Fulham boss Marco Silva is not surprised by Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s revival in front of goal as he prepares to be reunited with the Leeds United striker on Saturday.
Calvert-Lewin’s purple patch in front of goal has moved Leeds eight points clear of the relegation zone, with the striker scoring nine goals in 19 Premier League appearances.
Indeed, his tally is only bettered by Antoine Semenyo (10), Igor Thiago (16) and Erling Haaland (20), but Silva saw his potential first-hand earlier in his managerial career.
During his time at Everton, Calvert-Lewin made 54 appearances in all competitions under Silva, scoring 13 goals, with only Gylfi Sigurdsson (16) and Richarlison (21) scoring more for the Toffees in that time.
“It’s not the first time he’s performed at this level,” Silva said. “If you talk about performance, he is a striker who can score in many different ways.
“If you look through his career, when he plays, the numbers are there. Match after match he is improving and showing that he is a proven Premier League striker.”
Silva has enjoyed just one success at Elland Road in his managerial career, overseeing a 3-2 win with Fulham during the 2022-23 season.
However, the Fulham boss is aware of the difficulties ahead for his side as Leeds remain unbeaten at home since defeat to Aston Villa on November 23.
“It’s never easy playing there,” Silva added. “They have been very strong at home and have also achieved results away from home.
“They have the quality, the organization, the manager and the individual players.
“To play at Elland Road we all know what it means. The support from home is incredible and they make it difficult for the opposition.”
“We played against them earlier this season [a 1-0 win at Craven Cottage] and it was a tough game for us.”
Leeds, meanwhile, will look to build on their 3-1 win over Derby County in the FA Cup third round as they continue to dig out of trouble.
They also expanded their ranks on Thursday, with Facundo Buonanotte joining the club on loan from Brighton for the remainder of the season.
But when asked about the potential of more signings, Leeds boss Daniel Farke insisted incoming players would only be considered if they did not disrupt the spirit of the squad.
“We talked very openly this summer about what we wanted to do,” Farke told reporters.
“We wanted to do more in attack, in a creative number 10 or winger position, but on the last day we missed the ball.
“Yet we have developed very well as a group and we are on the right track.
“We have progressed to the next round of the FA Cup, at Premier League level we are on the right track. We have a good, capable group that we trust.”
“We could do something if we thought, ‘Okay, this player would improve our squad, he’s a character who fits into this group.’ We will not risk anything that compromises our spirit.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Leeds – Dominic Calvert-Lewin
After scoring just once in his first ten Premier League games for Leeds United, Calvert-Lewin has since found his form in front of goal.
He scored eight goals in nine games. His next goal will ensure that he reaches double figures in a top season for only the third time after 2020/21 (16) and 2019/20 (13).
Fulham vs Harry Wilson
Wilson’s winner against Chelsea took his total to 11 goals in the Premier League this season (seven goals, four assists), his best result in a single season.
Ten of these have happened since the beginning of November (six goals, four assists). Only Haaland (12) and Thiago (11) have more in that time.
MATCH PREDICTION: Draw
Fulham have won each of their last three league games against Leeds, their longest ever win against Leeds, and they will be confident they can extend that here.
That’s because the Cottagers are unbeaten in their last twelve Premier League games against promoted sides (W7 D5), winning each of the last five games in a row. A win here would see them win as many as four games against promoted sides in a single Premier League campaign for the first time since 2004-05.
Furthermore, only Liverpool and Manchester City (both nine) have been unbeaten in the Premier League for longer than Fulham (six – W4 D2), with only Arsenal (16) collecting more points in the league from the start of that run (December 13) than Silva’s side (14).
Fulham have also scored in each of their last ten Premier League games (18 in total), but only achieved longer runs in the competition in December 2024 (15 games) and September 2007 (11 games). In that time, they have indeed opened the scoring in seven of those matches (W6 D1).
Leeds, meanwhile, lost their last league match to Newcastle, although they are unbeaten in four games (W2 D2) at Elland Road. They last enjoyed an extended run in the same top-flight season in December 2021 under Marcelo Bielsa (W2 D3).
However, they lost their last home league game against Fulham in October 2022 – however, they have never lost consecutive home league games against the Cottagers.
OPTA CHANCE OF WINNING
Leeds – 36.9%
Draw – 26.3%
Fulham – 36.8%
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