Fulham boss Chris Coleman hailed the performance of his injury-hit side in their 2-1 home win over Middlesbrough on Monday evening.
The Cottagers took a crucial three points, despite the absences of the likes of Jimmy Bullard, Papa Bouba Diop, Luis Boa Morte and Simon Elliott, leaving Coleman a happy man.
He said: "It was an easy team-talk. We had nine missing and our players were dropping like flies.
"I told my guys not to be nervous and luckily we got the penalty and that settled us down.
"But then we conceded a goal where we switched off. Antti Niemi made a mistake with his goal-kick and then our defenders switched off.
"It was a big game for us and our attitude was much better than in previous games and I am very proud of my players.
"We went 2-0 up and then could have scored more, but we conceded a goal at the end and could have collapsed as we did against Liverpool.
"I know you don't get relegated at Christmas, but if you have a bad festive period then it makes a huge difference to your season.
"But we showed great energy and all the lads who came in and did a good job."