Silva's Fulham to give City food for thought
With just one more round of Premier League fixtures after this weekend before the FIFA World Cup kicks off in Qatar, players hopeful of being named in their nations' squads will be simultaneously desperate to show what they can do and fearful of injury. Fulham head to the Etihad on Saturday afternoon to take on Manchester City in the heady position of seventh in the standings at the start of November, and Marco Silva will be keen to demonstrate that they're capable of remaining well away from the bottom places for as long as possible. Read our preview here:
Kevin's red hot
Pep Guardiola could welcome back Erling Haaland after the monstrous striker sat out the last two games because of injury. With Norway not participating in the tournament, there is less risk than would otherwise be the case at deploying him weeks before things get underway. Elsewhere, Kevin De Bruyne has said that it will be his last major tournament, a sentiment likely to be echoed by several of his teammates for Belgium. The playmaker continues to be in imperious form, having notched nine assists from 11 league starts and also scoring the winner in the 1-0 triumph at Leicester City last week.
Willian, it was really nothing
Bobby Decordova-Reid is suspended, which makes Kenny Tete's recovery from being on the treatment table all the more timely. On the opposite flank of the back four, Layvin Kurzawa is still out, meaning Antonee Robinson's place in the XI is pretty unassailable at present. Further forward, Willian retains the work rate and nous to trouble the hosts, which he showed to great effect in the 3-2 win against Leeds United recently.
Betting tip
Having topped their qualification group ahead of Portugal thanks in no small part to Aleksandar Mitrović's goals, fans of Serbia and Fulham will want the target man to continue upsetting the bigger teams. Third in top scorer charts only below Haaland himself and Harry Kane, Casumo have odds of 3.65 for the 28 year old to reach double figures with one anytime in Eastlands.
