Fulham v Chelsea: Poch to suffer more Blues in West London Derby

• Chelsea favourites for West London Derby

• Blues have won just two of last 18 league games

• Fulham won this fixture last season and fancied for repeat

• Read Betfair's new 90 minute payout offer here

Fulham v Chelsea
Monday, 20:00
Live on Sky Sports Football

Good start for Silva's men

Only Burnley (four) have scored fewer than Fulham's five league goals so far this season.

That perhaps won't come as a huge surprise given the far-from-ideal summer the Cottagers had, and that last season's top goalscorer Aleksandar Mitrovic left in the final few weeks of the transfer window.

Marco Silva's men have won two of their six league games this term (W2, D2, L2), with their two defeats coming against Brentford and Manchester City, so certainly no disgrace there, while in the League Cup they've reached the final 16 by knocking out Tottenham and Norwich.

So it's been a more than satisfactory start to the campaign for one of the pre-season relegation candidates, and with effectively a full strength squad available on Monday night - meaning starts for their star duo of Joao Pallinha and Andreas Perreira - the Cottagers look set to give a good account of themselves.

More selection problems for Poch

Only Burnley (four) have scored fewer than Chelsea's five league goals so far this season.

And you have to say that really is a surprise given the amount of money spent at Stamford Bridge, and the huge number of players that have joined the club since last summer. Notice I stopped short of saying... and the quality within the squad!

Of course, there's mitigating circumstances for Mauricio Pochettino's men, namely a huge injury list, but it's impossible to argue that this has been a shocking start to the season for the Blues.

Since opening with a draw against Liverpool, Chelsea have faced Luton Town, Bournemouth, Nottingham Forest, West Ham and Aston Villa, and taken just four poits from a possible 15 (W1, D1, L3).

A midweek 1-0 EFL Cup win at home to Brighton was welcome, but Poch now has more selection headaches with defender Malo Gusto and striker Nicolas Jackson out suspended, and attacking wing-back Ben Chilwell out injured.

Impossible to fancy Chelsea at current odds

Okay, here's the deal. If you fancy Chelsea you can back them at 1/12.00 in the regulation Match Odds market, or at 5/61.84 - yes, odds-on - in the Match Odds 90 market.

That's a Chelsea team that has made their worst start to a top flight season since 1978-79, that has won just TWO of their last 18 Premier League games, that has failed to score in 13 league games this year, and that is ravaged with injuries and suspensions.

I honestly couldn't predict who will start against Fulham, who will play where, who will lead the Blues attack, but what I can tell you with confidence is that I couldn't back Pochettino's men with stolen money at their current odds.

So on the flipside of that, I have to put Silva's men up as my main selection at 29/10 in the Match Odds market.

They won this corresponding fixture last season 2-1 (and drew the away fixture 0-0) so they have nothing to fear from Chelsea, who in my opinion, are no better than they were last season.

I really like the balance of Silve's team, with Raul Jimenez leading the line, William and Harry Wilson on the flanks, and Pallinha and Perreira forming part of a solid midfield.

Craven Cottage is sure to be bouncing for this West London Derby under the lights - by the way, Fulham have never lost to Chelsea in three games on a Monday night - and I fancy the home team are in a much better place than the Blues right now.

I genuinely wouldn't have been surprised to see Fulham at around the 2/13.00 mark for this match given home advantage and Chelsea's woes, so I'm more than happy to get them on side at close to 3/14.00.

Bet Builder options to include low goals count

When you're quietly confident about a near 3/14.00 football tip I don't feel the need to go looking for other bets. If the selection lands, brilliant, if it doesn't then so be it and it's likely that I wouldn't win on any additional wagers.

But I know how popular and fun Bet Builders can be among football bettors, so my first advice would be to include Under 3.5 Goals (2/71.29). Of the last 17 fixtures between these two, 16 have ended with three goals or fewer.

Under 2.5 Goals can be backed at 5/61.84 if you're feeling slightly braver. Of the 17 meetings mentioned above, 12 finished with two goals or fewer. And with both sides struggling for goals this season, a low-scoring game looks likely.

Fulham are averaging around four shots on target this term, so with Chelsea's defence looking likely to be reshuffled once again, including that option (11/102.11) looks relatively safe, while Over 5.5 Cards (1/12.00] will complete our recommended Bet Builder.

Tim Robinson will officiate on Monday night, and he's dished out 11 yellow cards in his two matches this season. And with a feisty derby in prospect hopefully he'll contnue being generous in handing out cards.

The recommended Bet Builder of Under 3.5 Goals, Fulham 4+ Shots on Target and Over 5.5 Cards pays out at 11/26.50, which looks very generous to me. So having initially said I won't go looking for another bet, I've actually stumbled on one I quite like.