That summer Fulham were relegated, Parker departed and Marco Silva joined.
“It was a complete reset,” Ream said. “[Silva] walked in and could see the faces, what had gone on and the mentality of the group. We’d had previously a coach who didn’t really want to be there anymore, but there were players at the club that did want to be here, so it felt like we were in a different place.”
Fulham, back in the Championship for the 2021-22 campaign, had promotion in their sights and Silva embraced the outcasts, putting them at the forefront of their charge. They’d go on to win the Championship and instead of wholesale change that summer, they made the odd tweak here and there to the playing squad, which resulted in last season’s 10th-place finish in the Premier League, their best top-flight return since the 2011-12 campaign. Ream was at the heart of the effort.
“It’s been fun,” he said. “It’s been hard, but the level of care Marco’s had for each individual guy who is playing or isn’t playing has been key. He pushes us, but it’s been fun and that’s key.”
The morning when we met in late May, Ream had been to visit his nine-year-old son Aidan’s school. It was one of those days where a couple of kids bring in their dad to talk to the class. Ream told the class about working hard, achieving goals and coping with setbacks, drawing lessons from a journey that’s taken him from Missouri to captaining Fulham.
He can’t put a finger on the amount of time he’s spent away from home because of his job, or the number of events he’s missed.
“It’s not like a woe-is-me complaint, but you miss a lot of things like school plays, concerts,” Ream said. “You miss out on first words, steps.”
Now that his family is at an age where they can enjoy their dad’s profession, though, it’s given him extra incentive to continue playing.
“I had this question the other day about what’s your greatest motivation,” Ream said. “Before it was just playing. My motivation was that I get to do my dream job for a living. But now, well, to show my kids what I can do and what is possible.”
When he gets home after matches, his performance faces a mini dissection. His sons Aidan and Theo, 7, ask why he made a certain pass, or why he stepped forward at a certain point in the backline. They’d ask him a little about the opponent, but first and foremost Aidan would talk about how dad played, while Theo would ask about his favorite player. “That’d be [Aleksandar Mitrovic],” Ream said. Lilia, 4, isn’t quite there yet, but along with wife Kristen, the group is a familiar presence at Craven Cottage watching their dad and husband run rings around those younger than him.
A player’s age hangs over them in the latter stages of their career. There are players who grow old reluctantly and look at pains as their powers wane; there are some who slip off into the sunset, or others go in search for one last payday. Or there are those who adapt.
“It’s a conscious decision of doing things the right way,” Ream said. “So instead of thinking, ‘OK, I’m 35, I can start to let myself fade a bit.’ Nope. I don’t want to fade, I want to keep going.”
Last season, there were just 10 outfield players aged 35 or older in the Premier League. Ream made the most appearances (33) out of any of them, six more than the next on the list, Chelsea’s Thiago Silva.
“I’m not one to sit back and rest on what I’ve done previously,” he said. “I think that’s the quickest way to fall down the pecking order and the quickest way to find yourself out of the team. It’s the quickest way to find yourself retired at 35 years old. And it’s a matter of, what are my goals this season? Well, they’re the same as last season but you know you’re going to have to work harder as you’re a little bit older, but also a little bit wiser.”
On that first day back at Motspur Park, he’ll greet those he’s known for eight years, introduce himself to any new players and prepare himself for a grueling preseason. He’ll be excited.
“I’m proving to myself that I can continue to do it and continue to do it over and over again,” Ream said. “I love running with the younger lads, I enjoy keeping up with them and actually leaving them behind in a competitive sort of way.”
Fulham’s opener is at Everton on Aug. 12, with Brentford coming to Craven Cottage a week later. His family will be in the crowd, the USMNT will be keeping an eye on his form and progress, and Ream will continue doing what he loves as he starts his 15th professional season. Above all, he’ll be proving to himself he’s far from ready to think about anything post-football.
“I’m still not retiring,” he said. “There have been many people who have tried to tell me that it’s time to move on. You get it all the time from people saying, ‘You’re too old’ or ‘You can’t do it anymore.’ I’m living proof that you can.
“People are trying to write ‘It’s the final chapter,’ but I still feel fresh. I still feel like playing three, four years and have told people that. I think it’s important that you verbalize what you want to do and put it out there, don’t just sit on it.
“So that’s my secret, ’cause I just think there’s still things to learn, still things to do.”
