Claudio Ranieri has told his Fulham players their battle against relegation will not be settled against Manchester United and they therefore cannot rely on one result lifting their troubled season.
Of Fulham’s coming seven fixtures, three are away from Craven Cottage – they are yet to record an away league victory this season – and the other four against United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City.
By the end of that run survival could be beyond Fulham’s reach, with the club already seven points adrift of safety, but Ranieri is adamant they have to retain their belief if they are to have any hope of succeeding.
Given the difficulty of that run the Cottagers had been relying on victory last weekend at Crystal Palace, when they again lost, yet while that result appeared defining their manager knows it is a succession of results they require.
It was an unexpected victory at City that gave Fulham the belief to survive when they were struggling under Roy Hodgson in 2008, but perhaps acknowledging their present circumstances are considerably bleaker, Ranieri said: “We don’t need one match to change the mood. We need more matches to change the mood.
“Of course, if there’s a good result against United, the mood could be changed, but you have to see the next match.
“The inspiration I have is that if you continue to fight, you maybe have one opportunity to be safe.
It’s not sure. But if you don’t fight, you don’t have that last opportunity. It’s important to fight. After, if they’re better than you, it’s a pity, and we restart next season.
“It’s contagious. Together it’s easier. If you see the team, you don’t see a team that’s not involved in the relegation fight. No, we are fighting, but we lose some matches. Not because we don’t fight; because the little details are against us.”
Claudio has called on his players to be soldiers as they prepare for another battle in the fight against relegation.
— Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC) 8 February 2019
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Teenager Ryan Sessegnon has been among Fulham’s most consistent performers when he has been selected, but under Ranieri he has become increasingly peripheral.
Last month’s arrivals of Ryan Babel and Lazar Markovic have provided the 18-year-old with further competition for selection, and the Italian questions whether Sessegnon has the experience and physical maturity to play every week.
“He is a lad,” said Ranieri, who at Chelsea oversaw John Terry’s development into a first-team player. “It’s his first time in the Premier League and sometimes it’s not possible to stay every time at the top of your condition.
“(But) now he is getting better and then he can play on Saturday. For me he is a very good player.”
