Match Preview: Cardiff City vs. Fulham
Neil Warnock’s men host the Whites at CCS on Saturday
20th October 2018.
CARDIFF CITY FC
Cardiff City vs. Fulham Tickets are still available
In the hot seat
Slaviša Jokanović’s side arrive at CCS off the back of a 5-1 crushing defeat at the hands of Arsenal at Craven Cottage, leaving the Whites with one win this season.
Jokanović and his team joined Warnock’s side in the Premier League after they won last season’s Championship Play-Off Final, defeating Aston Villa, 1-0. The Whites were forced to take the Play-Off route after they were beaten to the second automatic promotion spot on the final day of the season by the Bluebirds.
The Serbian has managed in six different countries and made over 400 appearances as player, where he represented Partizan, Tenerife, Chelsea and helped Deportivo de La Coruña win their first Spanish league title in their 1999-2000 campaign. The defensive midfielder also netted sixty-six goals during his playing career, the most arriving at Partizan during a three-year spell where he scored twenty goals for the Serbian outfit.
The Serbian also guided the Hornets to England’s top flight in 2015, after Watford finished in second spot.
Squad Info
Aleksandar Mitrović has undoubtedly been Fulham’s brightest player this term, having found his feet at Craven Cottage in 2018. The Serbian striker netted 12 goals in 17 Championship matches during a loan spell last year and has continued his fine form since the move was made permanent in late July, with five Premier League strikes thus far. Fellow striker Luciano Vietto leads the way in terms of assists, with four this term.
Jokanović added seven players on a permanent basis during the summer, including midfield duo Jean Michaël Seri and André-Frank Zambo Anguissa, defensive pair Joe Bryan and Alfie Mawson, and goalkeeper Fabri. Arguably, even more impressive were the players brought in on loan; Premier League and World Cup winner André Schürrle has netted three times already, while Timothy Fosu-Mensah and the aforementioned Vietto have also signed temporary deals from Manchester United and Atlético Madrid respectively.
Despite pressure from Fabri, and another loanee Sergio Rico, goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli has managed to keep his place between the sticks at Craven Cottage. His impressive form has even seen him called up to the England squad in recent months.
Memorable Meeting
Cardiff City 1-0 Fulham - Cardiff City Stadium, January 10th, 2015.
A memorable day for all Bluebirds supporters - that very nearly didn't happen as adverse weather conditions impacted South Wales. Emergency services were called to fix part of the Ninian Stand - damaged by the excessive winds.
18-months before he became skipper, Sean Morrison, stepped up on that day, heading home an Aron Gunnarsson long throw to the delight of the 22,000+ in attendance at CCS.
Scott Malone and Alex Revell made debuts for Cardiff City against the Whites during that game.
Club Connections
The aforementioned Malone moved from City to Fulham in summer 2016 as part of the deal that brought former Academy player Jazz Richards back to Cardiff City FC. The English left-back has since gone on to play for both Huddersfield Town and now Derby County.
Another player who could face off this Saturday against familiar opposition is Neil Etheridge. The Filipino international joined our opponents in 2008, but never made an appearance for the Cottagers and encountered loan spells for Charlton Athletic, Bristol Rovers and Crewe Alexandra during his time in London, before he departed in 2014 to join Oldham Athletic.
Ross McCormack, Phil Stant and Mark Hudson are just a few of the players who have featured for both the Bluebirds and the Whites.
Former Cardiff City manager Alan Cork finished his playing career at Fulham during the 1994-95 season - scoring three times. He later joined the backroom staff at Craven Cottage.
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