EPL Match Preview: Blackburn Rovers vs. Fulham
Blackburn take on Fulham as they look to get more points on the board in the English Premier League season. The season’s start brought some mixed results for both the clubs. Fulham, who hail from London, were dealt a severe blow as their chances of finishing
in the top ten seem to be ruined due to star striker Bobby Zamora’s ankle break during the last match against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Fulham were competitive to say the least against Wolves, who were led by Mick McCarthy. At the start of the encounter in question, they were slow in their tackles but as the match picked pace so did Fulham’s attack. Finally, despite the fact that they were
in trauma due to their striker’s injury, Fulham ended up as winners by two goals to one. Both of Fulham’s goals came through their new boy, Dembele, who was signed by the club’s new manager, Mark Hughes. Hughes took over the club in the latter part of the
summer after Roy Hodgson had left the Cottagers to manage at the greener shores of Liverpool.
So far this season, Dembele has been an impactful player for Fulham but now the onus is on the skilful striker to make his mark on the team as a whole. With injured Zamora out for at least four months, Fulham’s fans would be looking towards the young Belgian
to perform at his highest. Hughes will also be expecting increased contributions from the likes of Danny Murphy and Clint Dempsey, both of whom have had slow starts to the season.
Dempsey is in demand after the 2010 FIFA World Cup because of his remarkable performances for U.S.A in South Africa. Fulham’s most prominent result of the season came against Manchester United at the Craven Cottage. Mark Hughes’s men rallied in the last
ten minutes of the match to pull back from a two goals to one deficit to draw the match two all. Of course, they were helped by the fact that Luis Nani missed a spot kick for Manchester United but all credit should go to Fulham for showing character to fight
back against the former European champions.
Blackburn, on the other hand, defeated Everton in their first match of the season which seems a long time back in the second week of August but since then they have been inconsistent in their performances. Against Arsenal in their third match, Blackburn
ended up on the losing side as Arsene Wenger’s team ripped their weak defense apart. During the summer transfer window, Sam Allardyce managed to obtain Manchester United’s striker Mame Biram Diouf on loan and thus far, the former Norwegian league player’s
signature has proven to be a good one for Blackburn.
The EPL winners of mid 1990s, Blackburn, finished terribly close to the relegation zone last season. However, this season they have appeared to be much stronger in their bid to stay in the League. Out of their last five games against Fulham at the Edwood
Park, Blackburn have won four while drawn only one. Their home-form last season saw them grab a good result against Manchester United also in one of the final weeks of the season.
Moreover, Fulham have struggled on their travels and the last time they gained an away victory was at the beginning of the 2009-2010 season at Portsmouth. Keith Andrews is an injury casualty for Blackburn whereas for Fulham, Diomansy Kamara and Philippe
Senderos aren’t available due to their fitness problems. Fulham are expected to give Blackburn a tough time but given Blackburn’s strong home record, they are the favorites to emerge from this encounter with all three points.
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