Fulham have reached the international break on two points from their first five matches - but what can a positive outcome look like come the next block of fixtures after the break?
We are of course deep into the international break and the boredom from the lack of domestic football is well and truly setting in.
And so, we have decided to look ahead at what the next block of fixtures after the international break could have in store for Fulham.
It is hardly a secret at this stage that Fulham have only managed to earn two points from their first five matches and sit 19th in the Premier League table.
Let’s be honest, after the Manchester United game, we have not had an awful lot to talk about other than where Fulham are and how many points they have.
And we have also been more than acutely aware that following the international break, Fulham have three matches in a row against newly-promoted teams.
Now, the more negative fans among you may still not see Fulham picking up enough points in that period to gain confidence on Premier League survival.
And, if that is you, then this article is to try and make you more optimistic ahead of the long-awaited return to domestic action next month.
So, without further ado, how could the next block of fixtures go for Fulham - from a positive standpoint?
The return to action sees Fulham facing an Ipswich side who may have picked up six points from their first five matches but have also shown they are leaky at the back.
The Tractor Boys have failed to keep a single clean sheet thus far this season, with wins coming against Sunderland and Crystal Palace (2-1 and 3-2).
Now, the more eagle-eyed of you will have already spotted that Fulham failed to beat either of those sides, but that was before their big improvement.
After a week in which Fulham earned valuable points against Liverpool and Manchester United and also defeated West Ham in the Carabao Cup, there is some very obvious confidence and improvement in the Cottagers.
Players have also gone away on the international break and either found another gear or found some form; that is something that gives me a lot of confidence that Fulham can beat Ipswich.
Assuming they do, then momentum is starting to build in the Alvaro Arbeloa era.
Fulham next head back to Craven Cottage and welcome Hull, a side who were impressive to pick up eight points already.
But, while they did defeat Manchester United and draw against Chelsea, it feels like its only a matter of time before they are found out.
They take on Everton in their first game back and David Moyes may do Fulham a favour by using his experience to figure out how to break down their extremely low block.
Fulham hopefully will have gone three matches unbeaten at this point and, back in front of a home crowd, could well make it four.
Then it is a trip to Coventry, where the Cottagers take on a team that has scored once and conceded 10.
They did manage to defeat Nottingham Forest at the City Ground last time out but, Forest had 24 shots, dominated possession and conceded just 0.62 xG.
Simply put, they had one of those days, and if Fulham have 24 shots, one would hope they would score at least once.
Beyond that, Fulham take on Aston Villa on Halloween, they may have impressed with their win at Tottenham before the international break, but they are going to be an up-and-down team this summer with their new squad make-up, and that could very much play into the hands of a Fulham side who hopefully would have found their groove.
Now, of course, the Cottagers could slip up against Ipswich and then this will all be redundant, but there must be some confidence that Fulham can use the fixtures to rise up the table and ease relegation fears come the next international break.
