Opposition Focus: Oldham Athletic

Form

01/01/19 – Oldham 2-0 Notts County (L2)
29/12/18 – Port Vale 1-4 Oldham (L2)
26/12/18 – Carlisle Utd 6-0 Oldham (L2)
22/12/18 – Oldham 2-3 Exeter City (L2)
15/12/18 – Oldham 4-2 Bury (L2)

Last 5 Meetings

26/01/99 – Fulham 1-0 Oldham (Old Div 2)
31/08/98 – Oldham 1-1 Fulham (Old Div 2)
14/02/98 – Oldham 1-0 Fulham (Old Div 2)
04/10/97 – Fulham 3-1 Oldham (Old Div 2)
03/05/86 – Oldham 2-1 Fulham (Old Div 2)

Head-to-Head

Fulham wins 21
Draws 12
Oldham wins 18

Stats & Facts

  • This is the second time the clubs have drawn each other in the FA Cup. The first tie was also in the 3rd round back in 1983, ending in a 2-0 win for Fulham at Boundary Park. Goals from Ray Houghton & Dean Coney.
  • This will be the first time the two sides have met in the new millennium.
  • The 5-0 thrashing at the Cottage in December 1976 is the biggest winning margin between the two sides. John Mitchell (2), Teddy Maybank (2) & George Best with a delightful chip from outside the box, were on the scoresheet.
  • The last player to score in this fixture was Fulham hero Simon Morgan in a 1-0 victory back in 1999.
  • There is a goals per game average of 2.6 when the two clubs meet, with a total of 132 goals scored in 51 games.
  • 91.6% of league games between the two clubs have been in the second tier (equivalent to the Championship). That’s 44 out of 48 with the most recent 4 fixtures being in the third tier.

Players in Common

Kevin Betsy, Cameron Burgess, Mark Crossley, Neil Etheridge, Vic Halom, Mark Hudson, Shefki Kuqi, Frank Large, Keanu Marsh-Brown, Ben Pringle, Rob Scott, Matt Smith.

Magic Moment

It has to be George Best’s piece of brilliance during the 5-0 win at the Cottage in 1976. With the keeper on his line & several defenders goal side of Best, somehow he received the ball on the edge of the box & dinked it over the keepers head. It was inch perfect and a moment of magic from one of the games greatest players.

Opposition View (@JoseBaxterBaby)

This is your first season in the bottom tier since 1970/71. What went wrong last season & do you fear the potential to become the next established club who drops out of the football league?

It’s been going downhill since we dropped out of the Premier League really. Failure to get fans watching us instead of the big 2 and crooked owners have left us with a lot of debt. After so many years in League 1, we couldn’t afford any experienced managers and we knew that at one time that would haunt us. I think all fans are scared of dropping out of the football league but the new owner is trying hard to invest into the club and we have a loyal fan base so it doesn’t look like anything that’s happening soon.

What were your expectations going into this season and are you living up to them?

I personally have low expectations normally as 21 years in the same division and being the club who has been waiting for longest for success gives you that. I expected us to find it harder than a lot of fans did but I thought we’d be pushing for playoffs. I think we’re living up quite well to that fact and I hope that we can push back up the football pyramid.

How do you typically set up as a team?

We don’t normally have a ‘typical’ set up. Pete Wild has come in and is making a couple of changes as caretaker so I’m not sure what will happen. Chris O’Grady will, however, be up top – hopefully with Sam Surridge alongside him. George Edmundson and Peter Clarke are normally our centre-halves – and it is most likely that Genaro Nepomuceno and Tom Hamer will be wing backs. The midfield varies due to the fact that we have had many injuries but Mohamed Maouche and Christopher Missilou will be two to look out for.

Who should Fulham be wary of in your side as a danger man?

On his day, Sam Surridge is deadly up top. Christopher Missilou is a very good defensive midfielder who is known for putting in a good slide tackle. Gevaro Nepomuceno , Mohamed Mauche and Johan Branger-Engone all play very fast, fluid football and are all very skilful and can be a big threat. Chris O’Grady is someone who should not be underestimated – he acts as a good target man to Surridge but is also very clinical when he has space to shoot?

What’s the general feeling amongst your fans about this cup tie? Are you up for causing a giant-killing against a Premier League side or are you not that bothered about it?

I think a lot of the fans are just hoping for a good London Away day with nearly 4000 away supporters. We are however a force to be reckoned with when we get our act together and a changed Fulham side may struggle against some of the experienced heads in our squad. I do not want to jinx it but believe a Cup upset may be on the cards. As a club, we have struggled financially and haven’t broken our transfer record since 1992 due to lack of funds so a good cup run could help alleviate the pressure of working on a month – to – month basis.

How do you expect the game to pan out?

I personally am predicting a 1-1 draw to bring it back to a replay at Boundary Park. However, being a ‘Latics fan teaches you to be a pessimist so I could see Fulham winning. They do say that anything is possible in the magic of the FA Cup.

Predicted line up – (4-3-3) Iverson; Hamer, Clarke, Edmundson, Nepomuceno; Missilou, Lyden, Maouche; Branger-Engone, O’Grady, Sam Surridge.

Thanks to Oldham Athletic supporter Adam for answering our questions.

Match Prediction

Given our precarious position in the league, we can’t afford to risk injuries to key players in a cup game against a lower league side. Sometimes it pays to field a strong eleven and build some momentum with a win but off the back of the congested Christmas period, it’s time to give the squad players a run out. Oldham conceded 6 goals on Boxing Day away to Carlisle, so an early Fulham goal could settle this tie very quickly. However, under Ranieri, we haven’t created very much of late and if Mitrovic, Schurrle and Sessegnon are rested, it’s hard to see where the goals are going to come from.

It’s an early round of the cup, on a Sunday against League Two opposition. And on top of that, it comes straight after Christmas so, despite the reduced ticket prices, I expect it to be a smallish quieter crowd and it wouldn’t surprise me if the action on the pitch reflected that subdued atmosphere.

You can never rule out any team in the FA Cup and it isn’t long ago that Leyton Orient came to the Cottage in 2006 as a League Two side & won 2-1. So the team Claudio selects needs to approach this game in a professional manner. I think it will be a comfortable afternoon without being an overly convincing one.

A safe 2-0 home win.

Predicted line-up

(4-3-3) Bettinelli, Bryan, Le Marchand, Odoi, Steven Sess, Kmac, Cisse, Johansen, De La Torre, Vietto, Ayite.