‘We must be focused from the beginning to the end’: Slavia Jokanovic urges Fulham to cut out sloppy starts
- Fulham conceded after two minutes against Watford but recovered to draw 1-1
- Boss Slavisa Jokanovic wants his side to stop giving opponents a head start
- Fulham sit in 15th having won one and lost three of their six games so far
Slavisa Jokanovic admits Fulham cannot afford to continue conceding early goals.
The Cottagers fell behind inside two minutes for the second successive week during Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Watford.
Aleksandar Mitrovic’s 78th-minute equaliser at Craven Cottage meant they were able to salvage something on this occasion after they were unable to overturn the early deficit in last weekend’s 3-0 defeat at champions Manchester City.
‘Yes, we must get out of this kind of situation, definitely,’ said manager Jokanovic.
‘If you ask me how, defend the first two minutes better than we defend the last two games.
‘We can be affected by this situation, it’s not easy to arrive (into games), but we must know where we are and be focused from the beginning to the end.’
The hosts produced a much-improved second-half display and levelled when Serbian striker Mitrovic turned in Luciano Vietto’s cross.
Watford’s Andre Gray scored after two minutes as Fulham’s habit of conceding early continued
Mitrovic came close to a last-minute winner, but his powerful header was tipped on to the crossbar by Hornets goalkeeper Ben Foster.
Andre Gray claimed Watford’s opener, his third goal of the campaign, after some hesitant defending on the edge of the Fulham box.
The high-flying Hornets then spurned numerous chances to make the game safe and Gray insists they cannot afford to feel sorry for themselves ahead of Wednesday’s Carabao Cup clash with Tottenham and next weekend’s trip to Arsenal.
Aleksandar Mitrovic’s fine run of form contiued as he conjured an 89th-minute equaliser
‘I think it says a lot when the boys come in and it feels like we lost that game, it obviously shows how far we’ve come,’ he told Watford’s website.
‘We need to dust ourselves down now, we’ve got two big games coming up, we need to get ourselves back together and work on what we need to work on on the training ground.’
The in-form striker managed just five goals in 31 league appearances during his first season at Vicarage Road.
Speaking about his improved form, he added: ‘(I have been) working hard, getting my head down and concentrating on the basics of my game and hoping the chances will come and so far they have.’
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