Jokanovic makes honest admission ahead of Bolton clash despite Fulham’s recent good form

Fulham manager Slavisa Jokanovic has as much reason as anyone to be relaxed and confident right now, given that his Fulham side are rampant and moved up to fifth in the Championship with a 2-0 home win over Nottingham Forest on Saturday. 

After an inconsistent start to the season, Fulham’s flowing passing game has clicked into gear in recent weeks and they added some quality signings in January to further add to the feel-good factor around Craven Cottage at the moment.

The Serbian manager takes his team to face Bolton Wanderers, who are battling relegation, this Saturday and the nature of his focus and character is that he is taking nothing for granted and has issued a strong warning to his players.

He told the club’s official website: “We must be satisfied but we cannot be overconfident. The right direction for us is to be calm, show solidarity and humility, respect the opposition team, respect ourselves, work hard, be confident and brave, and trust we can win the game.

“We didn’t win at home against Bolton. We must trust in our possibilities and push to try and get the points. We have enough experience now to know easy games don’t exist.

“They lost their target man (Gary Madine) and they changed their shape a little bit against Bristol City. They played a quality game. They’ve probably tried to find a different solution. In the end they chose to play a little bit different with two strikers, and the plan worked perfectly for them.

“We observed the team with Madine and without Madine, and we know more or less what could happen, but we must be ready for any shape that we could find.”

The Verdict

Some managers simply pay lip service when trotting out the ‘no easy games’ line but the feeling I get from Jokanovic is that he means it.

He watched his form struggle for consistency over a period of months earlier in the season and he knows that if his players do not remain focused, that could happen again. The last thing they need is to be stung by Bolton but it will be a very tough game at the Macron on Saturday.

Fulham fans – what do you make of Jokanovic’s comments? Let us know in the comments below…