Fulham defender Brede Hangeland has warned Fulham will be in danger of slipping back into a relegation dogfight unless they follow up Sunday's emphatic victory over Tottenham with a win against Newcastle on Wednesday night.
A poor run of one win in four left Mark Hughes' position in doubt during the festive period, but pressure on the Welshman has now eased following an impressive run of just one defeat in their last six.
Fulham now sit five points outside the relegation zone and are in the last 16 of the FA Cup following last weekend's morale-boosting 4-0 victory over neighbours Spurs at Craven Cottage.
Hangeland was delighted to avenge Fulham's two defeats against Spurs this season, but with tricky games at Manchester City and Chelsea coming up, the Norwegian knows a win on Wednesday night would significantly help his side's chances of staying up.
"The two games we lost against them (Spurs) have been really tight and we've been really disappointed after those games so there was talk of trying to avenge those two games and we certainly did that ," said Hangeland, who scored only his second Fulham goal in Sunday's win.
"The league is the most important thing now and we're a bit too close to the bottom at the moment and we are looking to get away from there as soon as possible."
Loan signings Eidur Gudjohnsen and Gael Kakuta are expected to be on the bench after both moving to SW6 on temporary deals from Stoke and Chelsea respectively.
For Gudjohnsen, it is the latest chance for him to kickstart a career that has stuttered since leaving Chelsea five years ago and he is desperate to make the most of the opportunity.
"Hopefully I can get my career back on track now," Gudjohnsen told Fulham's official website.
"I'm grateful for this chance and it's a great opportunity for me to show what I can do.
"I fully intend to make the most of my time here and then we'll see what the future holds.
"My situation wasn't great at Stoke in all honesty and I've got the opportunity to come here and impress the manager, get games under my belt and help Fulham push forward."