Fulham's pre-season preparations ended with a 1-0 win over Bundesliga side VfB Stuttgart.
Having lost 2-0 to the German side in a behind-closed-doors friendly earlier in the day, Timothy Castagne's looping second-half header secured a win in Álvaro Arbeloa's first game at Craven Cottage.
For the majority of the game, Fulham were the better side but they lacked consistent ruthlessness in front of goal.
Sander Berge had a header seemingly cleared off the line in first-half stoppage time, while Oscar Bobb should have opened the scoring early in the second half. The Norwegian cut inside, gliding past a tackle before arrowing his shot straight at the goalkeeper.
The travelling Champions League side only mustered two meaningful attempts on goal, but both required superb saves from Bernd Leno. Playing against his first club, the German pushed away a deflected, point-blank header in the first half, while he brilliantly clawed away another pinpoint, crisp shot in the second half after Fulham had been caught on the break.
This was the first opportunity for fans to get a look at Arbeloa's new-look side. In a deserved victory, new signings Gonzalo García, César Palacios and Shea Charles all made their Craven Cottage bows, with the two Spaniards impressing from the off.
High Line
Under Marco Silva, the Cottagers became synonymous with playing high-tempo, possession-based football.
While the full-backs would naturally engage in attacking phases of play, the defensive core of Sander Berge, Calvin Bassey and Joachim Andersen would stay back and maintain Fulham's defensive shape.
Transitioning from Silva's playing style to Arbeloa's is perhaps more of an evolution than a revolution. Bernd Leno spoke during the week of his need to "take more responsibility" due to the new "high line."
This was evident during today's match. Under Silva, Bassey would occasionally charge forward, while Berge would contribute to attacking sequences from a distance.
Against Stuttgart, Jorge Cuenca roamed forward on a couple of occasions while Sander Berge was a lot further forward than fans have been accustomed to. This meant Leno had to leave his penalty area to clean up potential danger on a few occasions.
While this approach is more attacking-minded, it does inevitably leave Fulham more defensively vulnerable. This was evident in the second half when Stuttgart launched a quick counterattack. Badredine Bouanani was completely unmarked, and his cushioned volley back across goal was only denied by a world-class Leno save.
Interchanging Positions
Another noticeable element to Fulham's display against last season's 4th-best Bundesliga side was the interchangeability of certain players.
Rather than rigidly sticking to their wide positions, Oscar Bobb and new man César Palacios would frequently drift into midfield to offer additional dynamism, fluidity, and tenacity in an attempt to break down Stuttgart's structure.
While this did offer more space on the wings for Stuttgart to try and exploit, it also beefed up Fulham's midfield and forced opposition players to drift out of their positions, creating space for the West Londoners' full-backs.
These extra bodies in midfield also relieved some pressure on Alex Iwobi and Berge's shoulders.
While these shifts into midfield were only temporary, they provided extra support and allowed Fulham to retain possession quicker and more efficiently.
Risk of getting caught on the break
Fulham's new, higher line during attacking assaults may be point of concern ahead of the new season, as it is likely to leave them vulnerable on transitions against teams with rapid wingers.
Stuttgart are an impressive team who deserve to have been playing Champions League football for only the second time in 16 seasons. But while they failed to capitalise on those openings, Premier League opposition will be far less forgiving.
Arbeloa's side need to find the right balance between committing bodies forward and maintaining enough defensive cover to prevent their attacking ambition from becoming a vulnerability.
Josh King and César Palacios impress
Both players looked incredibly lively and were heavily involved in the majority of Fulham's attacking moves.
King and Palacios constantly interchanged with each other, floating into space across both wings, and were central to Fulham's attacking penetration.
While Palacios may have looked like a rival to King's starting spot at Fulham, Arbeloa may have uncovered an exciting new system in which both of these impressive youngsters can complement each other's abilities and unlock opposition defences.
