Arsenal has four victories and one draw from their last five matches, which should have Gunners fans happy. Their mid-week draw against Everton at the Emirates will not be the worst of results, but Arsene Wenger's side knows they can not afford to drop more points at Craven Cottage.
Meetings against Fulham tend to offer up a lot of goals, making Saturday's match likely to be a very entertaining match. Both sides have earned two victories in this fixture from the last five matches, with a draw in between.
Staying on track against Martin Jol's side, which does not have much to play for will not be easy, as we all saw in their first meeting this season.
Two early goals for the Gunners looked to send Arsenal into cruise control, but three unanswered goals from the Cottagers left the Emirates and Arsene Wenger is disbelief and shock. To the rescue came Premier League debutante Olivier Giroud, who tied the match at three in the 69th minute, two minutes after Berbatov had given his side the lead.
Had Arteta been able to convert his stoppage time penalty kick, Arsenal's place in the top four could look much better, but at the moment, they are now left in a tight battle with Chelsea, Tottenham and even Everton, who is just four points back.
Fortunately for Arsene Wenger, he has an almost fully healthy squad to choose from, leaving him with a number of difficult, yet pleasant headaches.
Judging by how he has opted to put out his side in recent matches, it may be safe to assume that he would keep Sagna, Koscielny, Mertesacker and Gibbs in the back four. Nacho Monreal could come in to replace Gibbs who came off late in the match against Everton.
Other than Diaby who is out with a lengthy knee injury, Lukasz Fabianski is the only other doubt. The Polish goalkeeper missed out against Everton, but he has taken advantage of his first team opportunities since Arsenal's victory at the Allianz Arena against Bayern Munich.
At this point in the campaign, Martin Jol's side could be packing it in, waiting for the end of the season to arrive, but they still have five matches to play out. Their match on Wednesday against Chelsea will not have left Arsenal fans pleased, but Arsenal can blame themselves for dropping points on Tuesday as well.
This side has very talented players such as Berbatov, Bryan Ruiz, Karagounis and even Emanuelson, so this will be far from an easy match for Arsenal. With nothing more to play for and playing at home in front of their fans, the Cottagers will be able to play with no pressure on them.
Previous Matches
11-10-12 Arsenal 3-3 Fulham
01-02-12 Fulham 2-1 Arsenal
11-26-11 Arsenal 1-1 Fulham
05-22-11 Fulham 2-2 Arsenal
12-04-10 Arsenal 2-1 Fulham
05-09-10 Arsenal 4-0 Fulham
Prediction
Whether or not Jack Wilshere is able to return to top form still remains to be seen, but the advantage Wenger has is that if the English midfielder needs a break, Tomas Rosicky could potentially step in to fill the void. Wilshere's presence in the middle of the field is extremely important to Arsenal's offensive game, but his last two performances have left Arsenal fans hoping for Jack to return to his pre-injury form.
Even if he does not feature in the starting XI, Martin Jol will know that in order to keep Arsenal at bay, his side will need to pressure the ball, forcing the Gunners to become frustrated.
The mistake prone Gunners are known to fold under pressure at times, but as of late, they have shown some character and fight.
How difficult will it be to deal with a Fulham side that not only scored three goals at the Emirates, but they also managed a point. Will the Gunners be looking for revenge on Saturday, or will the pressure of the final five matches get to them?
Fulham 1-2 Arsenal
