Bournemouth - Fulham predictions and free betting tips [26/12/2023]

On Tuesday, 26th December, as part of the 19th round of the Premier League, Bournemouth will host Fulham on their home turf. Last weekend, the "cherries" secured their third consecutive win, defeating a crisis-ridden Nottingham Forest 3:2, whilst the "cottagers" fell to Burnley 0:2 at home and now rank a meagre 13th in the league table.

Predicted Lineups

Bournemouth: Neto; Smith, Zabarnyi, Senesi, Ouattara; Christie, Scott; Kluivert, Billing, Tavernier; Solanke.
Fulham: Leno; Tete, Adarabioyo, Bassey, Robinson; Palhinha, Reed; Decordova-Reid, Pereira, Willian; Vinicius.

Stadium

The clash will take place in Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium.

Bournemouth

Bournemouth had their fans on edge, failing to secure a win in any of their first nine matches of the current season. However, post that, the "cherries" picked up the pace. In their last seven rounds, they lost only to Manchester City (6:1), winning five times and drawing once. This commendable form has positioned the red and black squad 12th in the league, sitting securely at 10 points clear of the relegation zone. After their stunning away victory over Manchester United (0:3), Bournemouth's match against Luton was postponed following a cardiac arrest suffered by the opponent’s captain.

Last Saturday, the referee Rob Jones handed down a gift at the City Ground to the cherries when he red carded defender Willy Boly for two controversial infractions; afterwards, the Forest scored twice, but Dominic Solanke netted a hat-trick and secured three points for his team. Having garnered 16 out of 18 possible points in their last six rounds, the team led by Ander Iturraspe is hoping to secure their fourth consecutive Premier League victory on Tuesday, which would be a first in Bournemouth's history. 

Fulham

Just like last season, Fulham sit comfortably mid-table. Holding the 13th spot overall, the Londoners may not realistically be looking at European cup contention. On the other hand, they are definitely safe from needing to scrap for survival — situated 12 points clear of the 18th position. After two resounding victories over Nottingham Forest (5:0) and West Ham (5:0), the "cottagers" were handed a crushing defeat by Newcastle (3:0). They subsequently advanced to the League Cup fourth round thanks to a penalty shootout victory over Everton (1:1).

But last weekend, the black and white team surprisingly stumbled against Burnley at home: despite managing 19 shots at the opposition's goal and holding 66% ball possession, they didn’t respond to goals conceded to Wilson Odoberta and Sander Berge. It’s worth noting that Fulham lost their last three away matches in the championship, and have failed to taste victory in their last eight away outings. 

Head-to-Head

Fulham's previous visit to the Vitality in April ended in a 2:1 defeat. Before that, the teams drew three times consecutively.

Match Prediction for Bournemouth vs Fulham

Bournemouth has never won a Premier League match on Boxing Day in its five previous attempts. However, the cherries now stand the best chance, hosting Fulham who have gathered a mere six points from nine away Premier League matches. Moreover, the hosts are in excellent form and can count on passionate support from the stands — I would confidently back the red and blacks with a handicap of 0.

Total Prediction

Neither team is known for reliable defence, both conceding on average 2 goals per game. The last two face-offs between them ended with a fair amount of goal action — I expect more of the same this time.

Corner Prediction

With the backing of their home crowd, Bournemouth will aim to assert their dominance and mount plenty of attacks, which should enable the cherries to secure at least five corners.

Yellow Card Prediction

The hosts usually refrain from careless fouling and average fewer than 2 yellow cards per game. I predict Fulham will balance out the number of yellows.

Score Prediction

Backing a precise scoreline of 2:1 in favour of Bournemouth.