Match Preview - Charlton v Fulham
last updated Thursday 06th November 2003, 2:40 PM
 Fulham's players will have spent this week getting back to reality after the Liverpool defeat on Sunday.
It was a disappointing result, following on from their 3-1 win at Old Trafford, especially as the visitors won thanks to a late penalty, but Chris Coleman will have been working hard to pick them back up again.
"It's disappointing, I felt 1-1 would have been a fair result and it looked like we were going to get a point," he said afterwards. "But it was a stone-cold penalty. Zat [Knight] is a good player and will learn quickly and will get better with experience. And the sending-off - it was an horrendous challenge by Luis [Boa Morte]. I'll back up my players any time but I was glad to see their player get up because it could have been a lot more serious.
"It's a hard division - every game is hard but we've got to keep our chins up," he continued. "We've got 18 points from 11 games and I'd have taken that at the start of the season - but we've got to march on. There's lot of work to do on the training ground for Charlton." It will be a tough trip for the Cottagers.
Alan Curbishley's Charlton will be flying high after beating Birmingham at St Andrews on Monday night.
The Addicks boss paid tribute to his men after the game, especially as they are struggling on despite a series of injuries: "They have been magnificent over the last four or five weeks. You come into a game with players carrying niggles and knocks and people who are not 100 per cent, but they all dug in. We are in seventh place and were last season but fell away, and the main reason for that was because I had so many injuries at the back.
"I had Rufus, Rowett, Hreidarsson and Fish all out in the last 10 games of last season and, to be fair, it's not cleared up too much at the moment. Rufus and Rowett are still out along with Young - three defenders that would definitely be contesting for the positions and forward-wise we have got Di Canio, Cole and Bartlett out. But there is a real togetherness in the dressing room and when you have got so many injuries you do get that team spirit there because we've only got 16-17 players at the moment."
The Addicks will hope that they can do better in this game than they did in May, when their anti-climactic end to last season was completed with a 1-0 home defeat to Fulham. Dean Kiely was sent off after half an hour, with Louis Saha scoring the resultant penalty, while Jason Euell missed from the spot at the other end. Considering the contrasting form both strikers are in at the moment, a repeat would hardly be a surprise.
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The Valley, Charlton
Premiership 12 - 08 Nov 03 |
Charlton |
Fulham |
| Games Played |
11 |
11 |
| GOALS |
| Goals |
16 |
21 |
| Ave Goals Per Game |
1.45 |
1.91 |
| % Goals To Shots |
15% |
17% |
| Ave Shots Per Game |
10 |
12 |
| Ave Shots On Target Per Game |
4 |
6 |
| % Shots On Target |
46% |
49% |
| PASSING |
| Short Passes |
2397 |
2844 |
| Long Passes |
1173 |
1141 |
| Total Passes |
3570 |
3985 |
| Ave Passes Per Game |
325 |
362 |
| % Overall Pass Completion |
70% |
70% |
| Ave passes completed per game |
227 |
254 |
| CROSSING |
| Total Crosses Made |
194 |
201 |
| Ave Crosses Per Game |
18 |
18 |
| % Overall Crosses Completion |
27% |
26% |
| Ave completed Crosses Per Game |
5 |
5 |
| DEFENDING |
| Goals Conceded |
14 |
15 |
| Ave Goals Conceded Per Game |
1.27 |
1.36 |
| Tackles |
355 |
375 |
| Ave Tackles Per Game |
32 |
34 |
| Ave Tackles Won Per Game |
23 |
25 |
| % Tackles Won |
71% |
74% |
| DISCIPLINE |
| Fouls |
167 |
172 |
| Ave Fouls Per Game |
15 |
16 |
| Yellow Cards |
17 |
25 |
| Fouls per Yellows |
10 |
7 |
| Red Cards |
3 |
2 |
 |
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Cipher stat flash
Fulham and Charlton are fairly well match with The Cottagers holding one crucial advantage.
- Fulham
have scored 30% more goals than Charlton and are more likely to convert goal chances with 30% more shots on target. The Cottagers goal tally is on par with Man Utd and Chelsea. Only two teams in the Premiership have a higher number of shots on target than Fulham.
- In the middle of the park Fulham pass more than Charlton, some 11%, with the Addicks prefering more long passes than Fulham. Both squads having the same percentage pass completion rate
- In the final third, crossing stats for the two teams are very close however Fulham can boast slightly better tackle stats.
- Charlton are another team that gets yellow carded less than Fulham, an average of 10 fouls per yellow in comparison with 7 for Fulham. That's a difference of nearly 50%. Makes you wonder if Charlton are being let off lightly or if Fulham is being picked on.
So Fulham are much better in front of goal and work slightly harder in midfield while Charlton get away with less yellows.
FULHAM
* The Londoners have failed to score just once in the Premiership this season..
* The third best shots on goal figures in the Premiership.
*The top tackle winning side in the Premiership.
* If on the field at kick off, Zat KNIGHT will be making his 50th club career start.
Charlton
* The Addicks are on a five match undefeated run, having won four of the five, three of which were on the road.
* No Charlton player has scored a Premiership goal against their London rivals. The one time the ball found the Fulham net, it was an own goal.
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