PREVIEW: Fulham host West Ham in the Premier League with European hopes and survival at stake | OneFootball

An exciting clash awaits at Craven Cottage on Wednesday night, as Fulham and West Ham United meet at opposite ends of the table with everything to play for.

Fulham remain firmly in the hunt for European football after last weekend’s impressive 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur. Goals from Harry Wilson and Alex Iwobi secured a third straight win for Marco Silva’s side, who survived a brief scare after Richarlison’s strike just after the hour mark.

That result continued an impressive run of form that began with cup success against Stoke and a dominant win over Sunderland. After a short spell of three consecutive defeats threatened to derail their season and ambitions, Silva’s men appear to be peaking at the perfect time.

However, for West Ham, the picture is much more concerning. A crushing 5-2 defeat at Anfield last time out against Liverpool leaves them two points behind their relegation rivals, Nottingham Forest and just two points from safety.

However, the scoreline did not tell the full story. The Hammers matched Liverpool for possession and created promising openings in open play, but were ruthlessly punished on the counterattack. Three dead-ball goals ultimately proved too much to overcome.

Nuno Espírito Santo will hope his side shows a willingness to forget before their trip to Anfield. West Ham had lost just once in six matches, a run that included victory over Sunderland and a dramatic stoppage-time winner against Tottenham.

There are signs of progress, but relegation battles are not won on progress, and the reverse fixture in December was set for a stalemate until a late defensive lapse from youngster Ollie Scarles allowed Raúl Jiménez to snatch the points for Fulham.

Both teams have evolved since then, with personnel changes and the return of African internationals altering the dynamic.

West Ham remain without Pablo Felipe, who has begun individual training but is not yet ready to return, while Freddie Potts is serving a suspension.

Fulham, meanwhile, are sweating over the fitness of Harry Wilson after the Welshman twisted his ankle at the weekend.

Wilson’s potential absence would be incredibly significant. He has been directly involved in 15 Premier League goals this season (nine goals, six assists), underlining his importance to Fulham’s attacking fluency.

Silva admitted at full-time that his winger struggled through the final stages of the Tottenham win and will be assessed in the coming days.

With Fulham boasting one of the division’s sharper attacking units and West Ham owning one of the league’s leakiest defensive records, the availability of Wilson may prove decisive.

At stake are European qualification for one team, and top-flight survival for the other, making this London derby all the more important.

The derby kicks off on Wednesday at 19:30 (GMT), with live coverage on TNT Sports 5.