Wolverhampton Wanderers will be looking to end a 60-year streak when they face Fulham in the Premier League on Friday night.
Since the arrival of Julen Lopetegui in November, the West Midlands outfit have been on an upward trajectory, recently moving outside of the relegation zone.
However, despite collecting nine points from a possible 12 ahead of hosting Bournemouth last weekend, Wolves succumbed to a 1-0 defeat at Molineux.
The situation at the wrong end of the table has now changed considerably with just eight points separating the bottom nine teams.
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From Wolves' perspective, they occupy 15th spot in the standings, sitting three points clear of 18th-placed West Ham United, but Lopetegui and his players are aware that the landscape can change with a win or defeat in their upcoming fixture.
Standing in their way are a team in Fulham who are sixth and have recorded successive victories over Nottingham Forest and Brighton & Hove Albion, keeping clean sheets in the process.
Nevertheless, Wolves head into their encounter with the Cottagers in West London with the opportunity to end a streak which has lasted since December 1962.
Not since that time have Wolves recorded back-to-back wins in away top-flight games with Fulham, when they posted three triumphs in a row.
With Fulham having spent last season in the Championship, the two teams are squaring off at Craven Cottage for the first time since April 2021.
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Wolves recorded a dramatic victory on that occasion, Adama Traore netting a last-gasp winner from an acute angle to see the visitors prevail by a 1-0 scoreline.
In total, Wolves are on a five-match unbeaten streak versus Fulham in the Premier League, helped by goalkeeper Jose Sa making a late penalty save during a goalless draw back in August.
Despite Wolves collecting 13 points from eight games under Lopetegui, Fulham are by far the form team out of the two since the World Cup break.
Marco Silva's team have 19 points from nine matches during that period, conceding only four goals ahead of playing opponents who have registered just nine Premier League strikes under Lopetegui.
Darren Plant
