Plenty of frustration for Fulham at the moment. A bright start at Maine Road through Steed Malbranque was a false dawn, with Kevin Keegan's men answering with four goals of their own.
Ironically, 4-1 was the scoreline when Arsenal entertained Fulham last season in the Premiership and a similar result wouldn't be too big a shock given current form. One win and four defeats in their last seven matches is essentially relegation form for Jean Tigana's men, with Facundo Sava, Sean Davis and Malbranque the only players finding the net in an otherwise barren spell for the side.
Indeed, Fulham's tally of three goals in their last seven games - from December 15th onwards - is the lowest of any Premiership team in that period, with just 3.5% of their 85 goal efforts hitting the back of the net.
A good example of a talented midfielder is Fulham's Sean Davis, who has been linked with an England call-up such is his current form, though he played down that talk and insisted that he is concentrating on doing his best for Fulham.
"It's nice to get praise in the papers and to know Eriksson comes to watch, but I don't know the order of players or what's going on," he declared. "All I can account for is myself, and I'm playing quite well at the moment with the bonus being that I've scored a few goals.
"So goals do bring headlines, although I've played better in other games and missed sitters, hitting the bar or the post from five yards. My aim this season is to get eight or nine goals, so hopefully I can get another five or six and get up to that target."
Another goal on Saturday would certainly help the young midfielder, and his team, who could be in danger of getting dragged into the relegation scrap if they aren't careful.
Source: planetfootball/4thegame
|
Highbury
-
Premiership 01 Feb 03 |
Arsenal |
Fulham |
Div
Avg |
| Games Played |
25 |
24 |
25 |
| GOAL ATTEMPTS |
| Goals |
54 |
25 |
31 |
| Ave Goals Per Game |
2.16 |
1.04 |
1.24 |
| Shots (excluding blocked shots) |
315 |
267 |
271 |
| Ave Shots Per Game |
13 |
11 |
11 |
| Ave Shots on Target Per Game |
7 |
5 |
5 |
| % Shots On Target |
53% |
43% |
43% |
| % Goals To Shots |
16% |
9% |
11% |
| PASSING |
| Short Passes |
8307 |
6652 |
6297 |
| Long Passes |
3324 |
2982 |
2944 |
| Total Passes |
11631 |
9634 |
9241 |
| Ave Passes Per Game |
465 |
401 |
370 |
| % Overall Passes Completed |
79% |
72% |
72% |
Ave passes completed
per game
|
368 |
289 |
266 |
| CROSSING |
| Total Crosses |
571 |
523 |
567 |
| Ave Crosses Per Game |
23 |
22 |
23 |
| Crosses Completed |
24% |
27% |
25% |
Ave cross completion
per game
|
5 |
6 |
6 |
| DEFENDING |
| Goals Conceded |
27 |
31 |
31 |
| Ave Goals Conceded Per Game |
1.08 |
1.29 |
1.24 |
| Tackles |
795 |
785 |
685 |
| Ave Tackles Per Game |
32 |
33 |
27 |
| Tackles Won % |
73% |
73% |
72% |
Ave tackles completed
per game
|
23 |
24 |
20 |
| Blocks, Clearances & Interceptions |
1082 |
991 |
1105 |
| Ave Blocks, etc., Per Game |
43 |
41 |
44 |
| DISCIPLINE |
| Fouls |
345 |
345 |
339 |
| Ave Fouls Per Game |
14 |
14 |
14 |
| Yellow Cards |
36 |
39 |
40 |
| Fouls per yellow |
10 |
9 |
9 |
| Red Cards |
3 |
5 |
2 |
| stats from opta |
|
Matchday Referee
Eddie Wolstenholme, Lancashire
Eddie Wolstenholme acquitted himself well in his debut Barclaycard Premiership season, taking charge of 11 matches and dishing out an average 3.3 yellow cards per game.
The 48-year-old official served a long apprenticeship in the Football League before making the step up, having begun his career in the Preston Sunday League back in 1977 before slowly rising up through the ranks of county and area standard to make the Football league list in 1992.
Wolstenholme's biggest match came in 1998 when he took charge of the Division One play off final, and he also took charge of the Division Two equivalent in 2001
Fulham games reffed by
Eddie Wolstenholme
2002-2003
Game at Arsenal on the 1st Feb will be his first Fulham game this season.
2001-2002
17-11-2001 English Premier Fulham 3-1 Newcastle 6 0 .
Bookings: Dabizas , Elliott , Lee , O'Brien , Robert , Shearer (Newcastle)
22-09-2001 English Premier Leicester 0-0 Fulham 4 0
Bookings: Sinclair , Stewart (Leicester) Boa Morte , Davis (Fulham)
2002/
2003
stats
|
Mr. Wolstenholme's score sheet |
Average Premiership Referee score sheet |
|
Total |
Match
Avg |
Total |
Match
Avg |
| Games |
6 |
|
10 |
|
| Fouls |
172 |
28.67 |
288 |
27.90 |
| Penalties |
1 |
0.17 |
2 |
0.23 |
| Yellows |
19 |
3.17 |
33 |
3.20 |
| Reds |
2 |
0.33 |
2 |
0.19 |
| Fouls per Yellow |
9.1 |
|
8.7 |
|
Ref Wolstenholme is whistling less this season, about 3 times less a game. He is also issuing less yellows and reds while giving less penalties. However it should be noted that Ref Wolstenholme's stats are on the Premiership average so he is less savage than last season but is not yet a pussy cat.
Patrick Vieira(M) has 7 yellow cards while Ashley Cole(4) is on 4 yellows and close to a suspension. |
|
Arsenal will be smarting after losing two points to a late Emile Heskey goal at Anfield and will be looking to take their frustrations out on Fulham.
After taking an early lead away to Liverpool, the Gunners played out a pulsating first half where they had the chances to bury Liverpool by half time.
Conversely, despite their problems on Wednesday night, Arsenal are the deadliest team overall in that period, with 19 goals from 98 attempts making them the highest scorers and best finishers.
A look at London derbies in the top flight since Fulham joined the fray last season lends further support to predictions of a home win. Arsenal have won 11 and drawn six of their 18 capital clashes in the last two campaigns, giving them London's best record with an average of 2.2 points per game. Fulham, meanwhile, have just three wins and eight defeats in their 16 derbies. With an average of 0.81 points per match, they are the only Londoners picking up less than a point per game in local clashes.
Source: planetfootball/4thegame
| MATCH BETTING ODDS |
Victory for Arsenal looks practically inevitable in their clash with Fulham at Highbury. The title race is now getting into full swing, and we should not expect the Gunners, priced at 1/3, to slip up, especially as they will be eager to make amends for dropping two points at Anfield.
Arsene Wenger’s men paid the price for not taking their chances against Liverpool on Wednesday. Now, back at Highbury on Saturday, they are extremely unlikely to make any such mistakes.
In truth, 9/1 Fulham face a mighty task if they are to take anything from the game. The Gunners are unbeaten in eleven and have been consistently brilliant at Highbury. Furthermore, the return of Patrick Vieira has further strengthened the midfield.
In midweek, we suggested backing Manchester City to beat Fulham and this recommendation was in no small part because of the Cottagers’ dreadful away form. While their performances at Loftus Road should prove strong enough to ensure another season of Premiership football, it has been a different story on the road. Jean Tigana’s team have just one away league win to their names, and that came back in mid-September.
The Fulham coach was so incensed after his side’s abject performance at Maine Road that he summoned his players for extra training on Thursday morning. While such a move may have a positive effect, it is doubtful that we will see the rewards on Saturday. The Cottagers are still without key men Van Der Sar and Saha, and have never won at Arsenal in their history.
Source: Readabet
Diehard Fulham fans should go to Betfair for a win or draw. On the High Street it is Hills for the draw and Ladbrokes for the win. |
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