Match Preview
Fulham vrs Tottenham Hotspur
Premiership Match Day 29 22/23 at Craven Cottage
Sunday 16th March 2025 KO: 13:30
Referee:
Andy Madley (West Yorkshire)
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Fulham aim to return to winning ways on Sunday in an intriguing London derby at home to Tottenham Hotspur in the final Premier League games before the international break
The Cottagers have had a week to reflect on a crushing 2-1 loss at the hands of Brighton & Hove Albion while Spur's Ange Postecoglou masterminded a 3-1 win over AZ Alkmaar in Thursday's European contest
Tottenham have been beaten in each of their last five leaue games just before an international break one of those defeats coincidentally came to none other than Fulham this time last year, a harrowing 3-0 slaughter at Craven Cottage, and Marco Silva's men also held their own when they visited the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in December and left with a 1-1 draw.
The Cottagers have remarkably only lost four of their subsequent 18 matches across all competitions, although one of those reverses came at the Amex last weekend, where despite drawing first blood through Raul Jimenez, they succumbed to a Jan Paul van Hecke and Joao Pedro-led revival.
Pedro's penalty in the eighth minute of second-half stoppage time was a devastating blow to Fulham's European aspirations, although the 10th-placed hosts are still very much in the continental mix, only lying four points adrift of the top seven positions.
Consistency at home has been harder to come by for Silva's men in recent weeks, though, as Fulham have also won just one of their last seven Premier League fixtures at their Craven Cottage headquarters, drawing four and losing an additional two in that time.
Furthermore, the Cottagers only have the one clean sheet to show from their last 18 top-flight games on home turf, and that was against whipping boys Southampton in December's goalless draw, offering Spurs significant hope of bucking their pre-international break trend.
The man who unforgettably claimed that he "always" wins trophies in his second season with a club could still uphold that statement's accuracy come May, as Postecoglou witnessed his Spurs side complete an expected turnaround over AZ in their Europa League last-16 battle.
Two strikes from Wilson Odobert - including one from a magnificent team passing move - either side of a James Maddison finish earned Tottenham a quarter-final date with 2021-22 champions Eintracht Frankfurt, and a Peer Koopmeiners response from a Tottenham error proved meaningless in the grand scheme.
While Postecoglou will never publicly admit to prioritising one competition over another, the Australian will surely be allocating more of his time to Europa League preparation given that there is realistically very little at stake for Spurs in the Premier League between now and the end of the campaign.
Indeed, the 13th-placed Lilywhites are 12 points below the top-seven spots and 17 points clear of the relegation zone, meaning that a lacklustre top-flight season is likely now a write-off for the North London club, who at least showed guts and guile to draw 2-2 with Bournemouth last week.
Spurs have therefore only lost one of their last five Premier League matches and have won their last two top-flight contests on the road against Brentford and Ipswich Town
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Fulham are unbeaten in two top-flight meetings with Tottenham Hotspur (W1, D1), having lost 14 of the previous 16 clashes prior to this run.
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The Cottagers could win back-to-back Premier League home games against Spurs for the first time in 19 years.
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Fulham have won just one of their previous seven Premier League games at Craven Cottage, drawing four and losing two.
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The Cottagers have lost their past two London derbies, losing at home to Crystal Palace in February and away to West Ham in January.
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Marco Silva will take charge of his 200th Premier League match, becoming the second Portuguese coach to reach this milestone after Jose Mourinho.
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Silva's Premier League win ratio of 37.5% is the highest of any Fulham boss (W39, D24, L41).
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Rodrigo Muniz scored twice the last time these sides met at Craven Cottage in a 3-0 Premier League victory.
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Tottenham are vying to win three consecutive top-flight away games for the first time since November 2020.
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However, Spurs have lost their last five Premier League matches immediately before an international break, including a 3-0 loss at Fulham last March.
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Premier League matches involving Tottenham have produced the most goals this season, averaging 3.4 goals per game.
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Wilson Odobert scored his first Tottenham goals in the midweek Europa League win over AZ Alkmaar.
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The 20-year-old winger became the youngest Spurs player to score twice in a major European game since Chris McGrath against Aberdeen in November 1973.
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Source Ben Knapton at SportsMole/BBCSports