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Arsenal logo
Premier League | Gameweek 32
Apr 18, 2021 at 1.30pm UK
Emirates Stadium
Fulham logo

Arsenal
1 - 1
Fulham

Maja (59' pen.), Nketiah (90+7')
Andersen (50'), Reid (61'), Areola (89')
FT(HT: 0-0)

Preview: Arsenal vs. Fulham - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Sunday's Premier League clash between Arsenal and Fulham, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Arsenal will be looking to make it three wins in a row in all competitions when they host London rivals Fulham in the Premier League on Sunday.

The Gunners have found a bit of momentum at a key point in the season, whereas Fulham have lost four league games in a row and are heading for relegation.


Match preview

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta pictured on March 6, 2021© Reuters

With the pressure on following last week's disappointing 1-1 draw in the home leg, Arsenal turned on the style to brush aside Slavia Prague 4-0 in Thursday's return fixture.

Mikel Arteta's men produced an attacking masterclass in the first half, scoring three goals in six minutes - having also had one disallowed - to advance 5-1 on aggregate.

That victory, coming on the back of a 3-0 win at Sheffield United in the league, ensures that Arsenal's campaign remains alive with six weeks to go.

The upcoming Europa League semi-final with Unai Emery's Villarreal will of course take priority for Arsenal, but they have two league matches to play before then.

The Gunners are seven points adrift of sixth place, which may not yet be even enough for a European qualification berth, so Arteta will not wave the white flag just yet.

However, not since January have Arsenal won back-to-back league games, and they have also lost eight times at home in the competition this term - their most since 1929-30.

Fulham manager Scott Parker pictured on March 7, 2021© Reuters

That is something that Fulham quite simply have to take full advantage of if they are to have any hope of avoiding relegation.

After weeks of positive talk and real hope of overtaking Newcastle United, the Cottagers' fate now looks to have been sealed following results over the past week.

Scott Parker's men went down 1-0 to Wolverhampton Wanderers last week, leaving the gap to safety at six points after an upturn in form for Newcastle, who also have a game in hand.

It is now four defeats in a row for Fulham - as many as they suffered in their previous 17 - and they still have games against Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United to come.

This is arguably the Cottagers' least favourite fixture of all, too, as they have lost each of their last six league meetings with Arsenal, conceding 18 and scoring just three.

In fact, Arsenal have never lost at home against Fulham in 29 previous meetings, which is more than they have faced any other side at home without defeat in all competitions.

Arsenal Premier League form:
  • W
  • D
  • W
  • D
  • L
  • W

Arsenal form (all competitions):
  • L
  • D
  • L
  • D
  • W
  • W

Fulham Premier League form:
  • L
  • W
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • L



Team News

Arsenal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang celebrates with the match ball after scoring a hat-trick on February 14, 2021© Reuters

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang revealed on Thursday that he was recently hospitalised with malaria, explaining his absence for Arsenal's last two matches.

The club captain will again sit this one out, while David Luiz and Kieran Tierney are the Gunners' two other confirmed injury absentees. Martin Odegaard is also a major doubt.

Granit Xhaka has filled in well at left-back in the absence of Tierney, while Rob Holding and Pablo Mari have provided some stability at the back without Luiz.

Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka recovered from injury to play an important part in the win against Slavia, but Arteta is unlikely to want to push either player too hard.

As for Fulham, they are sweating on the fitness of Ademola Lookman after the RB Leipzig loanee failed to shake off a knock in time for the defeat to Wolves last week.

Aleksandar Mitrovic is expected to start either way, having usurped the likes of Ivan Cavaleiro and Josh Maja in the pecking order.

However, Mitrovic has played in more Premier League London derbies without ever ending on the winning side than any other player in the competition's history, losing 14 out of 16.

Tom Cairney is definitely out of this trip to the Emirates Stadium, meanwhile, and Marek Rodak is their other known injury doubt.

Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Leno; Bellerin, Holding, Mari, Xhaka; Partey, Elneny; Willian, Ceballos, Martinelli; Lacazette

Fulham possible starting lineup:
Areola; Aina, Andersen, Adarabioyo; Tete, Lemina, Reed, Robinson; Cordova-Reid, Loftus-Cheek; Mitrovic


SM words green background

We say: Arsenal 2-0 Fulham

Arsenal finally appear to have hit a good patch of form thanks to back-to-back wins in all competitions, though not since the turn of the year have they won three in a row.

While Arteta will likely rotate his side on the back of Thursday's trip to Prague, the Gunners should have more than enough quality to condemn Fulham to a fifth straight loss.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a double chance bet on a home win or an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home/Away:data


Video prediction

Watch the Sports Mole Football Shorts prediction for this game below:



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Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Arsenal win with a probability of 48.25%. A draw had a probability of 26.5% and a win for Fulham had a probability of 25.3%.

The most likely scoreline for an Arsenal win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.77%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (9.31%) and 2-1 (9.1%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.47%), while for a Fulham win it was 0-1 (8.56%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 12.5% likelihood.


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Game History

How you voted: Arsenal vs Fulham

Arsenal
87.6%
Draw
6.6%
Fulham
5.8%
137
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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City97202091123
2Liverpool97111751222
3Arsenal95311710718
4Aston Villa95311611518
5Chelsea95221911817
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton94411612416
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest9441117416
8Tottenham HotspurSpurs94141810813
9Brentford94141818013
10Fulham93331212012
11Bournemouth93331111012
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle9333910-112
13West Ham UnitedWest Ham93241316-311
14Manchester UnitedMan Utd9324811-311
15Leicester CityLeicester92341317-49
16Everton92341016-69
17Crystal Palace9135611-56
18Ipswich TownIpswich9045920-114
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves90271225-132
20Southampton9018619-131


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