Team news, stats and prediction ahead of Fulham vs Manchester City in the Premier League on Saturday (kick-off 8pm).
Team news
Fulham manager Scott Parker has no new injury concerns to contend with ahead of the visit of league leaders Manchester City on Saturday.
Club captain Tom Cairney has returned to training having been absent since December with a long-term knee problem.
However, Parker confirmed on Thursday that Saturday’s match will come too soon for the midfielder and he could have a spell with the under-23s to regain match fitness.
City have a fully-fit squad as they travel to Craven Cottage after four successive home games.
Record goalscorer Sergio Aguero, whose season has been ravaged by injury and illness, will hope for only a fourth league start of the season after an 18-minute run-out off the bench in midweek.
Raheem Sterling, Joao Cancelo and John Stones are other senior players that could come back into the side.
How to follow
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A look ahead to matchweek 25 in the Premier League, including the north London derby and West Ham’s visit to Old Trafford
Follow Fulham vs Man City in our dedicated live match blog. Highlights will also be published on the Sky Sports digital platforms and the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel shortly after the final whistle.
Jones Knows prediction
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Fulham head coach Scott Parker jokes he will be wearing the same jacket he wore for the win at Anfield again after it received a lot of attention following the 1-0 win
With the title all-but won for Manchester City – they are 14 points clear at top of table and 1/500 with Sky Bet – their games could be quite fun to watch between now and the end of the campaign as the shackles could come off in forward areas. In between their defeat to Manchester United, they have fired nine goals past Wolves and Southampton. With confident Fulham likely to play with their usual attacking intent, this encounter should be one for the purists.
Backing goals looks a strong angle but Fulham may not hold up their end of the bargain – Scott Parker’s team have only scored two or more goals in a game twice in the last 17 games and City will not be offering up many clear-cut chances, will they? Fulham are also the lowest home scorers in the Premier League with just eight goals scored from 14 games.
That leads me to the total match shots market. Despite not scoring many, Fulham do get into shooting positions as showcased by an average of 13 shots per game in their last seven games. No team has had more shots on goal than Pep Guardiola’s side this season (458), working at an average of 16 per game. Combining those two averages certainly makes the 5/4 with Sky Bet for 26 shots or more very appealing in what should be a high-tempo game.
JONES KNOWS PREDICTS: 1-3
BETTING ANGLE: 26 shots or more in the match (5/4 with Sky Bet)
Last time out…
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FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from Manchester City’s win over Southampton in the Premier League
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FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from Fulham’s win over Liverpool in the Premier League
Pitch to Post Preview – North London derby build up; plus Diallo’s instant impact, and how do Everton become a top four side?
In this week’s Pitch to Post Preview Podcast we turn our attention to Arsenal vs Tottenham, as the north London rivals prepare to face off at the Emirates. Peter Smith is joined by Sky Sports football journalists Ben Grounds and Ron Walker to assess the big match. The panel reflect on positive Europa League wins for both sides, consider the potential team selection issues, and which team needs the win more.
We also hear the latest from Sky Sports News reporter Alan Myers on Everton’s push for the Champions League spots, ahead of their tricky test against Burnley, while Ron returns to assess Amad Diallo’s fine first goal for Manchester United and the challenge they face on Sunday against an in-form West Ham, who also have ambitions for the top four.
Listen to the Sky Sports Pitch to Post Podcast on: Spotify | Apple | Castbox
Opta stats
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Fulham head coach Scott Parker says the 1-0 win at Liverpool has given his side ‘extra belief’ in their battle to avoid relegation
- Fulham are winless in their last 13 Premier League games against Man City (D3 L10) since a 3-1 away win in April 2009. They’ve lost the last eight in a row by an aggregate score of 23-3.
- Manchester City have lost just one of their 13 Premier League away games against Fulham (W7 D5), going down 2-1 in November 2005 under Stuart Pearce.
- Fulham have won just four of their 27 Premier League meetings with Man City, with just one of those wins coming at home. Manchester City are the only team the Cottagers have faced at least 10 times in the competition against whom they have more away wins (3) than home wins (1).
- Manchester City have won their last six meetings with Fulham in all competitions by an aggregate score of 18-0. Only against Wigan (7 between 2010-2013) have they had a longer winning run without conceding a single goal.
- Following their 1-0 win at Liverpool last time out, Fulham could become just the second side in Premier League history to beat the reigning champions and the league leaders (in either order) in consecutive matches, after Everton in February 2010 (vs Chelsea and Manchester United).
- Fulham have won three of their last six Premier League games (D2 L1), more than they had in their previous 24 in the competition (W2 D9 L13). The Cottagers have also kept five clean sheets in their last seven league games, one more than in their first 21 this term.
- Manchester City have won their last seven Premier League away games by an aggregate score of 19-3. Indeed, the Citizens have lost just once on the road in the Premier League all season (W9 D3).
- Fulham have scored a league-low eight home goals in the Premier League this season. However, they’ve also conceded just 18 at home so far, with Craven Cottage being the lowest scoring ground in the Premier League in 2020-21 (26 goals).
- Man City’s Phil Foden has been involved in six goals in his six away starts in the Premier League this season, scoring four and assisting two.
- In a run going back to April 2018, Man City’s Raheem Sterling has been involved in 16 goals in 16 Premier League starts in London (10 goals, 6 assists), netting the winner against Arsenal in the Citizens’ last game in the capital.