John Collins or Collins John?

'It is an English name and I have brothers called Paddy and Ola, my sister is Fate, and my mother Esther.'

John has not been able to make more than a superficial first impression at Fulham because he arrived with a minor ankle injury. But he has already made his mark on Dutch football, where he was rated one of the country's brightest talents after impressing at junior levels and Under-23s.

Fulham manager Chris Coleman, whose side play at Wolves tomorrow, wants to use him sparingly.

But after impressing in training this week John's debut cannot be far away.

'I know England is difficult and there might be more long balls and very hard tackles but I think I will love it,' he said. 'Nobody in Holland would believe I was only 18 years old because I am quite big, strong and fast and I like tough football. Let the supporters and everybody see what I can do.'

Such self-confidence should stand John in good stead in the Premiership as Fulham search for a Louis Saha replacement.

It comes partly from scoring nine goals in Holland this season, but also because of his ability to reach the heights he has after a hugely difficult childhood.

John was brought up in a town near the Liberian capital of Monrovia at the heart of the civil war which has torn the country apart. His father was killed in the fighting in 1991 and the family fled to become refugees in Holland.

John was only eight when he made the traumatic boat journey to Rotterdam and then spent two years in a government centre while their claim was processed. He finds it hard to talk about his father even now. But if he had stayed in Liberia, he would have been forced to join the civil war.

John considers himself Dutch and said: 'There was a war and everybody moved around all over the country. We lost touch with my dad and heard from our family that he had died.

'If I had been in Liberia when I was 12 or 13 years old, I would have had to join the army too. You have no choice.

'My mother has told me about it, but not everything. It is important for me but I told her I knew my father was not alive and to leave it. If I think about it too much it might not be good for me.'

John instead has pledged to become a success for his family. He said that when he scores his first goal for Fulham he will dedicate it to his past with a message underneath his club shirt.

There is no doubt that he is doing things the hard way. Even now he is having to learn to live in a foreign country again, but this time without the help of his mother. If he can reverse the name of an old Fulham favourite in the minds of the club's fans, he will have earned it.

Fulham will be without Lee Clark (Achilles), Facundo Sava (calf) and Jerome Bonnissel (ankle), who is expected to miss the rest of the season.

Wolves have no new injury worries, with Shaun Newton (ankle) and Paul Ince (suspension) set to return.