Fulham have been dragged towards the bottom of the Sky Bet Championship after one win in 11, but still hold a healthy six-point cushion over Wigan – the highest-placed team in the drop zone.
The Cottagers' latest defeat came at home to Leeds United on Wednesday night when, despite having 27 shots to the Whites' eight, they lost 3-0 to fall to 21st.Boss Kit Symons says his side needs three wins from their remaining eight games to secure safety, and their run-in continues this Saturday when they visit Huddersfield Town, who are only four points better off in the standings.
That game is one of a number of encounters Symons' men have against sides around them, or teams chasing promotion, in the final furlong of 2014/15.
Fulham's remaining fixtures:
Huddersfield Town (A)
Brentford (H)
Charlton Athletic (A)
Wigan Athletic (H)
Rotherham United (H)
Blackpool (A)
Middlesbrough (H)
Norwich City (A)
Three wins from those matches would leave them on 49 points and that tally has been enough to stay in the Sky Bet Championship in four of the last five seasons.
- 2013/14: Doncaster Rovers were the highest-placed relegated team with 44 points.
- 2012/13: Peterborough United were the highest-placed relegated team with 54 points.
- 2011/12: Portsmouth were the highest-placed relegated team with 40 points.
- 2010/11: Preston North End were the highest-placed relegated team with 42 points.
- 2009/10: Sheffield Wednesday were the highest-placed relegated team with 47 points.
And it's five years ago this week that Fulham overcame Italian giants Juventus 4-1 at Craven Cottage (5-4 on aggregate) in the Europa League to advance to the Quarter-Final stage.
They eventually fell at the final hurdle, losing 2-1 to a Diego Forlan-inspired Atletico Madrid in the final, but Symons seems confident that they'll remain standing in the Championship this term.
“They’re all massive games we’ve got coming up,” he said. “Huddersfield, Wigan, Rotherham, teams in and around us, so it’s in our hands very much.”