Manchester United go into the clash at Craven Cottage on good form, unbeaten in six matches including three consecutive victories. However last Saturday's 3-2 win over Stoke City still voiced a concern over David Moyes' start to life as United boss.
The Red Devils are already playing catch-up with their title contenders, who have all made a much better start to the Premier League campaign than the Old Trafford side. United lie eighth in the table with 14 points, seven fewer than at this stage last season. And despite only playing nine games, United are currently eight points behind leaders Arsenal.
Javier Hernandez has done no harm this week in staking a claim in Moyes' first eleven at the Cottage, with the Mexican forward scoring the winner over Stoke last week as well as notching a double in their 4-0 win over Norwich City in the Capital One Cup on Tuesday night.
However the deadly duo of Wayne Rooney and Robin Van Persie both found the net last weekend and could be back to their best in time for a testing run-up to Christmas.
United face a daunting set of fixtures coming up, facing Arsenal at home as well as trips to Cardiff City and Tottenham Hotspur before welcoming Moyes' old club Everton to Old Trafford, the fans will be expecting nothing less than all three points in West London on Saturday afternoon.
Meanwhile for Fulham, there is a sense of insecurity lingering around Craven Cottage and in particular, Martin Jol. With a new owner at the helm this season, the Fulham boss is under pressure to deliver and catch the eye of owner, Shahid Khan. Khan has experienced plenty of defeats in the sporting world with his franchise, the Jacksonville Jaguars, considered the worst side in the NFL. They have lost eight out of eight matches so far.
The Cottagers have won two of their last three Premier league matches, with a convincing 4-1 victory at Crystal Palace after a 1-0 home win against Stoke, however their last league fixture was a spineless performance and were taught a footballing lesson by Southampton, who comfortably consigned Fulham to a 2-0 defeat. Jol's side lie 14th in the table, now just two points above the relegation zone. Jol and his side need to show the new owner why he invested in this club and a fighting performance against the title holders will justify that.
Team news
Fulham are handed a big blow as captain Brede Hangeland looks set to miss out with a nerve problem in his leg. Hugo Rodallega also looks doubtful. However Sascha Riether, Scott Parker, Pajtim Kasami and Dimitar Berbatov look set to return after being rested in Fulham's 4-3 extra time defeat to Leicester City in the League Cup.
David Moyes may rotate some of is squad with one eye on the Champions League trip to Sociedad in midweek. Danny Welbeck is still absent with a knee injury, Javier Hernandez may start for United as well as defensive paring Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic who both started against Norwich on Tuesday.
Last meeting
United have a very good record in London, having been unbeaten in the capital since May 2011. In particular they have a great record against Fulham, winning the last five meetings betweeen the two sides. In the same fixture last season, United went to Craven Cottage in February and grabbed a 1-0 win, courtesy of a Wayne Rooney winner in the 79th minute.
In an actioned packed game which saw the post be struck four times as well as the floodlights switching off to leave the ground in pitch black, the title challenge for United was bright as Sir Alex Ferguson's men went ten points clear at the top of the Premier League.