The position envisaged by the Guardian writers: 15 (NB: this is not necessarily John Brewin's prediction but the average of our writers' advice)
Last season's position: 13th
Perspectives
Analysing last season's 13th place, Marco Silva wanted to put it in “the context of what happened in the summer”. It was a direct reference to Fulham Saudi football lost Aleksandar Mitrovic on the final day of the transfer window, as João Palhinha's move to Bayern Munich was cancelled at the last minute. A year later, the Portuguese midfielder has been transferred to Bayern, and key centre-backs Tosin Adarabioyo and Tim Ream have also left. That means there will be further turbulence in dealing.
Palhinha had a right to be considered the best midfielder in English football, once Rodri was removed. Last season, statistically, he was the player who made the most tackles in Europe's top five leagues. Almost any team would miss him, and even more so a club whose ambitions remain focused on mid-table safety, with European football (perhaps the Conference League) a remote possibility.
“I’m proud of the work we did together,” Silva said philosophically of the late striker. “Now we have to move on.” That’s much easier said than done and fans will be hoping that the club’s sporting director Tony Khan, son of owner Shahid Khan, will find the necessary players to fill those all-important gaps. There will be a significant reliance on Silva himself, in the hope that he can do something like the rescue job he did with Rodrigo Muniz in finding a replacement goalscorer for Mitrovic.
Adarabioyo, who has joined Chelsea on a free transfer, was a popular player but will not be missed as much. Calvin Bassey improved as last season progressed. The versatile Jorge Cuenca has been signed from Villarreal. Ream, after such brilliant service, may be much harder to replace. The American was a typical example of the collective spirit (a quality that was passed on to the fans) that made Fulham a comfortable mid-table team over the past two seasons, banishing their previous yo-yo status.