Fulham v Man Utd: Key stats and talking points

Manchester United travel to Fulham on Sunday with both sides in desperate need of a win going into the lengthy international break.
The Red Devils, who were dumped out of the Carabao Cup by Brighton on Wednesday, have won just one of their opening four Premier League games this season to leave them 13th, already eight points adrift of the early pace-setters Arsenal and Manchester City.
The Brighton defeat rounded off a difficult few days for United head coach Michael Carrick, whose side were insipid in the Manchester derby loss to 10-man City last Sunday. Throw in the uncertainty over academy star JJ Gabriel’s future and Carrick is in dire need of three points on the road in west London.
The good news for him is that United’s recent record against Fulham is outstanding; they have lost just once in the past 21 league meetings between the two sides, winning 16 and drawing four.
Should Sesko start?
The only out-and-out centre-forward at Carrick’s disposal, Benjamin Sesko, has been used as a substitute in the four league games so far, scoring once off the bench against Everton.
With his team drawing blanks in two of those four games, there are calls for the Slovenia striker to start at Craven Cottage, having netted a stoppage-time winner against the same opposition at Old Trafford last season.
The Red Devils have had more shots than any other top-flight side across the first four matchdays of this season, but aren’t among the division’s top four scorers. So far, only Brighton (10.2) have accumulated a higher xG than United’s 8.3.
Although Sesko struggled to make an impact midweek against Brighton, he is fully recovered from the shin injury he sustained in early May, so Carrick may turn to the club’s joint-top scorer from last season in the hope he can convert some of the many shots United are creating.
[BBC]
Fears for Fulham
Winless Fulham find themselves in the relegation zone after four games, with new head coach Alvaro Arbeloa cursing his luck just two months into the job.
The Spaniard’s side, currently 18th, were booed off at Craven Cottage after a third successive league defeat against Crystal Palace on 5 September. All three have come via a one-goal margin.
A draw against Liverpool at Anfield last Saturday and a 3-2 midweek win over West Ham United in the EFL Cup have given the Fulham faithful some cause for optimism, though – as has Josh King’s continued good form.
King, still only 19, is the Cottagers’ top league scorer with two goals and the Londoner has his sights set on a senior England call-up this season. He was one of four youngsters to feature in Thomas Tuchel’s pre-World Cup training camp in Florida, along with Alex Scott, Rio Ngumoha and Ethan Nwaneri.
Since the start of last season, when he cemented his place in the Fulham side, the only teenager to make more appearances than King in Europe’s top five leagues is Yan Diomande, who joined Real Madrid from RB Leipzig for an initial fee of £107m last month.
On 1 February, the last time the two teams met, late goals from Raul Jimenez and Kevin threatened to earn Fulham a point, before Benjamin Sesko’s late winner.
That result triggered a worrying collapse in form – since then, the only ever-present side in the division to win fewer points than Fulham are Tottenham. It is a rut Arbeloa must urgently get out of.
[BBC]
Sport X.M News