Alvaro Arbeloa maintains “nothing has changed” as Fulham head to Coventry City this weekend.
The Spaniard – who took over at Craven Cottage in the summer – has come under scrutiny following a testing start to the new league campaign before easing some of the pressure with a 1-0 victory over Hull at Craven Cottage.
Fulham come up against another newly-promoted side on Saturday and Arbeloa wants his players to continue to show the same focused mindset.
“Nothing has changed for us,” Arbeloa said at a press conference. “When we were not winning games, we believed that we were doing so many things well, and now we have the same targets, so we should come in and try to win a tough game.
“It wasn’t easy for us against Hull and against Coventry it will not be easy again.
“If you are winning a game one nil, you will not win calmly in this league. Your rival, they will be more direct, they will put the ball in your box.
“It is not easy for everyone in a tight game. I think we did well, better than before. That is all about it, improve every week.
“Yes, now we have the reward that we were looking for, and now it is another week, another game, so we need to fight again for the win.
“When you are working and you are not winning, it is not easy, so everything is easier when you play well, in the way that you want and you win matches. That is the most important thing, and it is very important for your confidence, and I think we deserve it.”
Before beating Hull, former Real Madrid interim boss Arbeloa had been reported to have two games to save his job. The 43-year-old, though, stressed everything is a collective effort, on and off the pitch.
“I know it (winning) is important for a coach, but I don’t feel this (is) about me,” Arbeloa said. “It is about my players, about the supporters that they deserve this win because they (fans) were behind us all the time and my players because the work that they have done over the last few weeks was incredible and they keep their belief.”
Fulham are currently 18th, one place and one point behind the Sky Blues.
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