Fulham

Fulham players celebrated Aleksandar Mitrovic's goal Saturday against Bristol City by runninng over to 13-year-old supporter Rhys Porter, who had been the victim of abuse on social media.

Porter, who suffers from cerebral palsy and epilepsy, posted a video of himself making a save. He told Sky Sports he then received "loads of horrible comments."

"It made me feel quite sad, but I try and get over it and I try and make the positives come out of the situation," he said. "I joined a disability charity and I'm doing 20 saves a day in line with the Paralympics and I'm trying to raise some awareness for disabled people."

Earlier this week, Fulham defender Tim Ream surprised Porter while he was doing an interview with the BBC:

The Cottagers also honored Porter by listing him among the men's first-team squad and giving him a full profile.

Denis Odoi had to be removed from the pitch on a stretcher during Fulham's 1-0 Premier League victory against Cardiff City at Craven Cottage on Saturday.

Odoi was taken off following a collision with team-mate and fellow defender Maxime Le Marchand. He was taken from the pitch after a lengthy period of receiving treatment. Although Odoi briefly made it back to his feet, a stretcher was still needed:

The Belgium international was replaced by Cyrus Christie with the game still goalless.

Afterwards, Fulham caretaker manager Scott Parker provided an update on Odoi's condition, per NBC Sports' Joe Prince-Wright: "Denis is OK. I have just seen him; it was a big head injury. He was out of it for a few seconds which was concerning, but he is fine and will be OK."

Odoi has been a key figure recently, helping Fulham salvage some pride despite already being relegated from England's top flight. Defensive issues are the main reason why the Cottagers are facing a swift return to the Championship after just one season.

Fulham had conceded 76 goals before the start of play on Saturday. However, things have begun to improve on Parker's watch.

The man who replaced Claudio Ranieri after the Italian was sacked for failing to fortify things following the dismissal of Slavisa Jokanovic earlier in the season, led Fulham to back-to-back wins in the previous two games before the Cardiff match.

The Fulham victory pushed the Bluebirds closer to joining them on their way back to the second tier of English football and guaranteed Southampton would remain in the league next season.

Odoi started in both wins and helped to earn rare clean sheets as Everton were beaten 2-0 before a 1-0 victory away to Bournemouth. Those performances have offered hope for next season and also served as a reminder of Odoi's importance.

He joined Fulham in 2016 after arriving from Belgian outfit Lokeren.

What has long felt like an inevitability became a reality on Tuesday—Fulham have been relegated.

The Cottagers' fate became official following a 4-1 loss to Watford. Fulham have managed just 17 points in 33 matches with four wins, five draws and 24 losses. The club's goal difference sits at a harrowing -46, and they've conceded an astonishing 76 goals, 17 more than any other club.

For all of Fulham's futility, they are still three points ahead of Huddersfield on the table, though the Terriers have a game in hand. It's unlikely that Huddersfield will catch Fulham in the race to avoid finishing 20th, however, given they've won just three games this season and have scored a Premier League-low 18 goals.

To put that in perspective, Manchester City's Sergio Aguero has scored 19 goals by himself this season, while four players—Liverpool's Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, Arsenal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Tottenham's Harry Kane—are hot on Huddersfield's heels with 17 goals apiece.

Fulham's return to the Premier League was a short one, lasting just one season after four years in the Championship. The Cottagers were expected to be far better in the 2018-19 campaign after shelling out £105.3 million on 12 new players, making them the third-biggest spenders in the Premier League over the summer, per Sky Sports. 

Instead, Fulham floundered, fired manager Claudio Ranieri in February and now are in danger of allowing the most goals in Premier League history. With relegation now assured, many Fulham supporters are likely more than ready for this season to be over.

Claudio Ranieri has been fired as Fulham manager following a run of seven defeats in their last eight Premier League games:

Ranieri, 67, replaced Slavisa Jokanovic at the helm in November 2018 but won only three times in 16 Premier League matches.

Fulham confirmed his departure on Thursday and announced Scott Parker as their caretaker manager in a statement on their official website.

Ranieri's dismissal comes a little over two years after he was fired in February 2017 by Leicester City, the club with whom he won the Premier League in 2016—the only top-flight title of his career so far.

The former Chelsea chief failed to rouse players in the same fashion at Craven Cottage and encountered criticism from the club's fans due to his methods.

Fulham suffered a seventh defeat in eight Premier League matches when they lost 2-0 at Southampton on Wednesday, where supporters voiced their disdain to vice-chairman Tony Khan (son of owner Shahid), per Match of the Day:

The west Londoners had lost six league games in a row when Jokanovic was sacked. The Serb had taken only five points from 12 games, but his side managed to net 11 times in that span (an average of 0.92 goals scored per game).

Ranieri clinched 12 points from 16 Premier League games for a superior average of 0.75 points per game, and his side scored 0.93 goals on average (15 goals total).

Football reporter Archie Rhind-Tutt said Ranieri should have been fired before the trip to Southampton, noting the Italian's poor record at Craven Cottage didn't make him a bad manager:

Ranieri was coming into a much different setup at Fulham compared to that of his previous Premier League employers, Leicester. After making a stop at Ligue 1 side Nantes in between, the expectations were a lot different this time around.

Fulham were the 17th club Ranieri has managed in his career, and a win ratio of just over 17 percent stands out as the worst of his club career to date, per Transfermarkt.

That being said, Ranieri has rarely spent more than a few months out of management since beginning his career in 1986—the only year in which he hasn't managed a club since then is 2006. 

It's uncertain as to whether he'll return to England, having seen his reputation tarnished after Fulham sacked him after just three months in charge.

Fulham have completed the signing of former Liverpool winger Ryan Babel from Besiktas.

Fulham confirmed the move on Tuesday, as the Dutchman penned a permanent deal to the end of the 2018-19 season at Craven Cottage:

Babel, 32, said one of the key reasons he made the move is to help Fulham in their bid to avoid relegation: "My first impressions are good and I'm very excited. I definitely have faith that Fulham can stay up. That's one of the reasons that I'm here, to try and help that to happen. I'm ready to go, I'm excited and I can't wait."

The Cottagers are 19th in the Premier League table—five points from safety.

Claudio Ranieri replaced Slavisa Jokanovic as manager in November and has made improvements to Fulham's defence. They have conceded 18 goals in 10 matches under the Italian, having leaked 31 in their first 12 league games of the season.

But the west London outfit are still struggling for goals, having scored just 20 in 22 games this term, which is the fourth-worst total in the league.

Babel could help solve that problem.

In 91 Premier League appearances with Liverpool between 2006 and 2011, he scored 12 goals and provided five assists.

That is not a fantastic record, but his goals were always valuable:

And he has been excellent in his three seasons with Besiktas, earning a recall to the Netherlands squad in 2017 after a several-year absence and starting all four of their UEFA Nations League fixtures last year.

Babel's versatility could make him a major asset for Fulham, as he is able to play anywhere across the front line, though he prefers the left flank.