Chelsea vs Fulham: Preview and Prediction

Sunday 2nd December 2018

England Premier League
Sunday 2nd December 2018
Kick off at 12noon GMT
Venue: Stamford Bridge

Match Preview:

Not only is this match up a local derby but it will also be the return of Claudio Ranieri to Stamford Bridge in charge of Fulham.

Chelsea suffered their first defeat of the season after losing 3-1 against Tottenham and it was only deserved as they also put in their worst display of the season. Manager Maurizio Sarri spoke to each player individually after the game and extra training sessions were called. This seems to have worked as the Blues ran out 4-0 winners against PAOK in midweek in the Europa League.

Chelsea are still unbeaten at the Bridge but are the cracks starting to show? They have drawn 3 out of their last 4 games here and form would have them 7^th in the table. They have moved down to 4^th place and now have Arsenal to contend with who are just a single point behind. This is a must win game and not just for local bragging rights.

Fulham have been very poor this season but with the arrival of Ranieri we should probably discount everything that has gone before. Ranieri’s appointment had an immediate impact on the side who beat Southampton 3-2 last weekend. That victory was just their 2^nd win of the season.

It was an important result but the club are still bottom of the league, although just 1 point is the difference for them climbing outside of the bottom three.

Team News:

Chelsea: Eden Hazard should be back for the club after injuring his ankle in the defeat to Tottenham. He missed the PAOK match as a result. Victor Moses will be assessed ahead of the game after injuring his back

Fulham: The Cottagers will be missing Kevin Mcdonald and the name on shirt budget busting Andre-Frank Zambo-Anguissa both through knocks

Chelsea vs Fulham Head to Head:

The teams have not met here since 2013 where Chelsea won 2-0.

Chelsea have won the last 3 meetings.

Fulham have not beaten Chelsea in any competition since 2006.

Chelsea vs Fulham Prediction:

Chelsea have the better side and will be favourites to win but Fulham and Ranieri will be up for this game and will try and frustrate Chelsea and get an upset. Even a draw would be looked at as a poor result from Chelsea. Their form lately has been dented and perhaps they have been exposed a little as title pretenders. Chelsea are not really putting teams to bed and getting convincing results and this could come back to haunt them in a match such as a derby.

Chelsea vs Fulham Betting Tips:

Fulham to beat Chelsea with a +3 goal start at 1.62