Álvaro Arbeloa’s push to make Fulham free-flowing is floundering already

Fulham fans fretting about life under Álvaro Arbeloa will not feel any better when they remember how things were under Marco Silva, who was one of the most effective managers in the Premier League when it came to making substitutions.

Silva’s substitutes were involved in the fourth-highest goal contributions last season and the most in the 2024-25 season. Fulham knew how to dig in and salvage unlikely points. But Silva left last summer, joining Benfica after concluding he could achieve nothing more at Craven Cottage, and his replacement is already under pressure after some puzzling tactical choices.

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The worrying shift under Arbeloa was evident during Fulham’s collapse against Ipswich last weekend. The west Londoners were 1-0 up and looking good for their first league win of the season when Arbeloa weakened his midfield by replacing Shea Charles with Manuel Ángel in the 70th minute.

It was a strange way to shut up shop. Charles is physically imposing, has impressed since joining from Southampton and was doing well alongside Sander Berge. The 22-year-old Ángel is 5ft 7in, was making his Premier League debut and has little experience of senior football. Ipswich’s comeback to win 2-1 was not a surprise, particularly when Arbeloa’s other rejigs included bringing on Rodrigo Muniz and switching from a 4-2-3-1 system to a flat 4-4-2 in an attempt to defend the lead.

The subsequent floundering felt inevitable. Emile Smith Rowe, another late substitute, was slow to close down Abdoul Ouattara when the Ipswich right-back equalised. Fulham have dropped eight points from winning positions. They are managing games badly and their physical shortcomings were exposed by Ipswich, whose winner came from a poorly defended free-kick and left Fulham in last place before facing Hull at home on Saturday.

Interactive Arbeloa needs a win. Relegation fears are growing and there are whispers that the Spaniard’s job is under threat. Fulham had a tricky start – they have already faced Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United – but the Ipswich game was supposed to mark a turning point. It was the first of three consecutive meetings with the promoted sides and, with Coventry, Hull and Ipswich surpassing expectations, it is easy to see Fulham’s aim to move to a more expansive style under Arbeloa backfiring.

Questions have to be asked over the decision by the Khan family to appoint someone whose experience of management was limited to an interim spell in charge of Real Madrid last season. Fingers will be pointed at the succession planners. Tony Khan, director of football and son of patriarch Shahid, has faced fierce criticism in the past. Silva offered stability. There was always a fear the project would fall apart once the Portuguese was gone.

It does not help Arbeloa to lean on his time at the Bernabéu. He responded to a question about pressure after losing to Ipswich by saying: “I played for the best team in the world … I have coached the best team in the world.” But the optics are awkward. Arbeloa did not win anything as Madrid’s manager, his comments risk making it seem his current employers should be grateful to have him and eyebrows have been raised at three of the 43-year-old’s summer signings coming from his former club.

Ángel, César Palacios and Gonzalo García were all promising young Real Madrid players, all share representation with Arbeloa and are now adapting to a new league. Palacios, an inventive passing midfielder, is 21 and Garcia, a nimble forward, is 22. They deserve to be given time, although the clock is ticking. García, signed for £40m, has one league goal from 18 shots and struggled against Ipswich, winning few duels and pressing ineffectively.

Supporters are growing restless. They wonder why Kevin, the Brazilian winger, is being used on the right rather than the left. They feel Arbeloa is chopping and changing too often. They worry about the team conceding costly late goals against Sunderland, Crystal Palace and United. Fulham were ridiculously open in their opening game, the barmy 3-2 defeat by Chelsea, and their expected goals against is 10.3 in six games. They have lost two of their main goalscorers, Raúl Jiménez and Harry Wilson, and are struggling to fill the void.

Equally there is an argument that Arbeloa needs time to implement a new style. There are suggestions some players are unsure about the manager’s tactics. Some stalwarts have been sidelined – Joachim Andersen, the influential Denmark centre-back, is not suited to playing a high line and has lost his spot to David Affengruber – but perhaps a refresh was required. Fulham have looked to lower the age of their squad, in part because of a need to comply with financial regulations, and there is nothing intrinsically wrong with trying to play more exciting football.

There have been encouraging spells. After flirting with European qualification in each of the past four seasons, only to fizzle out and finish 10th or lower, Fulham can be forgiven for wondering how to take the next step. At the same time the fear for supporters is that a club operating with one of the league’s smaller budgets have forgotten what it takes to survive. Silva’s teams could attack but were gritty and streetwise. At the moment Arbeloa looks naive. Fulham lost £45m in the past financial year and spent a lot on the Riverside Stand refurbishment. The Khans need Premier League survival. Arbeloa has big ideas but might not make it past this month without a huge improvement.

• This article was amended on 17 October 2026. An earlier version said Fulham had finished in the bottom half of the table in the past four seasons; in fact, they finished 10th in 2022-23.