🏏 Sat, 17 Oct 2026 15:00 BST
Fulham FC
vs
Hull City
4-2-3-1 vs 5-4-1
Substitutes
Substitutes
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- Bottom-of-the-table Fulham (two points from six games, 0-2-4, goal difference -4) welcome eighth-placed Hull City (nine points, 2-3-1, goal difference +2). Fulham are still waiting for a first win of the season and trail the newly promoted visitors by seven points. With Manchester City already on 18 points at the top, the hosts cannot afford to let this slide any further.
- Fulham's last five read L-L-D-D-L: a goalless draw away at Liverpool in round four and a 1-1 home draw with Manchester United in round five showed resilience against big sides, but a 1-2 defeat away at Ipswich in round six undid that. Hull's W-D-D-L-D includes a 2-2 draw at Chelsea in round four and another 2-2 at home to Everton in round six.
- Hull's defensive record tells the story: six goals conceded in six matches against Fulham's 10, with the 5-4-1 block doing the heavy lifting. The back line features 19-year-old Australia international Lucas Herrington, a 193cm centre-back signed for a club-record fee from Colorado Rapids after making the 2026 MLS All-Star squad, alongside 193cm Nigeria international Semi Ajayi and 33-year-old Republic of Ireland veteran John Egan.
- Behind them stands 23-year-old Konstantinos Tzolakis. The Greece goalkeeper joined for a club-record fee of roughly £20m from Olympiacos, where he made 131 appearances, won four league titles and helped lift the 2024 UEFA Conference League. His shot-stopping and decision-making are the last line of a block that Fulham have to break down.
- Japan international Hidemasa Morita, 31, waits on the Hull bench. He won the J.League with Kawasaki Frontale before moving to Portugal, where Santa Clara earned him a move to Sporting and a league title. A midfielder who combines running power, ball-winning and clean distribution, he is the obvious option to see out a game if Fulham throw bodies forward late on.
- Fulham captain Tom Cairney, 35, faces one of his former clubs. Now in his 11th season at Craven Cottage and a genuine club legend, he spent a loan spell at Hull City earlier in his career. His delicate left foot and ability to change the tempo make him a natural substitute if a side with just two points starts running out of ideas in the final third.
- Fulham's attacking trio mixes youth and investment. Lone striker Gonzalo Garcia, 22, came through Real Madrid's academy and matched the Castilla record of 25 goals in a season. Oscar Bobb, 23, joined permanently from Manchester City for £27m in January 2026 and cuts in dangerously off the right with his left foot, while 30-year-old Nigeria international Alex Iwobi, an Arsenal academy product, operates on the left.
- The midfield is a battle of size. Fulham's double pivot is 195cm Norway holding midfielder Sander Berge, 28, formerly of Sheffield United and Burnley, next to 22-year-old Northern Ireland international Shea Charles, a 189cm Manchester City academy graduate. Hull's four-man line includes 191cm Matt Crooks, 32, a veteran of Middlesbrough and Rotherham, so second balls will be fiercely contested.
- Hull build around 188cm striker Oli McBurnie, the Scotland international who helped Sheffield United earn promotion to the Premier League and still excels at holding the ball up with his back to goal. Supplying him from the left is Wales international Sorba Thomas, 23 caps and the man who racked up 12 Championship assists in 2021-22 with his right-footed delivery.
- The benches could decide it. Fulham hold back Kevin, the 23-year-old Brazilian named player of the year at Shakhtar Donetsk before a club-record £34.6m move, plus Flamengo-schooled striker Rodrigo Muniz and 192cm Denmark centre-back Joachim Andersen. Hull counter with 19-year-old Robinho Vaz, who made his Ligue 1 debut at 17 for Marseille, and Leeds loanee Joe Gelhardt, 24.