After finishing 10th in the Premier League last season, Fulham will aim higher in the 2023-24 campaign, with the best-case scenario being a return to European football.
The Premier League 2023 odds don’t like their chances of making it there, especially with rumours about their stars leaving the club soon. But every season is a new slate for all 20 teams, and as the saying goes, anything is possible in football.
The Cottagers will be hoping for a great start to their second foray in the English top-flight, with Everton as their first league opponent on August 12.
Our SBOTOP team has skimmed through their Premier League schedule, and here’s our list of some of the top fixtures to look forward to in the 2023-24 campaign.
Fulham vs Brentford, August 19
West London rivals Fulham and Brentford gave us a lot of Premier League 2023 highlights last season, and football fans from both sides are hoping for more when they meet on August 19 during the second matchday.
Both meetings yielded a 3-2 result, with Fulham winning the first one at Craven Cottage and Brentford winning the next one at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Bobby Reid scored the fastest Premier League goal in Fulham history before Joao Palhinha added another one to give the Cottagers a 2-0 lead in the first meeting before Christian Norgaard and Ivan Toney drew level after 71 minutes. But Aleksandar Mitrovic saved the day when he scored in the last minute.
Not to be outdone, Ethan Pinnock also set the record for the fastest Premier League goal for Brentford when he scored the first goal (5:37) in their reverse fixture last March. Ivan Toney and Mathias Jensen also scored for Brentford, while Manor Solomon and Carlos Vinicius scored goals for Fulham.
Brentford actually finished one spot above Fulham in the 2022-23 standings, which just goes to show how evenly matched they are.
Fulham vs Chelsea, October 3
Chelsea are another West London nemesis that Fulham are going to face this upcoming season.
Their first league meeting in January was Joao Felix’s Chelsea debut, and it was a night to forget for him because he was sent off with a red card for his reckless challenge on Kenny Tete.
The numerical disadvantage proved to be too much for the Blues, as Fulham secured a 2-1 win, their first victory against Chelsea since 2006. Willian managed to score against his old club, and Carlos Vinicius ended his goal drought, while Kalidou Koulibaly scored the consolation goal for Chelsea.
These two teams would meet again in February, which ended in a goalless draw. Fulham maintained their impressive away form as they frustrated Chelsea with their defencive display.
The February game also featured the Chelsea debuts of Enzo Fernandez, Mykhailo Mudryk, Noni Madueke, Wesley Fofana, and Benoit Badiashile, their haul during the January transfer window.
Chelsea actually finished two spots lower than Fulham in 2022-23, which is embarrassing on the Blues’ part. Fulham supporters share the same hope that Marco Silva’s men will finish above them yet again in 2023-24 just to stick it to them.
Fulham vs Manchester United, November 4
Fulham are seeking revenge against Manchester United, and they’ll get their first chance when they host them on November 4 at Craven Cottage.
There will be no love lost for these two sides, especially for Fulham fans, as they saw their team lose each of their three meetings last term.
Their first encounter was at Craven Cottage in November, the last league game before the World Cup break. The Red Devils had the early lead when Christian Eriksen scored his first goal for them, but former Manchester United man Daniel James answered back in the second half.
The match was supposed to end in a 1-1 draw until Alejandro Garnacho came off the bench and scored the stoppage-time winner through Eriksen’s pass.
These two teams met again in the FA Cup quarter-finals in another pulsating encounter.
Fulham were in control when Mitrovic gave them a 1-0 lead, but it was erased when he was sent off along with Willian and head coach Marco Silva.
Down to nine men, Manchester United eventually won the game 3-1 because of Bruno Fernandes’ brace and Marcel Sabitzer’s goal in the 77th minute.
Mitrovic was given an eight-match ban for his unsportsmanlike behaviour in the said match, which severely compromised the Cottagers. And that was evident in their 2-1 defeat during the final matchday.
Hopefully for Fulham, cooler heads will prevail this time because they need all hands on deck.
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