Fulham vs Arsenal tips and predictions: Measured Arsenal to bag clean sheet and three points
- George Dempsey
- 29 December 2023
Fulham and Arsenal are looking to bounce back from a poor spell of form when they meet in the Premier League at Craven Cottage on Sunday (1400 GMT).
Fulham were unable to build on back-to-back 5-0 wins at Craven Cottage, as the Cottagers have now lost their last three matches without scoring.
Their three-match winning streak at home was ended by Burnley last weekend and Marco Silva’s side followed that with a limp showing in a 3-0 loss to Bournemouth on Boxing Day.
Arsenal were competitive in a 1-1 draw at Anfield pre-Christmas but they struggled in a 2-0 loss to West Ham on Thursday.
The shock defeat leaves the Gunners winless in four of five and they could yet finish the week five points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool.
Their fine record against Fulham suggests that’s unlikely. They’ve won eight of an unbeaten 11 dating back to 2012, but there is still a score to settle.
Mikel Arteta’s side were frustrated for 70 minutes in the reverse fixture but looked to have won it before Joao Palhinha’s 87th-minute equaliser.
This has the makings of a tricky fixture but circumstances count for a lot, and Arsenal will be in no mood to lose back-to-back games.
We’re expecting a measured and professional performance from the visitors and given Fulham have scored one in four, a clean sheet could be on the cards.
Despite the occasional outburst, there have been under 2.5 goals in six of Arsenal’s away games, and under 1.5 goals in five of the six.
Despite Premier League games at the Cottage averaging 3.11 goals, both teams have scored in just two of nine.
Another notable trend in the fixture is that six of Arsenal’s last seven wins have come by at least two clear goals, something you might expect to happen if Fulham can’t score.
Team news
Adama Traore is unavailable due to a thigh injury while Sunday could come too soon for Willian. However, Tim Ream is nearing a return.
Raul Jimenez misses out due to suspension for a straight red card against Newcastle.
Takehiro Tomiyasu, Jurrien Timber, Fabio Viera, Thomas Partey and Kai Havertz are ruled out.
Arteta could opt to freshen things up with Emile Smith Rowe and Eddie Nketiah options Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli or Gabriel Jesus are rested.
Key stats
- Arsenal are unbeaten in 11 matches against Fulham, winning eight
- Arsenal have scored at least two goals in eight of nine meetings
- Six of Arsenal’s last seven wins against Fulham were by two or more goals
- Fulham are winless in four matches across all competitions
