Fulham

Drew Heatley
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Football throws up some strange emotions from time to time.

We fell to our third successive defeat on Saturday night, but I came away from Craven Cottage buoyed by the performance.

Then later in the pub, I was reminded we failed to register a shot on target, and I started second-guessing my own outlook.

But the fact is that from the 41st minute, Fulham had their second-string back four on the pitch, largely due to our growing injury crisis, which is quickly becoming the most severe Marco Silva has experienced at the club.

Joachim Andersen's exit brought the list of first-team injuries to five even while we were boosted by the return of Raul Jimenez up top, while Kenny Tete was back on the bench after a month out.

So putting in a solid display against the league leaders, with plenty of positives to latch onto, will give us confidence ahead of our trip to Newcastle next week.

One bright light was the performance of centre-back Jorge Cuenca. Brought in after Calvin Bassey picked up a slight knock, he once again proved his Premier League credentials.

The 25-year-old has had to be patient since his arrival last year, but this could be the start of a run in the side. Either way, he will prove crucial in January when Bassey heads off to the Africa Cup of Nations.

Another reason to be cheerful was Bernd Leno's all-action performance between the sticks. The German has so much credit in the bank at Fulham, but recent murmurings from some corners of the fanbase were silenced as he reminded us all why he is one of the best shot-stoppers in the league.

It feels strange to be so optimistic in the midst of a slump, but these somewhat jarring emotions are what makes football so great.

Find more from Drew Heatley at Fulhamish, external

Fulham's owners have told head coach Marco Silva of their desire to renew his contract, which contains a release clause in the region of £15m. (The Athletic - subscription required, external), external

It was reported that Silva is Nottingham Forest's first choice to replace Ange Postecoglou, but he is reluctant to leave Craven Cottage mid-season. (Times - subscription required), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip column.

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Fulham and Arsenal.

Here are some of your comments:

Fulham fans

Rob: Lots of huff and puff without looking like scoring. Injuries piling up is a worry. Josh King looks like our only threat and when he went off we lost any spark. The way Arsenal celebrated I thought they had won the league, so we must have been OK.

James: Frustrating. I was never really expecting a win against an in-form Arsenal. There were sparks of hope but they couldn't finish any of them. We need their corner routines.

Robin: Three defeats on the bounce and injuries mounting up. The poor summer transfer window is bearing fruit now. We could be in real bother if we carry on like this.

Arsenal fans

Alun: In previous seasons, we wouldn't have kept a lead like we did. Now the resilience and confidence in this team appear to be growing from game to game. If we are to be champions for the first time since 2004, this must last till the very end. COYG!

Banda: The team showed strong defensive discipline and didn't allow Fulham a shot on target. However, the team's attack was flat without Martin Odegaard. All in all, the win keeps Arsenal top of the Premier League and shows they can grind out results even when not at their best.

Terry: Disappointing first half. With this much quality we lacked urgency and the poor passing is not enough going forward. We bought a centre-forward but we are not using his capabilities. There was improvement in the second half but a couple of players disappointed. We got the goal that counted from a set-play, but goals from open play is what is needed. Character showed through but more to come.

Fulham manager Marco Silva is Nottingham Forest's first choice to replace Ange Postecoglou, but he is reluctant to leave Craven Cottage mid-season. (Times - subscription required), external

Want more transfer news and rumours? Read Monday's full gossip column

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Pundits Alan Shearer and Micah Richards join host Gabby Logan to bring you the action and talking points from Saturday's Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Manchester City 2-0 Everton

• Crystal Palace 3-3 Bournemouth

• Fulham 0-1 Arsenal

Alex Howell
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Josh King has been one of the real standouts for Fulham in his first season playing in the first team at Craven Cottage.

The 18-year-old played with a real maturity in the first half, taking the ball in dangerous areas and looking to build attacks.

He had a shot deflected over from the edge of the box and forced Daivd Raya into a smart piece of goalkeeping to tip the ball over the bar after King crossed following a mazy dribble.

King started his first match for the England Under-21s on Monday and Marco Silva will be delighted with the progress that the youngster has made already this season - even if the manager will be disappointed to lose the game to Arsenal.

Marco Silva spoke to BBC Match of the Day after Fulham's defeat against Arsenal: "When you lose a game, it is always a disappointing one. They were at a very good level. We did create chances to score before Arsenal. They were more on that than on ourselves. We knew it was not going to be easy, a tough team to play against but I think we kept them away from big chances in the game. After the goal, we did react and started to play more in our way again.

"Gabriel jumps so high, it's impossible to stop him. It's very difficult to control. The way we tried to block his run, most of the game, we did it very well. We were too open and left the path for Gabriel. We didn't want him to run in that part. Any flick is very difficult to control at the back post."

On Raul Jimenez: "It's crucial for us to have him. Last two games, we were playing without a striker. Last season, the strikers scored more than 20 goals. Raul didn't score tonight but his attitude was good. The injury to Andersen and Cairney with problems as well."

On links to the Nottingham Forest job: "I focus on the games and on what I can control. Nothing takes the focus from myself and what I want to do."

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Fulham's performance

What did you make of Arsenal's display?

Come back on Monday for a selection of your replies

There are seven games in the Premier League on Saturday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Nottingham Forest v Chelsea (12:30)

• Brighton v Newcastle

• Burnley v Leeds United

• Crystal Palace v Bournemouth

• Man City v Everton - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Sunderland v Wolves - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

• Fulham v Arsenal (17:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-off times 15:00 BST unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Fulham v Arsenal", for instance.

Find out more about how to listen to Premier League football on BBC Sounds

Fulham are no pushovers and they drew this fixture last season, but no-one is stopping Arsenal at the moment.

Martin Odegaard is out injured for a few weeks but it won't make a difference. Their squad depth is so strong and my feeling right now is that they are going to power their way to the title.

Sutton's prediction: 0-2

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Matthew Hobbs
BBC Sport journalist

League leaders Arsenal will attempt to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League table as they travel to a Fulham side aiming for a third successive home win.

BBC Sport examines some of the key themes before Saturday's game at Craven Cottage.

Can Arsenal continue winning run?

Arsenal have won their past four games and begin this round of fixtures top of the Premier League and with a run of matches that could give them the opportunity to cement their status as leaders of the competition.

The 2-0 triumph against West Ham last time out was enough to move above Liverpool and the Gunners have lost to just once against Fulham in the past 14 Premier League meetings.

After the facing the Cottagers, Arsenal take on Crystal Palace at the Emirates, having lost only one of their last 18 London Premier League derbies, before travelling to promoted Burnley and Sunderland.

Arsenal then host Tottenham, who they have not lost to on home soil in nearly seven years.

Opportunity is knocking for Mikel Arteta's to begin their tilt at a first title since 2004 in earnest, starting with a trip to Craven Cottage.

Fourth time lucky?

The Gunners have finished runners-up in the past three seasons under Arteta and the victory over West Ham on 4 October was his 300th Premier League game at the helm, and his 177th win.

It means the 43-year-old ranks fourth among all English top-flight managers for wins in his opening 300 games with a club. However, Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho and Sir Kenny Dalglish had won at least five major trophies by that point, while Arteta's solitary silverware of real significance remains the 2020 FA Cup.

Arsenal's new emphasis on counter-attack

In order to improve that record, Arsenal have varied their tactics so far this season.

Set-plays and corners are still a super-strength, but Arteta has implemented a greater focus on counter-attacks in order to make his side more robust.

They have recorded 14 phases of counter-attacking play in the Premier League in 2025-26 - the most of any side.

Last term, the Gunners ranked 17th for counter-attacks, with just 47 in the whole of the campaign, and the change in approach has helped Arsenal to restrict their opponents to fewer than 10 shots in their past six Premier League games.

Iwobi Fulham's key player

Fulham, meanwhile, come into this fixture facing the prospect of losing three successive Premier League matches for the first time in nearly three years, following defeats at Aston Villa and Bournemouth, conceding three goals on each occasion.

Marco Silva's side, however, remain strong at home and have won their past two league outings at Craven Cottage.

Fulham could avoid losing any of their opening four home matches of a league season for the first time since 2011-12 and Alex Iwobi has been key to their success so far this season.

The former Arsenal midfielder has made eight line-breaking passing into the opposition's penalty area in this season's Premier League, including four which created chances.

Both tallies are second only to Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes.

Listen to BBC Radio 5 Live commentary of Fulham v Arsenal at 17:30 BST on Saturday on BBC Sounds

Fulham boss Marco Silva has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Arsenal at Craven Cottage (kick-off 17:30 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Silva said they "are in a worse situation than before" in terms of injuries.

• Kenny Tete "is recovering but still not at that level yet," while Samuel Chukwueze is a doubt after returning from the international break with a calf issue. Silva added: "It's nothing really, really serious" but he has had a scan today.

• He said injuries "can't be an excuse," but acknowledged they "need" key players back because they "are not at the same level" as last season.

• On opponents Arsenal: "They have improved their depth. They are a very, very strong squad. It's not a surprise to see how solid they are, they have one of the best centre-back partnerships in the Premier League and Europe."

• He said "it's tough" after an international break because players arrive back late and "today was the first day all the players are on the pitch".

• On his long-term future: "I've been here for five years, why not more? It's not something that is going to disrupt our season at all. If I have to, I'm going to speak with you every single week about it. Some news will come, if not we have to move on."

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Listen to live commentary of Fulham v Arsenal on Radio 5 Live from 17:30 on Saturday

Image source, Getty Images

Our chief football news reporter Simon Stone has been answering some of your questions on our BBC Sport Premier League live page today.

Laura asked: A concerned Fulham fan here. Do you think we are in trouble?

There are several injuries to key players, we haven't got a fit striker (or at least not one Marco Silva wants to play), we have a difficult run of fixtures and we are bottling almost every lead we have.

Simon: Marco Silva made it pretty clear he wasn't happy with the way the club went about their business in the summer transfer window, and it feels the effect of doing business on deadline day lingered into the series of matches between the first two international breaks, as the players had to get fit and get used to playing with their new team-mates.

That said, Fulham deserved more than a point against Manchester United. The PGMOL have admitted they wrongly disallowed their opening goal at Chelsea, and they led at Aston Villa and Bournemouth before eventually losing.

Even three points from that tale of woes would have pushed Fulham well into the top half of the table.

If club-record signing Kevin settles down and produces performances somewhere near the levels his £34.6m fee suggests he is worth, it will clearly help.

But Fulham have shown a capacity to challenge bigger clubs already this season, so I don't view their position as negatively as you appear to.

Follow the rest of Simon's Q&A and the rest of Thursday's football news

Chris Collinson
BBC Sport statistician

Image source, Getty Images

The Premier League table is starting to take shape and while results are obviously what matter most, they don't tell the whole story in terms of how teams have been playing so far.

Expected goals (xG) tells us how much teams have been dominating games by creating lots of good chances up front and restricting opponents to few, bad ones at the back.

Penalties are excluded because they distort a team's numbers on how threatening or vulnerable they are in general, especially at this early stage.

Below is a graphic showing how good teams have been in attack and defence, with the most dominant teams in the top-right corner and the least impressive in the bottom-left corner.

Arsenal and Manchester City have been the most dominant sides, with the Gunners having the best defence and fourth-best attack and City the joint-best attack and fourth-best defence.

High-flying Crystal Palace are the only side to rival City's attacking threat, while Newcastle are living up to their name by being almost as impregnable at the back as Arsenal.

Both Manchester United and Chelsea have one of the top five attacks in the league but worryingly also rank in the bottom five defensively.

• Find and follow your Premier League club on BBC Sport

Liverpool's back-to-back defeats following five straight wins gives a more accurate picture of how they have been playing, while Tottenham have needed to be very efficient to make up for their lack of dominance in games.

Aston Villa's early-season struggles are no longer to do with finishing - they have now scored six non-penalty goals from an xG of 6.0 - but simply because they have not been playing well.

While promoted sides Leeds and Sunderland have adapted quite well to the top-flight, Burnley have struggled to make the jump so far with both the worst attack and the worst defence.

Read more on what expected goals tell us about the start to the season

Alex Howell
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Fulham midfielder Josh King made his first start for England Under-21s in Monday's win over Andorra Under-21s and put in an impressive performance.

The 18-year-old is having a breakout season for his club side and has started all of the Whites' games in the Premier League.

King had a goal ruled out for offside but his contribution really stood out for England U21s head coach Lee Carsley.

"I thought he was outstanding. I have been so impressed with him," Carsley said.

"Not only what he has done at his club but what he has done in training this week. You have to keep reminding yourself he is 18. He is so talented and has got such potential.

"It is important we look after him. It is not a case of him coming and playing every minute for England - it's important we send him back to his club in good condition and he doesn't feel like he has had too much travelling or played too many minutes. It's always that balance for England."

Drew Heatley
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

When it rains it pours in the Premier League.

Our defeat against Bournemouth in torrential rain last week was our second in a row - with table-topping Arsenal up next.

It looks likely that we will face Mikel Arteta's men in the midst of a mini injury crisis; we have striking duo Rodrigo Muniz and Raul Jimenez out, right-back Kenny Tete sidelined and midfield enforcer Sasa Lukic came off against the Cherries.

It has exposed our lightness in certain areas and means we risk a performance blip evolving into a fully-fledged run of poor form, with a trip to St James's Park rounding off October's league fixtures.

It is not all doom and gloom though. Rays of light include Ryan Sessegnon cementing his importance in Marco Silva's starting XI with a goal against Bournemouth. Our star boy has already started half as many games as he did the whole of last season.

Another green shoot is the early impact of Samuel Chukwueze. The Nigeria international, on loan from AC Milan, assisted Sessegnon and showed that though we may be without our first-choice strikers, there remains plenty of creativity in the ranks.

I have spoken before of our inability to rally on the pitch when things go against us. But we will have to dig deep in the next two weeks if we are to avoid four straight losses and a sharp drop down the table.

If Marco Silva can weather this particular storm, then we can start looking forward to sunnier days this season.

Find more from Drew Heatley at Fulhamish, external

Image source, Getty Images

Fulham's Josh King says his controversially disallowed goal against Chelsea in August was his 'welcome to the Premier League' moment and has given further motivation to get his first top-flight goal.

The Professional Game Match Officials Limited said it was a mistake for the video assistant referee to intervene and rule out King's opener at Stamford Bridge in a game the Cottagers went on to lose 2-0.

"One that sticks out is when I had the disallowed goal against Chelsea," the 18-year-old told BBC Radio Derby's Dominic Dietrich.

"That was one where in my mind I thought 'welcome to the Prem'.

"It's a difficult one. With those type of things, you just have to keep going and keep playing in the same way. I think the feeling of scoring now has become addictive to me and now I just want to try and keep doing it."

Despite still looking for his first senior Fulham goal, King has started all seven Premier League games so far this season, and has been rewarded for his impressive performances with a first call-up to England Under-21s.

"It's something you dream of," he said. "You work so long and so hard for opportunities like this so when they do come you want to take them.

"I've really enjoyed the first part of the season and all I can do is keep working hard, trying to improve, and contribute where I can.

"It's been a really good start and I've really enjoyed it. Now it's full focus on England."

Asked about players that inspire him, King added: "[Eberechi] Eze is one where I watch and think technically on the ball, he's so clean. He's so good with it.

"Players like [Jamal] Musiala as well - he's someone who I look up to. He can turn and drive forward and score goals and assist. Those two stick out to me. I want to get people off their feet and excite them."

Image source, Getty Images

Fulham U21 lost 3-1 to Wycombe Wanderers to remain winless in the EFL Trophy. Donnell McNeilly, Caolan Boyd-Munce and Bradley Fink gave the home side a 3-0 lead before Farhaan Ali Wahid grabbed a consolation for the London club.

Drew Heatley
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Premier League history is not just punctuated by results and league positions, it is the moments that tell the story.

Moments like unknowns announcing their arrival with match-winning goals - Wayne Rooney, Danny Rose and Frederico Macheda. Some moments were the culmination of meticulous planning, others were through necessity.

Rodrigo Muniz and Raul Jimenez are both injured, leaving many to claim we do not have a fit recognised striker - except we do in 19-year-old Jonah Kusi-Asare, who signed on loan from Bayern Munich on deadline day.

The young Swedish striker is dubbed 'Baby Isak' due to his stature and style of play. He scored a wonderful goal in pre-season for Bayern against Tottenham, showing that he is at least unawed by Premier League opposition.

There is just one problem: Marco Silva does not seem to rate him.

In every press conference and interview, Silva mentions Kusi-Asare's age and how he is not ready "to help us right now". But Friday's defeat against Bournemouth showed that does not matter - we cannot cope without a striker on the pitch, regardless of experience.

The Whites flirted with Harry Wilson and Josh King as false nines against the Cherries but, until Ryan Sessegnon scored in the 70th minute, we offered little.

Then, of course, we succumbed to three late Bournemouth goals.

With Kusi-Asare filling in and allowing Silva to continue to play his tried, tested and favoured 4-2-3-1, we could have asked a lot more questions of our hosts and perhaps our young striker could have made a name for himself.

Instead, we fell to a second consecutive 3-1 defeat and head into the international break on a low.

With Arsenal and Newcastle rounding off our October fixtures, we are in desperate need of a moment or two.

Find more from Drew Heatley at Fulhamish, external

Fulham manager Marco Silva is a long-term target for Nottingham Forest should they sack Ange Postecoglou, though an approach for the Portuguese is unlikely to happen before the end of the season. (Mail), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Pundits Alan Shearer and Wayne Rooney join host Gabby Logan to bring you the action and talking points from Saturday's Premier League fixtures and Friday's action.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Arsenal 2-0 West Ham

• Manchester United 2-0 Sunderland

• Chelsea 2-1 Liverpool

We asked for your thoughts after Friday's Premier League game between Bournemouth and Fulham.

Here are some of your comments:

Bournemouth fans

Ben: We simply don't know when to quit! Excellent subs from Andoni Iraola, which changed the course of the game, and two moments of magic from Semenyo and Kluivert were just sublime. If I had to be picky, and I mean if, I would like Evanilson to start taking some of the chances he's getting. He needs to find his shooting boots.

Simon: Credit to both teams for such an entertaining game in atrocious conditions. All three Bournemouth goals were great to watch but we needed the whole team, both starting players and subs, to overpower Fulham in the last 15 minutes. Great to see the Cherries in second place in the Premier League before the rest of the weekend matches. Onwards and upwards!

Shaun: Unbelievable last 20 minutes or so, the strongest the bench has ever been and it showed tonight with the changes. Soaked through but well worth it!

Peter: An amazing late comeback. How do we keep Semenyo and Iraola? Kluivert is getting a reputation for spectacular goals. Bournemouth are on cloud nine! It's so exciting as an AFC Bournemouth fan.

Fulham fans

Norman: I am getting a bit worried for Fulham. We can't keep a clean sheet and we can't score goals. A recipe for disaster! Whoever is in charge of recruitment at Fulham needs replacing, the transfer window in the summer was abysmal. As supporters we live in hope and at the moment hope is all we have.

James: What a rubbish result. Exact replica of the Villa match. We can't keep doing this where we lose from a winning position like how we were top in that stat last season. The defence has to improve in stopping that.

Barry: A blustery wet Friday night in Bournemouth, eventually took the lead and then fell apart. Very Fulhamish. We will come again. Well played Bournemouth.

Kevin: They can't hold onto a lead. More work required on this.