Roy Hodgson hails Fulham for steering clear of the 'wall'

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Yesterday's draw was the 44th game of the season for the visitors, whose campaign began way back in July.

Hodgson said: "I keep expecting the players to hit the wall after all the games we've played this season but they keep proving me wrong.

"When you reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup and the last 16 of the Europa League, there are a lot of teams sat at home watching on television who would happily swap places with us."

Hodgson admits the players are showing signs of wear and tear after completing an eight-game February unbeaten and all but securing another season in the top flight.

Hodgson claims the resurgent form shown by his side last month has bought them valuable time to welcome back a number of their key performers from injury in time for the crucial run-in.

Saturday's FA Cup visit by Spurs comes a little soon for Fulham's walking wounded but Hodgson believes the return of several key players is imminent.

"We don't have the kind of squad where we can make wholesale changes," he said. "We know what our best team is and we try to get it on the field.

"The good thing is that if we can survive the early part of March, then who knows? Paul Konchesky is close to a return, while Clint Dempsey and Kagisho Dikgacoi might not be that far away either.

"So going into the latter part of the season we might have the sort of squad we had at the start of January before that disastrous month robbed us of all those players who would give us a welcome boost."

Fulham failed to test Sunderland keeper Craig Gordon in a dour contest that will not live long in the memory. But barely 48 hours after their return from Europa League action in the Ukraine, the manager professed himself more than happy with a share of the spoils.

He added: "We're now up to 38 points in the league and, with 10 games left to play, that gets rid of that Sword of Damocles hanging over us.

"We can be reasonably confident we've secured another season in the Premier League, which is our main target each year."