Chris Coleman is confident the euphoria of Fulham’s historic victory over Arsenal will not backfire on his side when they visit Blackburn on Saturday.
The Cottagers held on for a 2-1 victory on Wednesday night, a first win over their London rivals since New Year’s Day 1966.
“We can’t rest on what we did against Arsenal and we won’t,” said boss Coleman. “We’re going into a game three days later with a spring in our step after that.
“Once we get to Blackburn, that will bring us down to earth. Arsenal is finished, it doesn’t get us any points on Saturday.
“We have got to concentrate on a tough Blackburn team who need the points as well. If we win, there will be a 10-point gap between us and Blackburn.
Reflecting on a remarkable turnaround for his side following successive defeats by Manchester City and Reading, Coleman added: “I don’t want to concentrate on the points, it’s about the performance first and foremost and we have to put the performance in. We’d lost two on the bounce and we could easily have lost to Arsenal. Everyone fancied us to lose, and then we are away to Blackburn and Liverpool. Lose those two tough games and that’s five on the bounce and you’re in trouble. That’s how tough the league is.”
Fulham now travel north on a high and will be looking for the same sort of start American international striker Brian McBride’s fifth-minute goal provided on Wednesday night.
“Unless we start quickly, generally we don’t get the result we want and we certainly don’t get the performance we want,” Coleman said.
The Fulham manager also admitted he can get “a little bit frustrated” by the performances of a side who rebounded from their setbacks against Manchester City and Reading to secure the club’s first victory over the Gunners for more than 40 years.
Coleman said: “Not so much the Reading game, because we had a go and rolled our sleeves up with 10 men, but the week before against Man City we didn’t.
“That’s the differences between sides like us and the Chelseas and the Manchester Uniteds, who are doing it week in and week out.
“Outside of Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal, there’s not a massive difference. It’s just that the teams who are more consistent are the ones who do well.
“If you can put a run together – and we are capable of it – it can change your season, turn it on its head.
“We’ve shown we can beat the best and we can lose to the guys at the bottom and that’s us. The sooner we can get our consistency, the higher we are going to finish.”
