Fulham boss working on a plan without Cairney

Fulham boss Slavisa Jokanovic accepts that his side need to find a way of coping without skipper Tom Cairney.

Cairney is set for a spell on the sidelines after picking up a foot injury in Sunday’s win over Burnley.

The Whites are still waiting to find out the full extent of the injury, but are bracing themselves for a several-week absence, beginning with Saturday’s trip to Brighton.

Cairney, who attracted interest from Premier League rivals in the summer, is a key player for Jokanovic’s men,

“We have to assess but I hope he will be back working with us soon,” the Serb said.

“This is part of football, I would prefer him to be with us and working with the team daily but I accept this kind of situation and we need to find a way so we don’t suffer so much without him.

“We know he is part of the team, he is important like he was last season and we played many games last season without him.

“We must accept this situation and wait for news from the medical department.”

Aleksandar Mitrovic has also proved an important player in the early stage of the season, with three goals in three games.

Jokanovic thinks the former Newcastle striker can get better, but says there is a lot more to his side besides Mitrovic.

He said: “He is a good player, he knows his job but for another side he’s a 23-year-old man and it is huge improvement gap for him.

“He showed the great attitude in all the training sessions and he wants to be successful, he’s important part of the team but Fulham is not only Mitrovic.

“This squad has other good and important players, I hope he will continue playing this level or higher because I believe it’s possible.

“This is not tennis, we are a football team and I can’t start only with Mitrovic.

“If you analyse our last game, Mitrovic scored two goals and played very well, but we can talk about contribution from Andre Schurrle and (Luciano) Vietto or if you want, from (Jean) Seri, (Kevin) McDonald and Cairney and many players show important level in our last game.

“Mitrovic is news and people always ask me about him, all of us know he’s important for us but there are 20 odd players who are working and contributing and I must take care with him and other players.”