Several teams have started this Premier League season well, but Marco Silva's Fulham, sitting 8th in the Premier League table, are arguably going under the radar. With just two defeats from seven games, which came away to the two Manchester clubs, the Cottagers are enjoying their best start to a Premier League season since 2003.
The season was prefaced by a transfer window of highs and lows. Two of the biggest departures from Craven Cottage saw defender Tosin Adarabioyo complete a free transfer to neighbours Chelsea while key midfield presence Joao Palhinha made a switch to German giants Bayern Munich.
These alongside the departures of Bobby De Cordova-Reid, Tim Ream and Willian gave fans a reason to worry with losing key individuals and some squad depth.
But, for what they lost, they have replaced it with quality.
The pick of the bunch was the signing of Emile Smith-Rowe from Arsenal for a club-record £34 million, a player who attracted a whole lot of interest over the Summer but it was Fulham who got his signature which ended his 14 year stay in North London.
The 24 year old is already paying back his price tag with two goals and one assist so far in the league.
Another key arrival saw the return of Joachim Andersen after he signed from Crystal Palace. The defender, who had a loan spell at Fulham in the 2020/21 season, is proving to be a key presence in the back line with only two goals conceded in the three games he had played for the Whites before the defeat at Manchester City.
Another returning player came back to Craven Cottage in Ryan Sessegnon on a free transfer after his departure from Tottenham Hotspur. He was joined in West London by highly rated Spanish defender Jorge Cuenca from Villarreal, Sander Berge arriving from relegated Burnley and Reiss Nelson joining from Arsenal and reuniting with former teammates Smith-Rowe, Bernd Leno and Alex Iwobi.
The season started off with an opening day trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United. Of course this is usually a tough test for most teams in football, but there was cautious optimism among the Fulham faithful.
Despite putting in a strong performance at the Theatre of Dreams, Marco Silva’s side were denied a point late on after a debut goal from United forward Joshua Zirkzee with just three minutes to go, but it was still a positive start for the Cottagers.
After that narrow defeat at Old Trafford, Fulham went on a strong run of impressive results, taking eight points from four games against Ipswich, West Ham, Newcastle and Nottingham Forest. It's worth noting that both Newcastle and Forest were unbeaten before their defeats to the Whites.
Although that promising run of results did include a Carabao Cup defeat to Preston after a record-breaking penalty shoot-out, the momentum has continued with an outstanding effort in their 3 - 2 defeat to Champions Manchester City.
There are a number of reasons for this Fulham purple patch, one being Silva’s approach. The Portuguese manager does not like to make many changes to his starting lineup. Since the start of the season, nine players have started every league game for Fulham and only five other players have shared the other two starting spots.
This has helped Fulham by having the same structure in place and everyone knowing their roles without Silva having to adapt to many changes within the side. Compared to other managers in the league who make many changes per game, this helps Silva get an understanding of his best eleven and have a set tactic in place.
In this successful system, top scorer Raul Jimenez and former Barcelona winger Adama Traore have really found their feet.
Jimenez has produced three goals and an assist in just four starts this season, including the winning penalty against Nottingham Forest, which made him just the second Mexican to score 50 Premier League goals. It takes quite a player to be in the company of Chicharito Hernandez.
Traore meanwhile has gone somewhat under the radar. After playing just 364 minutes last season, the Spaniard, often criticised for a lack of end product, has already scored once and provided two assists this term.
His Olympic-standard acceleration combined with his rugby-like strength have made Traore virtually unstoppable in take-ons, especially against smaller full-backs. If he can steer clear of the injury problems that plagued him last season, Traore could be on for his best season in the Premier League.
There is then plenty of reason for Fulham to be optimistic heading into the October international break. Marco Silva is reluctant to set a definitive goal beyond improving on last season's 13th-place finish, but with the number of European spots available to English teams, Fulham have no reason not to aim high.
The first game after the break will test such aspirations, as Champions League Aston Villa make the trip to the Cottage. A win here could kick start a special season in West London.
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