Barclays Premier League
West Ham United v Fulham
Boleyn Ground
Sunday 4 October 2009
3pm
Referee: Phil Dowd
Introduction
· West Ham United play host to Fulham on Sunday in their third home game of the 2009/10 season. After defeats by big-spending opponents in their first two matches at the Boleyn Ground, the Hammers will hope to continue their good run of form against the Cottagers and return to winning ways.
· The game has been moved to Sunday due to Fulham's commitments in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday. With the home games with Arsenal and Everton also being moved to Sunday due to television and Europa League commitments respectively, West Ham United's first 3pm Saturday kick-off of the season will not come until Burnley visit the Boleyn Ground on 28 November.
· West Ham sit in 18th place in the fledgling Barclays Premier League standings with four points from six matches. Sunday's visitors are two points and a place ahead, having played the same amount of games. A win for the home side could see them climb as high as 13th place.
· The Hammers have not picked up three points since their opening day victory at Wolverhampton Wanderers, but if recent luck against Fulham is anything to go by they will fancy their chances changing that statistic.
· West Ham have won the last four games in a row against Roy Hodgson's side, and have not lost to them since an FA Cup game in February 2004 - eight games in total.
· You have to go back even further to find Fulham's last league victory over the Hammers. That came in November 2001 when they beat the Hammers 2-0 at the Boleyn Ground.
· This is the 75th league meeting between the two sides. West Ham United have won 34, Fulham have won 24 and there have been 16 draws.
Last meeting
· The last time the two sides met on 18 January 2009, West Ham United came out on top for the fourth consecutive time. Goals from David Di Michele, Mark Noble and Carlton Cole, his fifth consecutive goalscoring game, helped the Hammers move up to eighth in the Premier League. Fulham's consolation came from former player Paul Konchesky's long-range effort.
The teams that day were -
West Ham United: Green, Neill (c), Collins, Upson, Ilunga, Behrami, Parker, Noble (Faubert, 81), Collison (Mullins 83), Cole, Di Michele (Dyer 87),
Subs: Stech, Boa Morte, Tristan, Sears
Goals: Di Michele 7, Noble (pen) 60, Cole 76.
Fulham: Schwarzer, Pantsil, Hughes, Hangeland, Konchesky, Davies (Gera 74), Etuhu, Murphy (c), Dempsey, Johnson, Zamora (Nevland 72)
Subs: Zuberbuhler, Baird, Andreasen, Kallio, Gray
Goal: Konchesky 22.
Last time out
Monday 28 September
Barclays Premier League
Manchester City 3-1 West Ham United
West Ham United: Green, Faubert, Tomkins, Da Costa, Ilunga, Noble, Parker, Kovac (Stanislas 71), Jimenez (Hines 71), Diamanti, Cole
Subs: Kurucz, Spector, 'Gala, Payne, Nouble
Goal: Cole 24
Thursday 2 October
UEFA Europa League
Fulham 1-0 FC Basle
Fulham: Schwarzer ,Konchesky ,Baird ,Kelly ,Smalling ,Murphy ,Greening ,Riise ,Dempsey ,Andrew Johnson ,Zamora
Subs not used: Hughes, Paintsil, Anderson, Gera, Saunders, Nevland, Kamara,
Goal: Murphy 57
Referee
• Sunday's referee is Phil Dowd.
• Dowd began refereeing in 1984 before graduating to the Staffordshire Senior League and Midland Football Alliance.
• He joined the Football League list of assistant referees in 1992 before joining the list of referees in 1997.
• Dowd was promoted to the Barclays Premier League list of referees in 2001. This is his ninth season as a top-flight referee.
• He was the fourth official at the 2006 FA Cup final between West Ham United and Liverpool at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.
• Dowd took charge of five West Ham matches last season, most notably the 3-1 home victory over Newcastle United on 20 September, Gianfranco Zola's first match as Hammers manager. Dowd was also the man in the middle for West Ham's home matches against Arsenal, Fulham and Manchester United and the penultimate game of the season away at Everton.
·Sunday's game will be Dowd's second Hammers game of the season after refereeing the goalless draw with Blackburn Rovers on 29 August.
Old boys
· Injured Luis Boa Morte made 250 appearances for Fulham in all competitions between July 2000 and January 2007, scoring 54 goals. Boa Morte scored 18 goals as the Cottagers secured promotion to the Premier League in 2000/01. He was voted the club's player of the season in 2004/05.
· Four Fulham players could turn out against their former club this afternoon. Striker Bobby Zamora scored 40 goals in 152 league and cup appearances for West Ham United between February 2004 and July 2008. Full-back John Pantsil played 24 matches for the Hammers between August 2006 and July 2008. Left-back Paul Konchesky made 70 appearances for West Ham between July 2005 and July 2007, scoring one of only two goals for the club in the 2006 FA Cup final.
· Bobby Moore MBE played for both West Ham United and Fulham during his glittering career. Moore made 544 appearances for the Hammers before moving to Craven Cottage for £25,000 in 1974. England's World Cup-winning captain remained at Fulham for three years, making a further 124 appearances and facing his former side in the 1975 FA Cup final, which West Ham won 2-0.
· Among the other players who have represented both sides are Jan Lastuvka, Ian Pearce, Rufus Brevett, George Carter, Brian Dear, Tony Gale, Ron Greenwood, Jon Harley, Fred Harrison, Jack Hebden and George Horler.
Head to head
(last six meetings, league unless stated)
18 January 2009 - West Ham United 3-1 Fulham
27 September 2008 - Fulham 1-2 West Ham United
23 February 2008 - Fulham 0-1 West Ham United
12 January 2008 - West Ham United 2-1 Fulham
13 January 2007 - West Ham United 3-3 Fulham
23 December 2006 - Fulham 0-0 West Ham United
Overall record v Fulham (all competitions) W 36, D 27, L 18
West Ham United
· Robert Green has played 94 consecutive Barclays Premier League games - more than any other player in the top-flight currently. All being well, he will reach his unbroken century away to Hull City on Saturday 21 November.
· Four players - Mark Noble, Matthew Upson, Alessandro Diamanti and Carlton Cole (three) - have got on the league scoresheet for the Hammers so far this season.
· Cole has had more shots (21) than any other West Ham player this season, with 11 of them hitting the target.
· Noble leads the way in the assists chart, with two to his name.
· Alessandro Diamanti has put more crosses into the box than any of his team-mates (4).
· Scott Parker has won more free-kicks than any other Hammers player (15).
· Cole has also done his bit at the back with more defensive clearances (8) than anyone else.
· Cole, who has eight goals in his last 16 league appearances dating back to last season, led the way in the scoring charts last season as well with ten Premier League goals, one in the FA Cup and one in the League Cup.
· West Ham have won the highest percentage of tackles in the top flight (80%).
· The Hammers finished last season in ninth in the Barclays Premier League with 51 points, a place and two points higher than they managed in the previous season.
· West Ham have recorded exactly 700 Premier League points so far, with the 0-0 draw at Ewood Park taking them to that milestone.
· West Ham's biggest ever home win over Fulham came in the shape of a 7-2 First Division defeat of the Cottagers on 3 February 1968, with all three of the Hammers' World Cup winners getting on the scoresheet. A crowd of 31,248 saw Trevor Brooking (two), Martin Peters, Geoff Hurst (two), Bobby Moore, Brian Dear.
· The Hammers also secured a 6-1 First Division victory on 5 November 1966. Geoff Hurst scored four times and Martin Peters added a brace. Fred Callaghan had given Fulham an early lead. That victory was matched on 1 September 1917, when Danny Shea scored four times and Frank Roberts twice.
· West Ham are next in action on Saturday 17 October when they travel to Stoke City in the Barclays Premier League.
Fulham
· Clint Dempsey has had the most shots in the Premier League (21) without scoring. Seven of those have hit the target.
· Bobby Zamora is Fulham's top scorer so far this season with three goals, two of which came in the UEFA Europa League.
· West Ham will have to be wary of Damien Duff if selected. The Ireland international has put in eleven crosses so far this season.
· Brede Hangeland has made more defensive clearances than any of his other team-mates (10)
· Mark Schwarzer will turn 37 on Tuesday.
· Fulham have never failed to score at Upton Park in the Premier League.
· Fulham's biggest win at the Boleyn Ground came in their last victory over the Hammers, in an FA Cup fifth-round replay on 24 February 2004. Brian McBride, Barry Hayles and current West Ham United player Luis Boa Morte netted in the final 14 minutes to give the Whites a 3-0 victory. Fulham have never won a league game at the Boleyn Ground by more than two clear goals, winning 2-0 on 3 November 2001 through goals from Sylvain Legwinski and Steed Malbranque.
Team news
· With another day of training before the game, both managers will wait until Sunday afternoon before finalising their plans for the game.
· Gianfranco Zola could welcome back at least two more key players to his squad for the game. Matthew Upson and Valon Behrami have both been in full training this week after recovering from the calf injuries that ruled them out of Monday's game at Eastlands.
· If Upson does return, Zola will have the tough choice of leaving our either James Tomkins or Manuel Da Costa, who looked assured on his first Premier League start against City.
· Fresh from his first England Under-21 call-up, Zavon Hines could be recalled to the starting XI
· It remains to be seen whether Guille Franco will be in line to make his debut after edging closer to match fitness.
· Luis Boa Morte is due back at the club by the end of the month to step up his rehab.
· Terry Dixon is in full training with the reserves and could feature in their next game away at Chelsea on 19 October.
· Danny Gabbidon and Kieron Dyer are not expected to be back this week after respective muscle injuries.
· Fulham made five changes for Thursday's game with Basle and is expected to shuffle his pack once more for Sunday's game.
· Two players who could return are Brede Hangeland and Dickson Etuhu, while Damien Duff (calf) and Simon Davies (foot) are set to miss out.
General information
The weather for Sunday is predicted to be sunny with a top temperature of 15 degrees. For ticket information, click here