West London Derby Kicks Off Season
Fulham will host Chelsea in a Premier League fixture, marking the start of the season for both clubs. This match will be a west London derby, with Chelsea making a short trip down the river for the Monday evening game. The Blues have previously started their season on the first day of the week four times, winning each of those matches. These victories include games against Burnley in 2014/15, West Ham in 2016/17, and Brighton in 2020/21.
Historically, two of those season-opening wins on a Monday led to title-winning seasons for Chelsea, while another concluded with Champions League glory. Overall, Chelsea has secured victories in eleven of their past 14 Premier League matches played on a Monday. The club has also taken three points from four of the last five all-capital clashes in the top flight.
Managerial Debut for Former Teammates
The match will see new Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso and his Fulham counterpart Álvaro Arbeloa make their Premier League managerial debuts. Both managers have a shared history, having played alongside each other for Liverpool from 2007 to 2009. During their time as teammates, they played 46 league games together, losing only four of those matches.
This fixture marks a unique occasion as it is the first time in the competition’s history that any manager’s first Premier League game will be against another manager who was a former teammate in the same competition. Xabi Alonso is set to be the 27th manager to take charge of at least one Premier League game with Chelsea, surpassing Tottenham Hotspur, which has had 26. Of Chelsea‘s last eight managers, only two have won their first league game in charge, both in London derbies.
Danny Welbeck is set to feature in his 19th Premier League season, having played at least once in every campaign since 2008-09. This achievement would see him equal Jermain Defoe with 19 seasons, and surpass Peter Crouch, who played in 18 seasons, for the joint-most seasons played by a striker in the competition’s history.
Team Form and Historical Context
Fulham will be starting a Premier League season with a London derby for the fourth time. They have lost their previous three such openers: 1-2 away to Arsenal in 2007-08, 0-2 at home to Crystal Palace in 2018-19, and 0-3 at home to Arsenal in 2020-21. Fulham has won their opening game in only one of their last six Premier League seasons, which was against Everton in the 2023-24 campaign.
Chelsea was defeated in their most recent encounter with Fulham, losing 1-2 in January in the Premier League. However, they have not lost consecutive games against Fulham across all competitions since a run of three defeats between April 1977 and October 1979. Chelsea has not won their opening game of the Premier League season in each of the last three seasons, with two draws and one loss. They last went four consecutive seasons without an opening win between 1995-96 and 1998-99.
Since the beginning of March, Chelsea has accumulated the fewest points of any side not relegated from the Premier League last season, with seven points. During this period, they lost eight of 11 league games, winning two and drawing one, which is the most losses for any top-flight club. Fulham has won six of their last nine home games at Craven Cottage, with only Manchester United having more Premier League home wins in 2026.
| Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Goal Difference | Points | Form, Last 6 games, Oldest first |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Brighton & Hove Albion | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 3 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 2 Arsenal | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 3 Brentford | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 4 Everton | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 5 Hull City | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 6 Ipswich Town | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 7 Manchester City | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 8 Leeds United | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 9 Liverpool | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 10 Newcastle United | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 11 Chelsea | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 12 Fulham | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 13 Bournemouth | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 14 Sunderland | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
| 15 Nottingham Forest | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 | No Result No Result No Result No Result… |
The transfer window is scheduled to close on Tuesday, 1 September, at 11pm UK time. Chelsea‘s first fixture outside London will be against Everton on 17 October, with at least seven matches played across the capital before then.
Source: bbc.co.uk