Sky Sports' Johnny Phillips: Scene is set for Wolves at the most wonderful time of the year

The first was the sweeping River Thames flowing by to the left of the massed ranks of supporters in old gold and black.

London’s great river is one of many stand-out features of a trip to Fulham’s home ground.

There is, of course, the walk from Putney Bridge tube station through Bishop’s Park alongside the north bank of the river, the listed Johnny Haynes Stand – the oldest in all four divisions – that takes fans back to a bygone era, and the cottage itself, so quintessentially Fulham. An away day there is difficult to beat.

The Putney End is the Premier League’s only neutral stand.

Visiting fans can mingle along the concourses and enjoy a pint with home fans or day trippers with not the slightest hint of tension in the air.

For those who prefer a tribal atmosphere, this might not be to your taste, but with enough division in today’s society as it is let’s fly a flag for the hand of friendship and a bit of love in the air.

That was the ambience. The second sight was a tactical one.

Directly behind the goals there is a view point you just don’t get from side on, where the press box and the main angle match cameras are positioned.

There is a loss of depth up and down the pitch, but it is a fantastic place to watch a match if you want to see the shape of a team from a different perspective.

It was as if the Wolves back three were on a rope, crossing from either side of the pitch, rarely out of position, setting up the entire team in front of them.

There are so many different views at the match. None offer the perfect outlook, but every single one has a charm of its own.

Each angle offers a perspective and an education that another one cannot.

There is always something to appreciate wherever you are sat in the stadium, although the away end at Goodison Park is a hard place to sell.

Going to the match at this time of year is an experience that should never be underestimated.

Work being work and Boxing Day being the busiest day of the fixture calendar, a quick dart up the Fulham Palace Road and a couple of stops down the Hammersmith & City line followed the Wolves game to take up a position on the gantry for Queens Park Rangers’ Championship game against Ipswich Town.

At Loftus Road, the gantry on the Ellerslie Road Stand actually hangs over the touchline of the pitch.

It is the most immersive experience imaginable, with wayward channel balls flying past at head height and the shouts and exasperation of under pressure full-backs piercing the air. The sounds of a match day create a symphony of their own.

Football is the great release at a time of year when we can buckle under the commercial swamp of Christmas and the weight of family festivities.

Fans are the true pilgrims during this period, defying the best efforts of the country’s antiquated transport network, wading through the tacky consumerism, rallying against the tide of obligation and braving the frosty elements to get to a match.

This glut of games can define a season.

For Ipswich fans, packed into the upper tier of the School End, there cannot be much to look forward to in 2019, but they still turned up in their numbers.

And with little over half an hour gone they were 2-0 down and no nearer reducing the widening gap from the bottom of the Championship to the safety of 21st place.

Still, there was always the Westfield Shopping Centre across the road and a Boxing Day sales bargain to take back to Suffolk.

What a testing time for Ipswich manager Paul Lambert.

Stood there in his post-match interview trying to defend a dispiriting performance from a bunch of players signed by somebody else. He put a protective arm around them. No time for a forensic inquest with another game around the corner.

It is another test of resolve for their fans today. A trip to Middlesbrough. Another hit to the pocket for fans who would not be thinking of doing anything else.

The Wanderers faithful are back in the capital.

If Fulham was the idyllic throwback, today is the concrete crash into the 21st century.

Tottenham are renting Wembley while their new home is being readied.

The home of English football is surrounded by a fast-growing urban jungle.

A landscape of cranes and high rise apartments. If Craven Cottage is Handel’s Water Music, Wembley is a Sven Vath techno set.

It will be a disconcerting place to watch football today.

Home of English football it may be, but it has been barely two thirds full in recent weeks – a by-product of Tottenham’s mangled ticketing policy in the wake of the delay in moving to their impressive new stadium. The expanse of empty seats is not a good look.

This one will be watched from the pitch side reporter’s position, directly behind the away dugout. It will be another unique view. A different perspective again. But most importantly of all, another day to be savoured at the football.

Results can be unpredictable, performances can stand out. All creating memories. Nothing beats the match at this time of year.