Arsenal vs Fulham Premier League preview, team news and prediction

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Arsenal host Fulham in Saturday evening’s London derby looking to restore a six-point lead at the top of the Premier League . The Gunners are three points ahead of Man City but Pep Guardiola's still have a game-in-hand over the league leaders as the title race continues into the final weeks of the season.

Unsurprisingly, the bookies have the hosts as the favourites in this match at 2/5 with BetGoodwin to seal all three points while Fulham are 6/1 with William Hill and a draw is 10/3 with Betfred ahead of the Saturday evening match.

Mikel Arteta’s side are back at the Emirates less than 72 hours after a fiery 1-1 draw away to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final. Arsenal needed a Viktor Gyokeres penalty and saw plenty of controversy around another spot-kick decision, with Arteta left angry afterwards, but they head into the second leg in a strong position.

Domestically, Arsenal ended a four-game losing run in all competitions with an unconvincing 1-0 win over Newcastle last weekend, moving three points clear of Manchester City. With City not in action until Monday, Arsenal can stretch their advantage, and their defensive record at home — just 11 goals conceded at the Emirates in the league this season — offers encouragement against a Fulham side short on goals.

Fulham arrive after a 1-0 win over Aston Villa thanks to Ryan Sessegnon’s first-half strike, ending a brief scoreless spell. Even so, Marco Silva’s team have scored in only two of their last seven games in all competitions and sit 10th, though still within touching distance of the European places.

Silva is also trying to halt Fulham’s winless, goalless run away from home, and history is against them: the Cottagers have never won a Premier League away match against a team starting the day top of the table. Arsenal’s record against them is even more daunting — they are unbeaten in 32 league home games versus Fulham.

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Arsenal’s win over Newcastle brought fresh injury worries: Eze and Kai Havertz both suffered muscle problems. Eze featured on Wednesday, but Havertz missed out and is a major doubt for the weekend. Arteta also said Jurrien Timber (groin) is still not fully fit, while Mikel Merino (foot) is racing to return before the season ends. In better news, Riccardo Calafiori was on the bench after a knock, and Bukayo Saka and Eze could both step up from cameo roles.

For Fulham, Ryan Sessegnon was forced off in the second half, though Silva hopes it’s not serious. Alex Iwobi (thigh) will miss out, while Kenny Tete and Kevin are still recovering from ankle injuries. Antonee Robinson could deputise if Sessegnon is unavailable, with Bernd Leno and Emile Smith Rowe expected to start.

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