English Premier League: Fulham entertain Chelsea in grudge London derby

To expect something more than a Chelsea win seems a far stretch but the Craven Cottage side has relieved their manager, Claudio Ranieri of duty. So the result could be a lot different from what we anticipate.

Fulham has a monumental challenge on their hands when they invite a Chelsea side finding their feet on the pitch to Craven Cottage. The chance of survival lingers but it won’t linger any longer if they cannot press for all the points in this one.

The teams above them all dropped points, however, they dropped points in a time Fulham cannot intimidate any of those teams (Cardiff City and Southampton) while coming up against one of the top six. Chelsea has recently come out of their deep sleep and has made the necessary adjustment to retrieve better results from their efforts.

A cup defeat to Man City sounds like the wrong result to rejoice about, but their efforts in the match and the manner in which they lost wasn’t as disappointing as their 6-0 hammering. It was a lot more respectable because of them holding Pep’s men to a penalty shootout.

Following this, they took all the points midweek in a hearty London derby against Tottenham. A new manager for the one team and the other team finding their rhythm, events could be way more contested than first imaged.

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Team news

Fulham has their caretaker Scott Parker seeing them through till the end of the season. There are no fresh reports of injuries for both teams. The only two still missing are the long-term Alfie Mawson and Marcus Bettinelli, who might not see another Premier League game.

Chelsea’s boss Sarri has the choice to either leave Kepa out for another game or letting him rejoin the starting eleven, after him suffering the consequences of his actions following the conflict with his manager.

Willy Caballero looked in commanding form in their London derby, So I expect Kepa to sit out again. Not sure if David Luiz is available for selection is a good thing, but he could be back for Sarri.

https://twitter.com/ChelseaFC/status/1101925390027800576

What’s the current state of both teams?

The current situation has Fulham in a preparation phase. The preparation that next season they will undoubtedly be in the Championship and fight to get back into the English Premier League. YET! If they can turn things around now and miracles happen, then they could be setting up for a Premier League stay. But that’s with knocks here and there and them taking all the points on their run.

This fixture has never been favourable for the home side. Only one win from the last 32 is a stat that continues to justify a Chelsea victory. Fulham has only taken three points from three points form this matchup after 32 meetings.

Scott Parker has a chance to prove himself. He has till the end of the season to prove he has what it takes to come back stronger the following campaign. If they are treating this as a test period, we can expect nothing more than a Chelsea win.

Chelsea needs to close the gap on fourth place and fifth place, respectively. Dropped points previously in the United versus Liverpool rival match and the North London derby draw gave Chelsea a chance to come back and draw the others closer.

With them having to play each other for the remaining fixtures, these in between count for more than we think. Chelsea can make two in two since their humiliating loss at the Etihad. If Fulham loses this London, they will be the first London club to so in English Premier League history.