• Written by Michael Knight
• Categories England Championship, Football

At the start of the season, optimists of both clubs probably expected this one to be a title challenge. While Derby are largely meeting expectation sitting in 7th and definitely in the play-off mix, Fulham are an awful 17th place and are winless in five in all competitions. They have lost two in a row and just do not look like the unbalanced but positively attacking team from last season.

How to Watch Fulham v Derby County live stream (click here)

This match, then, promises to give a game which has two teams desperate to get back into contention to the goals they set in the summer.

FULHAM LATEST NEWS
Where to start with Fulham? The side just does not look like the same unit that was so exciting last season. While flawed at the back, this year they lack goals while they don’t mind shipping them. The likes of Tom Cairney and Stefan Johansen have gone right of the boil, while Ryan Sessegnon continues to flatter to deceive. Forward Rui Fonte isn’t impressing anyone either, nor is Neeskens Kebano.

There is very little to find exciting about this Fulham side, and they lack anything like the direction and consistency that you would have expected after a decent year last year. Kevin McDonald and Tomas Kalas are two of the only performers who can really hold their heads up so far – the rest of the squad have done very little so far.

Top scorer Johansen, with 4 goals, is their most likely bet for a goal – but that tells its own story.

How to Watch Fulham v Derby live stream (click here)

DERBY LATEST NEWS
Derby is in much better form and seems to be much more at ease with themselves. While regulars like Tom Lawrence and Matej Vydra, alongside Jonny Russell, could improve quite considerably, the club has done enough so far this year to show that they are worth the hype. There is definite room for improvement, yes, but impressive performances from the likes of Bradley Johnson, Curtis Davies and Andre Wisdom has helped to keep the club solid in the middle and at the back.

While the total drop-off of George Thorne has been a mild concern, Derby arrive in this game with enough confidence and belief to make a success of it regardless of where they are.

Make no mistake; they are the better team and are more likely to cause problems, especially against a backline as porous as Fulham has.

HEAD-TO-HEAD
This match has been quite a one-sided affair, with Derby winning three of their last six against Fulham. Fulham has a solitary win, so they arrive in this game knowing they need to buck the trend to win.

MATCH EXPECTATIONS
That said, it’s important that people factor in the form of both sides. Fulham is in a drastic position as a club and without a win in four, while Derby had won four on the bounce before a shock loss. We’d suggest that if anyone is going to win here it will be the visitors, but a frenetic, high-tempo draw feels the most likely result.