Leon Andreasen became one of Roy Hodgson’s first Fulham signings when he was prised away from German high-flyers Werder Bremen in January.
Ever since, the Danish international has slotted seamlessly into the Whites' midfield where his determined and energetic displays have impressed in each of his performances so far.
Unfortunately, his enthusiasm for the cause resulted in a sending off against West Ham as he debated Nolberto Solano’s controversial goal, but speaking to the matchday programme before that game, Leon revealed his reasons for making the move to SW6 and his happiness at having done so…
Leon, what have been your early impressions of Fulham Football Club in your first month here?
I have no complaints, other than that we need a few more points. Aside from that, everything’s been good. The lads are nice and all the players that have come here have settled in quite well. It’s the first time I’ve been in England so it’s all pretty new to me, but the first few weeks have been really good.
And what is your opinion of the Premier League so far? Is it as you expected it to be?
Some of the teams over here play a lot quicker, but the biggest thing is definitely the physical side of it. If you take a German team and compare it to an English team, the English team is far more physical – I’m talking about every player individually. That’s the biggest difference. For example, I’d never done gym work at a club before. Obviously I’ve done a little bit myself here and there, but over here you do gym sessions maybe two or three times a week, and I’ve never done that before at my former clubs. It’s a big difference, but I think it’s good.
What attracted you to come and join the Club? Did you know any of the current squad or talk to any former Fulham players?
No. I heard about the interest from Fulham and I asked a few guys a few questions about Roy and how he was, and I only heard positive responses, so there really wasn’t any doubt in my mind that I should come.
So what did you know about Roy Hodgson before you came?
Not much. But I’d played for clubs and for the national team with players who have had him as a coach, so I asked around a little bit, which is normal, and I only heard positive things, so it was an easy decision for me.
And now you’re here, have you been impressed by his working methods?
Yes. He’s a good coach. He can be friendly, but he can also be very strict. You have a lot of freedom and as long as you keep in between the lines he will be a fantastic coach. And I sure hope, and I believe, that we won’t go down.
You’ve come straight into the team and already impressed a lot of people. Are you pleased with how you’ve been playing so far?
I’m never good at judging my own performances, but I think we did very well in my first two games; against Bolton, and we had a massive win against Villa, so I think everybody has been playing quite good. I hear that we’ve been playing a little bit better football than in the past six months, so that’s nice to know.
As a new player you just have to work hard and show that you are committed. It is difficult as a new player to come to a team that’s fighting against relegation, because you haven’t been there and seen everything that’s been going on. It’s difficult, so all you can do is work hard in training. As a new player you can’t come in with big talk, you have to stay in the background a bit and try and help as much as you can, because it’s a tough situation and the only thing that’s of any use to us is points.
For those that haven’t seen you play that much, what kind of player would you say you are? What attributes do you bring to the Fulham team?
I don’t like to describe myself, but I think I’m a hard worker, that’s pretty much how I describe myself, and then I’ll let others judge my play.
And what have you made of the Fulham fans since you joined?
The fans mean everything. Without the fans there would be no football, so it’s all about them. Yes, it’s about playing well and getting points, but in the end it’s all about keeping the fans happy, and at the moment, our fans aren’t.
You signed a three-and-a-half year contract with Fulham. Ideally, what would you like to achieve in that time?
Firstly to definitely stay up this summer. We have a lot of new players and it takes them time to settle down, but I think next year could be a good year for us if we do what Roy tells us to do.
Based on what you’ve experienced of the Fulham team so far, do you find it surprising that they are where they are in the league?
As I say, I haven’t been here, none of the new players have, so we don’t know what’s been going on, so I can only talk for myself and say that I think we’ve played quite well and we’ve just got to keep working hard, because hard work is all that can get us points.
Have you ever been involved in a relegation fight before?
Yes, in Germany. I went on loan to a club called Mainz and I went there, as I came here, in the winter time and they were 11 points adrift of the next team. We won six and drew one of my first seven games there, but, unfortunately in the end we still went down by two points.
So from that experience, what attitude and approach do you think is necessary in this final quarter of the season to escape?
Focus, hard work and keeping our heads screwed on.
