Fulham travel to Merseyside to take on Liverpool as both sides look to continue their impressive starts to the 2024/25 Premier League season.
The Premier League season enters its crucial stage, with lots of points on offer during the festive period, hence Liverpool and Fulham will be keen to secure a positive result.
Marco Silva’s men pushed Liverpool all the way four times last season as both teams met in the Carabao Cup semifinal when the Reds edged the tie 3-2 on aggregate. Meanwhile, the corresponding fixture in the Premier League was an instant classic as Fulham were ten minutes away from a famous victory at Anfield but had the game turned on its head with Trent Alexander-Arnold’s winner sealing a 4-3 thriller.Â
The Reds have made a record-breaking start to the season despite Arne Slot overseeing a period of continuity having taken over as Liverpool manager from Jurgen Klopp. The Dutchman has given his team the chance to ease into his philosophy and although the Reds are far from perfect, they have an experienced squad full of serial winners.
They are benefitting the most from Manchester City and Arsenal’s current slumps and so far, Liverpool has the least flaws of the title-chasing trio.
The Merseysiders are the only team with a perfect record in the UEFA Champions League after four games and they now enjoy a five-point lead at the top of the Premier League table. Their 2-0 win over Aston Villa takes them to 28 points having drawn and lost one each from their first 11 matches.Â
They are in a better position than they envisaged this early into Slot’s reign, and now Liverpool are only the sixth team to be at least five points clear after 11 Premier League games. Pertinently, the other five sides went on to win the league in that same season.
Although unexpected, the Anfield side are looking to win the league for the first time since 2019/20, and their supporters will know there is a long way to go in the race.
The Reds sit top of the Premier League, and top of the Champions League, are through to the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, and have lost just once across all competitions. They are favoured to go all the way in the title race and Fulham will have a hard time containing this rampant side.Â
On the other hand, Fulham have been impressive so far this season and they sit seventh in the league standings as we approach December.
After losing the opening game to Manchester United in a game they should have left with at least a point, the Cottagers went unbeaten in the next five games. That run was ended by Man City who had to come back from Fulham’s opener to win 3-2, they then lost to Aston Villa but have gone unbeaten since.
Fulham drew Everton before derby victories against Brentford and Crystal Palace, they now face a quick turnaround of games until the end of the year and must retain their good form.Â
They will aim to nick a result against the Reds which would significantly boost their confidence given they have been unlucky to leave empty-handed in recent trips to Anfield.Â
Silva’s side poses a serious threat here and Liverpool must be wary of complacency.Â
Match tickets
This Premier League Matchday 16 fixture takes place on Saturday, 14 December 2024 with kick-off scheduled for 3 PM UK time, it promises to be a spectacular occasion with top-quality football on show. Match tickets are available for sale on the website of each club, with priority access given to club members and season ticket holders.
The famous Anfield stadium is the befitting venue for this interesting match-up and there will be over 61,000 seats available for fans to witness the action. There is always a rousing atmosphere whenever Liverpool is in action on home soil as their fans make for a memorable spectacle, nevertheless, travelling supporters will also be present in their numbers.Â
The search for tickets might be tricky given this should be a sold-out match, so fans would need to get their Liverpool vs Fulham tickets on a resale site. Meanwhile, other match-going supporters can also find more Liverpool tickets for the entire season.Â
Team news
Harvey Elliott is a long-term absentee for Liverpool at the time of writing with a broken foot.Â
Trent Alexander-Arnold is currently unavailable but his injury is not thought to be long-term, so he should be fit for this game.Â
Meanwhile, Alisson Becker and Diogo Jota are doubts.
Sasa Lukic is Fulham’s only injury worry and they will hope to maintain a fully-fit squad throughout the festive fixtures.
Line-ups
Mohamed Salah has been in top form as the first player across Europe’s top five leagues to register double figures for both goals and assists this season. The Egyptian is primed to register a goal contribution and Fulham must be cautious of his clinical presence.Â
Despite uncertainty over his future at the club, he is his team’s undisputed dangerman.Â
Liverpool: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, MacAllister; Salah, Jones, Gakpo; Nunez
Silva has a team of trusted lieutenants that have been bolstered by the arrivals of Emile Smith Rowe and Reiss Nelson, as well as Raul Jimenez’s return to goalscoring form this term.
This has made the Whites a lot more creative whilst retaining the solidity that has brought them success under the Portuguese manager.Â
Fulham: Leno; Tete, Andersen, Bassey, Robinson; Berge, Pereira; Traore, Smith Rowe, Iwobi; Jimenez
Prediction
Liverpool are the clear favourites for this one but their visitors will have a trick or two up their sleeves to try to steal a result. This will also be interesting tactically as the home side attack with vigour while Fulham will look to stay disciplined and cause damage on the counterattack.Â
It draws up an interesting battle for what should be an end-to-end game, but Liverpool have more than enough firepower to outpunch their visitors.Â
Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
