Fulham travel to Yorkshire full of confidence following the complete performance that both dismantled an abject Aston Villa side and cost Steven Gerrard his job on Thursday. Nothing will be easier than brushing the Villains aside this season, certainly not a crunch encounter at Elland Road – as Marco Silva eluded to on Friday. Jesse Marsch is under pressure following a third successive Premier League defeat at Leicester three days ago that stretched Leeds United’s winless streak to seven games. The the travelling support made their disapproval clear at the King Power Stadium and, although the coach has been given vote of confidence ahead of this game, that backing is conditional on the Lilywhites moving up the table.
Leeds are currently above the drop zone on goal difference and Marsch’s start to the season is worse than Marcelo Bielsa’s last term. The axing of the Argentinian – whose name was sung by the travelling fans in the Midlands – was painful, but was supposed to help United avoid the unthinkable – a swift return to the Championship. Marsch’s troops rather stumbled over the safety line at Brentford last year, but there was optimism in the summer that Leeds wouldn’t need to worry about the wrong end of the table. Chairman Andrea Radrizzani talked of finishing tenth to fourteenth in the table – something Marsch had to endorse again during his pre-match press conference.
The under-boss has assured the Leeds fans that his side will do ‘all it takes’ to secure their first league win since August and Silva is certainly right that Elland Road will be electric at kick off and throughout the ninety minutes: it always is. They will need to repeat the intensity of their strong showing against Arsenal – where they were desperately unlucky not to come away with even a point having done everything but score – and you know that Marsch’s all-action style will prove a sterner test of Fulham’s fortitude than Villa did in midweek. The hosts should benefit from the return of Pascal Strujik to solidify a defence that Leicester looked able to penetrate at will on Thursday, but the American might go back to something more tried and tested after making four changes for the Foxes. His decision to substitute the lively Luis Sinisterra didn’t go down well and the Colombian winger could give stand-in right Bobby Decordova-Reid a real test today.
Fulham’s form had been patchy before the stroll past the Villains as Silva’s side stuttered rather than surged following the dramatic comeback at Nottingham Forest. The Whites have a dreadful recent record at Elland Road: Leeds are unbeaten in their last five home games against Fulham, who have eight of their last nine top flight fixtures in Yorkshire, conceding 23 goals. Thursday’s clean sheet was welcome – as it was Fulham’s first since August – but both Marsch and the fanatical home faithful will demand that United test a Cottagers’ back line that has looked shaky in recent weeks. Patrick Bamford, who has scored on all four times he has faced Fulham, has been waiting to bring a century of career goals for eleven matches. What odds on the forward Bielsa transformed finally reaching the landmark and ease the pressure on the magician’s successor?
Fulham were rampant from the off against Villa, but they set the tone through an energetic start and the hassling and harrying prompted by the persistence of Joao Palhinha and Harrison Reed in central midfield. That battle will be pivotal this afternoon, with the hosts still sorely missing Kalvin Phillips in the engine room. If Tyler Adams can replicate some of his latter Bundesliga form, then there will plenty of supply from the likes of Rodrigo, Jack Harrison and Sinisterra for Bamford. But if the Whites can quieten the crowd and avoid another gift like against Bournemouth, then there would be potential to profit. It’s a lot easier said than done.
Silva will have to decide on what to do defensively should Kenny Tete fail his late fitness test again. Decordova-Reid, who looked like Cafu at right back on Thursday largely because of a pitiful performance from Leon Bailey, is likely to get the nod again and I might be tempted to make a change at the heart of the defence. As we’ve talked about before, Fulham’s strongest central defensive pairing is clearly Tosin Adarabioyo alongside Issa Diop – and they need to develop an understanding with one another. It will be interesting to see whether Harry Wilson starts on the right flank after three encouraging cameos off the bench, but the betting must be on Silva sticking with the side that did him so proud under the Craven Cottage lights on Thursday.
MY FULHAM XI (4-2-3-1): Leno; Decordova-Reid, A. Robinson, Adarabioyo, Diop; Palhinha, Reed; Willian, Kebano, Pereira; Mitrovic. Subs: Rodak, Mbabu, Ream, Duffy, Onomah, Cairney, Wilson, Harris, Vinicius.
