Why I love...Fulham

Actor, comedian and one-third of Fat Les, Keith Allen, tells BBC Sport about his Cottagers' connection.

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BBC Sport: When did you start supporting Fulham?

Keith Allen: The first game I came to was in 1959, Fulham v Sheffield United. I was sitting on my dad's shoulders on the mud bank.

Who are the great players that you have watched?

Allen rates Tigana very highly

Johnny Haynes obviously. Tosh Chamberlain, Graham Leggett, Malcolm MacDonald, Ivor "The Engine" Davies, Louis Saha, George Cohen, obviously - Sir George.

We've had a few here. I never saw Bobby Robson play, but I saw Jimmy Hill play.

Do you think Fulham are a sleeping giant coming to life?

Fulham have never been a sleeping giant.

My dad always used to describe Fulham, and I think correctly, as a very, very good Second Division club, who occasionally get into the First Division and have some fun. But we were never a great First Division team.

But things are changing now?

If we go up with this squad, I think we'll finish in the top half at the end of the season. And I think we'll get into Europe.

It's no accident that the one of the biggest selling items in the club shop is a map of Europe, which I think we'll be needing after next season.

How did you react when Mohammed Al Fayed was appointed?

When I heard, myself and a life-long fan got together and bought a bottle of champagne.

We had a few drinks and he then fell though a roof at a party and broke his leg.

If you see England as a village, Al Fayed's bought the village shop - ie. Harrods - and now he's bought their football team.

And good luck to him, anything that gets up the noses of the establishment is fine with me.

What's been the lowest point since you started supporting them?

When we nearly went out of the league, that was awful. The lowest I ever felt was when Malcolm MacDonald was sacked.

Al Fayed's arrival was celebrated in style

He had put together a fantastic attacking team. We drew the last game of the season and if he had won, we could have gone up.

MacDonald was sacked the following season for not keeping his domestic life in order, which I think was hypocritical at best because the chairman went on to top it himself after being done for business malpractice!

Why have Fulham always been regarded as a glamour side?

It's close to the King's Road. Everyone recalls when we had Rodney Marsh, George Best, Booby Moore, Alan Mullery and Peter Storey. It's a glamour club, probably because of its proximity to the vibrant West End.

Is there any feeling that the club has been taken over by the "johnny come latelys"?

No. We love seeing the ground full. There are two terraces and it's funny but when we played Manchester United, the United fans loved it.

How do you feel about moving to a new stadium?

The facilities here are getting better, but they have been pretty bad. It's all for the good. And I genuinely do believe that with Jean Tigana this club is going places.

Mohammed Al Fayed has said that Fulham can win the Premiership within five years. Do you agree?

Without a doubt. If we're thinking about Europe, then we've got to have the championship on board as well.

We lived with Liverpool for 90 minutes here and I think they're the team of the next five years. I think United's star is on the wane. We'll definitely be up there.