Bournemouth vs Fulham – Analysis, Prediction, Team News

As part of our weekend Premier League predictions, we take a look at Fulham’s visit to Bournemouth. 1 point in 3 matches has dented Fulham’s European challenge – can they get back on track? Read on with our Bournemouth vs Fulham prediction.

Bournemouth vs Fulham Match Preview

Bournemouth were understandably jubilant following an unexpected yet richly deserved 1-0 victory over Liverpool… but were brought crashing back down to Earth with a heavy 3-0 defeat away to Aston Villa, their third defeat in four Premier League matches. While 3-0 defeats are always unwelcome events, it was the comprehensive nature of Villa’s victory as they racked up 3.2 on the xG stat to Bournemouth’s 0.59 which highlighted the gulf between the two sides on the day. Though the game was 1-0 up until the Midlands side added a second in the 80th minute through Jacob Ramsey, Bournemouth were clearly second best.

That defeat ensures that the south coast side remain in the relegation zone, although they are just three points adrift of Crystal Palace and Wolves in 12th and 13th place which demonstrates just how competitive the division is at the foot of the table. Fortunately for O’Neil’s men, only one team from the bottom 9, Leeds, have recorded a victory in their last match which ensured that, despite the poor nature of the performance, the away defeat to Aston Villa was perhaps not so costly.

Fulham have been impressive for much of this season’s Premier League campaign, particularly for a newly-promoted team, but they seem to have hit a wall recently in the league. Despite beating high-flying Brighton 1-0 away from home, the warning signs were there as they were heavily outplayed in that fixture, and were arguably outplayed in each of their last three matches against Wolves at home (1-1), Brentford away (3-2 defeat) and Arsenal at home (3-0 defeat).

They performed better against Manchester United in the FA Cup but, unfortunately for the Cottagers, Willian’s red card for handling a goal-bound effort on the line and Aleksandar Mitrovic’s inexplicable meltdown ruined any chance of a positive result. Nevertheless, they remain just three points behind 6th-placed Liverpool in the league table and are in a cluster of teams spanning Liverpool to 11th-placed Aston Villa who are separated by just four points.

Team News

Injuries and Suspensions

Bournemouth:

Might Not Play: Stanislas, Tavernier, Zabarnyi

Will Not Play:

Fulham:

Might Not Play: Duffy

Will Not Play: Kebano, Kurzawa, Mitrovic, Willian

Bournemouth vs Fulham Lineups (Predicted)

Bournemouth (4-4-1-1): Neto; Kelly, Senesi, Stephens, Smith; Lerma, Rothwell, Ouattara, Traore; Billing; Solanke

Fulham (4-2-3-1): Leno; Robinson, Ream, Diop, Tete; Reed, Palhinha; Solomon, Pereira, Decordova-Reid; Vinicius

Bournemouth vs Fulham Analysis

Bournemouth Have a Good Chance to Keep Things Tight

With Fulham light in attack owing to their suspensions incurred during their FA Cup tie with Manchester United, it could well be enough for Bournemouth to stifle Fulham simply by not allowing them enough space to operate. Fulham’s key weapon to breaking such resistance is Mitrovic and with the Serbian suspended, Fulham will no doubt lack that cutting edge. Carlos Vinicius is a capable player who had good spells at Benfica and PSV Eindhoven but clearly doesn’t carry the same attacking threat.

This means that Bournemouth can largely concentrate upon what they do best – keeping their shape and breaking at speed with purpose. That might sound rather simplistic, but nevertheless, it’s how they approach the majority of their matches at this level and we don’t anticipate any significant deviation from that tactical approach in this fixture. The recent matches against Liverpool, Arsenal and Wolves show that Bournemouth carry a significant threat when their opponents monopolise possession, and although they lost 4-1 against Manchester City they were perhaps a bit unfortunate with the scoreline in that match.

Will Fulham Play Ball (So to Speak)?

Conversely, Fulham don’t look to monopolise possession either. While they’re not set up to play as reactively as their opponents today, Nottingham Forest or Everton for example, they have demonstrated a willingness to cede possession and territory in an attempt to afford themselves more room in the final third via rapid transitions and support high up the pitch from the likes of Antonee Robinson and Tete. Again, this approach would make sense in this fixture because Bournemouth are a much better team when playing on the break.

Despite their improved performance against Manchester United, Fulham will be conscious of the need to not allow the home side to get ahead. If that were to happen, they would be forced to chase the game and Bournemouth have been more than capable on the counter since the World Cup break. The return of Dominic Solanke has been a welcome boost for them and with their rejigged formation allowing Billing and new signings Outtara and Traore to provide greater support in transition, Bournemouth now have a coherent plan of attack for this level. Fulham will need to remain patient and avoid over-committing.

Our Prediction

This match would seem to have the makings of a rather dull affair (3-3 scoreline incoming). Fulham are shorn of two of their starting attackers including the hugely influential Aleksandar Mitrovic and would be anxious not to overcommit in a fixture like this as Bournemouth have improved recently in attack. For their part, it’s unlikely that Bournemouth possess the creativity to break down a Fulham team who won’t be giving them as much room to operate as some of their recent opponents have done. It’s always a risk to back a 0-0 draw, but we feel this match is as likely as any.

Bournemouth 0-0 Fulham

Bournemouth vs Fulham Betting Tip – Draw Odds: