Leave Fulham alone at evens

FULHAM have been the draw specialists in the Premier League this season, and the bookmakers have them correctly priced at evens to beat West Ham in the opening game on the Boxing Day slate.

Despite winning only twice all season in the league (v Wigan and v Wolves), Fulham’s capacity for gaining single points still has them placed one spot outside of the relegation zone, in 16^th position. Pressure on manager Mark Hughes is certain to increase, however, if his team continue failing to take victories against other teams near the foot of the table. Fulham’s form of late has not been awful, a home draw last week against Sunderland was preceded by a single goal defeat at Arsenal, but a 1-1 home draw against Birmingham (notoriously bad travellers) at the end of November raises concerns over their price for this contest.

As for Fulham’s opponents, West Ham find themselves bottom at Christmas and could soon find themselves without a manager. The knives seem to be out for Avram Grant unless he can start to turn the Hammers fortunes around in the near future, and although a point at Blackburn last week will have helped somewhat, wins are the order of the day for West Ham. After an appalling 3-0 defeat at Anfield, West Ham’s performances have improved in recent weeks. A 4-0 Carling Cup success against Manchester United may have represented the catching of lightening in a bottle, but the Hammers did beat Wigan at home and as well as gaining the creditable draw at Blackburn. A 1-0 defeat at Sunderland is itself not that much of a bad result given the Black Cats impressive home record. Rob Green’s return from injury for this clash may also help West Ham frustrate their goal starved opponents, yet West Ham’s own inability in front of goal is well noted – their strikers have hit the net only six times all season.

While West Ham’s performances of late have not been inspiring, they have started to show some resolve for their under-fire boss. Given their battling efforts, and Fulham’s own inability to win football matches, there is enough to suggest that the even money about a Fulham success is best avoided. Those who take such a price would no doubt questioning how rational it was for them to be tempted if the match ended in a draw, and that fact alone suggests that the price is one best avoided.

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