Fulham fightback showed spirit they'll need on horror run, says Calum Chambers

Calum Chambers reckons Fulham showed with their comeback to beat Brighton they DO have the bottle Tim Ream accused them of lacking.

Back in October as they struggled to cope on their return to the Premier League, Chambers fellow Cottagers defender Tim Ream said "there are not enough guys who want it" in the squad.

Subsequent results, and the sacking of Slavisa Jokanovic just six months after steering them to promotion, suggested Ream has right. But on Tuesday, Fulham battled back from 2-0 down at home to win 4-2 — their first victory this year.

Two goals from Aleksandar Mitrovic and one each by Chambers and Luciano Vietto ended a run of four straight defeats for new boss Claudio Ranieri's men.

“We have shown we have the stomach for the fight. We were 2-0 down, conditions weren’t nice, we could have easily crumbled — but we didn’t," said Arsenal loanee Chambers.

“We showed fighting spirit, we showed character and we showed a bit of pride. I think that’s what we are capable of and that’s what we need to do every game from now on. That’s going to be crucial. We have got to look at that second-half performance and what we did well. We have got to learn from that and take it into the next game.

“That is the important thing – to try and build a bit of momentum. I think we can take a lot of positives from the second-half and go into the next games knowing we are capable of that.”

The three points were even more vital to Fulham’s survival chances because of who they face in their next four home games — Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City.

Chambers says they will carry on looking to 16-goal Mitrovic for leadership as they try to avoid an instant return to the Championship.

He said: “Having him in the team can help you. He is a fighter, he is strong, and he scores goals. Having a player like him is crucial. That is why we need to use him. We need to use him as a player, know what his qualities are, and use them to our advantage.

“He is a great character. He is a fighter. To have someone like that in the team is brilliant. He leads from the front. So having someone like that in the team is what we need.

“There were obviously words from the manager at half time. We all spoke among ourselves as players. It was just a case of, we know it wasn’t good enough and we knew had to go out in the second-half and turn it around, show a bit of pride and character. That is what we did.”