Fulham face a stern test this afternoon when they visit Tottenham Hotspur in another London derby as they seek to get back on track following last weekend’s home thrashing by Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The task of triumphing of Tottenham’s home turf, something they haven’t managed since Dimitar Berbatov scored the only goal against his former employers in March 2013, is made harder by the fact that Marco Silva only has two fit centre halves to choose from. Calvin Bassey will be paired with Issa Diop against Spurs after Joachim Andersen injured his calf in the closing stages of the defeat by Wolves, with the Danish defender set to be out for ‘some weeks’, according to the Fulham head coach. Summer signing Jorge Cuenca picked up an injury during training this week, whilst Ryan Sessegnon is doubtful for this game with another injury and Harrison Reed is a long-term absentee with a knee injury.
Spurs were at their scintillating best as they doled out more pain to Pep Guardiola by beating Manchester City 4-0 at the Etihad last weekend. Ange Postecoglou’s side have struggled for consistency this season, something underlined by the fact that they were denied a win over Roma in the Europa League on Thursday night by a late equaliser from Mats Hummels. They may be defensively vulnerable, but going forward Tottenham look devastatingly dangerous having reshaped their forward line following the departure of England captain Harry Kane.
Brennan Johnson, back on the scoresheet in midweek against Roma, is in a rich vein of form on the wing whilst Dejan Kulusevski was superb against Manchester City and poses a threat to every Premier League full back with his intelligent running and use of the ball. Son Heung-Mon remains one of the most accomplished attacking midfielders in Europe and, with the addition of Dominic Solanke up front, Fulham’s rather makeshift defence could be very busy from the outset. That’s before we consider the playmaking ability of James Maddison, who seemed to lead City a merry dance last weekend and must be close to a national team recall under the new coach Thomas Tuchel.
Tottenham’s quest for back-to-back Premier League clean sheets for the first time since last October, when they last beat Fulham at home after a couple of mistakes by Bassey, may have to commence without the services of central defender Christian Romero, who is considered ‘unlikely’ to be fit after struggling with a toe injury, according to Postecoglou. Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, virtually an ever-present since the Australian took over from Antonio Conte, faces a long spell on the sidelines after fracturing an ankle so Forster is set to play in his first Premier League game since May 2023. Midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur remains suspended domestically so will sit out this game having featured against Roma.
Silva’s selection will be interesting after the way his side subsided so supinely having taken the lead against Wolves. The Fulham boss talked Kenny Tete’s credentials as a centre back, but it seems most likely that Diop, a regular starter in the Whites’ first season back in the top flight, will come in to partner Bassey, so as not to completely reshape the back four. It remains to be seen whether Andreas Pereira’s public courting of a move to Marseilles will impact on his playing time. The Brazilian international has been below his best this season and, if Sander Berge has shaken off the illness that prevented him featuring last weekend, then playing the Norwegian alongside a fit-again Sasa Lukic should make Fulham’s central midfielder much tougher to play through. There also remains a possibility of a starting place for Harry Wilson, who has proven so impressive coming off the bench in recent weeks.
**MY FULHAM XI (4-2-3-1):** Leno; Tete, A. Robinson, Diop, Bassey; Lukic, Berge; Traore, Iwobi, Smith Rowe; Jimenez. **Subs:** Benda, Castagne, Amissah, King, Cairney, Pereira, Wilson, Nelson, Muniz.