Talking Points: Preston

Scores when he wants

The smile on Tim Ream’s face said it all on Saturday, after he netted just his third Fulham goal. Almost four years since his last for the Club away to Cardiff City on Boxing Day 2017, Ream showed excellent movement to get between two defenders and stab home Jean Michaël Seri’s inviting free-kick. “I saw the gap and just kind of went through it,” he explained to FFCtv. “I knew the ball was being put in there and it was just a matter of getting anything on it.”

Set-piece specialists

Fulham have not really been the greatest threat from set-pieces in the modern era, though that’s all changed since Marco Silva arrived at the Club. Corners and free-kicks have proved incredibly fruitful so far this season, and when you’re putting in deliveries like Seri did for Ream at the weekend, it’s clear to see why.

Five infringements?

Everyone seemed to expect Preston’s equaliser to be ruled out, and with up to five infringements to choose from, it was a bit surprising that it wasn’t. Marek Rodák initially found himself blocked off by Emil Riis Jakobsen, who was in an offside position when Ched Evans headed the ball against both of his hands. Evans himself then used his own arm to bundle it across the line. The fact that both players immediately looked across to the linesman suggests they were expecting a whistle, but it never came. “It’s a clear foul on Marek,” Marco Siva told FFCtv. “Not just one, it’s two; elbow in his face and, after, handball. It’s difficult for us to accept something like that.”

Fulham’s hardy souls

A yellow weather warning made the already hefty journey to Lancashire all the more treacherous for the travelling faithful, with late train disruption meaning a number didn’t even make it into the ground for kick-off. Almost 900 made the arduous journey, and every single one is deserving of the utmost respect.

If you can’t win, don’t lose

Last week’s target would have been six points, but Fulham found themselves up against two battling sides who will each claim that a draw was the correct outcome. Throw in the illness which had been affecting the Whites, and extending our unbeaten run to nine with a couple more points is far from a disaster.