Fulham midfielder Tom Cairney is adamant Scott Parker should be appointed on a permanent basis after overseeing an improvement since being placed in caretaker charge.

Parker was placed in temporary charge of the Cottagers following Claudio Ranieri’s sacking on February 28 but the former midfielder was unable to stop the club being relegated from the Premier League.

However, the 38-year-old Englishman did guide Fulham to three straight league wins – all of those coming with clean sheets – before Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers ended that run.

Club chiefs have yet to decide who will be handed the reins on a permanent basis for next season as the London outfit looks to bounce back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

Midfielder Cairney, who penned a new five-year contract earlier this week, has thrown his full support behind Parker, saying the ex-England international is the “right man”.

“I’ve said for a long time that I think Scott has done an incredible job and, in my eyes, I think he is the right man for the job,” he said.

“The way he has got us playing in such a short space of time, in the hardest league in the world, is a credit to him. “I believe he is the man to take us forward so we’ll see.”

Parker will have one final chance to prove his managerial credentials on May 12 when Fulham welcome Newcastle United, who lost 3-2 to Liverpool last time out, to Craven Cottage on the final day of the season.