Brentford vs Fulham Predictions

• Brentford have lost only one of their 12 Premier League home matches this season
• The Bees are on an 11-game unbeaten streak in the top flight, last losing a Premier League game in October away to Aston Villa
• Both teams have scored in 15 of Fulham’s 25 Premier League assignments this season
• Fulham have found the net in each of their last five games in all competitions

Bees can make home advantage count in west London derby

Brentford and Fulham have been two of the biggest overachievers in the Premier League this season and their west London derby encounter on Monday should not disappoint.

Both sides occupied a place in the top nine coming into this weekend’s batch of matches and both should be considered contenders for the European places in this season’s Premier League.

Fulham are four points ahead of their capital counterparts on 39 points from 25 matches – an excellent return from a club touted for the drop at the start of the season – but Brentford have two games in hand.

And it is Brentford who look the better bet to come out on top when these sides clash at the Gtech Community Stadium.

First of all, Thomas Frank’s side have made themselves incredibly tough to break down, having not lost any of their last 11 matches in the Premier League with that run having featured games against Manchester City, Tottenham, Liverpool and Arsenal.

But the Bees have been especially dangerous on their own turf, losing only one of their 12 league fixtures this season and that was against highflyers Arsenal back in September.

Palhinha absence is a big blow for Fulham

They had to rescue a point with a 96th-minute strike from Vitaly Janelt in their 1-1 draw with Palace at home last time out but they had won three on the spin in their own backyard beforehand and can make it a tough evening for Fulham.

The Cottagers have been handy on the road this term, picking up five league wins on their travels, but they head into this game missing crucial combative midfielder Joao Palhinha.

That is a massive blow with summer signing Palhinha key to turning defence into attack for Fulham and playing without him away at Brentford will not be easy.

Expect goals when overachievers lock horns

Fulham won their most recent match against Leeds 2-0 in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Tuesday but they looked porous in that contest, allowing their opponents 16 shots, and a more prolific team would have made Silva’s side pay.  

A win for the hosts looks the way to go but Fulham have become a free-scoring side under Marco Silva with 11-goal Aleksandar Mitrovic leading the charge and they can grab a consolation, so we predict a 2-1 win for the home side.