With a total of 30 goals conceded from 15 Premier League games this season, Burnley have struggled to keep their opponents out, which has contributed to their current situation. The Clarets have now lost six matches on the bounce, finding themselves five points adrift of Nottingham Forest in 17th. 

Burnley rank rock bottom for total xG conceded this campaign, highlighting the dire situation at the back. With key defensive personnel unavailable for this upcoming clash, it seems unlikely for that to change.

Having shipped seven goals in their last two games alone, Fulham haven’t fared much better, making this a clash between two poor defensive units. The Cottagers can take some consolation from the fact they did at least find the back of the net against Crystal Palace, after putting four past Man City on home turf. Marco Silva’s men have been much better going forward than they have been at defending, which lends itself to backing goals. 

Scott Parker has usually set his Burnley side in quite a defensive shape this season, deploying a pragmatic deep block. Averaging just 40.6% of the ball, the Clarets rank bottom of the league for total possession this season, which doesn’t come as a surprise.

Because of that, they have conceded the most shots, most shots on target and the second-most corners of any side in the Premier League this season. Martin Dubravka has earned his paycheck in between the sticks, and has made more saves than any other goalkeeper in the league as well. 

Fulham should see plenty of the ball on Saturday evening, particularly in the final third, which should open up opportunities for them. The Cottagers accrued six corners against Crystal Palace last weekend, and seven corners against Man City before that, meaning they have hit this mark in six of their last seven matches across all competitions.

Only Brentford and Tottenham have drawn less fouls than Burnley in the Premier League this season, but the Clarets are likely to improve their numbers this weekend, as they face a Fulham side who have racked up the third-most infringements in the division. The Cottagers press strongly in midfield as they look to sustain pressure on their opponents, which means Lesley Ugochukwu draws a solid matchup here. 

Despite his sides’ poor record for drawing fouls, Ugochukwu is averaging 2.16 fouls won per 90 this season in all competitions, drawing at least one infringement in eight of his 10 starts. He failed to win a free-kick against Sunderland back in August, and the other was against Liverpool. In that game against the Reds, Burnley had just 19% possession, and Ugochukwu was sent off for two yellow cards. Since then, he has been fouled in all seven starts, landing this selection in six of those matches. 

Jaidon Anthony is averaging 1.04 fouls per 90 this season in all competitions, and has landed this bet in nine of his 11 starts overall. He only featured for a cameo from the bench last weekend against Newcastle, but looks set to re-claim his starting spot on the flank. 

Assuming Anthony does start on the left wing, he will occupy the same zone of the field as Kenny Tete and Harry Wilson - they have combined to draw an average of 3.55 fouls per 90 this season in the Premier League. In fact, Tete alone has drawn at least two infringements in all five of his appearances on the road this season, including three fouls drawn against Spurs in his last away outing. 

Both Yeremy Pino and Jeremy Doku committed exactly two fouls against Fulham in recent games, and Anthony plays in the same position as those two. 

Connor Roberts and Axel Tuanzebe remain out with injuries, and Scott Parker was dealt further setbacks at the weekend. Kyle Walker received his fifth Premier League booking of the season, and Lucas Pires was sent off shortly after, leaving Burnley incredibly short of fullback options coming into this clash. 

Joe Worrall was brought on at half-time against Newcastle to add some defensive cover, while regular left back Quilindschy Hartman remained an unused substitute. Worrall seems set to be rushed into the starting eleven against Fulham to make his first Premier League start of the season, and just his second appearance since October. 

The 28-year-old has been out of action for large parts of the campaign, and is likely to be quite rusty. He started both games for Burnley in the EFL Cup - while he didn’t get carded in either, he did commit a foul in both, and now faces a much tougher opponent in Fulham.

Chances have been limited for Emile Smith Rowe this season, with just five starts across all competitions, but the former Arsenal man has been given an opportunity to express himself in the last couple of games. 

Starting in his preferred position against Man City, Smith Rowe was on the scoresheet against the Citizens, accounting for four of Fulham’s 12 shots before being replaced after 74 minutes. He was rewarded with another start last weekend, and although he didn’t find the back of the net, Smith Rowe still had plenty of involvement in the final third. 

The Englishman managed two shots, and was denied by an excellent save from Dean Henderson. Smith Rowe also had a goal disallowed in the second half for a marginal offside in the build up. He looks set to start again this weekend, and draws an excellent matchup against a leaky Burnley defence.

Burnley have conceded 97 corners this season from their 15 matches, with their opponents averaging 6.4 corners per game. Only West Ham have shipped more, meaning the Fulham centre backs should have plenty of opportunities to pile into the Burnley box on Saturday evening. 

Joachim Andersen will be Fulham’s primary threat from set-pieces, and the target man from these crosses. The Danish international is averaging 0.45 shots per 90 this season, but he did register two shots against Sunderland, who are another pragmatic side who like to sit deep. Fulham had seven corners in that game, and one of Andersen’s shots came from such a situation. He also tried his luck from well outside the box. 

Andersen had an average of 0.79 shots per 90 across all competitions last season, highlighting how there is still room for his shot numbers to improve.