Why Fulham and West Brom will cancel each other out at the Cottage
Martin Jol’s men enter battle against the Baggies as 91/100 favourites, but this game could well be closer than those odds indicate.
What an action packed bonanza it promises to be this Saturday as the irresistible force of the Fulham Cottagers take on the immovable object of the West Bromwich Baggies (sorry, been watching the new NFL season).
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Yes, Fulham entertain high-flying West Brom this weekend as sweet domestic football returns after an international interruption.
It promises to be a fascinating contest in west London as these two evenly-matched sides go head-to-head.
| Champions League | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dortmund | 1-2 | Bayern Munich | £155.00 | (27/4) |
| Dortmund | 0-1 | Bayern Munich | £160.00 | (7/1) |
| Dortmund | 0-2 | Bayern Munich | £175.00 | (31/4) |
| Dortmund win | £80.00 | (3/1) | ||
| Draw | £84.00 | (16/5) | ||
| Bayern Munich win | £34.40 | (18/25) | ||
Fulham have had a mixed start to the season, from a 5-0 thrashing of Norwich City, to a meek 3-0 defeat at West Ham, with a brave 3-2 loss at Old Trafford in the middle.
Martin Jol’s slightly maverick approach certainly leads to excitement, though the recent departures of Clint Dempsey and Moussa Dembele will no doubt have an effect, in the short term at least.
With Clarke seemingly shoring up Albion’s backline, Fulham may find it hard to break through, especially with so many new players at the top end of the pitch still bedding in, and they must beware of the Baggies’ counter-attacking threat.
To lose two such crucial players at the same time would have an impact on any side, but Jol has boosted his squad with some shrewd summer buys such as Mladen Petric, Hugo Rodallega, Dimitar Berbatov and, this week, 35-year-old Greek legend Giorgos Karagounis.
The Cottagers head into the game as favourites at 9/10 and given their only home game this campaign brought a 5-0 victory, confidence will be understandably high, especially given their creditable home record last season, which saw them pick up ten wins from 19 outings.
However, West Brom remain unbeaten after three games, despite facing top-four hopefuls Liverpool and Tottenham, and lie third in the Premier League table.
Having conceded just one league goal, the influence of their widely respected manager, Steve Clarke, is already clear for all to see.
The former Chelsea and Liverpool assistant boss was said to be key in the defensive improvements at both clubs during his respective spells and keeping the goal count down will be crucial to the Baggies’ hopes of a good season.
Another thing in favour of the Midlands club is the impressive away record they boast from last season, having picked up 26 points on the road and won as many as they lost.
Albion’s away days this campaign have seen them claim a positive 1-1 draw at White Hart Lane and a 4-2 win over Yeovil in the Capital One Cup.
Shane Long, who scored for Ireland in midweek, will be a danger that Brede Hangeland and company will have to be wary of, as will Romelu Lukaku (on loan from rivals Chelsea).
A West Brom win is a very tempting 3/1, then, especially as that excellent record on the road last term saw the Baggies finish sixth in a Premier League table based purely on away games.
However, the splinters in my backside suggest that I’ll be sitting on the fence with this one. The draw at 12/5 looks like the horse to back in the 3pm at Craven Cottage on Saturday.
If you agree, then by all means use the free £20 bet you receive for joining bwin.com to lump on a sharing of the spoils. You could win yourself £70 to replace all that money you lost on the home nations this week (permanent Team GB isn’t sounding so silly now, is it?!).
As stated earlier in the article, these two sides look evenly matched, which is further underlined by the fact that both games between them last season ended in a stalemate.
With Clarke seemingly shoring up Albion’s backline, Fulham may find it hard to break through, especially with so many new players at the top end of the pitch still bedding in, and they must beware of the Baggies’ counter-attacking threat.
To place the cherry on the impasse prediction, perhaps it should also be noted that Fulham and West Brom finished ninth and tenth respectively last season.
If all of this confidence in a tie doesn’t guarantee a five-goal deficit to either team, then I don’t know what will.
Recommended bet: Fulham and West Brom to draw @ 12/5
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