Fulham

Marissa Thomas
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Rodrigo Muniz continued his fine form in front of goal for Fulham as they were held at home against Crystal Palace.

The Brazilian forward, and Premier League Player of the Month for March, has now scored nine league goals since the start of February; only Cole Palmer and Phil Foden (11 each) have scored more goals in the competition over that period.

Alex Iwobi made his 250th top flight appearance, becoming the fourth Nigerian player to do so after Shola Ameobi, Kanu and Yakubu. The former Arsenal midfielder could have celebrated the milestone with an assist but Harrison Reed blasted an effort over the bar from Iwobi's cut back.

The White were pegged back late on but a draw was arguably a fair result given Palace's first-half dominance.

It is now 14 league games in which Fulham have avoided defeat when scoring the opening goal (W11 D3).

Another London derby awaits next Saturday when Marco Silva's side travel to Brentford (15:00 BST).

Fulham manager Marco Silva has been speaking to BBC Match of the Day following the draw: "In the first half, it is clear that we were second best in almost everything. It was difficult for us, except in the last 10 or 15 minutes.

"The moment when [Bernd] Leno got a small injury was important, to give feedback to the players, and straight away we start to be slightly better. But, I have to say, two different halves. It is a cliché but it was two different halves.

"It was better for Palace in the first half. We were not capable to build our attacks the way we normally do, there was strong pressure.

"The second half was completely different. The way we started, we were more aggressive on the ball and off the ball, much more bravery to find the gaps that we want to find and we scored the goal because of that, and we were on the front foot in some moments.

"They equalised with an amazing strike, but we should have prevented it much better to stop the ball going in that area."

On Rodrigo Muniz's goal: "It is important, but this is a striker's life you know. Sometimes they do so well and play amazing games and they don't score. Probably this afternoon wasn't his best game and he [still] scored.

"For example, away against West Ham he didn't score but he put in a top performance in my opinion. Last week against Liverpool, he was top level too and he didn't score.

"[Today] In the right moment he was there. It is a great goal and a great assist from Timothy [Castagne] as well. It was an important moment for us, but unfortunately it did not give us the chance to get three points."

Here are the key facts and figures following Saturday’s game between Fulham and Crystal Palace in the Premier League.

• Fulham are now unbeaten across their past five Premier League matches against Crystal Palace (W1 D4). It is Fulham's longest unbeaten league run against the Eagles since a 12-game run in the second division between 1974 and 1985 (W4 D8).

• Crystal Palace are now without a win across their last 11 Premier League away games against fellow London sides (D5 L6). This is their joint-longest run in the Premier League alongside another run of 11 games between 1997 and 2014 (D2 L9).

• Fulham have now lost just one of their past six London derbies in the Premier League (W4 D1) and are unbeaten in their last three (W2 D1). This is their longest such run in the competition since winning three derbies in a row between January and April 2013.

• Jeffrey Schlupp scored his second Premier League goal of the season 175 days after his first goal, which also came away from home against Burnley in November. He has now scored at least two goals in each of his past six league campaigns for the Eagles.

• Rodrigo Muniz has now scored nine Premier League goals since the start of February. Only Cole Palmer and Phil Foden (11 goals each) have scored more in the competition over that period.

Jeffrey Schlupp hit a 25-yard stunner as Crystal Palace salvaged a Premier League point at Fulham.

Adam Wharton's pass found Schlupp outside the box in the closing stages, with the substitute's powerful effort arrowing into the top corner to leave goalkeeper Bernd Leno helpless.

Rodrigo Muniz's thumping header had put Fulham in front shortly after the break.

The Brazilian got on the end of Timothy Castagne's pinpoint cross, as he continued his fine form since the end of January.

But Palace, now four matches unbeaten in the league, showed fighting spirit to come back with minutes left to play, after being the better team in the first half.

Fulham fans - let us know your thoughts on the game here

How did you rate the side's performance, Crystal Palace fans?

Follow all of the reaction here

Image source, Getty Images

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches again this season, against a variety of guests.

For this weekend's games, he takes on Andy Bell and Steve Queralt from Ride, who support Arsenal and Tottenham.

Sutton's predictions: 2-2

Crystal Palace have found a bit of form and the goals are flying in too. I have always been a fan of big centre-forwards and Jean-Philippe Mateta is on fire for them at the moment, with seven in his past seven matches.

In contrast, Fulham have lost three of their past four games but, if this is the kind of game I expect it to be, I have a feeling they will halt the Palace charge.

I don't see Marco Silva's side keeping out the Eagles front-line of Mateta, Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze, but they should have plenty of chances too - I think both sets of fans are going to enjoy this one.

Andy's prediction: 1-2

It's a battle of mid-table, 13th versus 14th, and I'm going with Palace to win it.

Steve's prediction: 2-2

They are two quite well-matched teams, so a draw for me.

Read the rest of their predictions here

Seven matches make up Saturday's Premier League action and we will bring you every moment.

Follow live text updates and listen online here

BBC Radio 5 Live commentaries:

Manchester United v Burnley - Listen on BBC Sounds from 15:00

Everton v Brentford - Listen on BBC Sounds from 17:30

Marissa Thomas
BBC Sport journalist

Fulham boss Marco Silva has been facing the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Crystal Palace.

Here's what he had to say:

• Willian will "probably be involved" against Crystal Palace after training with the team for the last few days.

• On how much Willian has been missed, Silva said: "He's a really important player for us. I think any team in this league, even at his age, if you have him you are stronger. With Willian we are stronger, there is no doubt about it. It doesn't look like he is 35, it is not important for me. What is important is the way he is playing and training as well. He is almost always ready to improve something. He's a really important piece in our football club right now."

• On whether he wants Willian to stay at Fulham with his contract being up in the summer: "I will do my best to keep him in our football club. We are going to have a conversation at the end of the season. I've been speaking with him and last season we did the same. We sat together at the end of last season and we had a conversation. I think it's important for him and he wants to do the same again this season. He wants to analyse the season, we are going to do it together and of course after it is up to him to take the decision."

• On the aim for the rest of the season: "The next game is against Palace, a team in a good moment and we are playing at the Cottage and we want to be at our best level because we know even if they are in a good moment, us at our best level is going to be really difficult for them and the message is clear to reach the certain type of standards that we have at home."

• On Crystal Palace: "You can see the results, you can see the performances as well. It's always a big help when you have some key players recovering from injuries. You can see Palace, no doubts, they are much stronger if they have [Eberechi] Eze and [Michael] Olise in a very good level, and [Jordan] Ayew in a very good level as well. They have these players around and they have a striker in very good form, too – that is [Jean-Philippe] Mateta in very good form. When you have two young lads, but already with some experience, like Eze and Olise at their top level, they are players that can make a difference against any team in this competition because, in my opinion, they are really two top players."

We asked former Premier League midfielder Michael Brown his thoughts on current players hosting podcasts after West Ham's Michail Antonio accused Manchester United legend Roy Keane of having a "dinosaur mentality" for his views on the subject.

Pundit Keane told the Stick To Football, external podcast he believes the platform can be a "distraction" for players, "particularly if you’re on the back of a defeat".

Antonio co-hosts the Footballer's Football Podcast with Fulham captain Tom Cairney who replaced Newcastle striker Callum Wilson earlier in the role.

They are among sever high-profile current players to have ventured into podcasts, including Leeds striker Patrick Bamford who co-hosts My Mate's A Footballer with comedian Joe Wilkinson.

Brown's thoughts on this debate:

Players being on podcasts? It’s the world we live in. I understand the point regarding why the players are talking and what they’re talking about. We’re encouraged to be open-minded; we’re encouraged to come out and speak about things. Problems, positive things.

But I still think if edited correctly those talking points could actually be controlled. That is the key for me. If it is going to be done, it has just got to be watched over. There is fun and enjoyment, but it is not to be taken the wrong way, not to affect any performances or clubs coming your way or even your own club.

Unfortunately, it is not just Michail Antonio on a podcast, there are so many. Big players are into podcasts now and it’s not going away.

The point is not that it is a distraction. What brings it on you is when you’re quoted wrong or you have been discussing the wrong topic.

It is fine if you can do it and not have any of those problems – for instance if you are playing against another team and you said last weekend their striker has not been very good or the centre-back’s performances are not at a high level.

My point is the control and the management of the stories on the podcasts. It is fine to be done but they have to be managed correctly because any little thing can be spun when talking on an opponent or being critical of other players.

If you say, ‘well he’s just not scoring’ someone will come back and say, ‘you’re talking about him but you’re not putting the ball in the back of the net’.

The other point here is the reaction on social media, so you’ve just got to be spot on with it when you have your topics.

It is not going away - we want to hear them. Podcasts are here to stay.

Michael Brown was speaking to BBC Sport's Nat Hayward

I had great times and great fun with Chris Coleman at Fulham.

We had a wonderful group with the likes of big Zat Knight and Jimmy Bullard. We had a great time.

Chris allowed us to have fun but demanded hard work and he had a real way of getting us to do that for him.

He made the environment very nice and you have to look at what he created. It was fun every day and a team driving forward with different players all pushing together.

I think me and Jimmy Bullard still owe Chris a couple of grand that we signed to his room on the golf course during pre-season. That was always fun.

He never lets us forget it but he has buried it so it is all good!

Michael Brown was speaking to BBC Sport's Nat Hayward

Here is a selection of the key facts and figures before Fulham host Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday (15:00 BST kick-off).

• Having won two of their first three Premier League games against Crystal Palace, Fulham have won just one of their past eight against the Eagles. Despite this, they are currently unbeaten in four against their fellow Londoners.

• Fulham have won four of their past five London derbies in the Premier League, as many as their previous 44 beforehand (D9 L31).

• Crystal Palace's 1-0 win at Liverpool in their last away match ended a run of 10 Premier League games without a win on the road (D4 L6). They last won consecutive such matches in April 2023.

• Andreas Pereira has created 80 chances for his team-mates in the league this season, the most on record for a Fulham player in a campaign (since 2003-04). He also has seven assists, with Simon Davies the last Fulham player to get more in a Premier League season (eight in 2007-08).

• Michael Olise has scored in his past three Premier League London derby appearances - netting four goals in total. The only Crystal Palace player to score in four in a row is Andrew Johnson in 2004-05.

Sammy James
Fan writer

While you can't particularly grumble about losing to a team of Liverpool's quality, Fulham's performance in the second half after working so hard to get the equaliser before half-time was a bit disappointing on Sunday.

Marco Silva made one enforced change for the game as Willian dropped out for Bobby Decordova-Reid because of a minor injury.

Willian has been a revelation since joining Fulham and on Sunday it was evident how reliant we are on him, particularly against sides higher up the league.

His skill allows us to keep the ball in advanced areas and his experience means that he nearly always makes the correct decision. Also he often provides an easy out-ball for the man in possession, which we especially missed on Sunday with Liverpool's intense pressing.

Willian will return soon, but seeing us struggle without him does make me worry about how we'll eventually replace him. He's 36 in August and his contract expires in the summer.

Renewing again for another season now feels like a necessity, but in the meantime we have to find a longer-term replacement.

It's not just about finding another left-winger, but also finding somebody else with his natural skill and a wisdom that just exudes from him every time he's on the pitch.

In the meantime, Fulham should just get Willian to renew as soon as possible, as we are quite clearly an inferior team when he's not in it.

Sammy James can be found at Fulhamish, external

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Monday, 22 April marks Earth Day - a day in the international calendar that provides the opportunity to reflect, make change and understand more about sustainability and the impacts of climate change.

Sport and football are not immune to these issues and there has been increasing awareness of their relationship to the environment over the past few years.

Football has a global footprint and, as it continues to grow, it has been subject to questions and criticism over some of the decisions that could hinder efforts in reducing its impact, including expanding Uefa cup competitions and the men's Fifa World Cup.

The effects of adverse weather related to climate change has been increasingly felt, with a study last year showing extreme weather has affected 40% of football players and spectators.

But, football and its fanbase also have an opportunity to be part of the solution, with clubs like Forest Green Rovers showing how the sport's environmental footprint can be reduced.

We have taken a look into some of the key things Fulham are doing to become more sustainable:

• The Whites are a member of the British Association for Sustainable Sport, which is an organisation that aims to drive growth and understanding of sustainability in sport.

• 100% of the club's energy is procured from renewable sources.

• More than 2,000 items of first team and academy kit have been recycled to recipients of the Fulham FC Foundation's programme.

• Some 120 trees were planted at the Motspur Park training ground during 2023.

• The home, away and third kits are manufactured from 100% recycled materials and the club shop uses exclusively compostable carrier bags and recyclable product labels.

One important area all Premier League clubs can address to reduce their carbon footprint is their travel, as shown in BBC Sport research.

Why is this important?

Football For Future is a non-profit organisation working with stakeholders across football to create a more environmentally sustainable culture and founder Elliot Arthur-Worsop told BBC Sport: "Climate change will be the defining challenge of our generation, and the future of football will be affected too.

"We're already seeing the impacts, with more than 120,000 English grassroots games being called off annually, and major tournaments such as the World Cup and Afcon being moved because of extreme weather.

"Beyond the pitch, the climate crisis threatens livelihoods and global food and water security.

"With its unparalleled social influence, football has an opportunity to inspire global climate action, from micro-behaviours to essential policy change."

What would you like to see your club do more (or less) of to be greener?

We asked for your views on Liverpool's 3-1 win at Fulham on Sunday.

Here are some of your answers:

Fulham fans

Oistein: A very disappointing performance. We were giving the ball away too easily and so conceded the second and third goals. Liverpool were not at their best, but they were still good enough to beat a Fulham team without belief.

Will: It's a shame we couldn't get anything from this game, despite a recent good home record against Liverpool. In the first half, we played well and Castagne got his first goal for the club. After that, we just couldn't keep up with Liverpool.

Peter: Sadly, Fulham weren't really at it. Had they been, Liverpool probably would have suffered a further loss of points. It was not a great day for the neutral.

Dave: It was a poor second half and mistakes gave the goals away. There was no pressing from the forwards. Why is the team not playing at the minute?

Liverpool fans

Jack: Much better from Liverpool, who controlled the game throughout. Trent Alexander-Arnold brings a different class to the team.

Eddie: It was good to see the team full of energy again. Totally deserved win and could have been bigger. Let's go together and see where we end up.

Matt: Improved but still nowhere near where we should be. The goal we conceded was sloppy and Diaz, Nunez et al remain frustratingly profligate in front of goal. We've overachieved at the same time as better sides have stuttered, but we've failed to take full advantage. Got to play harder the last five games.

Daniel: This was a much better and needed performance! Lately, things haven’t been so good, but to get the win and a very vital three points at a difficult ground like Craven Cottage is a sign to both our title rivals that we’re still here! Top notch performances from Trent, Ryan and Diogo, and some great goals to cap it off. Let’s keep this going!

Mark Chapman introduces highlights and analysis from Sunday's four Premier League fixtures.

If you missed Match of the Day 2, you can catch up on the action on BBC iPlayer.

And you can watch highlights of Saturday's games here.

Listen back to Sunday's BBC Radio 5 Live and 5 Sports Extra match commentaries in full:

Everton v Nottingham Forest

Fulham v Liverpool

Michael Beardmore
BBC Sport

Image source, Getty Images

It's difficult to criticise after a season in which Marco Silva has comfortably guided Fulham to mid-table safety, never in remote danger of being dragged into trouble.

But while 'on the beach' would be too harsh a description of his players, a third defeat in four games suggests the Cottagers' campaign is in danger of petering out timidly.

Of course, there is no shame in a loss to a Liverpool side chasing the Premier League title - but Fulham have made a habit of handing bloody noses to the big boys this season so it was a shame they could not do so again.

In fairness they were the equal of their visitors in the first half with Reds keeper Alisson forced into at least as much as opposite number Bernd Leno.

And when Timothy Castagne steered them level just before half-time, Silva would have sensed a real opportunity to produce another surprise result against a Reds outfit who had endured a confidence-sapping couple of weeks.

But an error-strewn start to the second half put paid to such aspirations.

Nonetheless, they will have a chance to bounce back with back-to-back London derbies against Crystal Palace and Brentford - buoyed by the knowledge their best recent displays have come on such occasions against West Ham and Tottenham.

• Liverpool have won seven of their last nine away games in the Premier League (D1 L1) – more than their previous 19 on the road beforehand (W6 D7 L6).

• Fulham suffered their 16th Premier League defeat of the season, now equalling their total for the whole of last term. Seven of those losses have come at Craven Cottage – one more than they lost at home in the league in 2022-23 (6).

• Liverpool have scored four goals from outside the box against Fulham in the Premier League this season, the first side to score so many against the same opponent in a Premier League campaign since Leeds v West Brom in 2020-21. The Reds last did so in 2015-16 against Aston Villa.

• Trent Alexander-Arnold scored his sixth direct free-kick goal in the Premier League - only Jamie Redknapp (8) and Steven Gerrard (7) have more for Liverpool.

• Diogo Jota scored the 100th goal of his English club career in all competitions across his time at Wolves (44 goals) and Liverpool (56).

• Fulham’s Joao Palhinha received his 13th yellow card of the Premier League season – the most of any player. After his 14 yellows last season, he is just the second player to be given 13 or yellow cards in two separate Premier League campaigns, after Olivier Dacourt (1998-99, 2000-01) and Robbie Savage (2001-02, 2003-04).

Liverpool put a frustrating fortnight behind them to reignite their Premier League title bid with a welcome win at Fulham.

Trent Alexander-Arnold, making a first league start in more than two months, curled a fabulous first-half free-kick into the top corner to put them ahead.

Timothy Castagne steered Fulham level before the break but Ryan Gravenberch's perfectly-measured 20-yard effort flew in off the post to restore the Reds' advantage.

Diogo Jota sealed the points with an accurate low finish past Bernd Leno from Cody Gakpo's through ball and the margin of victory could arguably have been greater.

Were you at the match or did you follow it from elsewhere?

Fulham fans - let us know your thoughts on the game here

How did you rate the side's performance, Liverpool fans?

Follow all of the reaction here

There are four Premier League games on Sunday, and we will bring you every moment.

All times are in BST

Listen to BBC radio commentaries of all games and follow live text updates here

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches again this season, against a variety of guests.

For this weekend's games, he takes on singer-songwriter and Arsenal fan Sam Tompkins.

Sutton's prediction: 1-1

All three games between these teams this season have been close, and I am expecting more of the same on Sunday.

Liverpool won a thriller 4-3 at Anfield in the league, followed by a 2-1 home win in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final. I was at Craven Cottage for the second leg, which ended up a 1-1 draw.

If Liverpool show any weaknesses at the weekend, Fulham are good enough to punish them.

Sam's prediction: 1-1

This is my rogue prediction of the weekend. I'm maybe a bit biased because I want Liverpool to drop more points so we can say "see you later, your title hopes are over" but Fulham are a good team. They have taken five points off us this season so they can do some damage here too.

Read the rest of their predictions here