Fulham vs Arsenal betting tips, BuildABet, best bets and preview

sportinglife.com

31 December 2023

Fulham vs Arsenal betting tips, BuildABet, best bets and preview

Spare a thought for Declan Rice.

Arsenal were beaten 2-0 by his boyhood club and former employers West Ham on Thursday. The midfielder conceded a penalty in stoppage time but Said Benrahma didn’t manage to dispatch it and compile his misery. .

The Hammers will have taken great joy in knocking their London rivals off top spot. One point from the last six on offer has seen the Gunners slip two points off the pace of Liverpool.

With the Reds not in action till Monday, Mikel Arteta’s side have the chance to regain top spot, albeit on a temporary basis.

What are the best bets?

Only Ben White is a larger price then GABRIEL MAGALHAES TO SCORE FIRST for Arsenal at Craven Cottage, odd considering the Brazilian’s track record against Fulham.

Gabriel has netted three times in his last four appearances against Fulham, which includes both of his last two trips to West London. That means over a quarter of his 11 Premier League goals have come against the Cottagers, surely this is not coincidence?

The centre back is the kryptonite of Marco Silva’s zonal marking system, he has made a habit of scoring against Fulham and with the same bet as short as 15/1 with other firms, there is certainly enough juice.

No side in the top flight has scored more goals from set pieces than Arsenal. Fulham are not the weakest side at defending them but are overperforming the underlying data with two conceded from an xGA of 5.93.

I'd much rather back a player to score anytime but the first goal of the game appeals here because the goals have dried up for Fulham.

Silva’s side hit 13 in three league games following the international break but have not found the net in the four and half hours of top flight football since.

Gabriel Magalhaes to score anytime
Bukayo Saka 3+ shots
Bobby De Cordova-Reid to be shown a card

Bukayo Saka adopted a shoot-on-sight approach in the defeat against West Ham having a total of nine attempts. It was the 12th time in 18 league appearances that he has had at least three attempts in a game.

Two cards in 17 domestic appearances may look like a clean disciplinary record for Bobby De Cordova-Reid but it is still a cards per 90 average of 0.24.

That average is his lowest for Fulham in the Premier League which makes his price to be shown a card on Sunday at least a point too large.

Team news

Willian is set to miss this match against his former club, and Sunday might also come too soon for Fulham pair Adama Traore and Tim Ream.

Silva’s side will be bolstered by the return of Raul Jimenez who is back available after serving his three match suspension. The Mexican should spearhead the hosts attack replacing Rodrigo Muniz.

Arteta has no fresh injury concerns following Thursday night's game. Kai Havertz has served his one match suspension and will return to three three man midfield at the expense of Leandro Trossard.

Predicted line-ups

Fulham: Leno; Castagne, Adarabioyo, Bassey, Robinson; Palhinha, Reed; Decordova-Reid, Pereira, Iwobi; Jimenez.

Arsenal: Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Rice, Havertz; Saka, Jesus, Martinelli.

Match facts

Following their 2-2 draw at the Emirates Stadium in August, Fulham are looking to avoid defeat in both Premier League meetings with Arsenal in a single season for just the third time, previously doing so in 2011-12 (W1 D1) and 2008-09 (W1 D1).
Arsenal have won their last five Premier League away games against Fulham, netting at least three goals in each of the last four. Only at Aston Villa between 1932 and 1939 have the Gunners ever scored 3+ goals in five consecutive away league games against an opponent.
Fulham have won their final league game in five of the last eight calendar years (D2 L1), with their only defeat in this run coming against Sheffield United in the Championship in 2021. They beat Southampton 2- 1 on New Year’s Eve last season – this is the first time they’ve played on 31st December in consecutive years.
Arsenal have won their final league game in 12 of the last 16 calendar years (D2 L2), including each of the last three in a row. They won 4-2 at Brighton on New Year’s Eve last season, with this the first time they’ve played on 31st December in consecutive years.
Fulham have lost five of their last seven Premier League home games against fellow London opposition (W1 D1), failing to score across all five of those defeats. The most recent match in this run, however, was a 5-0 win over West Ham at the start of the month.
Arsenal are unbeaten in their last nine London derbies played away from home in the Premier League (W7 D2). They last had a longer run without defeat in such matches between September 2001 and April 2005 under Arsène Wenger (a run of 19).
Following back-to-back 5-0 wins earlier this month, Fulham have now lost their last three Premier League games by an aggregate score of 0-8. The Cottagers haven’t lost four consecutive league games while failing to score each time since September 1971 in the second tier.
Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhães has scored in three of his four Premier League appearances against Fulham. Two of these have come at Craven Cottage – one on his Gunners debut in September 2020, and one in this exact fixture last season (both 3-0 wins).

Odds correct at 1900 GMT (29/12/23)

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