(Football news) This is the first meeting between the two teams since November 4, when the Red Devils defeated the opposition 1-0 at Craven Cottage thanks to a goal from Bruno Fernandes in the 91st minute.
According to new minority stakeholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Manchester United is “a long way behind” in terms of taking rivals Manchester City and Liverpool “off their perch,” but hopes of finishing in the top four have strengthened in the wake of an amazing four-game winning streak.
Victories over Wolverhampton Wanderers, West Ham United and Aston Villa were followed by last weekend’s 2-1 win at Luton Town, a game in which in-form striker Rasmus Hojlund scored twice in the opening seven minutes before Carlton Morris pulled one back for the Hatters on the 14-minute mark.
Erik ten Hag’s side were unable to increase their lead at Kenilworth Road, but they held on for all three points to consolidate sixth place in the Premier League table. Manchester United are now breathing down the necks of Tottenham Hotspur, who sit just three points ahead of them in fifth and are not in action this weekend, while Aston Villa in fourth currently hold a five-point advantage over Manchester United.
The small matter of the Manchester derby is on the horizon, but Manchester United must first shift their attention to Saturday’s clash with Fulham and they will be confident of success considering that they have won 13 and drawn three of their last 16 Premier League meetings with the Cottagers.
Victory for Manchester United – who last won back-to-back league games at Old Trafford in August last year – would see them boast a 100% win rate in a month in which they have played at least five top-flight matches for the first time since January 2009.
After collecting four points from their first two games in February, drawing 2-2 at Burnley and beating Bournemouth 3-1 on home soil, Fulham were condemned to a 2-1 home defeat against Aston Villa last weekend – their 12th league loss of the campaign.
Ollie Watkins scored either side of half time to put the visitors in control before Rodrigo Muniz netted his fourth goal in three games to provide Fulham with hope of a comeback in the final half-hour. However, the Cottagers were unable to find an equaliser and had to settle for their first defeat at Craven Cottage in 2024.
Marco Silva’s men have struggled to find consistency this season, winning back-to-back matches just once in early December, and they subsequently sit mid-table, occupying 12th place with eight points separating them from both the bottom three and Newcastle United in eighth spot.
Only Sheffield United, the bottom team, has amassed less points on the road than Fulham (seven), who travel to Old Trafford this weekend with the second-worst away record in the Premier League this year. Since defeating Everton 2-1 at Goodison Park in their season-opening match back in August, they have lost seven of their previous 11 away games and have not won any of them.
Fulham has struggled to find success at Manchester United as well, having lost 13 of their previous 16 away games against Manchester United. Their lone victory during this time came in October 2003, under former manager Coleman, when they triumphed 3-1 thanks to goals from Lee Clark, Steed Malbranque, and Junichi Inamoto.
Also read: Chelsea injury list for the EFL Final
