Fulham vs Chelsea: Match Preview and Team Updates

The West London derby highlights Craven Cottage on Wednesday evening as Chelsea faces Fulham in a local clash.

Both teams come into this matchup after late equalizers in their weekend games. Chelsea drew 1-1 with Manchester City, while Fulham ended with a 2-2 tie against Liverpool. Interim coach Calum McFarlane will lead Chelsea one last time before new head coach Liam Rosenior takes over.

Fulham, unbeaten in five league matches, aims to take advantage of Chelsea’s transitional phase. With both teams close in the mid-table, this derby is a key chance to gain local bragging rights and improve their standings toward European competition.

Fulham vs Chelsea – Match Preview and Team News

• Date: Wednesday, 7 January 2026
• Kick-off: 19:30 GMT
• Venue: Craven Cottage, London
• Referee: Peter Bankes
• VAR: Paul Tierney
• Last Meeting: Chelsea 2–0 Fulham, 30 August 2025

Team News

Fulham

Marco Silva will be without Josh King (knee), Kenny Tete (hamstring), and Rodrigo Muniz (thigh) due to injury. Ryan Sessegnon returns from his hamstring issue. The team is also affected by AFCON duties, with Calvin Bassey, Alex Iwobi, and Samuel Chukwueze on international duty with Nigeria. Sander Berge is likely to start in place of captain Tom Cairney.

Chelsea

Chelsea welcomes back Moises Caicedo after a suspension. Robert Sanchez, Marc Cucurella, and Wesley Fofana have returned to training and may play. However, Levi Colwill (knee) and Romeo Lavia (thigh) are still sidelined, along with Mykhaylo Mudryk and Dario Essugo. Cole Palmer is ready to participate after completing 90 minutes in his last match.

Form

Fulham

Fulham has made Craven Cottage a challenging venue for visitors, remaining unbeaten in their last five league games and earning 17 points at home this season, including wins against Brentford and Sunderland. They have the oldest average starting XI in the league.

Chelsea

Historically, Chelsea has had the upper hand in this derby, winning 11 of the last 14 Premier League matchups with Fulham. They have an impressive record, losing only 8.1% of their encounters against Fulham—the best for any fixture with over 20 meetings. Chelsea has seen five draws in their last eight league matches, with Enzo Fernandez leading their scoring with five goals this season.

Predicted Lineups

Fulham predicted XI: Leno; Cuenca, Andersen, Diop; Castagne, Berge, Lukic, Robinson; Wilson, Kevin; Jimenez

Chelsea predicted XI: Jorgensen; James, Chalobah, Badiashile, Gusto; Caicedo, Fernandez; Estevao, Pedro, Neto; Delap

How to watch Fulham vs Chelsea?

The match will be shown live in the UK on Sky Sports Football and Sky Ultra HD, starting at 18:30 GMT ahead of the 19:30 kickoff.

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