Kick-off: 1500, 30/01/2021
Stadium: The Hawthorns
TV: BBC Sport
Fulham enjoyed a convincing victory over West Brom in London earlier this season and are taken to confirm their superiority at The Hawthorns.
That was one of only two Premier League wins for the Cottagers, but their recent form in this competition has been rock-solid, with six draws in eight outings.
Albion have suffered five straight home defeats and 13/10 for that sequence to be extended is our first West Brom vs Fulham prediction.
A Look At West Bromwich Albion’s Betting Odds
West Brom have shown some encouraging signs on the road since Sam Allardyce took over, winning at Wolves, drawing at Liverpool and only going down narrowly when visiting West Ham.
However, their home form has been abysmal, with Tuesday’s 5-0 drubbing by Manchester City the latest in a long line of Hawthorns hammerings.
The Baggies have faced a tough set of fixtures at this venue, also going down to Arsenal, Leeds and Aston Villa since the miserable run began with a 5-1 beating by Crystal Palace.
Conceding a whopping 22 goals in those games and scoring just one is a hard record to forgive or forget, though.
Allardyce held an hour-long post-match inquest after their latest defeat and knows, with his new team seven points from safety, that a quick upturn in fortunes is essential.
“We have 18 games to go – I know it’s a difficult task but we have to get a minimum of 27 points,” said the veteran boss. “That’s our minimum to stay safe.”
Allardyce made no secret of the fact that he sees this contest and next Tuesday’s trip to Sheffield United as winnable fixtures pivotal to Albion’s prospects.
He added: “If we win those we are going to get further up the table and nearer the teams who are close to us. That would ease the pressure off us and put it on them.”
Putting too much emphasis on chasing a win here could leave the Baggies open at the back, though.
Looking at the West Brom vs Fulham odds, we like 5/2 for an away win and over 2.5 goals in the game.
Last West Brom line-up: Johnstone, Furlong, Gibbs, Ajayi, O’Shea, Livermore, Sawyers, Snodgrass, Robinson, Pereira, Grant.
A Look At Fulham’s Betting Odds
Fulham did us a favour when holding out for a goalless stalemate at Brighton in midweek, securing 12/5 and 15/4 pay-outs from three tips on that match.
Scott Parker praised goalkeeper Alphonse Areola after his key saves helped the Cottagers to survive periods of sustained pressure.
Aleksandar Mitrovic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek did go close to snatching all three points at Amex Stadium late on, though.
“Clean sheet, happy with the point,” commented Parker. “Wanted three and we move on to the next.”
Fulham remain without a win since upsetting the odds at Leicester on November 30 but have only lost to Manchester United and Chelsea in eight subsequent league games, both of which were narrow defeats.
Draws against the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham show there is nothing wrong with their attitude.
“Every player is showing fight, which is what brings everyone together,” declared Loftus-Cheek.
“When you see everyone fighting, in tough games, it brings you together and your spirit is high.”
This should be a fixture where both managers adopt a positive approach, because wins will be needed for each side to get out of the drop zone.
We feel the visitors are a percentage pick to prevail and 17/2 for a 2-1 away win is added to our West Brom vs Fulham betting tips.
Last Fulham line-up: Areola, Tete, Andersen, Adarabioyo, Ola Aina, Loftus-Cheek, Reed, Zambo, Decordova-Reid, Cavaleiro, Lookman.
Additional stats
Last result:
WEST BROM 0-5 Man City
Brighton 0-0 FULHAM
Head-to-head: Fulham 2-0 West Brom, West Brom 0-0 Fulham, Fulham 1-1 West Brom
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