- Fulham have lost seven of their last eight PL matches
- Man City’s average goals scored away from home is 1.50 per game, compared to 4.37 at home
- The Cottagers haven’t won in seven-straight home games vs. City
On Saturday down by the River Thames, two teams in vastly different predicaments square off as Fulham host Manchester City (watch live on NBCSN, 10am ET and online via NBC Sports Live Extra) at Craven Cottage.
The home side have been in woeful form but new boss Rene Muelensteen has seen some improved performances which culminated in a 2-0 win over Aston Villa in their last home game.
As for City, their Jekyll and Hyde season continues as they demolished Arsenal 6-3 at home last weekend but are still struggling to grab goals and points away from the Etihad. Manuel Pellegrini’s men, despite losing Sergio Aguero to a lengthy injury, will be hoping to get back in the groove of things on the road when they face Fulham.
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If the Citizens shake off their travel woes and bag a win in West London, they could be joint-top of the league with Arsenal on Saturday night depending on how other results go. With a few injuries hampering their preparations, City will have to reshuffle their pack for this tight game against a Fulham side that’s eager to improve and pull away from the drop zone.
As for injury news, Fulham could be missing defenders Fernando Amorebieta and Brede Hangeland, while Hugo Rodallega is still out with a groin injury. While Pellegrini has a major concern at right back as Pablo Zabaleta injured his hamstring in their midweek League Cup win over Leicester City. Edin Dzeko, who scored twice in that game, should replace the injured Aguero in City’s starting lineup.
What they’re saying
Rene Meulensteen on Fulham’s squad gelling: “The players here are as good as gold. It’s a good squad with a lot of experience. The players are aware of the situation we’re in and how we can get out of it. They’ve been very supportive to me and I couldn’t ask for anything more. The only disappointment in the three games I’ve been in charge of is that we’ve only picked up three points when we could have had five or six. Other than that the players have been fantastic. They’ve started to buy into the way I want to play the game.”
Pellegrini on City’s improving form away from home: “I think the results of the first games playing away was not what we deserved. It’s very important for this team to win away. We won the three games in the Champions League playing away, that’s important. We won the two games playing away in Capital One also and in the Premier League the last two games we drew and we won, so I hope we will continue in the same way.”
Prediction
I just can’t see City messing up away from home in this match, especially with the chance to pile plenty of pressure on PL leaders Arsenal. That dominant win over the Gunners last week will be all for nothing if they can’t follow it up with a win against the Cottagers. The home side have improved, but I expect City to shade a tight game in what will likely be defense against attack, with Pellegrini’s superior forward quality to prevail. City win.
