da premier bet： As Tottenham make the short trip to west London to take on Fulham in the Fifth Round of the FA Cup on Sunday, most Spurs fans will feel fairly confident of victory.
da apostebet： The Lilywhites have been one of the most consistent sides in the Premier League this season, currently sitting in third and on course to qualify for Champions League football for a second consecutive campaign.
The Cottagers, on the other hand, are stuck on the peripheries of the play-off hunt, laying six points away from the Championship’s top six, and have dipped in and out of form throughout 2016/17.
But the old cliches of giant killings and upsets are hard to ignore when the FA Cup comes around and although even manager Slaviša Jokanović would admit his side aren’t quite the finished article just yet, they’re the kind of team who can beat anybody on their day.
With that in mind, here are FIVE reasons why Fulham vs Spurs will provide the upset of the weekend.
Only Norwich and Newcastle have scored more this season
Whilst Fulham do have some weaknesses defensively, they also have one of the most vibrant attacks in the Championship, and have only been outscored by pace-setters Newcastle United and fellow play-off outsiders Norwich, who still have Premier League-standard players in their forward ranks after suffering relegation from the top-flight last season.
They’ve scored more than three goals on eight occasions already this season, including against Wigan and Nottingham Forest in their last two Championship outings. Admittedly, Spurs’ watertight defence – in contrast, statistically the strongest in the Premier League – might have something to say about Fulham’s attacking verve on Sunday, but finding the net will give them at least half a chance of claiming a shock win.
Champions League football is still Spurs’ priority
Mauricio Pochettino certainly won’t turn his nose up at the chance to win his first silverware in England but make no mistake about it, Tottenham’s priority remains finishing in the top four. At the moment, there’s just one point in it, with Liverpool and Manchester United loitering just behind the Champions League qualification spots.
With Chelsea already clear in regards to the title, five clubs will be battling it out for three places this term – and Pochettino will be doing everything to ensure his side don’t miss out. Compounded with Thursday night’s Europa League tie against Genk, that suggests the Spurs boss will put out a weakened side at Craven Cottage.
Wycombe almost beat them
Speaking of weakened teams, Tottenham’s limited squad depth became particularly apparent during their last FA Cup tie, as an XI mixed of regular starters, squad players and youngsters struggled against League Two outfit Wycombe Wanderers.
The Buckinghamshire side netted three times at White Hart Lane and came close to claiming a victory, with Dele Alli coming off the bench to wreak havoc and save blushes as Pochettino’s boys completed a late comeback. If the same cronies are given a run-out at Craven Cottage and produce a similar kind of performance, Fulham could punish them.
More evidence of rampant Fulham attack
As previously mentioned, a defence of Kieran Trippier, Kevin Wimmer, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Ben Davies conceded three times against Wycombe last month and the statistics suggest Fulham would fare even better under the same circumstances. I
In addition to their aforementioned goal tally, the third-best in the Championship, they also rank top throughout the division for efforts at goal-per-match and boast the best average possession of any side in the league at 58.4%.
Perhaps most worryingly for Spurs, however, is how they’ve produced goals from all over the pitch. 15 different players have scored for Fulham in the Championship this season – once again, the most of side in the second tier. In comparison, only nine different players have scored in the Premier League for Spurs.
Fulham have already beaten Premier League opposition this season
Up-and-down league form suggests Fulham aren’t quite ready for the top flight just yet but results this season hint that when they finally get there, they’ll become a force to be reckoned with.
Indeed, the west Londoners have already beaten Premier League opposition twice this season with an aggregate scoreline of 6-2, getting past Middlesbrough in the League Cup before battering Hull City 4-1 in the last round of the FA Cup.
Of course, Spurs are of a much higher calibre than the aforementioned relegation battlers, but that shouldn’t detract from the fact Fulham have already proved they can give top-flight sides a run for their money.