🔊 Who will come out on top in the London derby? Chelsea and Fulham are set to kick off the action for the third round of the English Premier League. The match is scheduled for August 30th at Stamford Bridge. The hosts are strong favorites, but the Cottagers arrive in the blue part of London riding an impressive unbeaten streak and are determined to maintain it. Marco Silva's side will aim to surprise their formidable opponents. Let's not forget, they managed to do so last season. More on that in the next section of our prediction.

Head-to-Head

📊 In the last Premier League campaign, these teams produced two remarkably similar encounters, each securing a 2-1 victory away from home. In both instances, the hosts quickly took the lead but failed to capitalize. As a result, their opponents equalized in the dying minutes of regular time and then scored the winner in stoppage time. Even the timing of the goals was almost identical in both matches.

However, this marked the first occasion since 2012 that Fulham managed to score away against the "Pensioners." Therefore, betting on under 1 goal for the visitors is worth considering.

Chelsea Team Overview

Chelsea looked lackluster in their opening match against Crystal Palace (0-0), creating barely any dangerous chances throughout the game. However, Enzo Maresca quickly learned from his mistakes, and in the second round, his team delivered a brilliant performance. A quick goal from West Ham, which came partly due to an error by Robert Sanchez, did not unsettle the Blues. By halftime, they were already leading by two goals. Remarkably, their corner kicks were on point, with three leading to goals. The most effective player in terms of goal contributions was Joao Pedro (1 goal, 2 assists). It's worth noting that the 5-1 thrashing was achieved without Cole Palmer, who was injured during the pre-match warm-up.

Fulham Team Overview

Fulham have kicked off the season with two draws, both ending 1-1. However, the nature of these games was quite different. In the match against Brighton, the Cottagers didn't outplay their opponents, equalizing through Rodrigo Muniz's late effort. But in last week's home clash with Manchester United, they truly impressed. Marco Silva's squad once again showed resilience, responding to the opponent's goal (Emile Smith Rowe scored just two minutes after coming on) and looked closer to victory thanks to their persistence in the closing stages. Additionally, Fulham cruised into the third round of the League Cup on Wednesday by defeating Bristol City 2-0. Raúl Jiménez scored his first goal of the season, which could help the Mexican forward gain momentum.

Latest news

Chelsea

📝 Reports suggest that Chelsea are showing genuine interest in Barcelona midfielder Fermin Lopez. Alejandro Garnacho also remains on the club's radar, with a transfer being pursued in the near future.

🔝 According to Opta, since the start of last season, Chelsea under Enzo Maresca have collected more points in London derbies than any other team—26 points from 7 wins, 5 draws, and 2 losses.

❌ The Blues have a significant number of players not in the manager’s plans, who are expected to leave the club. This list includes Axel Disasi, Christopher Nkunku, Raheem Sterling, and Nicolas Jackson. Additionally, several players are sidelined due to injuries: Levi Colwill, Benoit Badiashile, and Romeo Lavia. Cole Palmer is currently training individually, taking a cautious approach to his return.

Fulham

🎙 "The first half was better than the second. It was crucial for us to start well, create opportunities, and capitalize on them, and we did. It's always important in these games to take control of the ball to gain confidence. This affects opponents who are highly motivated in such matches. In the first half, we managed possession very well. We had several good chances and combinations, and I'm pleased with that. I told the players at halftime that we needed to come out for the second half and continue playing as we did in the first; it was also crucial to keep a clean sheet. The second half wasn't the game I wanted to see. We should have maintained more possession, but we started losing the ball too often. Overall, the opponent played very well and professionally," said Marco Silva after their victory over Bristol.

📝 Fabrizio Romano reports that Fulham are negotiating for two wingers. The Cottagers are close to signing Samuel Chukwueze from Milan for €25 million. They are also interested in Kevin from Shakhtar, but the Donetsk club is asking for €50 million for the Brazilian, while the Londoners are willing to offer only €42 million.

✅ The visitors have no injuries or suspensions ahead of the upcoming match.

🟨 Referee and Yellow Cards

🟨 Referee and Yellow Cards

The match will be officiated by Robert Jones, who has averaged 3.6 yellow cards over his last 10 Premier League matches. This statistic aligns perfectly with the trend where the total over 3.5 bookings has hit in six consecutive head-to-head meetings between Chelsea and Fulham in the EPL. Last season, both teams averaged more than two yellow cards per game, making this a solid option to consider.

⚽️ Goal Prediction

Fulham have a troublesome habit of conceding in the first 45 minutes on the road. This has happened in six of their last seven away matches. Chelsea are unlikely to take long to find their rhythm—there's no time for the Blues to procrastinate, so we suggest betting on a home goal in the first half.

🚩 Corner Prediction

Both teams have shown a tendency for low corner counts, making a bet on under 11.5 corners quite reasonable. This has been the case in six of Fulham's last seven official matches. Considering that in the last five head-to-head Premier League encounters, neither side has surpassed 10 corners, this choice seems hard to argue against.

Bookmakers have Chelsea as clear favorites, and our editorial team shares this view. Fulham are a solid mid-table side capable of challenging any team, but in this case, the likelihood of such an outcome seems very low, as even scoring at Stamford Bridge is an incredibly tough task for the Cottagers. Chelsea's thrashing of West Ham has restored their confidence, and they have been calmly preparing for this third-round fixture during the week, while Marco Silva’s side were busy with the League Cup.

All signs point to the favorite confidently securing their win. We anticipate a repeat of the most common recent scoreline in head-to-head clashes at the Bridge (2-0) and are backing Chelsea to score over 1.5 goals. The Blues have hit this mark in six of their last seven official matches.