"Are you a Fulham fan?" Mohamed Al Fayed barks cheerfully as a way of introduction. The chairman and owner of Fulham rocks back in his chair when he hears the name of a different club as an answer. "Oh no, oh no," he chortles while waiting for the qualification that soon follows. In recent months it has been easy to claim Fulham as a second favourite team – at least on those giddy nights at Craven Cottage when, in the often derided Europa League, the London club have pulled off some outrageous victories on their way to the final of tomorrow night's competition.

Fulham now face Atlético Madrid in the culmination of an extraordinary journey. It also marks another highpoint in a momentuous week for Fayed. Three days ago he sold Harrods for £1.5bn. But it is a sign of his commitment to Fulham that, in the midst of completing the sale, Fayed sets aside time to discuss his club.

He stresses that, despite ending 25 years of ownership at Harrods, "it all remains the same at Fulham. Fulham is not being sold". An earlier analogy has already been made, suggesting that the sale of your house does not automatically trigger the sale of your car. But Harrods has been his "home" for so long that his departure will leave a huge hole in his life – that perhaps only his family and Fulham can fill. Tomorrow's final will offer him the sweetest diversion.

Fulham's European adventure began last July, spanning two qualifying rounds as well as group and knockout matches totalling 18 games and covering seven countries, as they also defeated Shakhtar Donetsk, the holders, and Wolfsburg, the German champions. Their win over Juventus in the last 16 was especially unforgettable. After conceding early in the second leg, they needed to score four unanswered goals against a famous old Italian club with six World Cup winners in their squad that delirious night.

Inspired by an admired English manager in Roy Hodgson, and a fevered crowd in a comfortable corner of west London, Fulham pummelled the Italian giants until the winner was scored with a chip of exquisite delicacy from Clint Dempsey.

Fayed was not quite as delicate before the semi-final second leg against Hamburg last month. As is his way, the 76-year-old walked around Craven Cottage before kick‑off, waving his scarf while relishing the applause of Fulham supporters who acknowledge the stability he has brought to the club over 13 years. A typical Fayed moment soon unfolded. As he approached the away end he stuck up two fingers at the Hamburg supporters. "When I passed them they started shouting at me," Fayed says amid hearty laughter. "What can you do? You want to go and punch them and not give them two fingers?"

It is less a question than a statement of defiance. Fayed chuckles again when asked if he was taunted by the visiting fans. "I don't know what they were singing. They were German you know. It's a language which makes you feel terrible when you hear people talking it."

Fayed will have ample opportunity over the next two days to consider the cadences of German speech. He flies to Hamburg this morning in preparation for an emotional final that, ironically, will be played in the home stadium of those fans who received his dismissive salute.

Any late move to install the tubby septuagenarian as Germany's World Cup mascot will not be boosted by a pre-match walk around the pitch. "It's not my club," Fayed says, "so I will just go where my fans are and say hello to them. I will be with the players and fans as much as I can."

In a season when the fractured relationship between supporters and owners has plummeted to a new low – especially in the embittered situations at Manchester United and Liverpool – the comparative warmth Fulham fans feel towards Fayed is striking. If there were concerns about his motives when he bought the club in 1997, with fears that he would sell Craven Cottage and plunder the profits, Fayed has emerged as a surprisingly benign and even popular chairman.

"I'm always bonding with the players and fans," Fayed says, having attended "80 or 90%" of Fulham's staggering 63 matches this season. "It's part of my love for the club. I am involved with all aspects – and it's important the players and manager see I am always encouraging them. I'm also always with the fans."

There would be a terrible threat of violence, and even worse, if any of the Glazer family tried to mingle with justifiably furious supporters after their purchase of the club saddled United with debts of £700m that have already cost over £325m in interest payments alone. The same brooding backdrop applies at Anfield as another set of American businessmen, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, try to sell off Liverpool after also using dubious methods to buy the club which is now £350m in debt.

Fayed might be an eccentric man, haunted by conspiracy theories and derided across large sections of the country, but he can be cherished at Fulham. He invested £200m of his own money in the club during his first 10 years of ownership – and his astute appointment of Hodgson has transformed fortunes on the pitch. His enthusiasm for Fulham is palpable.

"If you own a football club you have to be really involved and committed," Fayed says. "That is very important and it's the same in any business. You have to be really caring and show people you are really interested. I come out before the matches because it's important the fans see I am in a good mood. When I get to the club my mood is always lifted. You can be in a terrible mood but once you are at Fulham you are happy. I am also a fan. And so I have a tremendous feeling of being committed and helping give pleasure to all the supporters and players."

The Glazers, and some other new owners, are accused of pure greed. Is Fayed concerned about club ownership in the Premier League? "Yes, it is a pity. This is a British league and for people who own clubs they have to be really committed and care about the players and fans."

Fayed believes there is now a sustained threat to the health of the English game. "Absolutely. It all depends on the owners. Do they really love the game? Do they really love the club? Or are they just there for other causes? This is why clubs falter. It's difficult to show that love if you are far away. And it's not a good example if people own clubs just to make money or show off. If people are really keen about football and are not only thinking of a club as a way to make money it's fine. But if they are only thinking about money the whole attitude changes. It is not the right approach."

He might be a bit of a show-off himself but, as he insists Fulham act prudently and have built a team that, devoid of stars, works together as a coherent whole, Fayed becomes almost breathless with exuberance. "When you see our players, and how they work together in one unit, it is like art. Sometimes you also need to look to the sky so God helps us. But a lot depends on the team's mood. And so much comes down to the manager. He co-ordinates everything by studying the opposition and how best to beat them. It is also art – being a successful manager. It takes a lot of time and effort and I know personally Roy has done this study."

Who should be manager of the year – Hodgson for taking Fulham to the brink of European glory while patiently accepting his chairman's frequent visits to the dressing room or, just down the road, Carlo Ancelotti, who could complete the double in his first season with Chelsea? "It must be Roy," Fayed says. "I hope so. He deserves it."

There have been suggestions that Hodgson could become England's next manager or that he would be a practical alternative to Rafael Benítez at a floundering Liverpool. "If it is England I don't mind having to sacrifice Roy. It is important England do well. When England came for Kevin Keegan [in 1999 when he managed Fulham to promotion from Division Two] I didn't have any objection. It gave us pride that England was led by an ex-Fulham manager."

Fayed must hope Fabio Capello prospers at the World Cup. "Of course but, anyhow, if they want Roy for England I don't mind." What about those Liverpool fans who would welcome the appointment of Hodgson at Anfield? "I will go there and give them those two fingers," Fayed laughs.

When he turned to Hodgson just after Christmas in 2007, Fulham were reeling. It took Hodgson eight matches before Fulham won under his tenure; and two years ago this month the club were embroiled in a desperate fight. On the last day of the season they needed to beat then high-flying Portsmouth away to secure their Premier League status on goal difference.

"It's difficult when the players are faltering and not lifting themselves up," Fayed says. "It's a tremendous responsibility as an owner if you are facing relegation. You try your best to raise their feelings so they can deliver. I spent a lot of time at the training ground that week. You need that commitment if you own a club. But I'm always talking to the players. I'm saying, 'Are you happy? Do you have any complaints?' It's important to be human and be a father figure to them."

Has Fayed done the same this week as Fulham prepare for the most important game in their history? "Definitely. All week I have been with them. If they have the will they definitely can win it. But whatever happens you must smile. If you win it's wonderful. If it's bad you must still understand – it's football."

Fulham have been on such an exhilarating journey that, at least for one night, football fans across the country can support a team that Fayed and Hodgson have created in singular fashion. "I feel the warmth of the neutral fans," Fayed says. "This is such a beautiful club that is available to everybody who loves football. Change your team to Fulham. It is going to be difficult but everything is possible. We have learnt that this season."