Fulham manager Mark Hughes has the full backing of his players despite the 
side’s recent poor form, according to USA striker Clint Dempsey.
His comments came in the wake of The Cottagers’ 1-1 home draw with Birmingham on Saturday, which left them only one point above the Premier League relegation zone.
Hughes took over at Fulham in July after being sacked by Manchester City, but he has overseen just two victories in 15 league fixtures.
Dempsey admits levels of expectation among Fulham supporters have grown off the back of the success achieved by previous manager Roy Hodgson, but he insists the squad has not lost faith in Hughes.
“We believe in the manager — and we can only keep working for him,” Dempsey told the Fulham and Hammersmith Chronicle.
“It’s not wrong of fans to expect more. After last season, we have come to expect more of ourselves.”
Dempsey, whose second-half strike against Birmingham salvaged a ninth draw of the campaign for Fulham, feels there is plenty of experience of scrapping at the bottom end of the table within the camp should the London outfit get drawn in to a relegation fight this season.
“We were taking the game to them before Birmingham scored,” Dempsey said.
“We wanted to show character after last week’s game against Manchester City (a 4-1 defeat), although it’s frustrating with so many draws.
“Lots of guys have been here when it’s been backs-to-the-wall, including me, two out of the four years I’ve been here.”