Are Huddersfield and Fulham already relegated?

Fulham crashed to a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Man United on Saturday lunch time, a result which has thrown their slim chances of Premier League survival into further doubt.

Fulham failing to function

The defeat leaves Fulham on a lowly 17 points from 26 games played, conceding a league high 58 goals in the process. The appointment of Claudio Ranieri has failed to reinstall defensive stability to the Cottagers, and their destiny seems to be heading swiftly back down to the Championship.

Back in November, when Slavisa Jokanovic was sacked as manager, Fulham were rock bottom of the Premier League with a meager five points amassed from 12 games. 14 games later, the mood at Craven Cottage has not improved at all. The January window failed to provide Fulham with any of their defensive targets, with Chelsea legend Gary Cahill opting to stay at Stamford Bridge.

The signing of Ryan Babbel was met with confusion, a player that is generally seen as passed his best and who failed to impress during his first spell in the Premier League with Liverpool. The midfield is still lacking firepower and solidity, and the goals from Aleksandar Mitrovic and Andre Schurrle have dried up, their goals were the saving grace in the opening stages of the season. However, Fulham now look destined for the drop.

Huddersfield heading for heartbreak

The only silver lining that Fulham can look to during their bleak season, is that they are not bottom of the Premier League. This unfortunate accolade goes to Huddersfield Town, who sit rock bottom of the table with a dismal 11 points. Huddersfield, like Fulham, replaced their manager during the season following David Wagner’s decision to leave the club. However, the appointment of Jan Siewert has failed to change anything at the Yorkshire club.

With the Terriers currently 13 points off 17th placed Burnley, the club are already preparing for life back in the Championship. Following last week’s 5-0 humbling at Stamford Bridge, last season’s incredible Premier League season seems like a distant memory for Huddersfield, who must now focus on making sure that they don’t equal Derby’s infamous lowest points record in a season. Huddersfield are currently level with this record on 11 points. However, with the visit of Unai Emery’s Arsenal, followed by tricky fixtures against Newcastle United and Wolverhampton Wanderers, it is difficult to see where Siewert’s men will gain their next points from.

For Huddersfield, last season was a dream come true with the club managing to avoid relegation and notching up some famous wins. However, this season the norm has resumed and they look destined to return to England’s second tier. Whereas, for Ranieri’s Fulham, despite spending over £100million in the summer transfer window, their team has failed to gel and they need to plan to rebuild for a promotion charge next season.

Featured Image Credit: “Craven Cottage” (CC BY-ND 2.0) by LABabble