Arsenal have never lost a league game at home to Fulham, winning 24 and drawing six of their 30 such meetings. No other team has a better unbeaten record at home to a particular opponent in English league history.
Indeed, Arsenal have been a difficult nut for Fulham to crack regardless of the venue, with Fulham failing to win any of their last 10 Premier League meetings with the Gunners, only managing two draws in that run and failing to keep a clean sheet in any of their last 16 against them.
Arteta’s team produced a ruthless attacking display when they last met Fulham in March, with Trossard laying on first-half goals for Gabriel, Ødegaard and Gabriel Martinelli in a routine 3-0 win at Craven Cottage.
Fulham’s last Premier League win over Arsenal came back in January 2012, when Bobby Zamora’s last-ditch winner handed Martin Jol’s team a 2-1 victory.
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As well as keeping them level with Brighton and Man City at the top of the early-season league table, Monday’s victory over Palace extended Arsenal’s unbeaten run in Premier League London derbies to 13 games (11 wins, two draws).
Arsenal should also be buoyed by the prospect of a 3pm Saturday kick-off, having lost just one of their last 34 home Premier League games at that time, winning 27 and drawing six. They won three of their four such fixtures last season, drawing the other 1-1 against Brentford.
Fulham have struggled when travelling across the capital lately, winning just one of their last 19 top-flight away games against fellow London clubs (four draws, 14 defeats). Their only victory in that sequence was a 3-0 defeat of Crystal Palace on Boxing Day last year.
The supercomputer expects Arsenal’s strong start to 2023-24 to continue on Saturday, giving them a 55.0% chance of victory at the Emirates.
Fulham are given just a 19.0% chance of causing an upset, though Silva’s side would surely take a draw at the home of last season’s runners-up. The likelihood of the points being shared stands at 26.0%.
Despite Arsenal’s unblemished start, the supercomputer gives them just a 5.1% chance of lifting the Premier League trophy at the end of the campaign. Fulham, meanwhile, are predicted to steer clear of major danger, with the supercomputer assigning them just a 6.6% chance of relegation.
Across 10,000 season simulations before this game, Arsenal ended in the top four of the league table 85.2% of the time, which would of course be enough for UEFA Champions League football again. Fulham’s most likely finishing position is 13th (14.1%), sandwiched either side of Crystal Palace and Wolves.