It’s derby day. Two of the Premier League’s unbeaten sides go head-to-head this afternoon down by the river as we make the short trip to Craven Cottage to take on Fulham.

The Whites have two draws to their name so far while we will be looking to build on last Saturday’s demolition of Manchester United.

The opposition

Despite only having two points on the board, those connected with Fulham will be very satisfied with their opening fortnight back in the top flight.

Much of that satisfaction will come from the fact that two points could, for the width of a post against Liverpool and a late missed penalty against Wolverhampton Wanderers, easily have been six as the Whites seek to avoid a third consecutive one-year stay in the Premier League.

Much of their success this season likely rests on the shoulders of Aleksandar Mitrovic who, fresh from his 43-goal Sky Bet Championship campaign, got up and running with a brace against Liverpool on the opening day. The talismanic striker brings more than just goals to this Fulham side, leading the Premier League in aerial duel success after winning 16 battles in the opening two matches.

The Whites have also used the summer to add quality across the pitch. Joao Palhinha (Sporting CP), Kristian Sekularac (Juventus), Andreas Pereira (Manchester United), Kevin Mbabu (Wolfsburg), Bernd Leno (Arsenal) and Issa Diop (West Ham United) have all signed on the dotted line at Craven Cottage with the only major departure being that of Fabio Carvalho to Liverpool.

Fulham have had less than 37 per cent possession in their opening two games but have been pretty resolute, giving up the fourth-lowest number of shots per game (9) and making the fourth-most tackles per game (22). Going forward, they’ve registered the third-fewest shots (9) and third-fewest shots on target (3) per game while attempting the fewest dribbles per game (4.5).

The gameplan

The Athletic’s Peter Rutzler told us in Hot off the Press: “So far, Marco Silva has stuck with what he said he would do and that is to set up and play in the same way that Fulham did in the Championship last season. Unless there is a major unexpected change, he will set up in a 4-3-3 in possession, looking to get the ball wide with a No.6, a box-to-box type player and a No.10 in Andreas Pereira, who will get close to Mitrovic. It is a very set style of play, a possession-based style; he will make tweaks from game to game, but the basic structure is there and that has not seemed to change.”

Team news

It’s as you were for Brentford following last week’s win over Manchester United. Kristoffer Ajer, Sergi Canos (both hamstring) and Ethan Pinnock (knee) are out, while Mikkel Damsgaard is not yet ready for a place in the starting XI.

Fulham will be without Harry Wilson and Manor Solomon (both knee), while Bobby Decordova-Reid and Andreas Pereira are doubts.

The manager

Marco Silva had a 15-year professional playing career in Portugal, retiring with Estoril at the age of 33 in June 2011. Silva was swiftly appointed director of football at the Portuguese club before becoming manager early in the 2011/12 season. After guiding them to the top flight as champions, Silva led Estoril to UEFA Europa League qualification in the following season. One campaign at Sporting followed, including silverware via the Taca de Portugal, before Silva led Olympiacos to the Greek title in 2015/16.

Next was a move to Hull City and an ultimately unsuccessful fight against Premier League relegation. Silva left the Tigers in late May 2017 and was announced as Watford’s new manager two days later. The Hornets were fourth in mid-October but a run of 11 points from the next 16 matches led to Silva's departure.

Everton were Silva’s next port of call. The Toffees finished eighth in Silva’s first season in charge but the two parted ways in December 2019, with the Merseyside club in the bottom three.

After an 18-month break from football, Silva took charge of Fulham last summer. His free-scoring side netted 106 goals on their way to the Championship title.

Opposition view

Marco Silva on our start: "Last season they showed their quality, their togetherness. They started with a draw and a great win. They are confident, like we are as well. It's a special game. We have experience playing so many derbies. I can't say it's just another game. But we prepare in the same way."

Last time out

Match officials

Referee: Peter Bankes

Assistants: Eddie Smart and Nick Greenhalgh

Fourth Official: Dean Whitestone

VAR: David Coote

Assistant VAR: Wade Smith

Tomorrow will be Peter Bankes’ 13th game in charge of us, stretching back to our 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest in April 2016.

We’ve lost just three of those previous 12 games. Last season saw a draw, away at Aston Villa in August, a dramatic victory over West Ham United in October, and January’s defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The Merseyside official, who is in his fourth season in the Select Group 1 of top flight referees, has shown 18 yellow cards in three outings this season, ten of which came in last Thursday’s Europa Conference League clash between Panathinaikos and Slavia Prague.

Fulham 22/23

21 fouls – 8th in Premier League

5 yellow cards – 5th most in Premier League

0 red cards – Joint-fewest in Premier League