There’s a very special interview with Brian McBride over on the Fulham website following his guest appearance at the fan event that preceeded the Whites’ final Summer Series fixture in DC last weekend.
The American striker’s passion for Fulham shines through in his chat with Geoff Pruce so it is well worth catching the whole thing – especially with some special footage of the Q&A compered by David Daly at Franklin Hall. It is clear that McBride still holds real affection for the Whites:
“You don’t really get a chance to have these opportunities while you’re playing. It is great fun to reminiscence about my past memories and those of the times. My time at Fulham was special to myself and my family. We love London, so any chance of getting back involved or having a piece of nostalgia is something I won’t turn down. Fulham is still deep in my heart and these days are pretty fun.
There’s many Americans that have created this drive to be a Fulham fan. There was a time when we did have quite a few and we still have Antonee [Robinson] and Tim [Ream] there. I think all that creates this bond: you feel that you are a part of it and you recognise the bond from the club to the American fans.”
McBride, who was general manager of US Soccer up the end of last year, also spoke of his pride at seeing Tim Ream and Antonee Robinson excel for club and country last season.
I know Tim pretty well and had some good conversations with him. He’s always someone who sees the bigger picture and he’s always been a person that’s driven to keep getting better and improve. If somebody doubts him, he has this desire to prove people wrong. You also have to look at what Antonee’s done since he came to Fulham – coming back from the question mark of whether he was going to be able to play again and show that he can play at the level that he wants to and play really well at that level. It’s fun to watch both of them, the fact that they are next to each other too so they have that understanding – really fun mornings getting up and putting the TV on and seeing those two play together!
He also is full of praise for the work done by Marco Silva and his old team-mate Luis Boa Morte in making the Whites more than competitive on their return to the Premier League.
“I thought Fulham had the ability to be a different team at different times. With Willian, with the midfield – with the amount of players you can bring in to change a game with [Tom] Cairney and Bobby [Decordova] Reid. There’s real strength in that and then, with Mitrovic scoring the goals. Every once in a while they’ll pan to the bench and there’s Boa! It is great to have someone of that playing ability, but also understanding of the game, and have him be a part of the fabric of the team.”
