Premiership: Fulham need summer spending spree
Player-coach John Collins admitted that Fulham will have to splash the cash during the summer if they are to compete in the Premiership.
Jean Tigana's men clinched the Division One title with a 1-1 draw against Sheffield Wednesday at Craven Cottage, courtesy of Sean Davis' injury-time equaliser.
And in strikers Louis Saha and Luis Boa Morte and midfielder Lee Clark, Fulham have players with genuine Premiership pedigree in their ranks.
But Collins knows the Cottagers will need a further injection of quality before tackling life in the top flight.
"No doubt we'll strengthen the team in the summer because every team needs to improve, even Manchester United and Arsenal," said Collins.
Fulham have shown this season that they can raise their game when they face Premiership opposition, knocking Derby out of the Worthington Cup and only narrowly losing to Manchester United in the FA Cup.
But Collins knows matching Premiership opposition week in week out represents a much greater challenge, one which he is relishing.
"We've proved that we can match Premier teams when we've met them in the Cup and now we'll have to do it week by week.
"I'm looking forward to getting back into the Premiership myself," added Collins, who played for Everton in the top flight before joining Fulham.
"It's great for the club that Sean Davis had got two vital goals for us in the last week.
"That is a tribute to our youth system which will become even more important now."
Collins revealed that the Fulham players had been given one and half days off after clinching the championship with a 2-1 win at Huddersfield on Saturday.
"They had asked for two days," said Collins "but they've got to be satisfied with one-and-a-half."
