Premier League: Fulham Aim to Make a Statement in the West London Derby

Fulham vs Brentford

Craven Cottage will be rocking on Monday night as Fulham host Brentford in the first West London derby of the 2024-25 Premier League season.

Fulham and Brentford have made a strong start this year because they’re at the top half of the English top-flight standings. The visitors are in ninth place with 13 points, but the hosts are right behind them, sitting in 10^th place with 12 points.

What separates these two teams are their recent forms, as the Bees are in better shape than the Cottagers. Brentford have won three of their last four games across all competitions, while Fulham have only won once in that span.

Despite this, the pre-game SBOTOP betting odds predict a close tie because they are evenly matched on paper.

 

Talking Points

Fulham get huge defencive boost

Marco Silva will have one of his top defenders available on Monday. Joachim Andersen has already served his suspension, so he will be re-integrated into the rotation against the Bees.

Andersen was brought in by the Cottagers during the summer transfer window (from Crystal Palace) to strengthen their backline, and he has done just that. So, when he was adjudged with a straight red card against Aston Villa, head coach Marco Silva was not happy at all.

It’s hard to blame Silva for feeling that way since Andersen just did a routine shove-tackle to prevent Ollie Watkins from having an easy look at goal. At best, the Danish centre-back should’ve been given a yellow card instead.

With Andersen sidelined, Silva had Issa Diop as Calvin Bassey’s centre-half partner, and it didn’t work because the former West Ham United man didn’t man-mark a marauding Beto, who scored the added-time equaliser last time out, causing Fulham to drop points against Everton (1-1).

While Andersen’s return is a sight for sore eyes, the Cottagers still don’t have a complete squad, as Sasa Lukic and Timothy Castagne aren’t expected to be available against the Bees.

Harrison Reed or Sander Berge should continue to take Lukic’s spot in the middle of the park, while Kenny Tete will deputise for Castagne.

 

Brentford’s attack remains prolific

The goals keep on coming for Thomas Frank’s men, as they finished October with a total of 16 goals in all competitions (if you also count the penalties against Sheffield Wednesday).

After losing 2-1 against Manchester United, Brentford bounced back with wins over Ipswich Town (4-3) and Sheffield Wednesday (1-1, 5-4 on pens) to advance to the EFL Cup quarter-finals.

The Bees will continue to rely on the dynamic duo of Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa, as the two forwards already have 12 Premier League goals between them so far this season, while Mikkel Damsgaard is the team’s top playmaker with three assists.

Like Marco Silva, Thomas Frank also gets a big defencive boost, as Kristoffer Ajer should be ready against Fulham after missing the last two matches due to a minor foot injury.

 

History

Fulham have only won one of their last nine league matches against Brentford (D3, L5), with the sole win being a 3-2 result in the first-ever Premier League matchup between these two sides in August 2022.

These two sides last met in May, and the spoils were shared after a goalless draw. Before this, Brentford won their two previous meetings against Fulham with an aggregate tally of 6-2.

Brentford have only lost one of their last 11 away league matches against Fulham (W5, D5), and they only failed to score once at Craven Cottage during that run.

However, Fulham are undefeated in their last five Premier League London derbies (W2, D3), and they’re two games away from matching their longest-ever run in this type of fixture (seven in a row during the 2006-07 season).

 

Betting Tip

As mentioned, the Premier League 2024 odds expect a close encounter between the Cottagers and the Bees on Monday. Because they’re playing at home, Fulham have the slight edge at 2.07, but Brentford aren’t far behind at 3.10.

Football fans can expect their healthy dose of Premier League 2024 highlights from this fixture, but above all, we’ll have the draw at 3.37 in the 1X2 market as our recommended bet.

Viable alternatives include Over 2.50 at 1.68, Over 2.75 at 1.86, Over 3.00 at 2.14, Total Goals 2-3 at 1.98, or even Total Goal 4-6s at 2.69 because of the collective firepower between these two sides.

Meanwhile, the Correct Score of 0-0 – the result of their last Premier League meeting – has a generous offer of 14.50.

   

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