Fulham v West Ham: Key stats and talking points

East meets west at Craven Cottage on Wednesday night, with Fulham vying to emulate their victory over West Ham in December's reverse fixture.

While Fulham have rekindled their hopes of European football with successive wins, West Ham's revival has lost some momentum and they remain two points from safety.

Wilson key as Fulham dare to dream

Fulham's season is following a similar pattern to their previous campaigns since promotion in 2022 – sat comfortably mid-table or higher heading into March, with aspirations of qualifying for Europe for the first time since 2011.

They've eventually settled for final league positions of 10th, 14th and 10th again, but could it be different this time?

Last Sunday's victory over Spurs left Fulham in ninth place, behind Everton by the narrowest of goal difference. Eighth could be enough for European qualification this season.

If they are to achieve that target, their difference maker could be Harry Wilson. The in-form winger is a minor fitness doubt to face West Ham after being substituted with an ankle injury at the weekend but only after he'd registered his ninth goal and sixth assist in the Premier League this season. No Fulham player has been directly involved in more goals in a top-flight campaign since Dimitar Berbatov provided 15 goals and three assists in 2012-13.

Wilson, who is out of contract this summer, is reaping the benefits of regular football; he has played 83% of the available minutes in 2025-26, having never before reached 50% in a Premier League season. His impact has been particularly strong over the past 15 top-flight games, during which his 13 goal involvements was only bettered by Bruno Fernandes and Erling Haaland.

Familiar failings return for West Ham

Prior to Saturday's defeat by Liverpool, West Ham had taken 11 points from six games – as many as in their previous 18. They've narrowed the deficit to fourth bottom Nottingham Forest from seven points to two over the past six weeks and can take solace from giving Liverpool a harder game than the 5-2 scoreline suggests.

The Hammers conceded as many goals at Anfield as they had in their previous five league matches combined, and the first three on Saturday all came from corners.

Notwithstanding the fact West Ham had previously gone nearly two months without conceding from a set-piece, they have now let in 15 goals from corners this season – five more than any other side in Europe's top five leagues.

Several other unwanted statistics are hindering West Ham's survival chances. They have now only taken one point from the six most recent fixtures in which they conceded first and are winless in 10 top-flight kick-offs at 7pm or later since beating Leicester a year ago. The Hammers have also lost seven of their eight Premier League London derbies this season – only three sides have ever fared worse.