Joe Thomas - McNeil deserves his chance in attack
The talking point for Fulham is whether to bring back Nathan Patterson now that he is in the squad, as confirmed by Frank Lampard on Thursday. He started the season impressively, negotiated the switch from a back five to a back four perhaps better than expected and his loss to injury forced a reconfiguration of the side just as it was gathering momentum.
Coleman has come in and done well, however. He was solid at Southampton and excellent against Crystal Palace as he nullified danger man Wilfried Zaha. Few players were on top form at Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United. I think this might be a game too soon for Patterson. Lampard tends to be cautious with recovering players and Patterson has now had two significant injuries this season. The defensive unit worked well against Palace and I’m keen to see Vitalii Mykolenko given another chance to be the full-back that pushes forward, as he did so effectively last week. Patterson is in my first-choice side but I’m sticking with Coleman today.
