Fulham v Crystal Palace: Prediction, Tips and Odds

Confidence will be high in the Fulham camp following victories over top-four hopefuls Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest, so they will be fancying their chances in a home London derby against Crystal Palace on Saturday. 

The eighth-placed Cottagers have European aspirations of their own, sitting just four points off the top six ahead of this round of fixtures, and will be keen to secure three points against the Eagles at Craven Cottage.

Palace won’t make life easy for their hosts, however, with Oliver Glasner’s side also looking to climb up the table and there could be little to split these London rivals on Saturday.

Fulham v Crystal Palace betting tips and predictions

Draw - 12/5

Following their wins over two of the Premier League’s hottest sides, Newcastle and Nottingham Forest, Fulham must be considered the form side coming into this derby, especially with Crystal Palace losing 2-1 at home to Everton last time.

However, Palace are unbeaten in eight away matches in the league and have picked up some impressive results in that sequence, beating Manchester United and Brighton as well as earning a point at both Aston Villa and Bournemouth.

Those results will give the Eagles plenty of confidence ahead of this cross-London trip, especially as Brighton, Villa and Bournemouth are within a four-point radius of Fulham, and they may have enough to earn a draw at Craven Cottage.

The hosts won the reverse fixture 2-0 but Palace were without a number of key men that day, including Eberechi Eze and Adam Wharton, and now close to full strength, the Eagles should give a better showing this time around.

Notably, four of Fulham’s last six home matches in the top flight have finished level, and this pair’s recent head-to-head record, which reads three draws in four meetings, suggests that trend may continue on Saturday.

Jean-Philippe Mateta to score at any time - 11/4

With Palace fancied to give a bold showing in west London, it could pay to back their in-form talisman Jean-Philippe Mateta to find the net at Craven Cottage. 

Mateta’s form towards the end of last term was one of the stories of the season, with the Frenchman netting 13 goals in his final 13 matches of the campaign, and after a slow start this time around he is beginning to look back to his brilliant best.

The Eagles forward has netted six goals in as many games and his blend of pace, expert dribbling and deadly finishing means he could cause plenty of issues for a Fulham defence which has managed just one clean sheet in 10 matches.

Home advantage has also failed to apply to the Cottagers’ defence, with Marco Silva’s men recording just one shutout in their 14 matches at Craven Cottage this term, suggesting Mateta should get plenty of chances to add to his tally.

The French forward relishes London derbies, netting four goals across his last five, and he looks a decent price to find the net in west London.

Sander Berge to be booked - 10/3 

There is every chance this game between two well-matched sides will be decided in the engine room as the clash could get very gritty if the flair players, namely Eze, Alex Iwobi and Emile Smith Rowe, are unable to grab the match by the scruff of the neck.

That could lead to some interesting battles and an intriguing stat from Palace’s recent league matches suggests it could pay to back a Fulham midfielder to fall foul of the referee. 

An opposing midfielder has been carded in each of the Eagles’ last four league matches, meaning at least one of Sander Berge or Sasa Lukic could be set for a booking at Craven Cottage. And with Lukic a fitness doubt, it could pay to go with the former instead.

Berge may have picked up only two bookings in the league this term but he accumulated nine in 37 matches for Burnley last season and, looking at the referee appointment for Saturday’s clash, a third of the campaign may not be far away. 

Rob Jones ranks fourth for yellow cards per game for referees to have officiated 10 or more Premier League games this term with 4.67, suggesting any error from Berge will be readily punished by the man in the middle at Craven Cottage.

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Fulham v Crystal Palace odds

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.