Our game against Brighton is key in our battle to stay up. Will we emerge victorious?
The quicker we move on from our match with Burnley the better. That was utterly embarrassing. Now we take on the best worst team in the Premier League at the moment… Brighton’s performances have been consistently good this season but still find themselves in 17th. Hopefully, they can continue that trend in our game at the weekend with us needing to win to not be cut adrift from safety. No signings have been made in time for this encounter, so it looks likely to be either Cavaleiro or an out of form Mitro leading the line. Hopefully, whoever starts has a blinder and helps us to a much-needed win.
When we pulled off the great escape in 2008, we stayed up at the expense of Reading on goal difference. We did the double over the Royals that season which proved to be the deciding factor overall. With draws so far in games against Newcastle, Sheffield United and Brighton, I fear that we find it easier to play against the big sides when we have nothing to lose and can see Brighton making more of their chances when it matters. I hope I’m wrong!
PREDICTION: BRIGHTON 3-1 FULHAM
HEAD TO HEAD
LEAGUE RECORD (OVERALL)
- GAMES PLAYED – 43
- FULHAM WINS – 18
- DRAWS – 5
- BRIGHTON WINS – 20
- GOALS SCORED – 62
- GOALS CONCEDED – 64
LEAGUE RECORD (AWAY)
- GAMES PLAYED – 21
- FULHAM WINS – 4
- DRAWS – 4
- BRIGHTON WINS – 13
- GOALS SCORED – 19
- GOALS CONCEDED – 44
BIGGEST WINS AT BRIGHTON
- BRIGHTON 5-0 FULHAM (1929/30, 2015/16)
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BRIGHTON 3-0 FULHAM (1958/59, 1978/79)
LAST 5 GAMES
- FULHAM 0-0 BRIGHTON
- FULHAM 4-2 BRIGHTON
- BRIGHTON 2-2 FULHAM
- FULHAM 1-2 BRIGHTON
- BRIGHTON 2-1 FULHAM
LEAGUE FORM
- BRIGHTON – WLDLD
- FULHAM – LLDDD
COLLINS JOHN’S VIEW
Brighton away, what a massive game! It’s usually a tough place to go and I like the way the new manager has changed their philosophy. They play attractive football but find themselves in a similar position to us, performing well but not getting the wins.
I’m still happy with what Fulham are doing and the past 2 months have been a big improvement. On our day, we are capable of competing against everyone in this league but this is the game where we have to deliver. It’s an opportunity to transform our season and get the momentum back with us.
We have to put Mitro into the team and find a way to get the best out of him. I feel sorry for Cavaliero because he is being asked to play out of position and is giving his all for the team. He also gave us the goal against Spurs and we shouldn’t forget that. But big games are usually decided by big goals and we have to get our main striker onto the pitch. Hopefully we add another forward in this window but that’s not going to change what we do tonight.
I usually go for a narrow scoreline but we need to play with positivity and take the game to Brighton. I think we will dominate the midfield and Lookman will work his magic to create chances. It’s a must win and we will win. COYW!
PREDICTION: BRIGHTON 1-3 FULHAM
LAST TIME OUT
FULHAM 0-0 BRIGHTON (2020/21)
After 198 matches at Craven Cottage without a goalless draw, we finally broke the trend against Brighton last month. It came off the back of three encouraging performances against Leicester, Man City and Liverpool where we were unlucky to only pick up 4 points. The match didn’t live up to expectations as it was seen as a game we had to win and ended up very fortunate not to lose. Adam Lallana’s goal was ruled out by VAR for a handball by Danny Welbeck and other than a couple of half chances fluffed, most notably by Loftus-Cheek, Brighton had the better of the 90mins but we held on and continued the festive period with another draw.
PLAYERS IN COMMON
Darren Bent, Wayne Bridge, Paul Brooker, Stan Brown, Dan Burn, David Button, Richard Carpenter, Danny Cullip, Perry Digweed, Ross Flitney, Darren Freeman, Aaron Hughes, Rohan Ince, Anthony Knockaert, Jim Langley, Dirk Lehmann, Teddy Maybank, Simon Morgan, Oliver Norwood, Peter O’Sullivan, Zesh Rehman, Liam Rosenior, Doug Rougvie, Steve Sidwell, David Stockdale, Glen Thomas, Martin Thomas, Mark Walton, Paul Watson, Bobby Zamora.
BATTLE TO WATCH
SOLLY MARCH VS KENNY TETE
Solly March is an English utility player who this season has been deployed at left wing-back. His transformation this season has been incredible. He has gone from being on the fringes of the first team to one of this season’s standout wing-backs in the space of half a year. I’d argue that if he plays like this for the rest of the season, Southgate will have to take him into consideration for the Euro’s squad. March is strong in both areas of the pitch, being a good tackler (15th most tackles in the league) and being a great ball carrier (most ball carries into the penalty area of any defender). He has been so good this season that he has drawn interest from German title contenders RB Leipzig.
The battle between March and Tete will be a fantastic contest between two great wing-backs.
PREDICTED LINE-UP
