With my life back on track and my problems all put to one side, I finally feel ready to concentrate on the reason I was brought to Fulham; making the team successful. Our stoic rear-guard in the second half against Arsenal had shown me a previously unseen battling spirit in the squad. I felt like we were on the cusp of becoming the finished article and a real force to be reckoned with in the Premier League.

We were about to enter the hectic Christmas period and I knew that our results during the next few weeks would go a long way to shaping the outcome of our season.

As I put up the decorations and decorated the tree in my house, I was yet to be overcome with the Christmas spirit. You see, before I could fully focus my attention back on coaching and management, Mr Al-Fayed had ordered me to do an interview live on Sky News, explaining the murky circumstances surrounding Ricky’s exit from the club.

I had received a very carefully worded manuscript, written by the chairman himself, detailing in miniscule detail how I was to respond to any potentially difficult questions from the anchors. After being burned so badly by Jim White on Sky Sports News, I had vowed never to work with the channel again, but this was different. I had tried to bury my head in the sand, but the media had become increasingly sceptical about our version of events regarding Ricky’s departure. Mr. Al-Fayed had said that we owed it to our fans to once and for all, set the record straight and as the main figurehead at the club, that duty fell on my shoulders.

As I made my way into the studios, the enormity of the event finally dawned on me. This wasn’t a story that was going to be restricted merely to the sports pages - this was front page news. As the production staff and cameramen buzzed around me, I tried to resist their insistence that I go and ‘tidy myself up’ in the make up department. “The public want the real deal, not an air-brushed, idealistic version of me, I’m fine as I am” I snapped. I was out of my comfort-zone and felt uneasy, I had studied the script I had been given over and over, but I would have been lying if I said that I wasn’t nervous about the interview.

As I prepared to go live and was fitted with my microphone, I was greeted with a friendly smile by my chief-interrogator, Kay Burley. Paranoia swept over me, this woman had the potential to make my life very difficult for the next thirty minutes, so I opted for a charm offensive. “Good afternoon, Ms. Burley, might I say that you are looking particularly lovely this afternoon”.

The camera panned over towards me and I forced a toothless smile as Kay looked on, with a clear twinkle in her eye.

Kay Burley: “Now Jonathan, you and Ricky always seemed to get on so well together. I think you will agree with most of us neutrals, that for two people who enjoyed each others company and were doing such a good job at Craven Cottage, that Ricky’s departure was a bit of a bolt out of the blue”.

Jonathan Wolstenholme: “Yes, it was a big surprise to me personally. But I think Ricky saw this as his big chance to make a name for himself on the world stage. He is a great friend and always will be and I think it would have been selfish of me to stand in the way of his dream to become a respected manager in his own right”.

With the first bullet dodged, I began to grow in confidence and my nerves eased.

Kay Burley: “I think the thing that has perplexed a lot of people is that despite being in the job for over a week now, there has been no mention of Mr. Sbragia’s appointment from Gamba Osaka, not so much as a mention on the clubs website”.

Jonathan Wolstenholme: “I think that much of that is down to Ricky himself, he’s always been a low-key kind of guy and has never chased the limelight, he prefers to get on with his job in a quiet manner. Football comes first with Ricky and I think Gamba are just biding their time before they make the big announcement - this is a real coup for them”.

I had become quite adept at lying during the past few weeks and as Kay probed, I continued to repel her questions with my merry web of deceit.

Kay Burley: “So, Mr Al-Fayed is a notoriously ruthless businessmen, how has he reacted to having one of his top talents poached by another club?”