Fulham play host to Nottingham Forest on Tuesday evening looking for the victory which could prove to be enough to win the Championship title.
However, the Cottagers face opponents in Nottingham Forest who are the form team in the division and are looking to close the five-point gap to second-placed Bournemouth.
Match preview
© Reuters
Given their dominance during the second half of the campaign, many people would have envisaged Fulham having already wrapped up the second-tier crown by this stage.
However, a combination of inconsistency and the form of their rivals have contributed to Marco Silva's side still having work to do, the latest setback being Bournemouth's 97th-minute equaliser in their top-two battle at the weekend.
In the grand scheme of things, the goal has the potential to be more important to the Cherries than Fulham, but the West Londoners still have the chance to seal top spot in front of their own supporters.
If Fulham win on Tuesday and Bournemouth are unable to defeat Swansea City, they will have an unassailable lead at the summit, while just one more goal will take them to 100 Championship strikes for the season.
Aleksandar Mitrovic took his tally to 41 against Bournemouth, with the Serbia international making it six from as many games during a crucial stage of the campaign.
© Reuters
Nottingham Forest head coach Steve Cooper will know that Bournemouth's late goal against Fulham on Saturday has the potential to prove decisive in the race for automatic promotion.
Nevertheless, the East Midlands outfit should remain focused on their own results and still treat a top-two finish as a bonus, the main aim still being on a top-four spot so that they play the second leg of any playoff semi-final at the City Ground.
Forest had to show a different side to their game on Saturday, scoring just the one goal against struggling Peterborough United and holding on during the second half of that fixture.
Their last two away displays have been below expectations and although they still possess the fourth-best return on their travels in the division, they need to find more consistency.
Losing Keinan Davis for the rest of the regular season through injury is a significant blow, but his replacement Sam Surridge has netted in his last two starts.
- W
- W
- L
- L
- W
- D
- W
- W
- W
- L
- W
- W
Team News
© Reuters
Given the intensity of the match with Bournemouth on the South coast, Silva will give consideration to freshening up his Fulham XI.
Antonee Robinson could return for Joe Bryan at left-back, while one of Jean Michael Seri or Nathaniel Chalobah are likely to feature in midfield.
Bobby Decordova-Reid may get the nod over Neeskens Kebano in the final third, and it remains to be seen whether Neco Williams will feature at right-back after being dropped on Saturday for "a technical reason".
Cooper has made a habit of making minimal changes to his Forest XI and that could stay the same for a match of this magnitude.
Cafu may be introduced into the midfield, providing James Garner with more freedom, but Philip Zinckernagel is favourite to retain his spot behind the front two.
Fulham possible starting lineup:
Rodak; Tete, Adarabioyo, Ream, Robinson; Seri, Reed; Wilson, Carvalho, Decordova-Reid; Mitrovic
Nottingham Forest possible starting lineup:
Samba; Worrall, Figueiredo, McKenna; Spence, Yates, Garner, Colback; Zinckernagel; Johnson, Surridge
We say: Fulham 1-1 Nottingham Forest
This has all the makings of being one of the most thrilling and tense fixtures of the season and it should make for a great spectacle. The pressure is on Forest, who will feel like they have a window of opportunity, but we are backing these two quality teams to play out a competitive draw.
