The Premier League will drop the curtain on matchweek one of the 2026/27 campaign at Craven Cottage, where Fulham host Chelsea in a mouth-watering West London derby.
Both sides are kicking off new eras under new managers and will be keen to get off to a winning start, although [football predictions](https://footballpark.com/betting/predictions) will lean towards Chelsea as favourites heading into the game.
The Cottagers parted ways with Marco Silva, who opted against extending his five-year spell at the club, while Xabi Alonso was brought in to replace the massively underwhelming Liam Rosenior at Chelsea.
The Spaniard is the latest appointment by the club’s BlueCo owners, who are still looking for direction and consistency.
Fulham are entering a new era after Silva left the touchline to return to Benfica, ending a successful spell in west London.
The club have now placed their trust in former Spain and Real Madrid full-back Alvaro Arbeloa, who has signed on for the next three years.
His first major challenge comes against Fulham’s west London rivals and a familiar face and former teammate in Alonso.
While Chelsea have always been the dominant force in this fixture, Fulham have occasionally flexed their muscle in the past few meetings.
Silva won two of his final four west London derbies, with both victories coming by a 2-1 scoreline.
One of those wins came in January at Craven Cottage, ending Fulham’s wait for a home victory over Chelsea that had stretched back to 2023.
They will now look to beat the Blues at home in consecutive meetings for the first time since the 1970s.
Arbeloa’s pre-season record has been mixed, with two wins from six matches and just one clean sheet.
That shutout came in Fulham’s final friendly against Stuttgart, giving the new manager a positive result before his first competitive test.
Meanwhile, there has been a positive outlook about Chelsea since Alonso took over, and the Spaniard will be keen to start as he means to go on in what could be a tricky debut.
Fulham have managed to keep Chelsea at bay in only two of their last 16 meetings, although those two goalless games came over a decade apart in 2012 and 2023.
That record could offer Alonso some encouragement as he prepares to face his former Liverpool and Madrid teammate, while also coming up against the man who replaced him at Santiago Bernabeu earlier this year before eventually losing his own job.
Alonso’s arrival at Chelsea has created plenty of excitement following a difficult campaign under two permanent managers and an interim boss.
The Blues eventually finished 10th, leaving them without European football for the coming season.
That situation may remind Chelsea supporters of 2016, when Antonio Conte arrived at a club that had also missed out on European competition.
The Italian responded by leading Chelsea to their most recent Premier League title. Alonso’s preference for a 3-4-2-1 system has already raised hopes that history could repeat itself.
However, he faces a different challenge to Conte, taking charge of a squad that has struggled for direction under several managers since 2021.
Despite mixed pre-season results, there’s still plenty of optimism heading into the new campaign. A strong performance against Fulham could be the perfect way for Alonso to win over the Chelsea fans.
One of the biggest positives for Fulham is that they’re entering this contest with a relatively healthy squad.
Captain Tom Cairney is the only notable absentee heading into Monday’s fixture, while Joachim Andersen will serve the final match of a three-game ban he picked up against Bournemouth in May.
Meanwhile, Chelsea could be without Danny Welbeck, who is facing a late fitness test, while Jordan Henderson and Emmanuel Emegha are ruled out.
Centre-back Wesley Fofana is also out of contention. He’ll be serving a suspension after he was sent off on the final day of last season.
**(4-2-3-1):** Bernd Leno; Timothy Castagne, Calvin Bassey, Jorge Cuenca, Antonee Robinson; Alex Iwobi, Sander Berge; Oscar Bobb, Josh King, Cesar Palacios; Gonzalo Garcia.
**(3-4-2-1):** Robert Sanchez; Reece James, Maxence Lacroix, Levi Colwill; Pedro Neto, Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia, Marco Palestra; Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers; Joao Pedro.