Joachim Andersen: Fulham loan was amazing despite Premier League relegation

Joachim Andersen has described his loan spell at Fulham as “amazing”, despite suffering a Premier League relegation.

The 24-year-old made 31 appearances and scored one goal in the 2020-21 Premier League campaign after arriving on a season-long loan from Olympique Lyonnais last summer.

The centre-back was handed the captain’s armband just four games into his Fulham career, in the absence of Tom Cairney.

“For me it’s been a fantastic year,” Andersen told Fulham’s club website. “To come here, to the Premier League, captain a club like Fulham and to be able to develop and show what I can do, has been amazing.

“Of course it’s not nice that we were relegated, but that’s how it is sometimes. My goal was to keep the club in the Premier League but also to show what I can do, so I hope I did one of those.

“Last year I was not happy with my situation at Lyon, so to get the opportunity here and rebuild myself and take more steps in my career, has been something that I’ll always remember and be thankful for.

“We had a really good season actually, there was just some small margins that meant we didn’t make it. We didn’t score enough goals. But the way we have been playing and going into games has been really good.

“I felt good in almost every game. That’s why I’m disappointed, because we really felt that we could have won every game.

“Relegation took some days to sink in. Honestly it was really horrible. It’s my first relegation ever so it was also a personal defeat.

“The captaincy was a big surprise for me because I don’t think it’s ever been the case at any club [a loan player being Captain]. It’s been unbelievable and something I’m really proud of.

“To get that trust from the gaffer is something that I’ll always be thankful for. He really helped me to develop and to be a better player and better leader, so that’s been amazing for me.

“I can feel love from the fans through social media. They send me a lot of messages and of course that makes me really happy. That’s what I’m trying to do, I’m trying to play my best game and the fact they like that is the biggest compliment you can get in football.

“We play for the fans. You’ve seen this year that with the fans not there, it’s not the same. So them showing that relationship is really important for me.”