Fulham and Brentford are interested in a January move for Newcastle's 32-year-old England striker Callum Wilson. (Sun), external
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Drew Heatley
Fan writer
Image source, Getty ImagesSeven and a half years. That’s how long it was since Fulham recorded a win against Newcastle. That period of time spanned nine games, during which we drew only twice, scored just two goals - and lost the last six in a row.
Marco Silva oversaw five of those defeats. It must have felt good for our gaffer to finally get one over Eddie Howe; you’d have to scour the record books to find a bigger bogey manager for Marco.
The win on Saturday was emphatic - and banished the disappointment of our late switch-off against West Ham. On paper, if you’d swapped those two results and offered them to Fulham fans we’d have all been delighted.
Eight points from our opening five games, unbeaten at home, and just one defeat - on the opening day - constitutes a fine start to the season. And what’s more; it was a near-flawless day in the autumn sunshine at Craven Cottage.
The club had two main targets in the summer window: they wanted to bring Emile Smith Rowe in once it was clear there was a chance to do so, and the club recently revealed to the Fulham Supporters Trust that they were also determined to bring Joachim Andersen back to the club, identifying him as “a potential future club leader”.
ESR bagged his second goal of the season and Andersen put in another towering performance at the back. Strong recruitment, then.
Stronger still when you consider that former Arsenal team-mate Alex Iwobi provided the assist for Smith Rowe, while former Wolves comrades Adama Traore and Raul Jimenez linked up in the first five minutes to send us on our way. Assembling successful puzzle pieces from other Premier League clubs is proving to provide a strong foundation for this Fulham side.
We all know how easy it is to get carried away, but after scratching our seven-year Newcastle itch and creeping into the top eight, whisper it quietly: things are looking pretty rosy in SW6.
Find more from Drew Heatley at Fulhamish, external
Image source, Getty ImagesFormer Premier League defender Ashley Williams has been praising Kenny Tete and Adama Traore's attacking partnership, after Fulham extended their unbeaten league run to four games against Newcastle United.
"They were a real strong point for Fulham in this game and their relationship has really been blossoming at the start of this season," Williams said on Match of the Day. "They are starting to form a really good bond.
"For the first goal, Tete had the ball and Traore picked it up in a central midfield position. We know about Traore's pace, power and strength through the middle, but it was his desire to score that goal [that stood out].
"Their link-up play is one-touch stuff. They both had so much possession down that right-hand side. You can see that they are comfortable with each other and Traore looks full of confidence.
"You wouldn't want to face Traore as a defender - I have played against him before and he is a nightmare!
"Tete also had a great game - he was playing the ball and following his passes. He was full of energy, even towards the end of the game, but there was maybe just a slight lack of quality with his shooting at the end [of his moves]."
Williams added: "There was a real strength in Fulham's attack down that right-hand side against Newcastle. It is something that teams are now going to have to focus on trying to stop."
Image source, Getty ImagesWe asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Fulham and Newcastle United.
Here are some of your comments:
Fulham fans
Iain: Fully justified result. We were by far the better and more creative side. This should have been the score last week as well. There's a lot to be impressed by and, if continued, a push for a European place might be on the cards perhaps.
Lucas: A really good and promising performance. After the disappointment of the Carabao Cup exit, I thought the players really bounced back. It was a very good goal from Raul Jimenez and I thought they showed great composure to kill the game in the final minutes. A very deserved three points on the board!
Toppy: Beautiful! We discarded the trend of meaningless possession and we made our opportunities count. The new signings were great. Onwards and upwards!
Bob: Great result, but we must make sure we keep focused when coming out for a game. We were 2-0 up going in at half-time and we had done a lot of the hard work in the first half, but a minute into the second half, we got caught. We must be aware that things can change in a second. There were lots of chances which we must try to start putting away in games as these could cost us. Well done.
Newcastle fans
Richard: A result that everyone knew was coming. No European distractions, a chance to go top, and yet we were two goals down in 20 minutes against a mid-table side that is hardly full of potency. Improvement on last season is hard to see right now and the fixtures only get harder from here. A testing few weeks are coming up.
Kegs: Finally we got what we deserved this season - nothing. Including the Carabao Cup, that is now six poor performances in six games. Eddie can't work out who his starting three central midfielders should be and every combination he has tried so far this season has failed. There is no cohesion or creativity in midfield. Has the captaincy gone to Bruno's head? He has been awful.
Paul: Something's not right with Anthony Gordon. He has been poor this season, by his high standards, and his body language against Fulham suggested someone who didn't want to be there. He might be upset by the attempt to offload him, understandably, but he cannot sulk on the pitch. He should have been hooked at half-time.
Tom: Christmas came early for Fulham with Nick Pope, Fabian Schar and Bruno Guimaraes the three unwise men. The only player who can come out of that shambles of a first half with any credit is Harvey Barnes. A slightly improved second half but ridiculous individual errors have cost us that game. It wasn't helped by the questionable team selection - Sandro Tonali must be a starter.
Fulham, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest are monitoring Galatasaray’s 24-year-old winger Baris Alper Yilmaz. (CaughtOffside), external
Want more transfer stories? Read Monday's full gossip column
Gary Lineker presents highlights and analysis from Saturday's eight Premier League fixtures.
If you missed Match of the Day, you can catch up now on BBC iPlayer.
Listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:
Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport
Image source, Getty ImagesFulham have been picked out as a team who could gatecrash the top half this season and have showed signs why in an encouraging start.
Not being clinical enough has been the source of frustration, however.
Fulham paid the price for being wasteful in an opening-day defeat at Manchester United and last weekend's draw against West Ham.
So the manner in which they saw off Newcastle was understandably a source of pride for boss Marco Silva.
Emile Smith Rowe is already looking to be an astute signing and netted his second goal of the season to help secure an impressive win over Newcastle.
The former Arsenal attacking midfielder's energetic performance was not the only positive.
Seasoned Mexico striker Jimenez has taken his chance after being restored as a starter ahead of Rodrigo Muniz, while Adama Traore's pace offered another threat in a formidable front four.
Image source, Getty ImagesFulham have gained their first win against Newcastle in the Premier League since March 2014, having failed to defeat the Magpies in any of their last eight in the competition (D2 L6).
The Cottagers are unbeaten in their last four Premier League games (W2 D2), their longest run without defeat since February 2023 (also four games). They have never been on a longer run under manager Marco Silva in the competition.
Image source, Getty ImagesFulham manager Marco Silva has been speaking following the win: "It was a very good performance from us. Looking all over the pitch, and for the whole game, I think we were the team who deserved to win the game - clearly.
"It was a very good first half in the image I like us to play - creating problems in different ways for the opposition and really enjoying embracing the challenge in front of us.
"We built from the back and, every time we arrived in central areas, we should have scored more goals from the moments we created.
"We were dominant - the best team on the pitch in the first half - and we left nothing for a side with top players. It showed the capacity we have as a team.
"We conceded a late goal against West Ham [last weekend] and it took a bit of time to organise, but we had more chances for 3-1 than they did for 2-2."
Chris Latchem
BBC Final Score at Craven Cottage
Image source, Getty ImagesThat felt like it meant more than just three points for the Fulham fans lucky enough to be at the Cottage today.
Fulham had such a rotten run against Newcastle, but they seemed determined to end that from the first whistle today.
Raul Jimenez has now got nine goals in his last 12 starts. He seems a constant threat and he is perhaps back to his pre-head injury goal-scoring best.
Emile Smith-Rowe floated through the game and scored a really well-worked second, albeit with a little help from Nick Pope on the way in.
He has been substituted off in every game so far but what a handful he will be once he's 90-minutes fit.
Fulham scorer Emile Smith-Rowe on the key to his side's win: "Sticking together and staying patient at times, we know Newcastle are a really strong team so we had to sit at times and be patient, get the ball and score. We're really happy.
"We're happy we took our chances, first few games we struggled to take our chances, so we're happy with our three goals.
"It starts off the pitch, it's like a family in there and we know we want to do everything for each other and want to work and want to win."
On his form following a summer arrival from Arsenal: "I'm really confident at the moment and comfortable with everything. I've got to keep going and keep working hard.
"Everyone knows it has been a tough couple of seasons for me, I have to stay fit and I feel good at the moment. I'm feeling confident and happy."
Were you at the game or following from elsewhere?
Have your say on Fulham’s performance, external
What did you make of Newcastle’s display?, external
Come back to this page on Monday to find a selection of your replies
Eight matches make up Saturday's Premier League action, and we will bring you every moment.
All kick-off times BST
Follow all of the action and reaction here
BBC Radio 5 Live match commentaries:
Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches this season, against a variety of guests.
For week five, he takes on singer-songwriter and West Ham fan James Smith whose debut album Common People is out now.
On Saturday, Fulham welcome Newcastle to Craven Cottage (15:00 BST).
Sutton's prediction: 1-1
Fulham won nine and lost eight of their 19 home Premier League games last season, but I always fancied them to win at Craven Cottage.
They should have beaten West Ham there last weekend, when they had chances to go further ahead before Danny Ings' 95th-minute equaliser for the Hammers.
Newcastle are still a bit of an unknown quantity for me because I can't say I've been particularly impressed by them so far.
Eventually, Eddie Howe's side are going to come a cropper, but at the moment they are finding a way to win games, even if they are relying on moments of brilliance by individual players rather than playing well as a team.
Smith's prediction: 2-2
I am going for a draw here, with a few goals.
Tyrese King
BBC Sport journalist
Fulham boss Marco Silva has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Newcastle (kick-off 15:00 BST).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
On team news: "There's not really any changes from the last game. Carlos Vinicius is still out but will start running from next week. Apart from that, all our other players are available."
Silva believes Fulham has had a "solid" start to the season but feels it was really "unfair" not to get a win against West Ham: "The three points would have made sense because of the way we played, and it would have rewarded the players' performance."
On losing to Preston in the Carabao Cup: "Last Tuesday was a little bit of a strange feeling, but the teams with character and personality react after bad nights. We had a bad night and now we have to react."
He added: "It was a disappointing evening. We showed two seasons ago our ambitions, by reaching both quarter-finals and semi-finals of the cups. Of course, going out the way we did is a frustration for us."
Silva is expecting a "tough game" against Newcastle and added: "They are a very good side. Two years ago they reached a Champions League spot in a great season for them. They aren't a club that needs to sell players and of course they had a very good manager."
On Adama Traore's quick start: "It's always different when you're available to do a pre-season. He came late last season and without a pre-season - he was training in Spain alone. He got injured last year during a training session and from that moment it was difficult for him to recover and regain his confidence. Last season, we only saw spells of him and he helped the team in moments. This season, he's helping the team with his power and strength."
Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news
Image source, Getty ImagesFulham have released a statement after the BBC's investigation into former Harrods boss and Whites owner Mohamed Al-Fayed went public on Thursday.
On the club website, external, it reads: "We are deeply troubled and concerned to learn of the disturbing reports following yesterday’s documentary. We have sincere empathy for the women who have shared their experiences.
"We are in the process of establishing whether anyone at the club is, or has been, affected. Should any person wish to share information or experiences relating to these allegations, we encourage them to contact the club, at safeguarding@fulhamfc.com, or the police."
Image source, Getty ImagesThe issue around the footballing calendar and the demands being placed on players right now is a difficult one.
First, we need to take into consideration the really high demands on the body that go on all-year round with few breaks, especially for international footballers and those in teams competing on multiple fronts.
I know the men's and the women's games are different, but we got exposed to these issues when we went from amateur to professional. There was a lot of loading, a lot of games and the result of that was a higher risk of injury and we have seen a lot of anterior cruciate ligament injuries now in the women's game.
From the fans' side, their point is often that players get paid a lot of money but I think that is irrelevant. That is just the industry players are in and, if you take out the money, they are still human beings.
The governing bodies need to look at who they consult with about changes in the calendar such as World Cups being held in winter and summers where there is just a couple of weeks off before going straight back into it. The changes and fixtures that are put in are there to generate more money, which makes it difficult. As a business, it is about money.
We talk about mental health a lot and you wonder, where is the time to switch off and have that time away from playing? To have that family time which is a deep human need? At some point mentally, if not physically, it will take its toll.
None of us want to see players striking, but players need to be listened to. What do they need to do to make change happen?
Fara Williams was speaking to BBC Sport's Nicola Pearson
Image source, Getty ImagesNone of Fulham’s 16 Premier League home games against Newcastle have finished level, with the Cottagers winning nine and losing seven. The only fixture to be played more without being drawn in the competition’s history is Everton v Fulham at Goodison Park (17).
Image source, PA MediaWe asked for your thoughts after Tuesday's Carabao Cup game between Preston North End and Fulham.
Here are some of your comments:
Will: Didn’t take our chances and had a keeper that couldn’t save penalties. All that drama and nerve for nothing.
Sergio: Marco Silva said that he wanted to go far in this cup, did he mean Preston? If we cannot beat a Championship team, we will struggle this season.
Bob: I thought the 11 changes was a crazy decision by Marco, especially when it was said he took this competition seriously. To wait until the 77th minute to start making substitutions was a ridiculous decision! With most of the main squad only playing for a short time in this match, they should be raring to get stuck in and play in our next league match.
Sean: Not great, was it? I think we seriously need to look at signing a striker in January.
