Fulham v West Ham United
Premier League, Craven Cottage, Saturday 14 September 2024, 3pm BST
West Ham United’s early-season tour of London continues after the September international break with a trip down the River Thames to Craven Cottage.
The Hammers will not leave the capital in the league until 2 November, with nine straight matches scheduled inside the M25 to kick-off the 2024/25 campaign.
The fourth of those sees Julen Lopetegui take his squad to Fulham, where those who featured last season will have nightmares when they recall the 5-0 humbling the Irons took at the hands of Marco Silva’s side.
After two defeats in the league so far this season, either side of victory at Crystal Palace, those in Claret and Blue will be looking to kickstart a strong run of form in west London, to power them up the Premier League ranks.
Tickets…
West Ham fans are advised that the Club’s allocation of 2,701 tickets have sold out.
The first 90 per cent of tickets sold out to Bondholders and Season Ticket Holders with 22+ Loyalty Points. The remaining ten per cent (270 tickets) were then made available by a ballot process to Season Ticket Holders who had yet to purchase for this fixture. This ballot closed at 12noon on Monday 19 August.
Travel…
The simplest way to reach Craven Cottage is by using public transport.
The nearest London Underground station is Putney Bridge on the District line, which is a 15-minute walk along Ranelagh Gardens and the Thames Path through Bishops Park and into Stevenage Road, from where you can access the Putney End.
Fulham Broadway and Parsons Green are also on the District line, but are both around 30-minutes’ walk to Craven Cottage.
Alternatively, you can travel to Hammersmith on the Hammersmith & City, Circle, Piccadilly or District lines. From there, it is a half-hour walk to the stadium, or you can take the 220 bus to Fulham Palace Road.
If you prefer, Putney mainline station is around 25-minutes’ walk away across Putney Bridge on the south side of the River Thames and can be reached by South Western Trains from Clapham Junction and Waterloo. You can also catch the 74, 220 or 424 bus to Fulham Palace Road.
Parking around Craven Cottage is both extremely limited and restricted to the extent that driving really is not advisable.
Supporters using public transport are advised to check their journeys before they travel, using resources such as TfL’s Journey Planner and the TfL Go app. Supporters may also wish to visit the National Rail website if travelling on the rail network.
How To Follow…
Saturday’s 3pm kick-off will NOT be broadcast live in the UK, but will be shown across the world by the Premier League’s international broadcast partners.
If you live outside the UK, click HERE for details of Premier League listings in your territory.
You can follow the action via our live blog on whufc.com and our app, and across our social media channels. We will also have highlights and exclusive reaction for you after the final whistle on our website and social media.
Live audio commentary will be available in the UK on BBC Radio London, and worldwide on our official website and app.
Team News…
Following a busy September international period, a host of West Ham United’s first-team stars are now back in the UK with their attentions turned to Saturday’s Fulham clash.
Skipper Jarrod Bowen will be looking to add to his tally of two goals in four games on the domestic scene so far in 2024/25, while the likes of Tomáš Souček and Michail Antonio will be hoping to pick up where they left off after netting for their countries within the last week.
Deadline-day signing Carlos Soler could be in line to make his Hammers debut in midfield, while Luis Guilherme and Andy Irving are also looking for their first minutes in Claret and Blue having featured on the bench during the early stages of the campaign.
Fulham reportedly have minimal fitness issues, while they will be hoping the likes of Antonee Robinson can continue his fine run of form, with the USA international contributing two assists from his three Premier League outings so far this term.
Opposition…
After two seasons back in the Premier League, and commendable tenth and 13th-place finishes, Fulham will surely be aiming to kick on this year and at least earn a spot in the top half.
A run to the semi-finals of last term’s EFL Cup, that was brought to an end only by eventual champions Liverpool, suggests that Marco Silva and his talented squad could even be on the lookout for silverware in 2024/25, as they continue to build on the solid platform they have created.
The Cottagers did plenty of business in the summer transfer window, shelling out large sums of money on the likes of Emile Smith Rowe, Sander Berge and Joachim Andersen from Arsenal, Burnley and Crystal Palace respectively.
They are having to learn how to live without the services of João Palhinha, who left for Bayern Munich, as well as Tosin Adarabioyo, but having coped well following the departure of Aleksandar Mitrović little over a year ago, there aren’t likely to be too many concerns among the club’s fanbase.
Three Premier League outings so far have yielded a win, a loss and a draw, and they currently sit one point and one place above West Ham in the standings. In the EFL Cup, they comfortably saw off League One Birmingham City last month, to set up a third-round clash against Preston.
Former Hammer Issa Diop could line up for the home side, while among Julen Lopetegui’s squad, Wes Foderingham, Alphonse Areola and Maximilian Kilman have all spent time at Fulham during their respective careers.
Previous Meetings…
West Ham dominate the overall head-to-head record, with 51 wins to Fulham’s 34, in addition to 24 draws, though Julen Lopetegui’s charges will be desperate to overturn a run of back-to-back defeats at the hands of the Cottagers.
After going six games unbeaten against their London rivals - a stretch that included five wins, starting back in December 2018 - the Hammers were defeated in both meetings last term, by an aggregate scoreline of 0-7.
Before the 0-5 defeat in December 2023, West Ham’s last reverse at Fulham had come on New Year’s Day 2014, while their most recent success there came courtesy of a Harrison Reed own goal in April 2023.
The Irons famously defeated Bobby Moore’s Fulham 2-0 in the 1975 FA Cup final, to lift the trophy for a second time, courtesy of an Alan Taylor brace.
Match Officials…
Referee: Tim Robinson
Assistant Referees: Timothy Wood and Steven Meredith
Fourth Official: Sunny Singh Gill
VAR: Paul Tierney
Assistant VAR: Ian Hussin
Tim Robinson has been confirmed as the referee for Saturday’s Premier League match away at Fulham.
One of the Premier League’s newest regular officials, Robinson took charge of his first top-flight match in December 2019, a 1-0 win for Burnley over Newcastle United, and was promoted to Select Group One ahead of the 2023/24 season.
The official from West Sussex refereed 21 top-tier matches last season, giving out 89 yellow cards and zero red cards. He will referee a West Ham Premier League game for just the second time at Craven Cottage, having taken charge of the Hammers’ draw with AFC Bournemouth in February.
Robinson also took charge of the EFL League One Play-Off final in 2022/23, as Sheffield Wednesday beat Barnsley 1-0 after extra-time at Wembley Stadium.
For more information about the officials, click HERE.
