Two Premier League teams sitting in the bottom half of the table square off at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday afternoon as Everton play host to Fulham.
The Toffees and the Cottagers meet for the first time since May when the former secured a 3-1 top-flight victory at Craven Cottage thanks to goals from Vitaliy Mykolenko, Michael Keane and Beto.
Match preview
Everton snatched victory from the jaws of defeat when they came from behind to beat Crystal Palace 2-1 on home soil at the beginning of October, but they have since failed to win any of their last three Premier League games.
Back-to-back defeats without scoring against Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur were followed by a 1-1 draw at Sunderland last Monday, with Iliman Ndiaye’s stunning solo goal cancelled out just 43 seconds after the interval by Granit Xhaka. The result leaves Everton in 14th place with five points separating them from both the relegation zone and the top six.
A concern that lingers for Everton is that their strikers continue to misfire; £27m summer signing Thierno Barry is yet to score in 10 Premier League appearances, while Beto has only found the net once across 600 minutes of top-flight football this term. The Toffees can ill-afford for their poor form to continue if they wish to mount a serious challenge for a top-10 or top-seven finish.
Everton head into Saturday’s contest having won only one of their last seven Premier League matches (D3 L3) after coming out on top in five of their previous six in the division (L1). After losing 3-0 to Spurs in their most recent home game, the Toffees are seeking to avoid losing consecutive home matches for the first time since December and January last season.
While the Merseysiders are winless in their last four against Fulham (D1 L3), Moyes has won 19 of his 32 Premier League managerial meetings with the Cottagers (D4 L9), at least seven more than he has against any other team. The Scotsman could become just the third manager to win at least 20 times against a single opponent in the division, after Sir Alex Ferguson (eight teams) and Arsene Wenger (four teams).
Fulham manager Marco Silva on May 25, 2025
Fulham were in desperate need of a pick-me-up result following a miserable four-game losing streak in the Premier League, and the Craven Cottage faithful certainly had plenty to cheer about last weekend as Marco Silva’s men eased to a 3-0 win over basement club Wolves.
Ryan Sessegnon’s early opener was followed by the first-half dismissal of Wolves defender Emmanuel Agbadou. Harry Wilson then doubled Fulham’s advantage with a sweet 20-yard finish after the break, before Yerson Mosquera turned the ball into his own net to ensure that the hosts would pick up maximum points for just the third time this season.
Silva was delighted to see his Fulham side keep a rare clean sheet - just the second in their last 19 Premier League games - and he has hailed the importance of their victory over Wolves despite noticing “a bit of tension” in his team, who now sit 15th in the table and just one point behind Saturday’s opponents Everton.
Fulham’s away form will need of improve if they wish to climb the table, as they have picked up the joint fewest-points on the road in the Premier League this season (one along with Wolves). The Cottagers have lost each of their last four away games and last suffered more in a row between November and January in the 2023-24 season.
Silva and co can at least take some optimism from their recent record against Everton, as they have lost just one of their last seven Premier League meetings with the Toffees (W3 D3), although it was the aforementioned 3-1 loss at Craven Cottage in their last encounter six months ago.
Everton Premier League form:
L
D
W
L
L
D
Everton form (all competitions):
L
D
W
L
L
D
Fulham Premier League form:
W
L
L
L
L
W
Fulham form (all competitions):
L
L
L
L
W
W
Team News
Fulham's Alex Iwobi and Ryan Sessegnon celebrate a goal on September 20, 2025
Everton duo Jarrad Branthwaite (hamstring) and Nathan Patterson (foot/groin) remain sidelined through injury, while Iliman Ndiaye will be assessed after he was forced off against Sunderland last time out with “a bit of cramp and one or two other bits and pieces”.
Moyes will weigh up whether to start Beto or Barry up front, ahead of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in an advanced midfield role, while Jack Grealish - who has won all four of his previous PL meetings with Fulham, scoring once - is expected to continue on the left flank.
James Garner and Idrissa Gueye are set to retain their solid midfield partnership, while a four-man defence of Jake O’Brien, James Tarkowski, Michael Keane and Vitalii Mykolenko will likely remain intact.
As for Fulham, their only injury concern is with left-back Antonee Robinson (knee) who has been sidelined since the end of September and will be assessed further after the international break.
Alex Iwobi impressed in a deeper midfield role alongside Sander Berge last time out and Silva will now weigh up whether to keep the former Everton man in the same position or move him further up the pitch and recall Sasa Lukic.
After returning from injury to start and play for 72 minutes against former club Wolves, Raul Jimenez is poised to retain his place up front ahead of Rodrigo Muniz. The Mexican is Fulham’s top scorer in 2025 with seven Premier League goals.
Everton possible starting lineup:
Pickford; O'Brien, Keane, Tarkowski, Mykolenko; Garner, Gueye; Ndiaye, Dewsbury-Hall, Grealish; Beto
Fulham possible starting lineup:
Leno; Tete, Andersen, Bassey, Sessegnon; Iwobi, Berge; Wilson, King, Kevin; Jimenez
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We say: Everton 2-1 Fulham
Saturday’s contest is a difficult one to call and there has been little to separate these two teams over the years, with both Everton and Fulham winning four games each across their last 11 Premier League meetings (D3).
The Cottagers have fared slightly better in recent encounters (W2 D1), but their away form is a concern heading into this one and we are backing the Toffees to return to winning ways in front of their own fans, especially if Ndiaye is fit to feature.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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