Fulham's objectives on Sunday are simple: win and hope Cardiff lose or draw, and the Cottagers will gain automatic promotion. The West London football club has been the hottest Championship team during the second half of the season. Fulham have not lost a match since December 16 and have been undefeated in 23 league games.
At Fulham's lowest point this term, the team sat 19th in the table on August 19. Now, the club is a win away from possible automatic promotion thanks to the silky-smooth attacking football demanded by Slavisa Jokanovic. The good news for Fulham is the real pressure is on Cardiff. The Bluebirds need a win to stave off being forced into the promotion playoffs, while Fulham have everything to gain.>
Fulham's task on Sunday won't be easy. Jokanovic's men go to Birmingham to play a side fighting for their Championship survival. If Birmingham lose and results elsewhere don't go their way, the Blues will find themselves relegated. Five teams have the potential to be relegated, but a lot must happen on a dramatic Sunday.
Birmingham's honeymoon with manager Garry Monk is over. The veteran coach took over the side on March 4 and saw his team go undefeated in four of five matches – including winning three straight. Without that surge, the Blues would be in the bottom three. Unfortunately for Monk, the newness of him being at St. Andrew's has worn off. Birmingham have now lost three of their last four, including last weekend's heartbreaking 3-1 loss to Queens Park Rangers.
Monk's team has tallied the fewest goals in the Championship (35). Goal scoring has been hard to come by for the Blues, and Monk has been searching for a capable goal scorer since arriving. So far, his search has turned up nothing of note. Leading goal scorer Sam Gallagher has tallied a mere six goals this term; but the forward hasn't scored since Jan 30. That is a span of 10 matches.
Fulham, on the other hand, have tallied the second most goals in the Championship (78). If the Cottagers and Cardiff were to finish on the same number of points – a Bluebirds' loss and Fulham draw would ensure this – then the West London team would gain automatic promotion based on goal difference. Striker Aleksander Mitrovic has been unstoppable for Fulham since arriving in January. He has scored 12 times in 16 games as Fulham's No. 9. The striker has five goals in his last six matches for the club, and it is a worthwhile bet that Mitrovic will get at least one against Birmingham.
The Cottagers may not gain automatic promotion, but the club will beat Birmingham on Sunday. The loss may doom the Blues to League 1 on a dramatic final day of the season.