Trevor Steven: Claudio Ranieri’s experience and personality has given Fulham a fighting chance of staying up
You never want to see people lose their jobs but I’m happy that Claudio Ranieri is back in the Premier League, tasked with lifting Fulham off the bottom of the table.
I felt sorry for Slavisa Jokanovic, the man he replaced last week, who got off to a difficult start and never managed to adapt defensively to the demands of the top flight. Fulham needed some fresh ideas, though, and they needed to take this step.
What they needed most of all was someone who knows how to win in this division. Jokanovic, who was managing in the Premier League for the first time, didn’t have that.
Ranieri, who worked wonders at Leicester and has vast experience from 30 years of coaching, does – and that’s what makes him a sensible appointment.
Carefree demeanour
Ranieri is a popular figure with players for the way he treats them and with fans for his positivity and sense of humour.
That public persona is ideal for a struggling team like Fulham; his carefree demeanour and humour in front of the camera can deflect pressure from his players, just as he did during Leicester’s incredible title-winning campaign.
What we see of Ranieri is only what he wants us to see – on the training ground and around the club it is serious business – but it has worked well for him before so he has no reason to change.
Good start
The Italian got off to a great start on Saturday, ending Fulham’s sequence of seven consecutive defeats with a 3-2 win over fellow strugglers Southampton at Craven Cottage.
I expect him to be less adventurous in his tactics than Jokanovic. He didn’t succeed in shoring up the defence too much against Southampton, who are hardly prolific goalscorers, but you have to start somewhere.
They now have three difficult fixtures in a row – against Chelsea, Leicester and Manchester United – before four games against teams in the bottom half, West Ham, Newcastle, Wolves and Huddersfield.
The secret of success in the Premier League is achieving back-to-back wins, so if I was a manager I would be realistic and look to use the three tough games as preparation for the four six-pointers over the Christmas period.
Can they stay up?
Fulham have a reasonable squad but you can’t rely on having quality on paper and they always looked like being one of the teams in the fight to avoid relegation.
I’m not surprised that Newcastle have climbed towards mid-table with a run of wins, while Huddersfield have also regrouped following a difficult start, taking seven points from their last three games.
Crystal Palace have a good squad and should be ok if they can become a little less reliant for goals on Wilfried Zaha.
All of the bottom four – Burnley, Southampton, Cardiff and Fulham – look vulnerable.
Although they are propping up the table, the Cottagers are probably in a better place mentally than the other three sides because they have just got a win, some belief and some momentum.
Can they stay up? It’s hard to say for sure, but what’s certain is that Claudio Ranieri’s experience and qualities give them a fighting chance and make it more likely than before.