Fulham are fast becoming a regular side in the Premier League as they have already secured their status for another season. Meanwhile, Manchester City have played catch-up in the Premier League title race all through the campaign, and as of the time of writing, they sit third behind Arsenal and Liverpool.
The Cottagers’ season started on the best of notes with a 1-0 win over Everton at Goodison Park. A comprehensive 3-0 win over Fulham and a draw against Arsenal followed at the Emirates before a 5-1 bashing at the hands of champions Man City at the Etihad. The Cottagers returned to winning ways with an important 1-0 win over Luton Town before failing to win their next two Premier League games against Palace and Chelsea. After that, they only won one of their next five games to drop further down the table.
To round things up in 2023, Fulham lost two of their final three Premier League games with the only win coming against Arsenal at the Craven Cottage. Meanwhile, they had a good run in the Carabao Cup and got to the semi-finals of the competition before they were thrown out by Liverpool. In their first Premier League game of 2024, they lost 1-0 to Chelsea and there will be the desire to build on some of the decent performances in recent weeks. The Cottagers have four wins in their past nine Premier League games and will be looking to finish the season on a high.
Fulham have done some giant-killing work in the Premier League all season. They defeated Manchester United 2-1 at Old Trafford through goals from Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi before thumping Tottenham 3-0 in March in the London derby. Marco Silva will be hoping March Premier League Player of the Month recipient Rodrigo Muniz and the rest of his squad can get the job done against the defending champions.
Manchester City executed their summer transfer manoeuvres with precision, characteristic of Pep Guardiola’s tenure. Following a triumphant season resulting in a treble, City underwent a restructuring. Guardiola offloaded players like Cole Palmer to Chelsea, Riyad Mahrez to Al Ahli, Aymeric Laporte to Al Nassr, Ilkay Gundogan and Joao Cancelo to Barcelona, Benjamin Mendy to Lorient.
In turn, he bolstered the squad with acquisitions such as Josko Gvardiol from RB Leipzig, Matheus Nunes from Wolverhampton Wanderers, Jeremy Doku from Stade Rennes, and Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea. These signings have swiftly assumed pivotal roles, with Doku wreaking havoc on the left of City’s attack and Gvardiol securing a regular place in Manchester City’s defence.
Manchester City started the season well, defeating Burnley in the first game of the season thanks to goals from Haaland and Rodri. Then, they won their next five games against Newcastle, Sheffield United, Fulham, West Ham, and Nottingham Forest. However, their run was halted by Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Afterwards, the champions dipped in form, suffering losses to Arsenal and Aston Villa and drawing against Liverpool, Chelsea, and Tottenham in their last seven games. However, they have slowly managed to close the gap with a run of three consecutive wins and some unimpressive results from the teams above them on the log.
The defending champions have made significant progress to catch up with Liverpool and Arsenal at the top of the log but the aforementioned two have stayed consistent.
Pep Guardiola’s side could not find a way past both of them when they clashed and it is now left to be seen whether they can claim a fourth successive crown. As of the time of writing, Manchester City have been able to garner 70 points from 31 games.
Statistics reveal that the head-to-head record between Fulham and Manchester City is one-way in favour of the visitors. Fulham have won 4 matches. Manchester City have won 22 matches and 9 matches have ended in a draw.
Match tickets
This epic match at Craven Cottage in Fulham kicks off on Saturday, 11th of May 2024 at 12:30 GMT.
The 25,700-capacity stadium will host this clash between the London side and the defending champions.
Getting Fulham vs Manchester City tickets could take a lot of work given the standard of this game. Hence, you are advised to search ticket reselling sites should they be expectedly sold out on each club’s channels.
Team news
Line-ups
Coach Marco Silva does have a full complement of his squad with no major injuries ahead of this clash. He will also be pleased with the form of striker Rodrigo Muniz and midfielder Alex Iwobi. The likes of Palhinha and Pereira should also play a part in this encounter.
Fulham XI: Leno; Castagne, Adarabioyo, Bassey, Robinson; João Palhinha, Cairney, Andreas Pereira, Iwobi, Willian, Rodrigo Muniz
Manchester City have been without their talisman Kevin De Bruyne for most of the season because of a hamstring, but he returned with a bang by playing a crucial role in the comeback win over Newcastle United. Apart from the Belgian, Ederson remains the only major absentee for the Citizens in recent weeks and could be back before this trip to West London.
Manchester City XI: Ortega, Akanji, Stones, Dias, Gvardiol, Rodrigo, Kovacic, Bernardo, Foden, Grealish, Haaland
Prediction
Fulham will look to press heavily from the front and push their opponents back with sharply direct football when the ball is won. Meanwhile, Manchester City are a solid side that enjoys ball possession in every game they play, making life difficult for opponents.
We expect a hotly contested encounter with the Champions edging this one.
Fulham 1-2 Manchester City
