Sports Mole previews Saturday’s Premier League clash between Fulham and Crystal Palace, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Still harbouring realistic aspirations of securing European football for next season, Fulham welcome top-10 hopefuls Crystal Palace to Craven Cottage for a Premier League clash on Saturday afternoon.
The Eagles will be out for revenge against the Cottagers after they suffered a 2-0 defeat in the reverse fixture at Selhurst Park in November last year.
Match preview
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Fulham have celebrated three victories in three matches in the month of February, all by a 2-1 scoreline including impressive Premier League wins over Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest, beating the latter on home soil last weekend.
Emile Smith Rowe‘s early opener was cancelled out by Forest talisman Chris Wood shortly before half time, but a second-half header from Calvin Bassey was enough to secure maximum points for the Cottagers, who dominated the contest and registered 10 of their 24 shots on target, the joint-most any side has had against third-placed Forest in a PL game so far this season.
Fulham have accumulated 39 points after 25 Premier League games this season (W10 D9 L6) – only in 1959-60 (40) have they had more points at this stage of a top-flight campaign – and Marco Silva‘s side currently sit eighth in the table, just five points behind the top four.
Having beaten Newcastle and Forest in their last two games, Fulham have now won back-to-back Premier League matches on five occasions this season, but they are yet to win more in a row in the top flight since January 2023.
The Cottagers head into Saturday’s match boasting a seven-game unbeaten home run against fellow London clubs, while they will endeavour to complete their first league double over Crystal Palace since 2000-01 when they were competing in the second tier, after beating the Eagles three months ago.
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Across Crystal Palace’s last six matches in all competitions, they have won four times on the road by a 2-0 scoreline and have lost twice on home soil by a 2-1 scoreline, most recently losing in front of their own fans against Everton last weekend.
Jean-Philippe Mateta scored his seventh goal in six league games to cancel out Beto‘s opener, but that proved to be the one and only shot out of 17 that the Eagles converted on the day, and Everton snatched maximum points 10 minutes from time through Carlos Alcaraz, condemning the hosts to their ninth league loss of the season.
A “very disappointing result” left Oliver Glasner ‘very frustrated’ after the match, as his side slipped down to 13th in the Premier League table, seven points behind Brighton & Hove Albion in 10th and 11 points behind the top seven, with their hopes of a late push for the European positions now hanging by the thinnest of threads.
Crystal Palace will welcome a trip away from Selhurst Park as they have collected 18 points over an eight-game unbeaten run on the road, winning each of their last three away matches by a 2-0 scoreline against Leicester City, West Ham United and Manchester United.
The Eagles are now bidding to win consecutive top-flight London derbies away from home for the first time since beating Wimbledon and Tottenham back in 1997-98. They have failed to win any of their last six meetings with Saturday’s opponents Fulham, but they are unbeaten across their last five trips to Craven Cottage (W2 D3).
Fulham Premier League form:
Fulham form (all competitions):
Crystal Palace Premier League form:
Crystal Palace form (all competitions):
Team News
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Fulham trio Reiss Nelson (thigh) Kenny Tete (knee) and Harry Wilson (fractured foot) all remain sidelined with injuries, with the former at risk of remaining out for the rest of this season, but Sasa Lukic has been passed fit after he was forced off with a muscle issue in the closing stages of the Cottagers’ win over Forest.
Lukic could therefore retain his place in centre-midfield alongside Sander Berge, forcing both Andreas Pereira and Tom Cairney to once again begin as substitutes, while Smith Rowe, who scored in the reverse fixture against Palace three months ago, is set to continue in the number 10 role.
Silva was full of praise for Adama Traore after last weekend’s victory and the powerful winger is in line to retain his place on the right flank as Alex Iwobi continues on the left, while Fulham’s top scorer Raul Jimenez (11) is expected to lead the line.
As for Crystal Palace, Chadi Riad and Cheick Doucoure are both ruled out for the rest of the season with knee injuries, while Joel Ward has been sidelined since the end of last year with a calf strain and will not return this weekend.
Eberechi Eze and Eddie Nketiah recovered from injury to feature as second-half substitutes against Everton, and the former is likely to be recalled to link up with Ismaila Sarr and Mateta in attack.
Adam Wharton has featured as a substitute in Palace’s last two games since recovering from groin surgery and could be recalled to the starting lineup at the expense of either Will Hughes or Jefferson Lerma in midfield, while Ben Chilwell will be hoping to force his way into the first XI at left wing-back ahead of Tyrick Mitchell.
Fulham possible starting lineup:
Leno; Castagne, Andersen, Bassey, Robinson; Lukic, Berge; Traore, Smith Rowe, Iwobi; Jimenez
Crystal Palace possible starting lineup:
Henderson; Richards, Lacroix, Guehi; Munoz, Wharton, Lerma, Chilwell; Sarr, Eze; Mateta
We say: Fulham 1-1 Crystal Palace
The last two meetings between these two clubs at Craven Cottage have both ended all square, and another closely-fought contest could be on the cards this weekend.
Fulham will boast the psychological edge having already beaten Crystal Palace without reply this season, but the Eagles have looked strong away from home in recent weeks and will back themselves to claim at least a point from this fixtures.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
