Mr Khan's Programme Notes

Good afternoon and thank you for producing another sell-out crowd as we greet a familiar opponent, Nottingham Forest, to Craven Cottage. We have a lot of respect for Forest, a club that joined us in promotion to the Premier League last season, always prove to be tough opponents and have risen impressively in the table over the past month. I want to commend Nottingham Forest on a great run in the Carabao Cup and welcome visiting and home supporters to the Cottage as their teams reset following the January transfer window. I’ll be watching today’s match early in the morning from Arizona, the site of Super Bowl LVII in the U.S. I plan to return to London soon, and want to thank the many Fulham fans who rallied behind the Jacksonville Jaguars during our fantastic run in the second half of our NFL season and into the playoffs. Related, it’s fun to see so many Jaguars fans going all-in on Fulham. I’ve been very fortunate over the past year to be witness to Fulham winning a trophy, followed by a postseason berth for the Jaguars, and I want to take this opportunity on behalf of my family to thank everyone responsible for this wonderful experience. It’s humbling and we are grateful! It was understandable to wonder how the Premier League would respond following the FIFA World Cup and a short holiday break. It was an unprecedented time for the game worldwide, and especially so for top-flight clubs that would see a number of their players continue playing in Qatar. Here at Fulham, we gained global respect for our excellent start and then unfortunately suffered consecutive at-the- death defeats vs. Manchester City and Manchester United days prior to the World Cup. Moments after the heartbreaker at home vs. Manchester United, we briefly bid farewell to six players – Aleksandar Mitrović, João Palhinha, Harry Wilson, Dan James, Antonee Robinson and Tim Ream – as they immediately left for Doha to represent their national teams. It would be weeks before they came home and more than a month before the Premier League returned to action. How would we look at Crystal Palace on Boxing Day? And thereafter? I was honoured to attend the World Cup semi-finals in Qatar, which delivered an amazing tournament experience in the stadiums and throughout Doha alike, and from there flew to London to spend time with head coach Marco Silva. I wasn’t at Motspur Park long before it was evident there would be no reason for concern after the break at Fulham. Marco was very confident in the work he and his staff have put into this club, and every bit as convinced in the quality of his squad. Marco is also an advocate of constant improvement, which is why we discussed and then made a handful of moves during this January transfer period. Dinner with Marco is always outstanding, but the bread we broke just before Christmas was particularly enjoyable. I was delighted to find Marco in such good spirits and firm in his belief that your club would be formidable upon the resumption of the season. Marco was right! As you know, we answered the bell impressively with five consecutive victories – four coming in the Premier League – capped by a memorable 2-1 triumph on a Thursday night at the Cottage vs. Chelsea. That result, coupled with our outstanding scoreless draw just a few nights ago against the same club at Stamford Bridge, crowns Fulham as SW6 champions this season. I know this means a lot to our supporters, and everyone who holds Fulham close to their heart will take something personal from these London derbies that I imagine will last a lifetime. Willian’s goal, Carlos Vinícius’ match-winner, the clear from the line by Tim Ream... from all of that and more, there was a lot to like. For me, my memory will be seeing Fulham Football Club have the final say despite the high-profile debuts of blockbuster transfers signed only days earlier by our opponent. The newcomers we faced are world-class and will indeed improve their squads while bringing additional prestige to the greatest football league in the world. However, we countered in both instances with a selfless, team- first approach inspired by Marco and bought into by everyone in a Fulham shirt. Our team was the story and why we claimed four big points from our neighbours. It’s also heartening to be marching on in FA Cup competition following Wednesday’s 3-2 replay win at Sunderland. Credit to everyone for closing it out in regulation time, and a tip of the cap to the First Team staff for stepping in for Marco on the touchline. Today at halftime we honour Alan Mullery, the captain of our squad that reached the FA Cup Final in 1975, with the Forever Fulham award. Here’s to hoping Alan’s magic will spark Fulham to another final appearance, with the road to Wembley continuing on 28th February when we host Leeds United in the fifth round. Today marks the first home match for our two recent signings, Saša Lukić on a permanent contract from Torino and Cédric Soares on loan until the completion of the season from Arsenal. The additions of Saša and Cédric hit just the right tones – players of extremely high quality and character, the latter being essential to fitting into the enviable culture we’ve worked hard to create over the past two seasons. Please join me in welcoming Saša and Cédric! To accommodate the arrival of Cédric, we converted Shane Duffy’s loan agreement to a permanent contract through the balance of the season, and we do so with pleasure. And thank you to Josh Onomah, who leaves Fulham by mutual agreement, and to Nathaniel Chalobah as he joins West Bromwich Albion on a permanent transfer. Both contributed regularly during our title season and promotion a year ago, and we will never forget the goal Josh scored at Cardiff City in the first leg of the playoffs that catapulted Fulham to an eventual promotion in 2020. Good luck to both! In other Club business, our U21s are currently still in two cup competitions and our women’s squad was recently strengthened by the arrivals of Summer Roberts and Anisha Hill. We welcome them both! And in continued good news for a special player to us all, Kevin McDonald just signed for Exeter City to join our own Jay Stansfield, who has featured there on loan since the beginning of the season. With a third of the fixtures still to go, here’s to hoping Kevin and Jay can push Exeter into the League One playoff conversation. As kickoff vs. Forest approaches, I want to express my deepest gratitude to Club Director David Daly, the Fulham Supporters’ Trust and our entire staff for seeing through today’s second annual Celebration Day, intended to pay respect to our lost family members and friends who loved Fulham Football Club. It was last season around this time that we finally staged our first Celebration Day after false starts caused by the pandemic, and it occurred shortly after one of our staunchest fans, Paul Parish, passed away hours after falling ill in his season seat in the Hammersmith End during a Saturday afternoon match vs. Blackpool. It was a solemn moment amidst an otherwise joyous season, but the occasion of our first Celebration Day was at least well-timed to provide comfort to Paul’s family and underline the importance of everyone to this traditional, values-oriented club. A year later, Celebration Day comes not long after our loss – and the nation’s loss – of George Cohen MBE. I cannot pretend to completely appreciate the impact George had on Fulham Football Club as well as the many supporters who have had George in their hearts for, literally, their entire lifetime. George was a hero to club and country over generations, and anything I might have to say simply could never compare to the thoughts and recollections many of you have shared since his passing on 23rd December 2022. Nonetheless, my respect for George Cohen is deep and immense. Celebration Day honours the memory of all in the Fulham Family who have left us, and does so equally, but may we all save a special place in our hearts today for George, his wife Daphne, sons Andrew and Anthony, and their extended family. As well as Celebration Day, today’s match is our No Room For Racism match. We all have a role to play in making Craven Cottage and our sport a welcoming environment for everyone and Fulham, along with the Premier League and its other 19 clubs, are committed to this cause. Thank you to our Equality Working Group and everyone at the Club for their work in this important area. I was elated to learn earlier this week that FFC is once again represented well among the nominations for the annual London Football Awards to be held next month. Aleksandar Mitrović is up for Premier League Player of the Year, Bernd Leno has been nominated in the Goalkeeping category and Marco Silva is a candidate for Manager of the Year. Let’s congratulate them all but give special praise for a fourth nomination, this one earned by the Fulham FC Foundation for its amazing work on our More Than a Game initiative. I applaud the impressive off-the-pitch work done by clubs throughout the Premier League and the game of football, but I can’t imagine anyone being more deserving of landing the Community Project of the Year trophy than the Fulham FC Foundation. Best wishes to everyone at Fulham FC attending the awards ceremony on 13th March! I want to close by noting that Craven Cottage will be the site of the England U21s facing the Croatia U21s during the international break on Tuesday 28th March at 7:45pm. The future of two accomplished footballing nations will be on display as each side prepares for this summer’s 2023 UEFA U21 Euro Finals in Georgia and Romania. We last hosted an England international match in 2018 when the Lionesses took on Australia, and it’s a credit to everyone at your club that the Football Association chose Craven Cottage for this important friendly. There is no better place to watch football than Craven Cottage, but it takes superb operational staff to make these international matches possible and we certainly have the best staff in the business here at Fulham. I can’t wait to see you again in person at Craven Cottage. It’ll be very soon! In the meantime, from everyone at Fulham Football Club, best wishes to you and yours in 2023 and beyond. Thanks for attending... and special thanks for reading! Come on, Fulham!