Bernd Leno admitted that Fulham were well below their usual standards in last night’s defeat at AFC Bournemouth.
The German goalkeeper told Fulham’s official website that the Whites had to take the blame for their failure to match the Cherries’ intensity from the first whistle:
“I think it’s our fault that we lost. The first 20-25 minutes we were not on point. I think it was not our [usual] level, and we were lucky that it was just 1-0. At the end we tried everything, I think the second half was much, much better, but I think Bournemouth defended really well, and in the end there was nothing for us.
We knew that they would come with a lot of energy, [they are a] very physical side, very good side, and we missed all of that in the first 20, 25 minutes, and they punished us for that. We had a lot of chances, a couple of headers, dangerous crosses, but in the end the last percentage was missing. Maybe like the speed of the ball, a lot of balls straight at the ‘keeper, but as I said, Bournemouth defended really well, really deep in the second half so it was really hard to score a goal, or even create good chances.”
Leno believes that Fulham remain in a strong position to challenge for European football – and wants to bounce back by doing the double over Chelsea on Sunday.
“I think it’s been a wonderful season. We’re still in a very good position, still in a very good moment. Even with the defeat today, it’s still a very good season. We have six games to go and we are still in touch to go to Europe, so I think that says everything. All our games are very tight, and if we can get more consistency and have a winning streak, win a couple of games in a row, I think we go for sure to Europe. But that’s the Premier League, it’s all about details, margins, and hopefully we can win a couple more games in the last six.
“We had a fantastic game on Boxing Day against Chelsea. We won last minute at Stamford Bridge. We have a couple more days to prepare. Chelsea play on Thursday in the Conference League so they will lose a little bit of energy, but we expect a top side. I think Chelsea is a top, top team, and we need a perfect game to beat them at home.”
Winning every other game is far more rewarding than drawing them all of course…but the inconsistency is very difficult to understand.
Lack of luck, abysmal officiating etc. don’t quite explain it.
Being reduced to 10 on the field when ESR came on was though, entirely, absolutely inexplicable…a terrible mistake by Silva.
I mean him no ill whatever, its a shame but ESR should not be on the subs bench at all let alone ever participate.
A very fair and honest verdict from Bernd. It was not a good performance from the whole team. Surprising as it was the same eleven that deservedly defeated the mighty Liverpool. Really hard to understand as watching the game I didn’t see anyone giving less than 100%. They all tried until the final whistle but only managed to create 2 clear cut in the 90 minutes.
I think this forum is an excellent place where fans can voice their opinions but I can’t believe the amount of negativity. Since Marco’s arrival we have improved each season despite having our best players cherry picked by the big clubs. We can now go toe to toe with the big boys. This was unthinkable 4 years ago.
I’m sure the manager and players must visit this forum and can’t help wondering how they must feel to read some of the comments. Why always pick on the same players i.e. Castagne and ESR when others are just as culpable. For example Bournemouth’s goal when Castagne lost the ball in the opponents half, Berger missed a tackle in midfield Robinson like a statue as the winger went past him, Andersen turned inside out and Bassey not even in camera shot. Oh of course it’s Castagne’s fault. As for the treatment ESR gets I find it unbelievable. He is obviously a good player who lacks confidence and self belief and these comments do nothing to help him. He wears the Fulham badge and as such should have the support of the fans, more so than the cult heros who seem to be beyond reproach.
Leno seems to have the right attitude we win as a team and lose as a team.
Look forward to your opinions
Spot on CB and Leno too! Beat Chelsea and we’re on for a Euro place! Superb season, thanks Marco
COYW
Well I can only imagine that the usual suspects are criticised because they are the ones not performing in a game. I’m quite sure that every Fulham fan wants players to do well because, then, the team does well. But, if the same players are consistently sub-par, then something is obviously wrong.
Why that is perceived as being negative is beyond me. Are we supposed to just ignore the obvious, bury our heads in the sand and say nothing. Pretending that all in the garden is rosy is nonsensical.
As for Smith Rowe, in particular, he cost us a great deal of money and has not lived up to expectations. The very least we can expect, confidence and self belief lacking or not, is more effort. But his application is minimal. Or that’s how it seems to me when I watch him.
I would be over the moon if he came good but there’s a reason why Arteta sold him and why Silva, earlier in the season, subbed him so often and, now, doesn’t select him as a first choice. Players can be forgiven for a loss of form but not a lack of effort in my book.
But, just because, Fulham players visit this forum, which I very much doubt, we are not supposed to speak the truth?
I wish Marco Silva would visit HammyEnd because he might do something about giving us a genuine captain.
As for cult heroes being beyond reproach, who exactly? Robinson is, probably, the closest we have to a cult hero but, if he plays badly (which has been a regular occurrence of late) I say so. Ryan Sessegnon? Can’t quite see it. I am at a loss here. I don’t think we have that many current players that can be classed as cult heroes. Maybe, it refers to players of the past? Maybe not as they rarely get a mention.
There’s no disputing that Marco Silva has been a great manager for us and we are, now, more than capable of giving any Premiership side a tough game. But that’s exactly why it is so disappointing when we let ourselves down and don’t perform to our level.
Of course it’s bound to happen on occasion but it happens far to often with this side and, unfortunately, it’s usually the same players that are the cause.
I’m sure that Marco Silva recognises this and, in the summer, will address those positions that need strengthening. At least, I hope so. It would be a poor manager that did not do so.
In the meantime, I, for one, will be genuinely cheering on my team and hoping that we can finish the season on a real high and I will continue to voice my feelings on this excellent forum.
We all love Fulham FC, I’m sure and only want the best for the team.
Fair comments. But let us not forget some painful memories – mine go back to my first match when we beat Hartlepool in the 3rd round of the FA Cup back in 1962. I’ve seen the fall to near bottom of the 4th Division (as it was then) and visited some pretty dismal away grounds during that decline. We are now a pretty well established side in the world’s toughest league. So let’s be thankful for the journey we’re now on, which I hope doesn’t end with European football next year as our squad is too thin to cope with the additional load of midweek games.
But one thing has been consistent over the decades – our inconsistency, which seems to be in our DNA.
COYW
There always has to be a scapegoat. This season, at various times, I’ve read that Leno, Joa, Diop, Jedi, Timmy C, Iwobi, Berge, Lukic, AP, ESR, Raúl, Wilson and Muñiz aren’t good enough, and that Marco has taken us as far as he can/isn’t up to the job,which begs the question as to who the club could realistically get in as an upgrade to any of those. Frankly, I’m happyish with the squad and glad that we don’t have to resort to bringing on a Shefki Kuqi or an Eddie Johnson. And Marco is up there with Sir Roy, Tigana and Mickey Adams imo.
Monday was frustrating, as I thought we were poor but worth a point. I dont think, for the umpteenth time this season, that the officiating did us any favours (Senesi would have been off if he’d been wearing white). Not for the first time an opposition player should have seen an early red which would have drastically altered the game (see also: Wharton, Van Dijk)
What did surprise me was the amount of misplaced passes, almost as though some players just weren’t switched on. Our build up was too slow a lot of the time, we need to mix it up a bit, and I’m getting frustrated that none of our players seem to want to have a go from outside the area (it works so well against us that it has to be worth a *ahem* punt). But it’s easy to carp from the sidelines/armchair. We were up against a team who are no mugs. Table doesn’t lie and all that.
I’ve been sceptical about any talk of Europe, but if we were to go on a Great Escape run of form, then it could still be possible. I fully expect a top 10 club to have an end of season shambles, I just hope it isn’t us and that we can capitalise on another club’s misfortune. But I’m not holding my breath.
Keep up with your prayers, pre match superstitions, human sacrifices etc because you never know…Personally I’m hoping for a nice early season Euro run out in somewhere relatively cheap like Croatia or Serbia, while the weather’s still warm, but I’m not counting on it.
It’s squeaky bum time, as a famous Scotsman once said.
Fair comment Franco but if we want to take the next step we need to invest in a quality No 10
Charles – I’m delighted that as many people visit this website and still use it. I set it up with a Swedish friend as part of a high school project in 2003 thinking it might last a year and never envisaged it still going now. It gave me and many others a pathway into journalism that we never thought would exist.
As a journalist and a Fulham fan, I’ve been very fortunate to meet and interview most of the first-team squad, the head coach and various members of the coaching staff for outlets other than this one. C.B. is correct that some players first absolutely everything. That doesn’t mean we should censor comments or prevent people from saying what they think but I must say personally that some people do take comments to heart and have withdrawn from social media as a result. Ryan Sessegnon has spoken about that publicly and is delighted to be back at Fulham, which I think shines through in his delight at being on the pitch and scoring goals.
Marco Silva is far too busy to read every article and comment but his representatives do read this website and all the others, so I’m sure he gets a selection of comments shared with him.
We all get frustrated with results – particularly when we get so close to breaking into the top eight or throw away a good opportunity to progress in the FA Cup – but I do thank my lucky stars that my neighbours took me to Fulham when I was a little boy rather than a different London club.
Thanks for reading and contributing so regularly to Hammyend. My comment is only to add a little bit of personal perspective. We’ll try to keep the site as interactive and filled with news and reports as personal for many years to come. COYW!
Dan, a brilliant forum. What makes this so good is that 2 people can go to the same match and come away with totally different views. Just imagine if will all had the same perspective, this site would become irrelevant. Long live debate!! What would be even more interesting is if some of the players shared their views with us but they probably would not be allowed to.
Thanks again Dan…….and all those who take part