Slaviša Jokanović Takes Aim at Fulham's Poor First Half Display in 1-1 Draw With Watford

Fulham manager Slaviša Jokanović criticised his side's first half display in the 1-1 draw against Watford and admitted he would have made four substitutions at half time if he could. 

The Cottagers found themselves one goal down after only 90 seconds as Andre Gray handed the visitors the lead in an opening half which could have spelled trouble for Fulham had the Hornets converted their dominance to the scoreboard. 

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Jokanović sought to arrest the momentum by making two changes at the start of the second half, bringing on Denis Odoi and Floyd Ayite and shifting to a 4-4-2 formation - a move which gave Fulham more control in midfield and led to the equaliser through Aleksandar Mitrovic.

"I made two changes, if I have opportunity to make four I would do it," Jokanović told Sky Sports at the conclusion of the game. 

"It's not a question about one player or what I change, any player wasn't in a good enough level in the first 45 minutes and at the end I tried to make some kind of support for my team and move a bit different.

"Credit to the team, they showed different levels in the second 45 minutes and changed the story."

After a return of just five points from six games, Jokanović acknowledged the need for his team to improve, but he remained satisfied with the response he witnessed on Saturday afternoon. 

"We must be focused, concentrate - this is the Premier League, the most competitive league in the world," he added.

"These mistakes and sloppy starts can make it complicated to fix. We must be available to work. We must be available to step up. I need my players to be brave and confident.

"We must be satisfied with one point, but I'm not completely satisfied with our 90 minutes. The satisfaction comes from the second-half. There's space for improvement, as the gap is huge."