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Fulham will welcome Rotherham United to Craven Cottage in the FA Cup third round on Friday.
The hosts will play for the first time this year and signed off 2023 with a 2-1 comeback win over Arsenal. Raúl Jiménez equalized in the first half after Bukayo Saka opened the scoring in the fifth minute. Bobby De Cordova-Reid scored the match-winner in the 59th minute, taking his tally for the season to four goals.
The visitors have seen an upturn in form recently and are unbeaten in their last three EFL Championship outings. They were held to a 2-2 draw by Blackburn Rovers on New Year's Day, as goals from Sean Morrison and Tom Eaves in the first and second halves helped them level the scoring twice.
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The home team made it to the quarter-finals last season, losing to eventual runners-up Manchester United. Rotherham, meanwhile, were eliminated from the third round itself.
Fulham vs Rotherham United Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- The two teams have crossed paths 40 times across all competitions thus far and will meet for the first time in the FA Cup. As expected, the hosts have the upper hand in these meetings with twice the number of wins (18) as the visitors (9), while 13 games have ended in draws.
- They last met in the 2016-17 edition of the EFL Championship, with the hosts securing a league double with an aggregate score of 3-1.
- Fulham are unbeaten against the visitors in the 21st century. Their unbeaten run stretches to nine games, last suffering a defeat against their northern rivals in the erstwhile League Division 2 in 1992.
- Rotherham United have endured a winless run in away games this season, suffering 11 defeats in 14 games.
- The visitors are unbeaten in three consecutive games for the first time since April 2023.
- Rotherham have not made it past the third round in the FA Cup since the 2001-02 season.
Fulham vs Rotherham United Prediction
The Cottagers have won their last four meetings against the visitors, scoring 10 goals while conceding just thrice. They have lost just twice in 20 home meetings against Rotherham and are strong favorites.
Due to injuries, Marco Silva will be without the services of Adama Traore and Tim Ream. He will also have to make do without Calvin Bassey, Fode Ballo-Toure, and Alex Iwobi as they have joined up with their respective national teams for the 2023 AFCON.
The Millers are unbeaten in their last three games and will look to build on that form in this match. They are winless in their travels this season and have lost five of their last seven away games. Interestingly, their last win in an away game came in November 2022, which is a cause for concern.
Head coach Leam Richardson has a lengthy absentee list as Cameron Humphreys, Tyler Blackett, Daniel Ayala, Shane Ferguson, Fred Onyedinma, Andre Green, Lee Peltier, and Grant Hall are sidelined through injuries.
Fulham have won four of their last five home games, scoring 15 goals while letting in five goals. With that in mind and considering their recent record against the visitors, we back them to register a comfortable win.
Prediction: Fulham 2-1 Rotherham United
Fulham vs Rotherham United Betting Tips
Tip 1: Result - Fulham to win
Tip 2: Goals - Over/Under 2.5 Goals - Over 2.5 goals
Tip 3: At least a goal to be scored in the second half - Yes
Tip 4: Raúl Jiménez to score or assist any time - Yes
