The middle of the line

Fulham’s first loss in a competitive game this season, and not one that was unexpected. Chelsea had won their first two games already, and Fulham were probably a little tired after the Perm game. Losing AJ does seem to have dented the attack quite a bit too.

Still, Fulham did play quite well, and did defend deep to try and stop the Blues from getting through. In the end, it just wasn’t enough. There was a shade of offside over Drogba’s goal to take the lead, but shortly before that a good chance for Chelsea had been flagged up on a very marginal decision. We can’t claim to have been robbed – Fulham were beaten by the better side.

In the week is a long trip out to Perm and back, during which they must avoid a 2-0 loss. Next Sunday sees a game away to Villa, which may be easier, as they will also have had a Europa Cup game to play – and one in which they start from behind.

I suspect that many Fulham players will be relishing the break for internationals though.