Fulham vs. Brighton and Hove Albion

Fulham hosts Brighton and Hove Albion in a Wednesday match at Craven Cottage. The game will be available on Peacock at 3pm EST.

After getting far more than expected out of the last three matches, Fulham must now do what is expected: win at home against a team in the bottom half of the table. Fulham so far has zero points against the middle of the table having earned four points from teams in the relegation zone and four points from teams in the Champions League playoff spots. The squads in the middle of the table? Fulham is 0 for 8.

The big question for me is what the squad will look like. Will Parker continue to play the counter-attacking lineup that has done so well against the top teams over the past three matches? Or will he revert to a more possession focused lineup with Mitrovic up top and a traditional back four? My guess is that he stays with what's working.

If Fulham can get three points they will move above Brighton on the table and guarantee a position outside the relegation zone. Brighton is coming off a 3-0 loss to Leicester, but it could have been a different story if they had converted on a couple of good chances early on. Brighton may be near the bottom of the table, but they have also played twice as many games against teams in the top half of the table as at the bottom. They have also played reasonably well away from home earning 7 points compared to just 3 at the Amex. Fulham cannot let their guard down coming into this match, they need to keep the focus they've had over the past few weeks and get all three points.

Sadly, fans will not be allowed at this match. COVID-19 conditions have worsened in London and have triggered restrictions on crowds at sporting events. Craven Cottage will be empty again.

 

If it ain’t broke...
Really stinks that the seats will be empty again. I really felt and, perhaps most importantly, heard the mighty 2,000 that turned up in a such a way that belied their number Sunday against the lucky Scouse bastards. If Scott’s contemplating any changes at all, I would hope it would be either Onomah or Mitro up top for Loftus-Cheek. I thought his was the only substandard effort against Liverpool. It wasn’t necessarily bad, it just seemed he wasn’t as energetic or lively as the other nine field players, who were hustling like Pete Rose all over the pitch. I feel we’ve reached a watershed moment in this campaign. We need the results to start matching the upward trend. We got four points from three matches no one in their right mind would have expected or predicted. Now we have to beat the teams we should reasonably be expected to beat like Brighton, Newcastle and Southampton before heading to Spurs for the final fixture of 2020. I believe we can and will do it.

 

I’m not sure how much of the pitch Mr. Burn has been seeing lately. I’ve watched bits and pieces of some of their matches, and he’s started 7 out of their 12 PL matches to date, including the Sunday loss at Leicester. I guess we’ll have to wait and see what Graham Potter’s thinking when he submits his lineup tomorrow around 10-ish. It seems like Solly March and Lewis Dunk always give us fits when we play against them, but these kids don’t seem intimidated or cowed by anyone. Salah, Mane and Firmino got punched in the nose pretty good by the kids at the Cottage, so I don’t think they’re too worried about March, Dunk or Danny Welbeck. Glenn Murray, who had a field day against us last time out at the Cottage, is on loan at Watford, so no worries about a repeat of that debacle.

 

I have a feeling that Mr. Parker probably won’t mess with the plan due to the way that the team has played as of late. With 6 matches in 21 days, I don’t think that he can keep running the same guys out though. If changes don’t come tomorrow, then certainly on the weekend.

That said, Fulham have to keep the momentum going. They’ve shown over the last three matches that they can compete in this league. So like Jump said, it’s time to start beating up on the teams that should be beaten up.

 

Project 17th works far better when there is more then 4 clubs fighting it out, the more the merrier. Brighton is a team we need to drag down into the mix today. Throw in Leeds who look to be the classic fast start-fight for lives finish and it increases our own chances for survival.

EDIT: 0-0 snoozer..well we didn’t lose

 

What a dull point. Brighton definitely looked like the better side today so I’m glad to have it.

 

Highlights:


A few weeks ago I'd have been happy to get any points. After seeing Fulham's performance the past three matches, this was a big let-down. After feeling that every single person on the team played to their maximum ability vs. Liverpool, I was left with just about the opposite feeling in this match. Everyone seemed to play below the levels we'd seen them at in recent weeks. Robinson wasn't the only one, but he stood out after being selected MOTM vs. Liverpool. He just couldn't get anything going this week - his passes were sloppy and his crosses were off-target. Ten minutes into the second half I wanted to give Joe Bryan a shot because it was clear that things were just not clicking.

Brighton frankly should have won this match and Fulham were lucky to have gotten away with a draw. Parker needs to figure out how to get the spark back with Newcastle awaiting this weekend.

On the plus side - Fulham's second clean sheet!

 

It was a snoozer. I couldn’t catch it live so I watched the replay after everyone went to bed and I dozed off somewhere around the 70th minute. From the comments, no reason to watch the last twenty I missed.