It might strike some people as unambitious, but Fulham manager Martin Jol will be happy with a boring 0-0 at Stoke tomorrow.
We have to play our own game like we did, for example, against Newcastle. Then, a couple of weeks ago, I think we had the initiative for most of the game against West Bromwich. It was the same but we couldn’t score although I thought we were the better team.
It was a 0-0 there and I think a 0-0 at Stoke would be a good result. But I still hope that with the confidence we have got we are capable of scoring a couple of goals.
It will Jol’s first visit to the Britannia Stadium as a manager, but he feels Fulham can draw confidence from the 2-0 win there last season which revived the side’s fortunes under Mark Hughes.
There are a few things [that can help break them down]. Last year we had a good result there. We defended and scored two goals through Chris Baird.
It was a very good performance and probably the turning point for Fulham last season. But, as everybody knows, Stoke away is a difficult game. They have the same problem as we have in Europe. They are very good team with different qualities.
They have (Peter) Crouch up front now who is a target and an outlet with their throw-ins too. They are quite a physical team that can play as well so it is a good team.
Jol hinted that he may stick with the same system that saw Fulham thrash QPR, offering a chance for Andy Johnson and Bobby Zamora to continue their partnership up front.
Not with the line-up because I feel the same players could start again if that is my decision, but they will have to defend more than we did at home. That is the normal thing and we had to defend against West Bromwich, where he were trying to get initiative.
Nil-nil would probably be a good result but I feel we have opportunities to score and that is what Fulham did last year.
