Felix Magath has never managed in the Championship. His fleeting Premier League experience wasn’t pretty, but it certainly didn’t humble a German coach could never been accused of being short on confidence. His summer upheaval at Craven Cottage saw a host of experienced names exit, with their places taken largely by promising prospects from the academy. The chance for young talent to make a mark in the first team is welcome – we have been calling for a pathway to the senior side for some time – but throwing them all in at once could do more harm than good.
Witness Saturday’s defeat by Millwall. Fulham were outfought, outthought and outplayed by a workmanlike, wily outfit who just had too much nous. The hosts perked up when Patrick Roberts was brought off the bench but couldn’t find an equaliser. A lack of experience will kill you in the English second tier. The only players with any significant pedigree in senior football in this country in that line up were Scott Parker, who spoke afterwards about the Whites needing to be nastier, and Ross McCormack. However promising some of these youngsters may be, there needs to be alchemy with older heads – or you could risk a few careers.
The cynical interpretation would be that Magath – never all that popular in German dressing rooms despite all his success – has plumped for youngsters because they won’t question any of his methods. They will just run and follow orders. That will make you fit, but it won’t earn points. Some selections seem baffling. Cam Burgess has shot to prominence as an elegant and determined central defender in the club’s youth system, but looked out of his depth at Ipswich as a holding midfielder. Shifted to his natural position against Millwall, he struggled to deal with the movement of Millwall’s forward runners. The Fulham manager’s commitment to the next generation is laudable, but it could take a while to pay off. If Shahid Khan is serious about returning to the Premier League at the first attempt, then patience is not something the Londoners can afford.
