Exams test you against a competitive norm, i.e. the rest of the league. A mock exam shows you where you are, where you do well, and where you can improve. The Fulham match was exactly that.
Chris Davies’ team selection will have surprised a few this evening. With so many games coming thick and fast, and considering how important some of these players are to our style of play, it was surprising to see them risked against Premier League opposition, with May and Bielik being the main two.
Despite Fulham’s strong line-up (900+ Premier League appearances), Blues were able to dominate possession for large parts of the game (58% possession and completing 130 more passes than Fulham), albeit mainly in our own third and the middle of the pitch.
In possession, there were signs of some very fluid patterns of play in the build-up, with Leonard and Paik being excellent, although we never really created any gilt-edged opportunities.
One plus of Davies going strong is that the more time the back four get together (particularly Bielik and Klarer), as well as Paik and Leonard in midfield, the more their relationships will develop, which seems to be improving week on week (though Bielik and Klarer still look shaky at times).
It also gave us another opportunity to see Ryan Allsop in goal and how he interacts with those players in front of him. He seemed a little more composed in possession and more confident inviting a press, stretching the opponents before trying to play through them. It also gave some much-needed game time to Willum Willumson, who looks like he may take a little while to settle.
The less said about the penalty, the better. A trademark Stroud howler – in my opinion – awarded a penalty to Fulham, seemingly because Alex Cochrane possesses a pair of arms. Fulham’s second followed shortly after.
Despite Klarer and Bielik being the best ball-playing centre-backs we’ve had at the club for quite some time, their lack of mobility is evident. A very high line, Laird not handing off his man, a well-timed run by Jay Stansfield, and a neat finish on his right foot doubled Fulham’s lead. I think we all saw that coming…
Despite going two down early on, Davies will be impressed that Blues were able to continue applying many of his principles throughout the 90 minutes, even though Blues looked tired in the final twenty minutes – something I hope Davies doesn’t come to regret in the hectic few weeks that follow.
Putting the result aside, Davies will have learnt a lot from the performance, and I’m sure he’ll be very pleased with our ability to move the ball with purpose, how we maintained possession against a very good Fulham side, and that we showed some real glimpses of quality going forward. However, I’m sure he will quietly have a few concerns about how we created very few clear-cut chances and the occasional defensive wobble.
Ratings
Starting XI
Ryan Allsop: 6
Hard to really quantify his goal keeping today. Raul Jimenez sent him the wrong way from the spot and there wasn't a huge amount he could do to prevent Stansfields tidy finish. His starting position was slightly higher than Peacock-Farrell and did prevent a few longer balls punishing Blues high line. He looked comfortable in possession and like to invite the press before releasing the ball.
Ethan Laird: 6
Another tremendously energetic evening. It'd be interesting just to see how much ground he covered throughout the game. He worked hard defensively - despite a momentary lapse for the second goal - and got himself into some great positions going forward; however, (as you can probably guess) his final ball let him down.
Christoph Klarer: 6
As per the weekend, Christophe looked comfortable on the ball and happy to play from the back. His lack of mobility was apparent in the goal, where he, Bielik and Laird were caught out by a long ball over the top. Other than that he was assured in possession and showed enough against Premier League opposition.
Krystian Bielik: 6
His range of passing was a delight, happy to keep it short, but also very adept at playing long raking balls forward. Neither centre backs had a huge about to do. He did have one worrying moment where he almost put one past Ryan Allsop.
Alex Cochrane: 6
Impossible to judge him for the penalty. A fairly comfortable evening but didn't have much of an influence over proceedings. His set pieces were a little inconsistent. He did have a decent effort from distance in the second half but it was comfortably dealt with.
Marc Leonard: 8 - Man of the Match
He'll have been disappointed with the weekends performance but he was excellent this evening. We heard a lot about his ability in possession which we saw an abundance of this evening but he's also rugged out of possession, winning a number of tackles and aerial battles across the pitch.
Paik Seung-Ho: 7
As mentioned previously, in League One Paik really does have no more dandruff, he's 'head and shoulders' above in this division. He looked comfortable up against some very accomplished opponents who worked hard to stifle him. As long as we can keep him, the wonderful Paik Leonard combination in midfielder is only going to continue to improve.
Keshi Anderson: 6
Continuing to make a claim that he is the first choice at right wing. I think he's the perfect winger for a Chris Davies system both in and out of possession. He's direct, he's confident and he moves the ball when needs must. Lairds width allows him to find pockets of space inside to receive the ball and is always happy to take it on the turn and drive at players. Unlucky not to see his header pull one back.
Willum Þór Willumsson: 6
When he moves it quickly he looks far more accomplished, but he has a knack of taking too long on the ball leading to him being crowded out. He didn't offer much to influence proceedings, in or out of possession. He did have one wonderful effort from a free kick which hit the cross-bar but other than that, offered little. Still waiting to see the Icelandic put on a display which emulates his form last season.
Emil Hansson: 6
Similar to Anderson with his direct approach, although we haven't seen the link up with Cochrane chat we saw glimpses off during pre season. A few errors held him back and he had very little impact on stretching the Fulham back line. I may have been a little kind with my rating here.
Alfie May: 6
His movement off the shoulder of the defence is perfect for Chris Davies style, often having too much pace for the Fulham back like to deal with. Worked hard to track back and put himself about, fouling Stansfield on the half way line and picking up a booking. Almost repayed him with an error which set up Stansfield, one Alfie will be glad to have gotten away with.
Subs
Koji Miyoshi: 6
Helped by Lairds wide starting position, Koji found some pockets of space on the right hand side and helps string together the build up play well. Delivered some decent crosses, and was as busy as always, albeit not hugely influencing the game.
Ayumu Yokoyama: 6
Very purposeful with his style of play, whether he's moving the ball on quickly or he's turning to turn at his full back, he does so crisply and doesn't leave anything for granted. He appears never to shirk his defensive duties either. Another decent performance, which leaves me thinking that he may be knocking on the door for a league start soon.
Tyler Roberts: 5
Very little to report on, although it's telling that he was Alfie Mays replacement as the high press striker, something I think we need to address, even though we are signing Dykes. There was an error between himself and Willumson which if it had been corrected, it could've seen Blues pull one back. Didn't have any real impact on the game which I'm sure he'll be frustrated with. One positive is that when he did get up to a full prolonged sprint, he looked comfortable, potentially a mental hurdle overcome.
Alfons Sampsted: 6
Did well to fill the gap left with Lairds departure. His natural style doesn't suit such a high starting position as full back, but Alfons showed his abilities both offensively and defensively looking comfortable in tight areas with the ball and astute in his defensive duties. A decent enough performance from the bench.
Lukas Jutkiewicz: N/A
Impossible to give a fair rating in just 10 minutes of football, but it's clear that a big target may doesn't suit Davies style of play. He struggled to get into the game and made a few unforced errors.
