Fulham heads into Tuesday evening at Craven Cottage on the back of a 2-1 away win at Tottenham, but faces an opponent that cannot afford any slip-ups in the title race, with Manchester City, currently second in the table, traveling to the fifteenth-placed team. Marco Silva’s team has shown offensive strength recently, but will still be without key left-back Antonee Robinson, who is suffering from knee problems. City has the much stronger overall record this season, but has recently shown inconsistency with narrow wins and surprising defeats, which is why Pep Guardiola will keep an eye on rotation on the one hand, but needs stability in the starting lineup on the other. The head-to-head record clearly favors the visitors, with City winning the last five encounters, Fulham failing to pick up a point and trailing at halftime in each game. The bookmakers also see Manchester City as clear favorites, with a probability of victory of over 60%. The key duels will be exciting, especially Fulham’s wingers such as Wilson or Tete against City’s offensively minded full-backs. In the center, Fulham’s compactness will face City’s desire for possession and creative free-range players such as Foden, Gündoğan, or De Bruyne. Added to this is Fulham’s need for stable defensive organization on set pieces without Robinson against City’s quality on set pieces. Tactically, Fulham are expected to play defensively compact with a focus on transition moments and set pieces, while City will, as usual, aim for a lot of possession, keep the ball moving and look for space on the wings. Guardiola could play a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1, Silva is more likely to use a 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-2 to control the width of the field. Robinson is still missing for Fulham, and City are likely to rotate selectively given the tight schedule, but the key players should be ready to play. The expected game scenario is City controlling the ball and the tempo, with Fulham relying on pinpricks on the counterattack. A hard-fought victory for Manchester City with a score of 0-2 or 1-2 seems plausible, and a game with goals at both ends is quite conceivable, even if City remain the clear favorites.
- Venue: Craven Cottage, London
- Date and time: December 2, 2025, 8:30 p.m.
- Competition: Premier League (Matchday 14)
There are three main markets for betting: Manchester City to win, over 1.5 goals in the first half, and both teams to score (BTTS). The reasoning behind tip one, Manchester City to win, lies in the clear difference in quality in favor of the visitors, reinforced by Fulham’s absences, including left-back Robinson for around two months and striker Muniz. In addition, City has celebrated two wins in a row and has scored in each of its last three games, with odds of around 1.6 for an away win. Tip two, Over 1.5 goals – 1st half, is based on Fulham’s ability to score quickly, with two goals in the first six minutes against Tottenham, for example, and City’s tendency to start games with high intensity in order to gain control early on, which is why higher odds for early goals seem particularly interesting. Tip three, Both teams to score: Yes, is based on the fact that Fulham has scored at least once in four of its last five games and City has conceded goals in 80% of its last five games, including a 4-1 defeat to PSV and a 2-1 loss at Newcastle, so a Fulham goal at home seems well justified.
Fulham form & record check
Fulham have been in better form recently, with two league wins in a row, including a surprise 2-1 win at Tottenham, bringing the Londoners to 15th place with 17 points, just one point behind Everton, which indicates progress but not yet real consistency. A pattern can be seen in the games during this phase, with the first halves usually quiet with rarely more than two goals, and the total number of chances remaining manageable, yet many games end with at least two goals and Fulham scores in eight out of ten cases, an indication of efficiency in finishing rather than clear dominance. Their weakness away from home remains a problem, as exemplified by the 2-0 defeat at Everton. Their home record is noticeably more solid, but the team continues to pick up too few points on the road, which is cause for concern in view of the upcoming difficult away games. In terms of personnel, two important players are missing: Robinson, who is out long-term with knee problems, and Muniz, who is not expected to return until February. In addition, coach Silva still considers new signing Kusi-Asare to be not yet ready, which limits the depth of the squad and the options in attack. Overall, Fulham look like a team that knows when to strike and is usually solid defensively, but their lack of consistency and weakness away from home are holding them back from higher goals. The coming weeks will show whether their recent progress is enough to pull them away from mid-table for good.
Marco Silva is likely to stick with a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Antonee Robinson still out with knee problems that have lasted for almost two months, so Reece Sessegnon is expected to start at left-back. Raúl Jiménez will lead the line up front, especially as Alex Muniz is surprisingly unavailable with a thigh injury. Loan player Kusi-Asare is likely to be left out despite the shortage of options in attack, as Silva does not yet consider the 18-year-old ready. Sander Berge and Harrison Reed are expected to form the central midfield duo, with Willian (Wilson), Alex Iwobi, and Samuel Chukwueze likely to make up the attacking trio, allowing Fulham to vary between experience and pace.
Man City Form & Record Check
Manchester City are currently showing a mixture of moments of high class and moments of vulnerability. Their form, with three wins and two defeats from their last five games, can be explained by tactical experiments, injury problems in midfield and an occasionally shaky defense. The 3-2 win against Leeds is symbolic of this: a strong start, then a loss of control, and in the end, luck and Foden’s individual class saved the victory. The two defeats can be classified differently. The 2-0 loss to Bayer Leverkusen highlighted the risks of an almost complete rotation, with Guardiola changing ten positions. The lack of coordination and composure in possession was consistently exploited by a well-organized opponent. The 2-1 defeat in Newcastle was highly emotional. City was tactically present, but individual scenes with controversial decisions and tackling behavior tipped the game. In between, there were very dominant performances, such as the 3-0 win against Liverpool and the 4-1 win against Dortmund, which underline the high level of the squad. City are second in the table with 25 points, five points behind Arsenal and one point ahead of Chelsea. In terms of personnel, the absence of Rodri and Kovacic weighs heavily, with the balance in the center suffering. Guardiola is trying to compensate for this with tactical adjustments, more intense pressing on the wings, rotating defensive midfield positions, and the more frequent use of defensively stronger midfielders, but this is not a full replacement for Rodri’s stability. In four of the last five games, there have been over 2.5 goals, with City regularly scoring and conceding, which shows that the offense is still very dangerous, while gaps continue to open up in the defense, especially on quick throw-ins, counterattacks, or set pieces when the midfield is not compact enough. Against strong, compact opponents, we can therefore expect less rotation and a more stable midfield lineup. As long as Rodri and Kovacic are missing, high-scoring games are more likely in the short term. Tactically, City will focus on maximizing possession and control to cover up these vulnerabilities as best they can.
Pep Guardiola is expected to return to a more stable, more classic 4-3-3 formation after criticism of the extreme rotation against Leverkusen. With Rodri and Kovacic out injured, Reijnders and Nunes could play alongside Bernardo Silva in central midfield, but the loss of Rodri remains difficult to compensate for in sporting terms. In central defense, Dias, Stones, and Gvardiol are the obvious choices for the two starting spots. In attack, Foden’s current run of form, including his brace against Leeds, clearly argues for a place in the starting lineup. Haaland will start as usual in the center of the attack, while Doku is likely to start on the other side as an additional speed option.
Fulham – Man City Head-to-Head & Statistics
Manchester City has won each of the last five head-to-head matches, with the most recent result being a 2-0 win at Craven Cottage in May 2025. Fulham has failed to earn a point in those five games. City took the lead before halftime in all of these encounters, putting Fulham under pressure early on. At least three goals were scored in four of the five games, with City’s 5-1 win in 2023 and 4-0 win in 2024 being particularly clear victories. It is worth noting a contradiction in the available information: the claim that Fulham have not scored against City since April 2023 and have failed to score in three consecutive games contrasts with the information that Fulham scored more than one goal in a 3-2 defeat in October 2024. Both statements cannot be correct at the same time. Either Fulham scored one or two goals in October 2024, or Fulham has indeed failed to score against City since April 2023. Overall, the record shows clear dominance by Manchester City, with early leads, often many goals, and no points for Fulham in the last five encounters.
