PARKER’S PHILOSOPHY

His six-point plan which has Fulham flying SPECIAL REPORT

UnassUming and self-effacing, scott Parker is quietly building a reputation as one of the best emerging managers in the country. He leads Fulham into the play-off semi-finals against Cardiff tonight having missed out on automatic promotion by just two points in his first full season in management. The Championship can be unforgiving and not necessarily conducive to nurturing a philosophy while picking up results. so it is credit to Parker that he has done both. The 39-year-old former England midfielder believes in controlling matches through possession — building from defence and dictating tempo by keeping the ball. Fulham’s average possession of 62 per cent is second only to Championship winners Leeds, while their stats for attempted passes — close to 24,000 — has only been topped in England by manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea. Parker (right) and his staff are meticulous in their preparation. a typical week includes five team video meetings supplemented by individual and unit video sessions. They focus on six features of the game: in possession, out of possession, counter-attack, counter defence and set-pieces — for and against. all of the meetings are about how best to exploit their opponents’ weaknesses and impose Fulham’s style on the game. in terms of training leading up to a typical saturday game, sessions on monday to Wednesday are reserved for progressing tactical elements of Parker’s philosophy. Thursday’s focus on the pressing and defensive strategy for the game, while Friday leads on in-possession team shapes. Having lost the opening game of the season at Barnsley, Parker was deeply concerned by his team’s work out of possession. He reacted by switching to a 4-1-4-1 formation, which he believed would allow a greater grip on his team’s pressing game — and it sparked a run of three straight wins. Parker is even dispelling assertions that Fulham are a one-man team. in nine games without 26-goal striker aleksandar mitrovic, Fulham’s record has been very similar to when the serb has played, winning five and drawing one. That is not to diminish mitrovic’s impact. The 25-year-old should be playing in the top flight and motivating a player in that situation is often easier said than done. mitrovic is a complex character, but his manager has dished out the rollickings — as well as cuddles — depending on the situation. Parker played with the best and understands what is needed to make it to the top. mitrovic respects that and Parker has spent hours with him on a personal level. Yet, with all that said, Parker will recognise Fulham are still a work in progress. He will find comfort in the knowledge that any tactical system takes time to implement. Even Pep guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and marcelo Bielsa didn’t get it right in their first seasons in England. Win tonight, though, and Fulham and Parker will be in with a shout of doing just that.