Game Week 3 Predictions: Chelsea to beat Fulham

Chelsea host Fulham in the London derby at Stamford Bridge, aiming for back-to-back wins after thrashing West Ham. Verdict: Chelsea to win.

Chelsea is expected to beat Fulham on Saturday when both teams meet at the Stamford Bridge Stadium, will Fulham make it easy for them? (Photo credit: Google)

Chelsea vs Fulham

Stamford Bridge Stadium

12:30pm

This is one game referred to as the “friendly London derby”. Not typically as feisty as a few others, including Arsenal against Spurs and West Ham against Chelsea, but it’s one that serves entertainment.

Fulham left it late but found joy in the end against Manchester United at Craven Cottage, with two former Arsenal players, Alex Iwobi and Emile Smith-Rowe, combining to level matters deep into the second half after falling behind.

Fulham went into the game against United having not signed anyone, which was a sharp contrast to their opponent on the day, who fielded three new signings. Fulham goes into this fixture seeking to consolidate last weekend’s performance, but this is a different kettle of fish.

The Blues had a great night on the road last weekend, beating fierce local rivals West Ham silly. A 5-1 win on the road is a motivation to keep going, and back-to-back London derbies could mean good fortune for Enzo Maresca’s side.

No Cole Palmer? No problem, as new boy Estevao rose to the occasion for the Blues; the Brazilian kid scored one and assisted the other as Chelsea ran out 5-1 winners with Joao Pedro, Nathan Chalobah, Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandes all scoring.

Fulham is in a better place than West Ham, so Chelsea will be wary of them. While the record favors the Blues, with Fulham only winning at Chelsea once in the last three decades, form and pedigree don’t usually come to the fore on derby days.

Chelsea are expected to keep the same shape they had against the Hammers, with Estevao set to continue in the absence of Palmer; however, it is left to be seen if Liam Delap will be trusted to start or if Maresca will switch things up a bit.

Fulham could hand a starting role to Smith-Rowe after his heroic cameo on Sunday. The other conundrum would be upfront, where it’s uncertain if it would be Raul Jimenez, who starred midweek in the League Cup, or Rodrigo Muniz, who started upfront against Manchester United.

Chelsea is the favourite to win this game, and they’re expected to lead the log after this fixture at least, until the rest of the teams play on Saturday. Fulham don’t have a win on the board yet, but they’re also unbeaten so far. This game is open to all teams.

Verdict: Chelsea to win.