Preview: Fulham vs Southampton - prediction, team news, lineups

Fulham welcome Southampton to Craven Cottage on Sunday afternoon for the fifth round of this season's FA Cup campaign.

The Cottagers booked their spot in the tie after winning 2-1 away at Stoke City in round four, while the Saints edged past Leicester City by the same scoreline following extra time at St Mary's Stadium.

Match preview

Wednesday's loss at home to West Ham United ended Fulham's run of three successive wins in all competitions, which started with their triumph away to Stoke in the previous round of the FA Cup.

Being out of the League Cup and with little to play for in the Premier League, currently sat 10th in the table, the FA Cup gives Marco Silva's men a great chance of fighting for silverware this season.

With the Cottagers never winning the competition before, their only final appearance being a 1-0 loss against West Ham in 1975, the west-London outfit will certainly feel that a club of their stature has some history to write in the world's oldest tournament.

However, Fulham do have a rather disappointing recent record at this phase of the competition, with their 3-0 quarter-final defeat to eventual winners Crystal Palace last season being only their second match at that stage over the previous 15 campaigns.

Having faced Premier League opposition in each of their previous three fifth round matches, Fulham will be happier that this time around they face Championship side Southampton, who they have not lost any of their previous four meetings with, the most recent of which being a 2-1 Cottagers win at St Mary's Stadium last season.

Unbeaten in their previous nine matches in all competitions, Southampton are currently the form side in the Championship and sit seventh in the league table, having overturned their poor stretch of results from the end of 2025.

Winning 3-2 away at Doncaster Rovers before beating Leicester City 2-1 after extra time in round four, the Saints are featuring at this stage of the competition for the fifth time in the previous six seasons, bowing out on only one occasion to Premier League opposition.

Unlike Sunday's hosts, Southampton are previous winners of the competition, beating Manchester United 1-0 in the 1976 final, which is made even more impressive by the fact they were a second division side at the time.

Although they are certainly the underdogs this weekend, the Saints have a respectable recent record at Craven Cottage, losing only two of their previous eight matches there and winning three over that span.

Fulham FA Cup form:

Fulham form (all competitions):

Southampton FA Cup form:

Southampton form (all competitions):

Team News

Fulham will certainly be without Brazilian winger Kevin for the remainder of the season after he recently underwent surgery on an ankle injury sustained last month.

It looks as though the Cottagers could possibly miss talisman Harry Wilson for Sunday's match too, with the Welshman facing a late fitness test after missing the game against West Ham with an ankle problem.

If Wilson was to miss out, it is likely that Samuel Chukwueze will fill the void, with the Nigeria international playing the full 90 minutes on Wednesday night.

Although it is not certain, it looks as though Southampton forward Jay Robinson will narrowly miss out on a return to the matchday squad this weekend.

The 18-year-old has been sidelined for over a month with a thigh injury, however Saints boss Tonda Eckert expects him to be available again in the near future.

Mads Roerslev Rasmussen and Welington will also be unavailable for the visitors on Sunday, with the pair recovering from Achilles tendon and muscle injuries respectively.

Fulham possible starting lineup:

Leno; Tete, Diop, Bassey, Robinson; Iwobi, Berge; Bobb, Smith Rowe, Chukwueze; Muniz

Southampton possible starting lineup:

Peretz; Bree, Harwood-Bellis, Stephens, Manning; Charles, Bragg; Matsuki, Azaz, Scienza; Larin

We say: Fulham 2-1 Southampton

Although Southampton are in an outstanding patch of form and look set to be battling for an immediate Premier League until the end of the season, we think Fulham will have just too much for them on Sunday afternoon.

The Cottagers have a great recent record against the Saints and after a disappointing result in the week, they will no doubt have added incentive to return to winning ways and progress to the quarter-final stage in back-to-back seasons.

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