Fulham vs Manchester City
The curtain will fall on the 2025 Premier League this weekend and, down in West London, there is a game well worth watching as tenth placed Fulham are set to host third placed Manchester City at Craven Cottage.
The Sky Blues have already handed over the Premier League crown to Liverpool but, after a season of disappointment, Pep Guardiola’s team look very likely to be joining the Reds in the 2025/26 Champions League, though they are not yet over the line. Five places are up for grabs, Liverpool and Arsenal have two, and then Manchester City, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest are still in the race for the next three places, with only three points separating the five teams.
With seventh placed Nottingham Forest hosting fifth placed Chelsea the Sky Blues are probably already there, but Guardiola won’t take any chances and he will have his team primed to take on Marco Silva’s Cottagers who have little to play for, other than hoping to give their fans a winning finish. Fulham won 3-2 away to Brentford last week but they can’t reach Brighton, who sit in eighth, the last available European place.
Last week City lost the FA Cup to Crystal Palace, in controversial circumstances, but they recovered to beat Bournemouth on Tuesday evening to move up to third, and the SBOTOP odds say that’s where they will end up.
Talking Points
A time to reflect for Fulham
It has been another good season at Craven Cottage as Silva has continued to improve the team’s performance with a good run in the FA Cup and a fair effort at achieving a European place. Had it not been for a poor run of Premier League 2025 results as the finish line approached the Cottagers would probably be in eighth but, after beating Liverpool 3-2 early in April, Silva’s men picked up only three points from the following five games.
A Europe chasing tussle with Brentford last week brought the best out of the team as they came out on the right side of another five goal thriller; but it was too little too late, and it has become increasingly evident that Silva’s squad lacked depth in areas. When striker Rodrigo Muniz’ season was ended by injury there was no back up for top scorer Raul Jimenez, with the out of sorts Carlos Vinicius making little or no impact. Jimenez has 11 goals for the campaign and is a classy operator but the Mexican is 34 now, and this is clearly an area which needs attention.
A number of players are out of contract, including club captain Tom Cairney and wide man Willian, while midfielder Harrison Reed may also be on his way out, with newly promoted Burnley, among others, linked to the 30 year old.
Silva likes to work with a small squad, but I think, with progress year on year, that evolution rather than revolution is the way forward.
The return of Rodri
The biggest cheer of the night at the Etihad on Tuesday, as Manchester City beat Bournemouth 3-1, was reserved for midfielder Rodri who returned after a seven month lay-off after he suffered an ACL ligament injury during a 2-2 draw with Arsenal back in September. The 2024 Ballon D’Or winner climbed off the bench in the 83rd minute on Tuesday and the Etihad erupted, such is the fans’ love of their 28 year old defensive midfielder, the best in the world in his position.
At the start of the season the Premier League 2025 betting odds backed a fifth successive league title for the Sky Blues but injuries, particularly to Rodri, quickly changed that as City went on a losing run as 2024 drew to a close. Another of the previously injured players, Kevin de Bruyne, will make his final appearance for the Sky Blues on Sunday following the news he will be on his way in the summer, and the Belgian will not be on his own. Guardiola has an aging squad and he needs to make room for the next generation of the likes of Rico Lewis, Savinho, James McAtee and Claudio Echeverri; but on Sunday I expect him to rely on some of the players who have served him so well for years, and we may well see more minutes for Rodri.
History
Manchester City have had the better of this relationship, with 25 wins to four, and there have been four draws in all competitions; and the Cottagers haven’t won in 17 games against the Sky Blues.
And, in terms of recent form, City are stronger with four wins, one draw and one defeat from the last six outings while Fulham have two wins and four defeats.
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