Coleman ready to meet challenge 'head on'
Under-fire Fulham manager Chris Coleman today insisted he would not resign, telling fans: “I’ve still got too much to give.”
Coleman and his his team were booed off the pitch after their 3-2 home defeat by Birmingham on Tuesday, with some supporters calling for the Fulham boss to quit.
But he is adamant he will not walk away from the challenge of steering Fulham out of danger, an achievement which would in turn secure his job.
Fulham face Crystal Palace at Craven Cottage tomorrow and then go to Southampton before entertaining West Brom in a trio of matches which may, depending on results, determine Coleman’s future with the club.
The Fulham boss admitted that his players were now nervous aboutplaying at home after a number of them were heckled by fed-up fans during the Birmingham game.
But he is ready to fight for his future and pleaded with fans to vent their fury solely towards him, not his players.
Coleman said: “People would look at me in a different light if I jacked it in.
“Last year went great and I got all the pats on the back. This year has not gone great so if I was to say ‘that’s it’ and walk away, then that would be letting people down and I never would.
“I’ve been given a big opportunity by the chairman and I still need to repay him with a bit of success.
“We got success last year with a great finish but that’s history now. I would never walk away, certainly not from this job anyway, because I still feel I have got too much to give.
“The fans are giving me a bit of stick as well as the players, but maybe that will help some players grow an extra layer of skin and make us become tougher.
“I will never back away from a fight, I never did as a player or in my life. Whatever is coming my way, I will meet head on.”
But Coleman accepts that results must turn for the better soon or he could face the axe.
He added: “We’ve lost six games in eight and I’m not a mug. That cannot continue, I know that. It doesn’t matter how long I’ve been here.
“I am responsible for the team. I’ve bought players in and kept the players we had last season, so it’s my responsibility and the results haven’t been good enough.
“I am more than aware that results can’t continue in the same vein and that we need to do better.”
He agrees that the supporters have every right to be frustrated and voice their opinions.
Coleman added: “I think the fans get frustrated and rightly so. There is a nervousness when we play at home because we’ve lost matches.
“When you start winning games at home, it gives you confidence but our guys are edgy at home.
“I don’t blame the crowd at all for their reaction. But I don’t like them booing any of the players and there was a little bit of that against Birmingham.
“I would prefer them to boo me. I haven’t got a problem with that.
“As a manager you know you are going to go through periods when you come in for a bit of criticism, your job is on the line and the fans will be calling for your head.
“When we come through this it will be better. I have been here a long time as a player and a manager and I have a good rapport with the fans.
“But I don’t necessarily like them singing my name sometimes, I would prefer them to sing the player’s names.
“I knew this day would come but I am almost glad in a way because we will come through it.
“I love it here and would not swap my job for anything else.
“But I want to progress as a manager and I see my future at Fulham for as long as I can be here, but if I’m not a manager at Fulham, I’ll be one somewhere else.”
Coleman begins the battle to remain in charge at Craven Cottage against close friend Iain Dowie’s Palace tomorrow. He knows there will be no room for sentiment as both sides need the points.
“Before the Birmingham game we looked at the fixtures and we knew January was a massive month and the defeat against them was a big step backwards for us,” Coleman added.
“We can’t hide from that fact. These are massive games and we have got to start putting better performances in."
