Fulham will be keen on ending a dreadful run of form and returning to winning ways when they host Sunderland at Craven Cottage on Saturday.

Premier League football resumes this weekend with Gameweek 12 of the 2025/26 season. The action on Saturday starts with the game between Burnley and Chelsea at Turf Moor before continuing with five simultaneous matches, including Fulham vs Sunderland at Craven Cottage.

Fulham would have hoped to push for European qualification after an impressive haul of 54 points last term. However, after a slow summer transfer window, the Cottagers have endured a challenging 2025/26 campaign, managing only three wins in 11 Premier League outings thus far. That has left Marco Silva’s men in the 15th spot in the Premier League standings, only one point outside the relegation zone.

As for Sunderland, the visitors have been the surprise package of the first three months of the 2025/26 season. The Wearside outfit went into November’s international break in the fourth spot in the Premier League standings. The Black Cats have lost only twice thus far in the ongoing campaign, and they have the potential to break the recent promotion curse.

The most recent clash between Fulham and Sunderland at Craven Cottage ended in a 1-1 draw in the FA Cup fourth round in January 2023 before the Cottagers won the replay at the Stadium of Light. The Hard Tackle looks closer at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.

Team News & Tactics

Fulham

Marco Silva has a new roster issue that is hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Fulham manager will be bereft of the services of three first-team players vs Sunderland on Saturday.

Sasa Lukic is the latest absentee after picking up his fifth yellow card of the 2025/26 Premier League season. The Serbian midfielder has joined Antonee Robinson (knee) and Rodrigo Muniz (hamstring) on the sidelines.

Bernd Leno is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Fulham lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him vs Sunderland on Saturday. The backline will feature Kenny Tete, Joachim Andersen, Calvin Bassey, and Ryan Sessegnon.

As for the midfield unit, Alex Iwobi will drop into the double pivot, pairing up alongside Sander Berge in the middle of the park. Joshua King will reprise the no. 10 role, with Harry Wilson and Kevin being the two wide attackers. Finally, Raul Jimenez will lead the line for Fulham against Sunderland this weekend.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Leno; Tete, Andersen, Bassey, Sessegnon; Iwobi, Berge; Wilson, King, Kevin; Jimenez

Sunderland

Unlike his counterpart in the Fulham dugout, Regis Le Bris has received positive updates on the team news front ahead of the trip to Craven Cottage. The Sunderland manager will be without only two first-team players on Saturday.

Habib Diarra (groin) and Aji Alese (shoulder) are the only players in the treatment room, and the duo will return next month. Meanwhile, Leo Hjelde (Achilles), Reinildo Mandava (hamstring), and Romaine Mundle (thigh) should be fit and available, with Reinildo likely to be ready to start.

Robin Roefs will take his usual spot between the sticks, with Sunderland lining up in a 3-4-3 formation in front of him vs Fulham on Saturday. The central defensive unit will feature Nordi Mukiele, Dan Ballard, and Lutsharel Geertruida. Meanwhile, Trai Hume and Reinildo Mandava will be the two wing-backs.

As for the midfield unit, Granit Xhaka and Noah Sadiki will hold the fort in the middle of the park. Finally, Wilson Isidor will spearhead the Sunderland attack against Fulham, with Enzo Le Fee and Bertrand Traore being the two wide attackers.

Probable Lineup (3-4-3): Roefs; Mukiele, Ballard, Geertruida; Hume, Xhaka, Sadiki, Reinildo; Traore, Isidor, Le Fee

Key Stats

• Fulham have lost their last two Premier League home games vs Sunderland, with Saturday’s clash the first top-flight meeting between the two sides since a 4-1 win for the Black Cats in January 2014. The Black Cats lost their most recent league game against Fulham, a 2-1 loss at Craven Cottage in the Championship in April 2018. They have not lost consecutive league meetings with the Cottagers since a run of three between 2002 and 2006.
• Fulham are unbeaten in their last ten Premier League games against newly promoted opponents (W5 D5), winning their three most recent meetings in a row. That is their longest winning run over promoted clubs in the division since October 2011 (4 in a row).
• Sunderland won their last away Premier League game against a London club 2-1 at Chelsea in October. However, the Black Cats have not won successive matches in the capital within a single season in the competition since March 2001.
• Fulham have earned 91 per cent of their points in the Premier League this season at Craven Cottage (10/11), the highest home ratio of any side in the competition this term. The Cottagers have won three of their last four home league matches (L1), as many as their previous 13 beforehand (W3 D5 L5).
• Sunderland’s open play expected goals tally of 5.1 is the lowest of any side in the Premier League this season. Indeed, 47 per cent of the Black Cats’ non-penalty xG in the top flight this term has come from set plays (4.5/9.7), the highest ratio of any side. On the other hand, Fulham have mustered 121 shots in their 11 Premier League games in the 2025/26 campaign, an average of exactly 11 per game. That is their lowest average ever in a season in the competition.

Player to Watch

Granit Xhaka

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While Wilson Isidor, Raul Jimenez, and Alex Iwobi were viable candidates for this section, we have picked Granit Xhaka as the Player to Watch for Saturday’s Premier League clash between Fulham and Sunderland at Craven Cottage.

Only Marcos Senesi (19) and Bruno Guimaraes (18) have made more passes that have broken the opponent’s defensive line in the Premier League this season than the Swiss midfielder (15). Xhaka has created five chances from line-breaking passes in the competition in the 2025/26 campaign, with only Bruno Fernandes (7) producing more. So, he will be the go-to man for Regis Le Bris this weekend.

Prediction

Fulham 1-1 Sunderland

Fulham may be only a point outside the relegation zone, but they have been much better at Craven Cottage this season. So, while they can drop into the bottom three, the home side will produce a resolute performance that will try to keep Sunderland at bay and take advantage of the visitors’ struggles in creating open-play chances.

However, Sunderland’s set-piece prowess will make the difference, although there may not be much to separate the two sides. The Hard Tackle predicts a closely-contested affair that will end in a 1-1 draw.