Burnley hope to close the door on relegation when hosting rejuvenated Fulham

Wednesday night sees Burnley take on Fulham in a match rescheduled from January 3rd.

That fixture was postponed due to a Coronavirus outbreak in the Cottagers squad. There was a lot of talk around that time that a pause in the season was needed and fears that the season may not even be able to finish. Thankfully cases have come down since then and those fears have been allayed.

It was a strange weekend at the bottom end of the Premier League that started with Burnley picking up a brilliant 3-0 win at Crystal Palace and Brighton earning another point thanks to a goalless draw at home to Aston Villa.

All of this left Fulham cut adrift in 18th, ten points from safety ahead of their trip to Goodison Park on Sunday to take on Everton. They had lost on their previous 22 visits to the blue half of Merseyside and many were thinking the relegation battle was done and dusted in the middle of February.

Scott Parker’s men were having none of it though and produced a brilliant performance to win 2-0 to breathe new life into their season. It was the win that they badly needed, to cap off months of good performances that didn’t bring the results that were necessary.

It was their first win since the 30th November in a period that only saw four defeats, all coming against teams in the top six. There have just been too many draws but perhaps Sunday could be a catalyst towards a great escape.

The next three fixtures are absolutely massive for their survival hopes. After their trip to Burnley comes a home game with Sheffield United and a London derby with Crystal Palace. At this point in the season they’re really going to need to take at least six points if they are to remain alive.

The arrival of Josh Maja has provided a lift with the former Sunderland and Bordeaux man scoring both goals in Sunday’s win. Fulham have lacked a goalscorer all season, with Aleksandar Mitrovic struggling upon his Premier League return. A striker was imperative in January. Fulham fans will be hoping he hasn’t arrived too late.

Burnley’s win in London at the weekend came as something of a surprise. Not so much for the victory itself, but for the fact that Sean Dyche’s side scored three goals having previously only netted 14 all season.

It’s remarkable that they find themselves in such a relatively comfortable position having scored so few but it speaks volumes about their defence, which is the eight best in the division this season.

That defensive resolve will be tested on Wednesday due to the absence of Ben Mee, who picked up a concussion during Saturday’s win. Kevin Long is expected to come into the side.

Dyche may also be without Erik Pieters, Chris Wood, Dale Stephens and Matej Vydra but Charlie Taylor could make a timely return.

Wednesday offers the opportunity for Burnley to move 11 points clear of Fulham in the final relegation spot and even the most pessimistic of supporter would surely feel that it would be enough to secure another year of Premier League football.

With Fulham having only picked up three wins so far this season, it would require an unprecedented run of form to catch Dyche’s men. With both sides among the four lowest scoring teams in the division, one goal could settle it. Whichever way it goes, it will be an enormous result in this Premier League season.

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