Fulham vs Leicester Preview & Prediction | 2024-25 English Premier League
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Fulham began with a frustrating performance that saw them waste a few openings before losing late on at Manchester United and they now welcome a Leicester City that managed to steal a potentially important point against Tottenham Hotspur at the King Power Stadium.
KICK-OFF DATE/TIME: Saturday 24th August, 2024 - UK – 3:00pm / US ET – 10:00am / US PT – 7:00am
HOW TO WATCH ON TV: UK – Not televised / US – Not televised
HOW TO WATCH ONLINE: UK – Not televised / US – Peacock, Fubo, Sling Blue, DirecTV Stream
FULHAM PREVIEW: COTTAGERS OPENING UP
The loss of Joao Palhinha may not have been as big a loss as many expected on the opening day, given that Marco Silva’s Fulham went to Old Trafford and won by two goals to one without the Portugal international midfielder last season. They were, though, rusty and imprecise on the counter-attack this time around.
With Emile Smith Rowe bedding into a Cottagers attack that included Alex Iwobi, Adama Traore and Rodrigo Muniz, Fulham had plenty of openings but failed to create anything clear cut against United on the opening day with United eventually pinching all three points thanks to a late strike from their new signing, Joshua Zirkzee.
LEICESTER PREVIEW: FOXES LOOKING TO FIRE
Steve Cooper openly admitted that Leicester were really poor in the first-half against Tottenham Hotspur with plenty of mistakes being made both on and off the ball but the Foxes managed to limit the damage to an extent with Spurs only taking a 1-0 lead into the half-time interval thanks to a clever header from Pedro Porro.
The game turned in the second-half, though, with a far more cohesive performance from the hosts. 37-year-old captain Jamie Vardy, who declared himself fit just a couple of days before the game after missing the entirety of pre-season, notched his 137th Premier League goal to secure a point for last season’s Championship winners.
FULHAM TEAM NEWS: BERGE UNAVAILABLE TO START
Fulham announced the signing of Norway international midfielder Sander Berge on Friday but Marco Silva has confirmed that the former Sheffield United man will not be available to start for the Cottagers.
However, much like most weekends last season, Fulham are blessed with a fully fit and unavailable squad for their opening home game of the campaign.
PREDICTED XI (4-2-3-1): Leno; Tete, Diop, Bassey, Robinson; Pereira, Lukic; Adama Traore, Smith Rowe, Iwobi; Rodrigo Muniz
UNAVAILABLE:
QUESTIONABLE:
LEICESTER TEAM NEWS: VARDY'S PARTY
Former England international Jamie Vardy was expected to be unavailable on Monday but declared himself fit and the Foxes will have to continue to rely on him with the absence of Patson Daka.
Steve Cooper has said there are no changes to the injury situation at Leicester, meaning Conor Coady is also sidelined but new signing Oliver Skipp is available and will be in the squad.
PREDICTED XI (4-2-3-1): Hermansen; Justin, Vestergaard, Faes, Kristiansen; Winks, Ndidi; Fatawu, Buonanotte, Mavididi; Vardy
UNAVAILABLE: Coady (Injured), Daka (Injured)
QUESTIONABLE: Thomas (Injured)
FULHAM VS LEICESTER PREDICTION
Fulham will fancy their chances of defeating newly-promoted opposition, especially with their home advantage, but the pressure may well be on them this weekend with an opening day defeat meaning three points is not necessarily a must but certainly of more importance. If Leicester play how they did in the first-half then three points shouldn’t be too difficult to come by for the hosts but the Foxes will likely look to set up and frustrate in a similar way. Despite their improvement in the second-half and potential stubbornness, Fulham should still come out on top.
FULHAM VS LEICESTER TIP: FULHAM TO WIN
