Key events
Some fashion in the Sky studio tonight. The footwear is, of course, something else, but don’t miss Freddie Ljungberg’s jumper-over-tie combo. Maybe he’s pitching to be Rangers manager, in which case he’ll need more of a v-neck knit situaton.
Email! “The last Fulham game I saw before we moved to France was Fulham 5 Wolves 0 in March 2012,” writes Richard Hirst. “That seems the least likely of all possible scorelines tonight, but boy would it be welcome. I wouldn’t say it’s a must win game but, with Liverpool away next up, it’s a must not lose or else we will become the team most likely to plummet when one of the three ‘relegation certainties’ you identified does a Lazarus act.”
Talking of Lazarus, has anyone seen the Lazarus Project? I’ve not got to it yet, but Joe Barton, it’s writer/director, made Giri-Haji, one of the best shows I’ve seen the last few years. As for Fulham, I do fancy them to lose tonight, but I don’t see the sides below having enough to close the gap.
On Sky, they’re talking about Anthony Gordon. I know thing went sour towards the end at Everton, but from the time he broke into the squad, he was one of the few alright things about watching them. When you combine pace, moxie and desire, you’re likely to have something decent, and I’m not at all surprised that Eddie Howe has made him a key man.
As for his XI, he sticks with the side that beat Spurs – bar Craig Dawson, who’s suspended; Santi Bueno comes in for his debut. That also means that Pablo Sarabia, who scored such a beautiful goal last time out, remains on the bench.
Meanwhile, the increasingly impressive O’Neil accepts that Spurs were missing a few, but he was really happy with how his team attacked the game, playing on the front foot and dominating. As a manager who changes things up depending on the opposition, he notes that Spurs try to pull you out of position and have players turning up where you don’t expect them to so that required a plan. Tonight, though, is a different test, and he’s eager to state that tactics can only go so far – he needs the right mentality from his players.
Marco Silva wants his side to start well and play well. More news as I get it.
Fulham make two alterations to the side comprehensively beaten by Villa before the internationals: Joao Palhinha is suspended for accumulating five bookings, so Harrison Reed somes in, while whiole TOm Cairney is prepared to Bobby De Cordova-Reed.
I’m going to write these down, then we’ll have a think about what they mean.
Teams!
Fulham (4-2-3-1): Leno; Castagne, Bassey, Ream, Robinson; Iwobi, Reed; Cairney, Pereira, Willian; Jiménez. Subs: Rodak, Tete, Adarabioyo, Wilson, Ballo-Touré, De Cordova-Reid, Lukic, Vinicius, Harris.
Wolverhampton Wanderers (3-5-2): Sá; Kilman, Bueno, Gomes; Semedo, Bellegarde, Lemina, Gomes, Ait-Nouri; Hwang, Cunha. Subs: Doherty, Traoré, Silva, Bueno, Kalajdzic, Jonny, Doyle, Sarabia, Bentley.
Referee: Michael Salisbury (Penwortham)
Preamble
If you’re already getting 10 points deducted, getting them deducted this season is an absolute touch – which, on the face of things, has little to do with tonight’s match, given Everton played yesterday. But bear with me: the reason Everton have had a right result is that the three promoted clubs – Burnley, Sheffield United, Luton – look doomed, and a quick look at the Championship table shows clubs with the means to stay up – Leicester and Leeds – well-placed to make an immediate Premier League return. Maintaining status next term will be a far harder task than it is this.
So tonight’s teams should also be feeling lucky (punk). Fulham were terrific in claiming 10th spot last term but have regressed to the mean since and, though they sit seven points off the bottom three, now team in the league has scored fewer and they’ve taken just one point from the last 12, kept out of more serious trouble only by Everton’s situation and the poverty of the aforedissed promoted clubs.
Wolves, meanwhile, have started pretty well under Gary O’Neil, beating Manchester City and, most recently, Spurs, with two injury-time goals. But they’re still struggling to score and, if the teams below them improve, they could quickly slip down the table – though again, probably not below Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton.
And the direct matchup looks a goodun. Both teams compete with proper intensity and, with Raúl Jiménez making his first appearance against Wolves, we’re not lacking for narrative and subplot. But with João Palhinha suspended, they may not have the protection and possession to which they’re used.
But Wolves under O’Neil are far more dynamic than previously, playing with conviction and invention. In particular, the running power of Mario Lemina, Hwang Hee-chan and Matheus Cunha is a problem, and the confidence they’ll have garnered from those two big wins – one telling them they can best the best, the other that they can perform miracles – makes them a difficult proposition tonight.
Real talk, at the end of the season, this game probably won’t matter that much. But though neither team can afford to become complacent, both know that their best level is a decent level, and the freedom of knowing what’s below should help them hit it more often – hopefully starting tonight.
Kick-off: 8pm GMT
