Josh King exclusive: ‘I feel a loyalty to Fulham — this is my school, my second home’ | OneFootball

Interview: Fulham’s teen star on his rise to prominence, his hopes for Harry Wilson and Marco Silva... and why his Dad doesn’t own him on FPL

Scouted by Fulham after impressing in a park aged five while playing with eight-year-olds, his senior debut came at 17 and, now 19, he is a regular starter for a team pushing for European football.

In a campaign which has delivered his first senior goal, his first Premier League goal, and new levels of responsibility from head coach Marco Silva to “throw me into men’s football,” King is again beating the clock. “Last season was probably the engineering of this season. And this is my breakthrough season.”

Silva has not always had a history of trusting youngsters in big games. King has an idea about why he might be an exception.

“I think I’m quite good at taking on information,” he says. Having an injury lawyer father and a university lecturer mother might have something to do with that.

After 11 appearances in his debut season last term, he has featured in all but six of Fulham’s 32 Premier League matches this season, and three of those absences were due to a knee injury.

Josh King speaks to Standard Sport's Dom Smith at Motspur Park

The Standard

“The first thing I wanted to do in the first-team environment was earn the respect of my team-mates,” says the England Under-21 international, born in Kingston upon Thames in 2007. “I feel more assured now.

“One player who definitely helped me a lot was Andreas Pereira, who was in my position.” The Brazilian left Fulham last summer for Palmeiras after three years in west London.

“He told me: ‘You have to play with freedom.’ He said he plays with full freedom and knows, even if he makes a mistake, he’ll react from it. That’s helped me a lot. Earlier this season, when I made a mistake against Brentford, I bounced back. His words were ringing in my head then.”

King’s no-look pass at Craven Cottage in September fell straight to Mikkel Damsgaard, who put the Bees ahead and left the crestfallen teenager’s head in his hands. Fulham won 3-1, yet King will still be out to redeem himself in the reverse fixture at Brentford on Saturday.

Game time in the playmaker position in the world’s most competitive domestic league is highly sought-after. It makes the 19-year-old’s rise to prominence all the more remarkable.

“I haven’t thought of it like that,” he admits. “Emile [Smith Rowe] is such a talented player, so for me to be playing in front of him is a really big thing for me. I’ve taken a lot of what he’s told me into my own game. I guess it is a big deal. But I’m not so focused on the semantics of it. I just play and enjoy it.”

My ability to quickly take on tactical information helps Marco’s trust in me

Josh King

Scoring goals is a contractual obligation for attacking midfielders, and doesn’t he know it. King has thought long and hard about the art of goalscoring, working tirelessly on how to become more prolific.

“Some of the great players — Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard — the way they arrived in the box, their timing, was superb. It’s not luck. There’s a knack to it. Emile has that skill, and [the coaches] have just spoken to me about increasing the chances of me arriving in those spaces.”

The sun hides behind a cloud for a brief moment. Conversation turns to the third league game of the season, when King dribbled half the length of the pitch and struck sensationally past Robert Sanchez to give Fulham the lead over rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The teen’s jubilation was cut short by VAR, which cruelly disallowed the goal because Rodrigo Muniz had planted his standing foot, entirely accidentally, on Trevoh Chalobah in the build-up.

It was mischievously awarded the winner of Fulham’s goal of the month award for August.

Time is the best healer. “You know what… I’d say it’s a good memory,” King says now. “Although it’s never nice to have it ripped away from you, it helped me to keep that drive.

“I then scored not too long after, in the Carabao Cup [against Wycombe]. A big moment, my first professional goal. Not scoring can be tricky at times; you know you’re capable.

“I’ve done at lot of finishing training. A lot. I’m a bit like my mum, a perfectionist, and finishing is just about repetition. One thing that is more difficult in my position is that you can pop up in so many areas, making it harder to perfect your finish. I practise every day with Colin [Omogbehin] and Ali [Melloul], the coaches. Hopefully, I have a time when I start scoring a few. The Burnley goal [King’s first Premier League goal, in last month’s 3-1 win] was sheer delight, but also relief — it keeps me in a job for another week! Now I can kick on.”

King speaks with far greater maturity than most 19-year-olds and embraces every new challenge. He spent two years studying A-Levels in French, Maths and Psychology, and then sat his exams in a hotel suite in Romania while away last summer at the European U19s Championships. “They went well,” he says, after some deliberation. (Grades A, C, D.) “I’d have liked to do better”. Premier League football can be a distracting extracurricular, you’d imagine.

Full flow: Josh King

Getty Images

“Growing up in the academy, I’d have liked to have said I’m a leader,” he tells The Standard. “I’m not a [first-team] leader yet, but I would love to be one in the future. It’s definitely something that’s on my radar. Whether that happens at Fulham or at England, it would be incredible. I’m never going to say I’m ready for that responsibility. A long, long way to go, but to be a club legend and to be in a leadership group here would be a dream for me. Leading by my actions is the best way.”

Courteous and composed though he is, King is stoutly driven. He has said previously that winning the World Cup with England is a career goal, as is becoming “one of the best midfielders in the world”. Already, he has come a long way. From Tom Cairney’s ball-boy to his teammate, his seat in the dressing room was stationed between two experienced internationals in Antonee Robinson and Timothy Castagne.

King has so far declined the offer of being media-trained. An authenticity is detectable.

After a brief pause — a grin fills his face as Alex Iwobi ambles past in the distance and they exchange a wave — King is asked whether after 13 years on their books he feels a sense of loyalty to Fulham.

“100 per cent,” comes the immediate reply. “I owe a lot to Fulham. My first home is… where I live, but Fulham is my second home. This is my school. It has a special place in my heart.”

My dad likes FPL. I’m not even in his team, which is a bit brutal. That’s tough love

Josh King

No such loyalty to himself in Fantasy Premier League (FPL). “I had myself in my team for a while,” he chuckles. “Then I got injured and haven’t added myself back since. So I missed out on a big 13 points against Burnley. My dad likes FPL. I’m not even in his team, which is a bit brutal. That’s tough love. Hopefully, for friends and family I’m decent value for money.”

In King’s mind, Fulham’s best player is Harry Wilson, who has been “so effective this season, extraordinary” and, like “a lot of other players, doesn’t get the recognition he deserves”. To the suggestion Fulham themselves are much the same, he admits: “Probably true. Any team we play against we could beat. Ultimately, we all want to get Europe and we’re all striving for that. For us and the fans.”

Wilson is at the peak of his career and out of contract this summer, with Premier League rivals circling and Fulham fans fearing his exit. Silva’s future is just as uncertain.

“From a club perspective, we all want the gaffer and Harry to stay,” King explains. “They are incredible people who have helped the club for years. From more of a personal perspective, knowing them both, I want what’s best for them and for their careers. Regardless of what happens, the team will stay really tight.”

Do King’s career targets include playing in the Champions League or, perhaps, abroad?

“Possibly. I want to play at the highest level. If I push Fulham as far as we can go, my personal ambitions will come — but I feel I do have a certain loyalty to Fulham.”

So just how satisfied is their breakout star, their prodigy, at his career trajectory and what he’s accomplished so far? One to ten. “I’d say seven-point-five. Solid. Room for improvement. There are bigger things to come, for sure.”