Fulham face another difficult task in the Premier League this weekend when they face Brighton & Hove Albion at the Amex.
Not only is it going to be difficult for the players, but it’s likely to be a tough task for the fans too who are making the journey to the South Coast despite a train strike.
Marco Silva will be desperate to see a response from his side after their defeat to Tottenham on Monday and that could mean a return to the side for £5.5m forward Raul Jimenez.
There were question marks over his signing when he arrived at Craven Cottage in the summer following a poor spell of form at Wolves.
Unfortunately, despite showing flashes of the player who scored 30 goals across two seasons at Molineux at one point in his career, he’s yet to score his first Fulham goal.
However, the alternative is sticking with Carlos Vinicius who was anonymous against Spurs or handing Rodrigo Muniz his first Premier League start.
Silva could therefore see Brighton as the perfect chance for Jimenez to boost his confidence and break that duck.
The Mexican is unlikely to be the only change to the team, although he’s almost certain to stick with one player who was much maligned after Monday’s defeat.
Predicted Fulham team to face Brighton
Unsurprisingly, Bernd Leno is expected to start at the weekend as he continues to earn points on his own and make a mockery of a transfer fee that could rise to only £8m.
It would be a surprise to see Silva make a change to his back four, with Issa Diop and Tosin Adarabioyo both likely to still be unavailable.
He could choose to switch Tim Ream and Calvin Bassey, but the more likely approach will be to ask one of Fulham’s midfielders to drop deeper to collect the ball.
Joao Palhinha is the first name on the team sheet, but the additional screening provided by Harrison Reed means he could replace Sasa Lukic.
Brazilian Andreas Pereira looks like a man who needs a rest and it would be a good opportunity to hand Alex Iwobi another start.
As mentioned above, Jimenez should be the man to lead the line for Fulham against Brighton and flanked by Willian and Harry Wilson he has the best chance of scoring that elusive first goal.
It’s going to be a very difficult game but Brighton’s matches have been high-scoring and that may suit Silva’s team.
They’ve already got three clean sheets to their name this season and a fourth on Sunday would almost certainly guarantee three points.