Costa Rican star Brian Ruiz has recently found his shooting boots for Fulham
The Championship returns to our screens on Friday night with a tasty West London derby between two in-form sides, and Andy Tongue is expecting goals in an entertaining clash...
Brentford v Fulham
Friday, 21 November, 19:45
Live on Sky Sports 1
Brentford
Three wins on the spin - victory over leaders Derby followed by triumphs at Nottingham Forest and Millwall - have seen Mark Warburton's men leap into the play-off spots and they currently sit in sixth place with just one defeat in seven games. You could pick a few holes in the form and argue that Forest and Millwall are two of the division's poorest sides currently but there's no denying the Bees have adjusted very nicely to life back in the second tier.
At home they have been strong this season with four wins, three draws and just the one defeat - at the hands of Norwich when the Canaries were flying high in September. Striker Andre Gray has scored four times in those three consecutive wins but Warburton is still trying to bring in another forward despite losing out to Wolves in his attempts to sign Danny Graham on-loan.
The Bees stand out player so far this season, Jonathan Douglas, missed the win at Millwall through suspension but is set to return to his holding role in midfield and will be charged with stopping Fulham captain Scott Parker who has rolled back the years with some marauding performances in recent weeks.
Griffin Park is tight old-fashioned ground and having sold-out for Fulham's first visit in 15 years it should be rocking under lights for this much-anticipated clash.
Fulham
Kit Symons said after the win over Huddersfield which lifted his side out of the bottom three that he is targeting a place in the play-offs and it's understandable why. Although they are still in 17th place, they are only nine points off sixth spot and their opponents here have shown how a run of just three wins on the spin can propel a side up the Championship table.
Last season Leicester had 38 points with Burnley and QPR on 35 each - this time around Derby top the table with only 32 points, with nine teams within six points of them. Putting a line through hapless Blackpool any side could still realistically target a top six finish and certainly the likes of Fulham and Bolton will think they can turn this season around having made managerial changes early enough not to lose sight of the leading pack.
The Cottagers are now unbeaten in six games, though Symons does need to solve the problem of their away form which has been an Achilles heel for too long now. They have won just one match away from the banks of the Thames this season and have not won more than four games on the road in one season for a decade. Admittedly they were in the Premier League for all of that time but it's still a telling stat.
However, with a strike trio of Brian Ruiz, Hugo Rodallega and Ross McCormack it's no surprise they have banged in 16 goals in their last six games and if Symons can tighten things up at the back, they should move up the league fairly swiftly. To that end he's been linked with a loan move for former Cottage fans favourite Chris Baird, who is currently out of favour at West Brom.
Both Teams to Score
Both teams to score is pretty short at 1.645/8 but it's easy to see why. Fulham have drawn their last two away games 3-3 and have been scoring for fun in recent matches but their star-studded forward line isn't quite matched by a defence, which has yet to keep a clean sheet away from Craven Cottage this season.
As well as conceding three in each of their last two away games, they also shipped five at both Nottingham Forest and Derby earlier in the year. Yes, those games were under the ill-fated Felix Magaath but the evidence so far is that Symons has solved their home form and got the team's attacking verve back but work is still needed at the back to turn them into a side capable of moving up the table.
The Bees are in good goal-scoring form too, having netted eight times in their last three matches, and although this is a shorter price than I would usually look to recommend in these previews, I feel it's well worth steaming into as our best bet here.
Match Odds
With both sides in good form, this should be a close contest and make for good televised entertainment for neutrals. In local derbies I always take the view that avoiding defeat is the primary objective for a lot of teams and this looks to be a classic case of that.
With Fulham's away form this season still not great, a point here - to follow high-scoring draws at Rotherham and Wigan in their last two matches on the road - would be seen as a decent result by Symons as he must be confident of his men beating anybody at Craven Cottage at the moment.
I'm sure Warburton would also accept that outcome and the draw always provides a good return - it's available to back here at 3.613/5 which would ensure that everybody goes home happy.
And if you fancy combining the two bets above then head over to the Sportsbook where you can back the draw in the Both Teams to Score and Match Odds market at 4.216/5.
Recommended Bets
Back Both Teams to Score @ 1.645/8 *Best Bet
Back The Draw @ 3.613/5
2014/15 P/L
Staked: 57 pts
Returned: 62.72.pts
P/L: + 5.pts
*2pts best bet if stated
1pt other recommended bets
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