The Premier League is finally back and Fulham have seven massive matches for the rest of the season. The Cottagers continue their hunt for European football against Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday.
Premier League football returns - a look at a massive month for Fulham
With the international break officially over and the FA Cup quarter-finals weekend passed, Premier League football is finally back for Fulham.
And as just seven matches are remaining, every game counts, as Marco Silva’s men attempt to push their way into the European places.
It feels like another lifetime ago that Fulham defeated Burnley 3-1 to rise to ninth in the table and close the gap with the likes of Liverpool and Chelsea, who continue to struggle.
But with something to chase now, Fulham find themselves in a rare position where they have a tangible target to reach and the road to that target starts at Anfield on Saturday.
Fulham ran out 3-1 winners against Burnley the last time they played. Image Credit: Reuters.Liverpool v Fulham (Saturday, 11 April, 17:30)
Fulham return to Premier League action with a trip to the Premier League champions.
In years gone by, this would be considered almost a free hit, with Liverpool largely unbeatable at Anfield.
But this year, Liverpool have been off from almost the start and things have been dire recently, with a 4-0 thrashing by Manchester City in the FA Cup quarter-final seemingly ending any realistic hunt of a major trophy this season.
Fulham can head to Liverpool with confidence but also knowing that any sort of result would be a positive, with a trip to Anfield never easy, no matter the circumstances.
The Cottagers are just five points behind Liverpool and should they come away with a win, suddenly the race for Europe is not just limited to the Conference League and Europa League but the Champions League would be opened up too.
Brentford v Fulham (Saturday, 18 April, 12:30)
While the Liverpool match is an important one and one Fulham can walk away from with points, arguably the biggest game of the season so far comes the following week at Brentford.
The two west London clubs are currently separated by just two points in the table, with Brentford occupying seventh and as things stand, heading into Europe next season.
But The Bees have been stalling of late and, having won just one of their last six matches, have allowed the likes of Everton, Fulham and Brighton to creep up on them.
With so many teams in the hunt, this is pretty much a must-win for both sides, or at least a must-not-lose from a Fulham perspective in what is set to be a very tense encounter.
Fulham have the chance to return to European competition next season. Image Credit: ReutersFulham v Aston Villa (Saturday, 25 April, 12:30)
This is a game that will either be of huge significance or could be largely immaterial, depending on how the clashes with Liverpool and Brentford go.
Should Fulham be within touching distance of Europe still, then a home fixture against an Aston Villa side who are anything but consistent and who will likely still be involved in the Europa League could be a massive opportunity for three further points.
But of course, if it goes the other way and Fulham find themselves drifting away from Europe, it could allow Marco Silva’s men to play entirely with freedom and entertain the supporters at Craven Cottage.