Fulham Head Coach Scott Parker is playing for victory away at Chelsea on Saturday, but knows how good a team Fulham will be up against.
The Blues have the FA Cup Final to look forward to, secured an impressive 1-1 draw at Real Madrid in the Champions League Semi-Finals, and are on course for a top-four finish in the Premier League.
“We’re playing against a really good side who are in good form,” Parker admitted. “When you’re going to Stamford Bridge and you’re a team like us, luck needs to be with you and we need to play exceptionally well.
“Everything needs to go for us in that sense. We have to be very, very hard to beat, and we have to hope that there’s certain elements of Chelsea which are a little bit off it.
“Again, do I believe we can go there and get a result? Yeah I do. But at the same time I realise the challenge, I realise the quality we’re up against.
“It’s a team bang in form, a team that have done very, very well. Albeit a difficult situation for us in terms of where we are in this division, this is one we can’t wait to play in.”
Chelsea’s defensive record has been excellent since the appointment of Thomas Tuchel, and Parker knows his side will have to be ruthless with the opportunities that come their way.
“It’s been a constant challenge for us,” he said. “Do we create those chances? I believe we can, I believe we can create, we certainly can get those moments, we just need to be clinical.
“Those moments against Chelsea won’t come every other chance, but when they do come you need to be on the right end of them.
“Of course, defensively they’re a very strong side, a side with a wealth of experience and quality, so there’s that challenge there, but it’s a challenge we’ll embrace.”
With just five games remaining and the Whites seven points from safety, many appear to have condemned us to relegation.
You won’t find Parker throwing in the towel, though.
“We need to have that belief now,” he explained. “Can we go and beat Chelsea? Yeah we can.
“If we don’t go and beat Chelsea, I get that come Monday morning, that challenge is going to be harder.
“There’s still a lot to play for, a lot of games, but we all understand that that challenge is becoming very, very difficult for us.
“Our main focus now is let’s try and win games, let’s keep improving, keep playing well and hope that maybe we can get some results.
“The last two games, on another day you come out with four points. I know we’ve not, and I reiterate that, I understand that. Instead we’ve come out with one, and we have to keep going.
“Our focus this week has been to try and win the game. The challenge is that we’re going to have to win near on all of them. Can we do it? I still think we can.”