Nottingham Forest will be looking to maintain their strong Premier League form when they face Fulham at Craven Cottage on Saturday.
No team has picked up more Premier League points than Steve Cooper’s side in 2023, although Fulham remain eight points above Forest in the table.
Fresh from booking their place in the last 16 of the FA Cup with a 3-2 victory over Sunderland in midweek, Fulham will now focus on cementing their spot in the top half of the Premier League table.
After gaining promotion alongside Nottingham Forest last year, the Cottagers have exceeded all expectations this season, winning nine of their 22 league games to keep them above Chelsea and Liverpool in the standings.
That said, Marco Silva will be eager to end a three-match winless run in the Premier League, with defeats to Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur preceding a goalless draw against London rivals Chelsea at the Cottage.
It is also worth noting that Fulham have failed to score in each of their last three league outings, although Silva’s men did manage to chalk up a four-game winning run directly after the World Cup break.
Fulham have kept just two clean sheets in 11 Premier League games at the Cottage this term, while only bottom club Southampton have conceded more home goals than Fulham’s 16, so Forest will fancy their chances of getting something from Saturday’s clash.
The Tricky Trees extended their unbeaten streak in the Premier League to five matches with a hard-fought 1-0 win against Leeds United last time out, leading to the sacking of Whites manager Jesse Marsch.
Brennan Johnson scored the decisive goal after 14 minutes, meaning that the 21-year-old has now bagged three goals and two assists across his previous four league appearances.
Having made a poor start to the season – winning two of their opening 14 Premier League games – Nottingham Forest have lost just one of their past eight league outings to open up a six-point gap between them and the bottom three.
It is worth pointing out, however, that only Bournemouth have claimed fewer points on their travels than Forest this season, with Cooper’s side winning one of their 10 away games.
On top of that, only Wolverhampton Wanderers have scored fewer goals than Forest’s 17, while no team has netted fewer away goals than Forest’s three, so the Reds will be desperate to increase their output on the road.
Forest lost the reverse fixture 3-2 back in September, with Fulham scoring three goals in six second-half minutes, but it feels as though Cooper’s men have improved drastically since then.
Indicating that the Premier League is the main priority for Fulham, Marco Silva made nine changes to his starting XI for Wednesday’s FA Cup clash against Sunderland, with Joao Palhinha and Kenny Tete the only players retained.
Having failed to find the net in his last three league outings, Aleksandar Mitrovic will be eager to add to his tally of 11 goals in 18 matches when he returns to the starting lineup this weekend.
Neeskens Kebano remains a long-term injury absentee for the Cottagers, while there are question marks over the fitness of midfield duo Harrison Reed and Tom Cairney, meaning that Harry Wilson could be handed a start on Saturday.
Nottingham Forest’s extensive injury list contains Dean Henderson, Moussa Niakhate, Taiwo Awoniyi, Omar Richards, Cheikhou Kouyate and Giulian Biancone, while Ryan Yates remains absent due to illness.
Following an impressive debut performance, on-loan goalkeeper Kaylor Navas will continue to deputise for Henderson, with Willy Boly and Scott McKenna expected to start at centre-back.
Jonjo Shelvey and Felipe could feature for the visitors for the first time after arriving at the City Ground during the winter transfer window, although both players are likely to start on the bench this weekend.
