarred my ankle. It was just a freak injury – there was no one near me. I’ve been training with the boys and hopefully I’ll be available for the weekend.”
The defeat by Manchester City saw Fulham drop out of the top ten and Brown wants his side to bounce back with victory over Reading tomorrow.
“I’m not looking at who’s above us and who isn’t. We just need to get a win quickly so we can get back into that top half,” the former Sheffield United player continued.
“We’ve been in the top half of the table for most of the season and regardless of who we’re playing, we need to get the win to put us back up there.”
