Sports

Fulham vs Chelsea – Match preview and team news

Nairavoice · Aug 24, 2026 · 3 min read

Fulham host Chelsea at Craven Cottage on Monday night in the opening match of the 2026-27 Premier League season, with both clubs fielding a new head coach for the first time.

Fulham and Chelsea finished level on 52 points last term, Chelsea a place above Fulham only on goal difference, and both have since removed their manager: Marco Silva after five years at Craven Cottage, and Liam Rosenior, sacked by Chelsea in April after only three months in charge.

Arbeloa has brought in Real Madrid duo Gonzalo García and César Palacios to help replace the departed Harry Wilson and Raúl Jiménez, while Alonso, who succeeded Rosenior in the summer, has overseen a heavy outlay, including a club-record fee for Morgan Rogers. The two head coaches were teammates for close to a decade at Liverpool and Real Madrid, and will face each other for the first time as Premier League rivals.

Fulham vs Chelsea – Match preview and team news

Date: Monday, 24 August 2026
Kick-off: 20:00 BST
Venue: Craven Cottage
Referee: John Brooks
VAR: Darren England
Last meeting: Fulham 2-1 Chelsea, January 2026, Premier League

Fulham team news

Arbeloa’s only absentee is captain Tom Cairney, who is continuing his recovery from a minor knee procedure carried out this month. Joachim Andersen is also unavailable, serving the final match of a suspension for a two-footed tackle on Bournemouth’s Adrien Truffert in May. Arbeloa said the rest of the squad is fit and ready, which gives summer arrivals Gonzalo García and César Palacios a clear route into his first Fulham XI.

Chelsea team news

Wesley Fofana is suspended for the trip across west London, carrying over a ban from his red card on the final day of last season at Sunderland. Alonso has confirmed no fresh injury concerns, with Danny Welbeck available after managing a minor issue and the club’s World Cup returnees, including Reece James, Enzo Fernández and Maxence Lacroix, all deemed selectable despite a shortened pre-season.

Form

Fulham

Arbeloa’s build-up has been a mixed bag typical of a new regime bedding in fresh signings, and the head coach used a 2-1 friendly win over Stuttgart to test Calvin Bassey alongside Jorge Cuenca in central defence, a pairing that looks likely to open the season with Andersen banned.

Chelsea

Alonso’s side won two, drew one and lost two of their final five friendlies, with a 3-0 win over AC Milan the highlight and defeats to Juventus and Tottenham Hotspur exposing work still to do. A 3-1 win over Real Sociedad last weekend was the last audition before Monday, though several of the club’s World Cup players have had only a fortnight of full training.