News of a possible club-record signing is blasting its way through minds of the Fulham faithful, but first they must focus on a must-win game.
Clint Dempsey and the Cottagers travel to Wales to take on Swansea City at 2:45pm ET from Liberty Stadium, live online at NBC Sports Live Extra.
With Rene Meulensteen using literally a completely new squad for their match two days ago in the FA Cup, it’s clear what remains the Fulham boss’s top priority.
Against a struggling Swansea side, Fulham see a glimmer of hope in a possible three points in a bog of tough fixtures on the horizon. A win today would see them leapfrog their opponents on the pitch. However, they’ll have to do it on the road against a side whose striker is finding his best groove yet.
With the Fulham squad in a state of flux as the transfer deadline approaches, there are some hints as to the future of a few players in his lineup today. The biggest is Dimitar Berbatov’s inclusion, backing up Meulensteen’s insistence that the Bulgarian is not for sale and no bids have been received.
Also, Adel Taarabt is not in the 18, with rumors of his exit for AC Milan as QPR look to negotiate a swap deal for Cristian Zaccardo.
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For Swansea, they’re looking to themselves get back on track. They’re winless in the Premier League since December 4, and have dropped three straight matches.
The Swans have also made transfer noise, signing David Ngog from Bolton until the end of the season, and although he was registered in time to feature against Fulham, he is not in manager Michael Laudrup’s selection.
However, a trio of injured players do return for Swansea, with Jonjo Shelvey, Jonathan de Guzman, and Nathan Dyer all make the squad, with the former two in the starting lineup.
LINEUPS:
Swansea – Tremmel; Rangel, Chico, Williams, Davies; Britton, de Guzman, Shelvey, Routledge, Hernandez; Bony.
Bench – Cornell, Amat, Taylor, Dyer, Lamah, Pozuelo, Vazquez.
Fulham – Stekelenburg; Riether, Hangeland, Burn, Richardson; Dejagah, Parker, Sidwell, Kačaniklić, Dempsey; Berbatov.
Bench – Stockdale, Hughes, Christensen, Duff, Tankovic, Bent, Rodallega.
