Fulham v Sheffield United: Goals forecast for Cottage clash

“Matches involving the Cottages have produced a divisional-high of 3.14 goals per-game on average, with 12/22 (55%) encounters producing Over 2.5 Goals profit”

Fulham v Sheffield United
Monday December 20, 19:45
Sky Sports

Fulham

Championship league leaders Fulham were held to a fourth successive draw last weekend as the Cottagers were pegged back by Luton at Kenilworth Road. The Whites went ahead through Aleksandar Mitrovic’s 22nd goal of the season, tapping in the loose ball after Tosin Adarabioyo’s header from Harry Wilson’s free-kick had been cleared off the line.

But the Hatters hit back via a free-kick of their own, with Elijah Adebayo heading home to deny Marco Silva‘s men top honours. The Cottagers put Luton under plenty of pressure in the latter stages of the clash – Tom Cairney went close when he fired over after being set up by Neeskens Kebano – but Fulham were unable to find a decisive second goal.

The Whites remain unbeaten in 11 matches but Silva was frustrated with his players approach post-match. He said, “It was a tough game for us. But what we did after it was 1-1, we should have done before because we tried to get the second and we should have done that with the game 1-0, not at 1-1. We tried, we had some dangerous moments, we started to push them back, but unfortunately we didn’t score and we lost the points.”

Sheffield United well rested

Sheffield United return to Championship action after a 16-day break on Monday night. The Blades’ scheduled showdown with QPR last Monday night was postponed because of a Covid outbreak at the West London club, meaning Paul Heckingbottom’s improving outfit haven’t played since their pulsating 3-2 success at Cardiff at the start of December.

United have won each of their last three games and came from behind to beat Cardiff in the Welsh capital. Trailing 1-0 at the interval, the Blades were reenergised following the red card of Bluebirds skipper Sean Morrison with Morgan Gibbs-White cracking home a brilliant equaliser before Billy Sharp and David McGoldrick sealed the success.

Speaking post-match, Heckingbottom said: “We deserved to win, definitely. I was angry at half-time as we had plenty of chances and we went behind on their big threat (a set piece) – something we had been working at all week. We changed things around when they went down to 10 men, and it worked well for us. I was pleased with how we responded.”

Fulham and Sheffield United have met 10 times in league football over the past two decades and the Cottagers have come out on top in head-to-head meetings (W5-D3-L2). The capital club are also unbeaten in each of their past six Craven Cottage encounters against the Blades (W4-D2-L0), which includes three successive league triumphs here over United.

Fulham 1.814/5 have been held to four consecutive draws but have at least extended their unbeaten streak since October’s international break to 11 (W7-D4-L0). The Cottagers consistently strong performances have seen Marco Silva’s side move to the top of the Championship, and the Whites also rank as the league’s best for Expected Points (xP).

Sheff Utd 4.507/2 have arguably been the Championship’s biggest underachievers. However, the Blades are beginning to find form. Expected Points (xP) ratings suggest the hosts have been the fifth best team in the division with United also returning the third-highest xP figure since September’s international break. The away side have W8-D3-L5 in that sequence.

Fulham have been great fun to follow this season. Matches involving the Cottages have produced a divisional-high of 3.14 goals per-game on average, with 12/22 (55%) encounters producing Over 2.5 Goals 1.804/5 profit. Marco Silva’s men have notched two goals or more in seven of their 11 home outings, averaging 2.18 goals per-game at Craven Cottage.

Sheffield United have collected three shutouts in their past four fixtures, with the Blades amongst the division’s elite for Expected Goals (xG) against over the past eight encounters. However, United have also shipped two goals or more in six of 10 tussles with fellow top-half teams, as well as in six of their 11 games as guests since relegation.

So considering Fulham have found the back of the net in 21 of their overall 22 outings under Marco Silva, and Sheffield United have followed suit in 13 of their most recent 16 games, backing Both Teams To Score 1.684/6 appeals. We can bolster the odds on offer by backing Fulham Double Chance and BTTS at 1.9520/21 via the Bet Builder.