Is this Fulham's worst-ever Premier League XI?

Would this side beat Derby's infamous Premier League points total? Probably not, as they'd not be able to string 38 consecutive appearances together.

Still, I think, on balance, this is our worst Premier League XI. Not necessarily purely on stats, but vibes too.

We've been relegated three times, which gives ample candidates for a piece like this, but I've tried to spread that indignity out across the three campaigns (and a couple from other years). Right - when can the real football return then?

This is partly because I'm still annoyed we dismantled the vibes of Slav's play-off-winning locker room by dropping Marcus Bettenelli, and partly because he shipped an average of nearly two goals a game across 29 starts. But Betts had kept 14 clean sheets the previous campaign.

An upgrade this most certainly was not. The Dutchman was a highly-rated youngster at Manchester United, having arrived from the academy at Ajax (where else?) as a 16 year old.

He'd proven himself in the Premier League a season earlier at Crystal Palace, but it did not go well for him in SW6.12 appearances, 27 conceded - the nadir being the OG that gave Huddersfield a 1-0 victory in November. Still only 28, he's currently without a clubafter leaving Bayer Leverkusen in 2024.

It's easy to see why Nordtveit is often cited as a player who personified the atrocious 18-19 season. There are mitigating circumstances: the basket case of a campaign and the fact that we already had five recognised centre-backs at the time he signed.

Still, he was among the worst of them. It didn't go well for poor Alfie; injuries absolutely destroyed his time at the club.

But this is the worst Premier League XI, and when he did play, he didn't do well. 28 goals conceded in just 15 appearances tells its own story as the Whites cycled through centre-backs during perhaps its most disastrous Premier League campaign.