The away terraces at Plainmoor, Torquay United’s ground, are a miserable place at the best of times. But when your side has suffered a defeat against the bottom of the league team – your mood must be particularly grim. Fourteen years ago Fulham fans had to stomach that very feeling. Ian Branfoot’s Fulham side hit rock bottom with a 1-0 defeat that left the club languishing in the depths of Division Three.
How things have changed. Tonight the Fulham faithful will be setting up camp in Turin, as their side’s Europa League adventure rolls into the Stadio Olimpico to face Italian giants Juventus.
Fulham’s meteoric rise through the English football league is thanks to one man - Mohamed al-Fayed. He has shown many foreign investors how to build and sustain a football club from scratch. Since he bought the west-London club in 1997, Fulham have ploughed through the leagues. Kevin Keegan, Jean Tigana, Chris Coleman and current boss Roy Hodgson have all taken the club forward during their respective spells at Fulham, with Hodgson working miracles to get them into Europe on a shoestring budget.
"I don't think many people at that stage would have given any credence that we could be this far forward in our development," Hodgson said.
"One could say what we have done is beyond our dreams, but I am not a dreamer in the first place."
Former player Rufus Brevett, who was part of Fulham's rise from the third tier to the first, admits that he can hardly believe the incredible journey the club has made.
"It's madness. Fulham v Juventus. We never imagined Fulham would play matches like this. It's a dream for the fans.”
A victory in Turin would be something special, even if the former kings of Europe are a shadow of their former selves. The appointment of former defender Ciro Ferrara as coach this season proved a mistake. Despite signing Brazilians Diego and Felipe Melo, and Italian World Cup winners Fabio Grosso and Fabio Cannavaro, Juve have struggled both domestically and in Europe, and Ferrara’s exit now sees veteran boss Alberto Zaccheroni in charge.
Juventus trail both Milan clubs and, embarrassingly, Roma in Serie A –a club coached by former Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri, whom Juve fired last summer. Their appearance in the Europa League is due to their failure in the group stage of the Champions League.
It will be an historic night for all concerned with Fulham. The fans will enjoy their glamour tie, but Hodgson’s side will not be there just to make up the numbers. Fulham will no doubt ruffle a few Italian feathers this evening.
The away days at Plainmoor are now just a distant memory for the Fulham faithful, whatever the outcome tonight they will be pinching themselves throughout the 90 minutes.
Lewis Jones
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