Zoltán the Great! Gera’s Premier League record will take some breaking

Zoltán Gera bid farewell to West Bromwich Albion in the summer of 2014, with a decade of loyal service in English football brought to a close. He took in two spells at the Hawthorns, allowing him to become something of a cult hero in the West Midlands, with a three-season stint at Fulham sandwiched in between.

It was during his time at Craven Cottage that the former Hungary international enjoyed arguably his finest hours. His time in west London coincided with a historic run of form for Fulham Football Club as a whole.

Gera’s Era

Cult. Icon.

Zoltan Gera signed for #FFC on this day in 2008. 🗓 pic.twitter.com/8bU7u9MrYp

— Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC) June 11, 2022

The likes of Bobby Moore, George Best and Johnny Haynes may have graced their books down the years, but it was Gera’s era that delivered the club’s best-ever top-flight finish. The class of 2023-24 are trying to emulate those efforts, with today’s football odds pricing them at +500 to secure a top-half standing.

Fulham may not figure prominently in the Premier League title odds dominated by the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool, but they are harboring hopes of pushing for European qualification once more.

When Gera joined their ranks back in 2008, continental action was very much the target. A seventh-place finish at the end of Gera’s debut campaign – a collective best for the Cottagers – booked a spot in the Europa League.

Fulham would, with Roy Hodgson at the helm, go on to enjoy a remarkable run to the final of that competition in 2009-10 – with Juventus and Wolfsburg seen off along the way, before eventually coming unstuck against Atletico Madrid in a contest that required extra-time in order to find a winner.

Gera played the full 120 minutes in that contest, earning him a prestigious silver medal, and would help the Cottagers into Europe again during his final season in the English capital – when they finished eighth in 2010-11.

He took in 120 appearances for Fulham in total, with 86 of those outings coming in the Premier League. He had already turned out at that level for West Brom on 53 occasions, with a further 33 top-flight fixtures taken in after re-signing for the Baggies.

With all of those games taken into account, Gera figured in 172 Premier League matches. Nobody in the long and distinguished history of Hungarian football has taken in more games on the most prominent of sporting stages.

Gera also boasts records for his country when it comes to the most Premier League goals scored (17) and assists provided (12) in the top tier of English football.

Achievements

Happy #PancakeDay, Baggies 🥞

The perfect excuse to post Zoltan Gera content. He was flippin’ fantastic for us 😍🇭🇺 pic.twitter.com/UnxhSTB1DN

— West Bromwich Albion (@WBA) February 16, 2021

He should be rightly proud of those achievements, but will be keeping a close eye on his place in the history books. That is because, after a brief barren run, more Hungarian talent is starting to make its way to English shores.

It may be that somebody, perhaps in the not too distant future, eclipses his efforts when it comes to end product in the final third of the field. It is, however, his appearance haul that will taking some beating and they may be a place for Gera in Premier League folklore for some time yet.