Fulham

Chris Adams
BBC Sport journalist

Michael Carrick has enjoyed a dream start to his second stint in the Manchester United dugout, but Fulham's visit to Old Trafford on Sunday will present a different sort of challenge to that which he has faced so far.

Fresh test for composed Carrick

United were limited to 43.9% possession in last week's impressive comeback win against top-of-the-table Arsenal and just 31.8% in their victory over second-placed Manchester City.

The home crowd will expect Carrick's side to have more of the ball in this game, and it remains to be seen how he will reshuffle his pack given the absence of the in-form Patrick Dorgu, who pulled up injured not long after his stunning strike against the Gunners.

One man who seems certain to keep his place is Bryan Mbeumo, who has two goals in two games since returning from the Africa Cup of Nations. United won just once in his absence and the Cameroon forward has now dislodged Benjamin Sesko as the central striker in Carrick's attack.

The Red Devils have won three and drawn three of their last six league games, rising to fourth in the table with the longest current unbeaten run of any side in the division as the race for Champions League football heats up. It's their longest spell without defeat since a run of eight under Ralf Rangnick in January and February 2022.

Recent history is kind as well; United have lost just one of their last 20 league games against Fulham.

Cottagers on the climb

Fulham enter February in the best form of their Premier League lives, having earned 17 points in their last eight games in their ascent to seventh place. It's the most points the Cottagers have ever amassed over any run of eight matches within a Premier League season.

After last week's stoppage-time win over Brighton, head coach Marco Silva admitted it's "not going to be easy" to keep hold of matchwinner Harry Wilson, who is attracting interest from elsewhere with his contract up in the summer.

Alongside the Wales midfielder on the scoresheet was substitute Samuel Chukwueze, proving once again that Silva's in-game adjustments are liable to pay off. Since the start of last season, Fulham substitutes have scored 24 goals, a joint-league high.

Fulham were fortunate to escape with a point at Craven Cottage in the reverse fixture in August, when Bruno Fernandes skied a penalty after a lengthy VAR review. But if they do leave Old Trafford with something on Sunday, it will mark their first unbeaten season against United since 2003-04.

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We asked for your views on how you expect Oscar Bobb to fit into Fulham following his move from Manchester City.

Here are some of your comments:

Rob: Delighted. Good pedigree. young. Just what we need. Now for another 2 or 3 players.

Bob: It's good to read Bobb will be able to play on the left or right in matches. A solid player is what is needed now to bolster our side. Another signing is still wanted. We also need to get Harry and Marco to sign extensions to their contracts.

Jack: Bobb is a fantastic player, he's got all the skill and quality of a Premier League quality winger and can go on to do big things at Fulham, he's had the chance to be influenced by some fantastic wingers such as Foden, Semenyo and Cherki and I know he will do wonders under the right management, Marco Silva will love him!

Adrian: Sorry to see him go. He has a lot of natural talent, but sadly will never get in the City team ahead of Semenyo, Cherki, Doku or even Savinho. I hope he is a success at Fulham

Fulham boss Marco Silva has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premier League game against Manchester United at Old Trafford (14:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Silva confirmed Kenny Tete is "working with the team" after missing the last four games due to a hamstring issue, while Rodrigo Muniz and Sasa Lukic are likely to not yet be fit and "everyone else is in contention".

• More on Muniz: "He is already around the team, in some drills with the team. This week is probably going to be too soon - probably next week we're going to have good news about him as well."

• On new signing from Manchester City, Oscar Bobb: "Very pleased, because I think it's a very, very good move from us. Since Adama left, or was coming close to leaving, I had some players in mind as targets and Oscar was one of them for sure."

• More on Bobb: "He's a clear replacement for the player that left the club. It's a great move from us. Very talented player, quality, individual quality as well. I have to congratulate the club and the board for the move and to be able to sign a player and to react in a way to replace a 30 year old, with a 22 year old, for the present and the future too."

• Silva said he does not know what will happen on deadline day but the "board is doing their part". He added: "It's a normal day for me. I know in England it's a special day. Everything is so clear, we have been completely aligned since the end of November."

• Asked whether Samuel Chukwueze's loan from AC Milan could be made permanent, Silva said: "There's time, we are very pleased with him. He's been able to show quality. He's a great lad, a nice boy. He's adapting for what we need. We are going to have time to do it."

• On the Cottagers' fine recent run: "This season has been more competitive than last season. The way we bounced back from around the beginning of November has been incredible."

Listen to full commentary of Man Utd v Fulham on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds from 14:00 On Sunday

Ask us questions about Fulham and we'll put them to our experts

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Winger Oscar Bobb said it was "an easy decision" to sign for Fulham after speaking with boss Marco Silva.

Norway international Bobb has made the £27m switch from Manchester City and signed a five-and-a-half-year deal with the Cottagers.

"It feels great to be here," he told FFCtv, external. "I had a great day meeting everyone and I'm very excited.

"I've always known Fulham to be a good club, with good players and a great stadium. I spoke to Sander [Berge], my good friend, and I spoke to the manager, and he explained what the system's like, and how the lads are, and how the club is.

"He seemed lovely, so it was an easy decision basically."

Excited, Fulham fans? How do you expect the former Premier League champion to fit into the side?

Get in touch with your views here

Drew Heatley
Fan writer

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Things are going pretty well for Fulham at the moment, but I am nervous. They say all good things must come to an end – and I can see the end in sight.

We are enjoying our longest period of sustained success in years thanks to Marco Silva, who has proved to be one of our best managers of the 21st Century.

But Marco's contract runs out in the summer and he looks no closer to signing a new deal.

Harry Wilson is having the season of his life, grabbing this Fulham side by the scruff of the neck and helping us rise up the table since the start of December. He is so often responsible for our biggest moments this term, including the last-minute winner at the weekend against Brighton.

But Harry's contract runs out in the summer and reports this week claim he is waiting on assurances over his manager's future before committing to a longer stay in SW6.

It is becoming a bit of a catch-22 situation – and we risk losing both men come the end of June.

Striker Raul Jimenez is in a similar situation and looks most likely to move on. Plans already look to be in motion to replace the Mexican.

We have reportedly made an increased offer for injured PSV striker Ricardo Pepi, clearly concerned that the USMNT striker could go elsewhere for more money in the summer.

Amid this potential wave of upheaval is the reassuring calm that Tom Cairney will still be at Fulham next term.

Our club captain signed a new deal this week, which will take him into his 12th season at the club. Cairney has seen it all in that time.

It reminds me that football is cyclical; if Silva and Wilson do indeed depart, we will rise again. I am not nervous about that.

Find more from Drew Heatley at Fulhamish, external

Chris Wise
Final Score reporter at Craven Cottage

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You know sometimes when you are watching a game of football, and you just have a sense that something is about to happen?

That was exactly the feeling there when Harry Wilson was preparing to hit his stoppage-time free-kick, which provided Fulham with a winning goal against Brighton on Saturday.

The winger has been producing clutch moments all season for Marco Silva's side. Wilson has already surpassed his previous best goal return in a Premier League campaign, and clearly there is more to come.

But there is a cloud of doubt lingering over the Cottage.

Wilson's Fulham contract is up in the summer, and his performances have been catching the eye. It is not often that an 'oven-ready' Premier League player of his ilk comes onto the market as a free agent, and I imagine the interest is going to be high.

The Wales international might yet sign a new deal with the Cottagers, but you can say with some degree of confidence that it will not be the only offer on the table.

Fulham are busy trying to add extra quality to their forward line this month. The biggest piece of business they could announce, though, would be that they have convinced Wilson to stay.

Karan Vinod
BBC Sport journalist

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Fulham target Ricardo Pepi is a 23-year-old United States international striker currently playing for PSV Eindhoven, where he has developed a reputation as one of the Eredivisie's most efficient forwards.

A right-footed centre-forward, Pepi is known for his intelligent movement in the penalty area and sharp finishing rather than physical dominance. He scored 11 goals in 18 Eredivisie appearances last season, despite starting only five matches, and has followed that up with eight goals in 15 league games this term, again largely from the bench. He has also added three goals in five Champions League appearances this season.

Pepi began his professional career with FC Dallas, making his MLS debut in 2019 before earning a move to Augsburg in the 2021-22 season. Soon after he moved to FC Groningen during the 2022-23 season, where he caught the eye of Dutch giants after scoring 12 goals in Eredivisie, and subsequently, he signed permanently for PSV in 2023-24, where he has established his club career.

At the international level, Pepi is a regular for the United States and is viewed as part of their plans heading into the 2026 World Cup. For Fulham, he would offer a mobile, penalty-box striker option amid uncertainty over their forward line beyond this season.

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Fulham and Brighton.

Here are some of your comments:

Fulham fans

Robert: Certainly not a good performance from fulham, but the substitutions paid off for us.

Gilo: Strange game. Half the time we were being mauled by Brighton and I was thinking this could be 0-3 as they walked through our midfield time and time again. But we hung in and it was much better in the second half. Harry Wilson scored a wonder goal, though their goalkeeper looked at fault. All-in-all a weird game.

Rob: Rode our luck. Could have been game over before the substitutions. Kevin and Antonee Robinson not good enough. How does he start in front of Ryan Sessegnon? It was a lot better in the last 30 minutes, but the squad needs new recruits now if there is any chance of European qualification.

Ash: We got away with a robbery. We were very poor in the middle of the pitch and struggled at times to string simple passes together. We got lucky because of two bits of quality. We will take it and move on but the performance wasn't great.

Brighton fans

Steve: We played some lovely football and were the better team yet we squandered some great chances again. We were denied a goal by VAR and made a couple of late errors. The most frustrating result of the season.

Karina: Brighton really should have put the game to bed in the first half when they were clearly the better team. We needed earlier substitutions and a bit more strength when in the 50-50 situations.

David: Once again defeat from the jaws of victory with the usual claims from the head coach that Brighton were the better team. The better teams score more goals than the other side and cement that claim. Surely Tony Bloom is looking at a change of head coach before too long as the current playing system clearly does not work?

Jane: Shocking substitutions cost us the game. We just needed to hang on.

Pundits Alan Shearer and Ashley Williams join host Mark Chapman to bring you the action and talking points from Saturday's Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Manchester City 2-0 Wolves

• Burnley 2-2 Tottenham

• Bournemouth 3-2 Liverpool

Adwaidh Rajan
BBC Sport journalist

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Fulham returned to winning ways with a 2-1 comeback win against Brighton at Craven Cottage on Saturday after their impressive six-game unbeaten run had come to a screeching halt at Leeds last week.

Looking for a response at Craven Cottage, Marco Silva's side created more than Brighton early on with Raul Jimenez's near-post effort in the 24th minute denied by a fine save from Bart Verbruggen.

However, Yasin Ayari's brilliant opener proved to be a shock to their system - one from which they failed to recover in the first half.

Silva turned to his bench to spark the comeback with Samuel Chukwueze, on his return from the Africa Cup of Nations, grabbing the equaliser 13 minutes after coming on.

Fulham have now had 33 goal involvements from their substitutes since the start of the 2024-25 Premier League season, with only Brighton (39) recording more.

The winner came in the dying moments as Harry Wilson's clever free-kick sent Brighton keeper Verbruggen scrambling across his goal in vain as the Wales international scored his ninth goal of the season.

Since the start of November, only Erling Haaland (12) has been involved in more league goals than Wilson, who has scored seven and assisted four in 14 appearances.

The win that helped them climb to seventh should give Fulham plenty of confidence before they take on fifth-placed Manchester United at Old Trafford next week.

Fulham boss Marco Silva, spoke to BBC Match of the Day after his side's victory against Brighton: "We knew we were playing against a very good side and we started the game very well with two chances

"The moment after their goal we should not fall so much. A goal cannot take everything good from ourselves but it did in the first half and we did suffer - and they played well.

"In the second half we dug in and in terms of performance, not that great, but we believe always, we changed from the bench and when we equalised we were pushing much more. We were here to take risks and we scored a great free-kick.

"Probably a draw was a fair result but we got the reward for our belief and the way we pushed. We got the three points in a really difficult game so what a win for us."

On match-winner Harry Wilson: "It's an incredible moment. When you are confident it is a perfect example and you show your qualities in many ways. He has been with us for a long time, we all know he is a great taker of free-kicks, but I think that's the first he has scored direct officially."

Did you know?

• Since the start of November, only Erling Haaland (12) has had a hand in more Premier League goals than Fulham's Harry Wilson (11 goal involvements in 14 appearances – 7 goals, 4 assists), with 2025-26 being Wilson's most productive season in terms of both goal involvements (12) and goals (8) in the division.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Fulham's performance

What did you make of Brighton's display?

Come back on Monday for a selection of your replies

Fulham manager Marco Silva makes two changes to the side that suffered a 1-0 defeat by Leeds last week.

Alex Iwobi starts on his return from Afcon, while Kevin also comes in as Ryan Sessegnon drops to bench and Sasa Lukic misses out with injury.

Fulham XI: Leno, Andersen, Jimenez, Wilson, Cuenca, Berge, Iwobi, Castagne, Kevin, Smith Rowe, Robinson.

Subs: Lecomte, Bassey, Reed, Cairney, Kusi-Asare, Chukwueze, King, Sessegnon, Diop.

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler makes three changes from the 1-1 draw against Bournemouth.

Carlos Baleba, Olivier Boscagli and Yasin Ayari start in place of Brajan Gruda, Jack Hinshelwood and Joel Veltman.

Brighton XI: Verbruggen, Dunk, Van Hecke, Baleba, Welbeck, Boscagli, Mitoma, Kadioglu, Gomez, Ayari, Gross.

Subs: Steele, Rutter, Minteh, Hinshelwood, Kostoulas, Milner, De Cuyper, Veltman, Coppola.

There are five games in the Premier League on Saturday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• West Ham v Sunderland (12:30)

• Burnley v Tottenham - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Fulham v Brighton

• Man City v Wolves - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

• Bournemouth v Liverpool (17:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-off times 15:00 GMT unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Manchester City v Wolves" or "ask BBC Sounds to play Bournemouth v Liverpool", for instance.

Find out more about how to listen to Premier League football on BBC Sounds

These two sides are next to each other in the table in 11th and 12th, and drew 1-1 at the start of the season, so you know this is going to be close.

Fulham will have Alex Iwobi, Samuel Chukwueze and Calvin Bassey back from the Africa Cup of Nations, and I am not reading too much into their last-gasp defeat at Leeds last week anyhow.

Brighton will create chances - they always do - and I am expecting them to score, but Fulham won this game 3-1 last season with Iwobi scoring twice and I am going for them again this time.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Matt Jones
BBC Sport journalist

Fulham and Brighton & Hove Albion will be out to break free of the Premier League's mid-table maelstrom when they meet at Craven Cottage on Saturday.

Both teams saw dramatic late goals go in in their respective games last week. Fulham conceded a stoppage-time strike to lose 1-0 at Leeds United, while Brighton salvaged a point against Bournemouth thanks to an overhead kick from Charalampos Kostoulas.

Sitting 11th and 12th going into the weekend's fixtures, victory for either side would put them back in touch with the European places.

Fulham on the back foot

Fulham's six-game unbeaten run was ended by Leeds last time out and there is plenty for head coach Marco Silva to ponder.

Alex Iwobi and Calvin Bassey are back from the Africa Cup of Nations, and the Portuguese coach will be hopeful they can get Fulham on the front foot in games.

Off the ball this season, Fulham have been ponderous for large parts, with their 91 high turnovers – the amount of times they've earned possession in open play within 40 metres of the opponent's goal – comfortably the lowest of any team in the league.

They are also bottom for pressed sequences, a measure of how effectively a team disrupts their opponents' ability to play out from the back.

Much of the off-the-ball intensity is initiated by the forward line and, in 34-year-old Raul Jimenez, Fulham may not have the most dynamic pressing trigger.

The Mexico international has been valuable to the team with his goalscoring this season, though. All five of his strikes this campaign have put the team ahead – the highest 100% record of any player in the league in that category.

Seagulls' subs saving the day

There have been plenty of times in his second season in charge that head coach Fabian Hurzeler has failed to get things right from the start for Brighton. Often, though, he has been able to salvage matches with his in-game acumen.

Kostoulas' goal on Monday night was the ninth scored by a Seagulls substitute this season and the 14th goal involvement from a player coming off the bench. Brighton lead the way in both categories.

They have also made the joint most substitutions by any team in the Premier League this season. The only side that can match their 104 changes across 22 games so far are Fulham.

Last season, it was Silva who made the most effective changes in the Premier League, with 17 of their goals coming from substitutes. Brighton were second with 15.

So while things could start slowly on Saturday, both coaches have proven themselves well capable of altering the course of a contest.

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

Fulham boss Marco Silva has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Brighton at Craven Cottage (kick-off 15:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Silva confirmed Sasa Lukic's injury is "serious" and it is "difficult to put a timescale" on his return but looks to be at least four to five weeks.

• However, the three players who had been away at Afcon are all all back, "healthy" and in contention for the weekend: "They should be proud for what they did. Some big performances from some of them and always good to see our players get international football and perform the way they did. They are confident and ready to help the team."

• He also expects Kenny Tete to have a chance to return for Saturday, while Rodrigo Muniz will be "soon in contention" after the weekend.

• Following reports that Harry Wilson has refused to sign a contract before he knows Silva's future, the Fulham boss says he doesn't "know where it [speculation] comes from" and doesn't "believe something like that will come from Harry or his camp".

• He added: "People can write what they want. Make rumours. I don't like people using excuses, I don't think Harry is going to use an excuse, if it is an excuse. He respects Fulham Football Club. With the contract, everyone knows the situation, everyone knows he's coming to end of contract, it is up to the club to speak with his representatives. Other speculation is just that."

• On Issa Diop's future: "So far, I don't have any news of him going in a different direction."

• On Alex Iwobi getting plaudits now: "Finally, finally, finally. It is really well deserved. Here, people are not looking at him like they should in the past. He was my player at Everton, had some good moments but consistency was missing a bit. Since joining Fulham, he has been very consistent if you look at the numbers. This was a target and something I spoke to him about, and from the first season here, his numbers have gone to a different level."

• Silva said he doesn't want to find "excuses" after their defeat by Leeds, but feels "fatigue" from being unable to rotate players contributed to a lack of "energy" and wants to see that return against Brighton.

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

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We asked for your views on Fulham's link to Manchester City winger Oscar Bobb and the development of Harry Wilson delaying talks over his future.

Here are some of your comments:

Philip: Fulham needs to do everything they can to ensure Wilson stays at the Cottage. If he does ask to leave I fear that Marco Silva might follow him out. The ownership needs to get serious with the transfer market and don't keep looking for a cheap bargain at the last minute.

Victoria: The Khan's need to get their act together and sign Wilson, who is someone who has proved himself time and time again. Why bring in another winger who has been injury prone and has not scored any goals this season? Silva needs to sign too and they need to give him what he wants. We are in a great position right now and hopefully we can build on that with Silva at the helm.

Henry: There feels like there has been a change of transfer strategy in recent times at Fulham. This potential new acquisition of Bobb represents a second £30m plus player arriving in the same season with Kevin's arrival in the summer. Is it a case of the ownership feeling the pressure of the newly promoted clubs, ambition to push for European places, or an attempt to convince Silva to stay? Maybe even possibly a combination of all three. I imagine after three consecutive seasons of Premier League football, we're finally not so tightly contained by Financial Fair Play.

Tom: Bobb would be a great signing for Fulham to give a bit of competition to Wilson on the right as he is currently competing with an out-of-sorts Adama Traore. Having four rapid, skilful wingers next season would give us the fiercest attack in our recent Premier League history and give us the best chance of reaching Europe in a long time.