Tracing Fulham's Phenomenal Journey to the Europa League Final

The Premier League, which they say is the best competition in the world, has created many historical moments. Rows of clubs walled in trophies, to cool but charming clubs decorate the world of world football.

One club that might be interesting to talk about is Fulham. Headquartered in an old stadium called Craven Cottage which was built in 1894-1905, this club is the pride of West Londoners in addition to the Chelsea club, whose distance between the two is only limited to one city bus route, namely Putney Bridge.

Fulham is not a team that is wallowing in trophies. But its existence is not just a complement to the world's number one competition. The club, which was born in 1879, has inked some gold, which is certainly interesting to revisit.

Fulham, as has been told, is headquartered at Craven Cottage. The stadium has a unique shape. The stadium is decorated with doors made of old wood with the dominant white, black and red brick colors. Craven Cottage is in the middle of a residential area and side by side with a large garden beside the river thames.

At Craven Cottage, spectators can watch players from a distance of 2 meters on the edge of the field. The thundering supporters of The Cottagers always accompany the run of their idol players.

Apart from the fact that Fulham is called a club full of history, as well as the uniqueness of their stadium, there is one extraordinary moment that has entered the club's history book, namely when they reached the Europa League final.

Not many know that Fulham, who is now appearing in the Championship division, shocked the world when he visited the final of the second European tournament.

Right in 2010, Fulham acted as a Europa League finalist. At that time, "The Cottagers" which was managed by veteran manager, Roy Hodgson, was defeated by a narrow score of 1-2 by Atletico Madrid. This achievement is arguably surprising, because Danny Murphy and his colleagues are only perched in 12th place in the 2009/10 Premier League final standings.

When viewed from the journey, Fulham did not immediately get this golden opportunity.

The adventure started in Lithuania at the end of July 2009. A 6-0 aggregate win over Vetra was in qualifying three. Furthermore, in the play-offs, The Cottagers had given up 1-0 to the Russian club, Amkar Perm. But that defeat still did not prevent Fulham from entering the group stage after winning 3-2 on aggregate.

In the group stage, Fulham's appearance was not too convincing. They need time to find mature performance. Like a machine that hasn't been running for a long time, Fulham needs time to heat up, then it can be used.

At the start of the match, CSKA Sofia made Fulham go home without a number. Luckily, the match which was held at the Balgarska Armia Stadium ended in a draw, after Diomansy Kamara scored the equalizer.

From a total of six matches, Fulham's appearance was not really good. They only got three wins, two draws and once gave up 2-1 to AS Roma.

In the end, they also had to settle for sitting in second place after not being able to beat the Wolf team.

Moving on to the next round, Fulham began to get quite complicated tests. His opponent in the last 32 was the previous season's UEFA Cup winner, Shakhtar Donetsk. However, from the two meetings, Fulham managed to bag a 3-2 advantage on aggregate.

The big surprise that then started to become a conversation at that time was when Fulham managed to overthrow the Italian giants, Juventus, in the last 16 with a thin 5-4 on aggregate.

The match then became history. Of course, great history for Fulham because it can beat a team as big as Juventus. Even though the match did not take place after the two opposing players were red carded, Fulham, however, still appeared so fierce.

At that time, Juventus won easily in the first leg with a convincing score of 3-1. Juventini's eyes are already looking at the quarter-finals, because they are 2 goals ahead.

The feelings of Juventus fans, and of course the players, intensified when David Trezeguet scored a quick goal in the second leg. The quarter-finals seemed to have been grasped by the Italian giants.

However, Fulham is an English club. They have a spirit as hard as steel. Clint Dempsey and friends began to carry out difficult missions.

7 minutes after Trezeguet's goal, Bobby Zamora scored, igniting a fire of hope in Fulham. The fire was getting worse when Fabio Cannavaro got a red card in the 27th minute.

Zoltan Gera scored a goal in minute 39. The fire of hope was getting hotter after the goal. The aggregate score at the end of the first half is 4-3 for Juventus' advantage.

Disaster for Juventus came in the second half. A cross from a Fulham player hits Diego's hand who tries to cut the pass inside the forbidden box. Be the referee to award a penalty for Fulham.

Gera, who was the executioner, also managed to score a goal, sending goalkeeper Antonio Chimenti in the wrong direction on 49 minutes. The aggregate score drew 4-4.

Fulham's epic comeback was complete when Clint Dempsey scored a stunning goal in the 82nd minute. His chip shot bounced high over Chimenti's head, landed on the far corner of the far post and left the bald-headed keeper gaping.

The match against Juventus deserves to be immortalized. The reason is, this is a sign that Fulham has been so powerful in European competition.

In the next two rounds, Fulham then faced two German clubs. In the quarter-finals, Fulham wiped out two meetings with a win against Wolfsburg.

After that, they had to struggle a little when they met Hamburg in the semi-finals. The reason is that they had experienced fatigue after traveling overland for almost 17 hours. This had to be done because the flight schedule at that time was disrupted due to the eruption of a volcano in Iceland.

Even though he was pessimistic, Roy Hodgson convinced his team to always fight. Receiving a draw at home to opponents, Fulham did not remain silent when competing in front of the fans.

In the second match, Fulham was surprised by Hamburg striker Mladen Petrick's goal at the start of the half. However, due to appearing confidently, Fulham was finally able to turn things around after halftime, with goals scored by Simon Davies and Zoltan Gera which made Hamburg surrender 2-1.

Unfortunately, Fulham's struggle had to stop in the final. Playing at the Hamburg Arena on May 12, 2010, they must be willing to recognize Ateltico's superiority.

At that time, Diego Forlan became a star after being able to open and close Ateltico's party in Germany.

But, however, Fulham's squad in that season really deserves thumbs up. In the goalkeeper position is Mark Schwarzer. After delivering Fulham to the Europa League Final, Schwarzer lasted 3 seasons and finally moved to West London rivals Chelsea.

At right-back there is the name Chris Baird. Baird lasted until the 2012/13 season, then his contract was not renewed. He then joined Reading the following season and moved clubs several times.

At center back there are Aaron Hughes and Brede Hangeland. Both are tough defenders who have an extraordinary level of discipline.

At left back there is Paul Konchesky, who decided to retire in 2018. In the midfield position, Dickson Etuhu and Danny Murphy had an extraordinary role in bringing Fulham to the top of the party. The two also make it easier for Zoltan Gera to play in the attacking midfielder position.

Damien Duff and Simon Davies who operate on the left and right also turn on the Cottagers' attack. Now the two players have quit the world of football.

In the attack line, Bobby Zamora's name must not be forgotten. Zamora's movement on the front lines of Fulham when he met Juventus forced a defender like Fabio Cannavaro to receive a red card. From a total of 13 starters, Zamora was able to score 6 goals and 2 assists.

Thanks to his brilliant performance in the 2009/10 season, the player from Trinidad and Tobago was called up by Fabio Capello to the England national team.

For the coach, Roy Hodgson, the 72-year-old man chose to move to Liverpool after doing an extraordinary job at Fulham. Now, in the 2019/20 season, he is listed as the Crystal Palace coach.

Everything is just memories. Fulham with a new face is still struggling in the Championship competition. If they really want to appear in European competition, then at least they must escape the second caste bondage, and appear consistently in the top competition in the three-lion national football.