Fulham

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For Fulham fans packed inside Craven Cottage - Josh King's rise to the England senior team is no surprise.

John Charles, a social creator and Fulham fan, believes the 19-year-old is the "truth" and is "the best player in the league on the half turn".

For King, who signed a four-year contract extension at the club in July 2025, he deems his boyhood club as "family" and "a second home".

Speaking about his England call-up, King said: "It's been a massive part of my development - being at a club like Fulham, which is a top football club and is a club that really feels like family to me. It feels like a second home for me.

"I had a lot of coaches and some of my coaches even stayed with me, coming up with me for a long time."

Away from the football pitch, King excelled at Hampton School in his GCSEs and completed his A-Levels while playing with England Under-19s.

"I have to give credit to my parents and my family for giving me such a good upbringing," added King.

"They gave me the platform to do those other sports, to go to Fulham, take me to Newcastle away when I was 10-years-old. A lot of credit goes to my family."

Since King's Premier League debut in December 2024, he has featured in 50 top-flight games under Marco Silva and Alvaro Arbeloa.

"The most important thing about being good academically and education wise, is you're able to take on information much more quickly. That definitely helps," he added.

"You can take on a lot of information and quickly."

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Fulham's Josh King confirmed he is fully fit to feature for England's senior team during the November international break after he was substituted off in the 1-1 draw against Newcastle.

"It was more precautionary, I think. It was maybe a tight groin and I didn't want to overdo it. I couldn't turn down the call. I'm all good fitness wise," said the 19-year-old.

Although King was included in Thomas Tuchel's Three Lions training group for the 2026 World Cup, this will be the playmaker's first camp where he is in contention for his senior debut.

King said: "It was an amazing opportunity for me. It was really nice to be able to meet other lads and get a taste of what it's like.

"Obviously, I didn't make an appearance then, but just being in and around it was incredible, and I took a lot of learning from that opportunity.

"Obviously, it was a massive part of my journey and I think it's given me the confidence to start this season so well.

"It's just an honour to be here and have an opportunity. I think I'm capable of playing lots of different positions, which is probably part of the reason why I'm here."

Although Fulham have endured a rocky start to the 2026-27 season, King has started every Premier League game, and has three goal involvements so far this season.

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Fulham and Newcastle.

Here are some of your comments:

Fulham fans

Tim: Fulham looked enterprising throughout the game. King and Garcia spent most of their time getting mugged by the Newcastle defence, aided by an obliging ref. Berge should have had a penalty as well. Muniz proved to be the antidote to Newcastle's physicality with his striker's goal.

John: Ten games, ten points, ten goals. Not setting the world alight but to go four unbeaten in the league is a positive after our first six games yielded just two points. On the downside for all our pretty approach play the lack of cutting edge suggests this post Silva season will be something of a bumpy ride. Fortunately we have a nice easy away game at Man City next.

James: Fulham played well but a decent striker could have got us a win. Garcia will not do and while Muniz scored, we still need two good strikers. We need another quality centre-back because injuries happen. Robinson not at his best. A point per game won't prevent relegation.

Richard: Fulham are creating a lot of goalscoring chances in every match this season but still lack a quality striker to convert these into goals. The defence has improved in recent matches. Hopefully the January transfer window will provide an opportunity to get a good striker as Garcia - who joined in the summer - is not yet good enough for the Premier League.

Newcastle fans

David: At least we didn't lose but it was a poor team playing an equally poor opponent. The real test will come after the break at home to Arsenal.

Tom: A much improved performance after the Everton debacles. Still a long way to go though. Excellent goal from Murphy but we didn't take our chances. Hall should have scored and a couple of good opportunities for Harvey Barnes. The Fulham goal was pure luck with two deflections. Unfortunately Wissa is not going to make it at Newcastle. Another abject performance. No control from Osula either. We desperately need a goalscorer in January.

Philip: A good performance with plenty of effort and good attacking moments. Need a reliable centre forward up front. Gyokeres perhaps?

Peter: Osula should have been taken off and not Wissa as he was hopeless and lost the ball every single time. Overall the team performance was much better but surely we have to work on our finishing because our quality in front of goal is costing us big time.

Fulham, Chelsea, Brentford, Manchester City, Newcastle United and Tottenham are among a number of sides monitoring 21-year-old French defender Ismaelo Ganiou, who plays for Lens. (Teamtalk), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Monday's full gossip column

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Sam Drury
BBC Sport journalist

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Having battled back to earn a point - and nearly snatching all three at the death - Fulham fans can be pleased with their side's resilience.

Four games unbeaten in the league, including two wins, is another reason to be optimistic - but while their problems in front of goal persist, they will know there is a limit to what can be achieved this season.

They played some lovely football in the first half. The passing was short, sharp and incisive - right up until they reached the Newcastle penalty area.

Between the 15th and 30th minutes, they had 75% possession but just one shot - blocked - to show for it.

The lack of a reliable goalscorer is a significant problem and they will hope Rodrigo Muniz, having ended his lengthy goal drought, can offer that, even if his chances are likely to come from the bench.

Summer recruit Gonzalo Garcia continues to be preferred by Alvaro Arbeloa but, willing as he is, the Spaniard is in desperate need of a goal.

With the trio of Josh King, Oscar Bobb and Alex Iwobi buzzing around in the final third, Fulham get themselves into the box regularly without that necessarily turning into a host of chances.

A striker they are confident will put away the chances that do come then would make all the difference.

Fulham boss Alvaro Arbeloa, speaking to BBC Match of the Day: "You always want to win, especially at home. We knew how difficult it was going to be against Newcastle and you could feel from the start that, for them, it was like a final.

"They were very, very aggressive. They're a very physical team, they were marking us man-to-man. I think we did a very good first half, we controlled the game, had very good chances but the second half was more open, chances for both teams.

"It's unbelievable because we concede another amazing goal from outside the box, with the left foot... it's incredible. But we responded really, really well and could draw the game and have another good chance with Ryan Sessegnon.

"It's another point, we wanted to win the game but it is what it is and we need to continue working hard."

On Rodrigo Muniz scoring: "He's doing really well in training sessions. When he played in the Carabao Cup, he's working really hard. The game was for him because they were very aggressive and we were playing so many long balls, Rodrigo is very strong in these situations and did very well.

"He scored a goal and created many good chances."

On Josh King coming off: "I think [he is OK], I think it is nothing serious. We'll see tomorrow. I think he deserves [his England call-up]. How he's performing is unbelievable, 19 years old, he wants the ball. His character, his ambition and I think he's an incredible player."

Did you know?

• Fulham have drawn a Premier League home game against Newcastle for the first time in 19 meetings, their first league draw in London since March 1984, in the second tier.

• Alex Iwobi created twice as many chances (four) as any other player in the match against Newcastle - he's created 24 chances in the Premier League this season, at least seven more than any of his teammates.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Fulham's performance

What did you make of Newcastle's display?

Reaction and analysis to follow - and come back on Monday for a selection of your replies.

There are four games in the Premier League on Saturday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Leeds v Tottenham (12:30)

• Arsenal v Hull City - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Fulham v Newcastle - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

• Nottingham Forest v Manchester City (17:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-off times 15:00 GMT unless stated.

Follow all of the action and reaction here

How to follow the Premier League weekend across the BBC

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on your smart speaker. Just say "Alexa, ask BBC Sounds to play Fulham v Newcastle" or "Alexa, ask BBC Sounds to play the Arsenal match", for example.

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Fans of Premier League clubs can now get real-time scores live on their phone lock screen for every game.

Simply follow your favourite football teams on the BBC Sport app for updates throughout the 2026-27 season.

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What are Newcastle? What type of team are they? I am not sure and that's why their manager, Matthias Jaissle, is getting a bit of stick from Magpies fans.

That's what is different with today's Premier League compared with my playing days, because we see it all the time now - even a new manager comes under pressure if they have a couple of bad results.

Newcastle have lost three of their past four league games and, in this day and age, that's enough for people to say the wheels are coming off.

That's why this game feels big for Jaissle. Win and the Magpies head into the international break on a positive note. Lose it, however, and stand by for a lot of moaning and grumbling from their fans over the next couple of weeks.

That's what I think will happen, too. Fulham's results have picked up and so have their performances. They are at home here, and I am expecting them to be too slick and too well organised for Newcastle.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Sophie Brown
BBC Sport journalist

It was a sticky start to the season for Fulham but there are signs that they are settling into the more expansive style of play brought in by new head coach Alvaro Arbeloa.

After picking up just two points in their first six Premier League matches of the season, Fulham have now taken seven points from their past three.

They conceded 10 goals in those first six games, but just one in the past three.

Against Aston Villa last weekend, Fulham had almost double the number of touches in the opposition box and completed over 100 more passes than their opponents, and Arbeloa said after the match that "we are a team that want to play in the opposite half with the ball, creating chances."

Fulham are currently below Newcastle in the table but given the respective levels of form of the two sides. it would be no surprise to see that reversed on Saturday.

After losing a division-high seventh home league match of 2026, it will perhaps be something of a relief for Newcastle to get back on the road.

Booed off after a dismal showing in defeat by Everton on Monday, which was capped by a red card for midfielder Jacob Ramsey, the Magpies need to address the problems that face them at both ends of the pitch.

Only Crystal Palace have faced more shots in the Premier League this season than Newcastle, whose average of 17.1 shots faced per game is currently their most in a season on record since 2003-04.

Meanwhile, only Aston Villa have had fewer shots on target than Newcastle's 29 shots. Only two of the Magpies' 17 shots against Everton were on target, with their percentage of shots on target sitting at 25.7% (29/113), the third lowest in the Premier League.

All of this points to a resigned-looking side that is lacking in confidence, which might help to explain why Newcastle have lost 16 of their past 18 league games when conceding first.

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England manager Thomas Tuchel on selecting Josh King for the upcoming fixtures against Croatia and Spain: "He is just a fantastic character. He gives us a bit of flexibility.

"We decided to nominate 22 outfield players for flexibility in training and he is the extra player in training, if you will.

"He is an exciting player, a versatile player. In pre-season, he helped us in training as a full-back but we will not do that again.

"It is the attitude and the personality."

Fulham boss Alvaro Arbeloa has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Newcastle at Craven Cottage (kick-off 15:00).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Arbeloa praised teenager Josh King's England call-up, describing it as a "special moment" for both the player and the club. King joined the club at the age of eight and his manager said everyone was proud to see how far he had progressed.

• He said: "It's a big step for him, I'm so happy for him as he's a very humble kid. He wants to get better every day and it's a special day."

• The manager believes King has all the attributes to become one of the best players in the world. However, he added that the 19-year-old is still working on his finishing.

• He added: "He's very talented, he can see where there's space, he can turn and run and dribble with that ball, he has everything. We're working on his finishing with him. You forget he's only 19, it's unbelievable how he's performing. He has everything to become one of the best players in the world."

• Arbeloa also praised King's character and leadership, revealing that the youngster delivered an impressive speech to his more experienced team-mates before a game.

• On team news, he confirmed that everyone is fit apart from Tom Cairney, who has a "knee issue" and will miss the game. However, he expects the midfielder to be available again after the international break.

• On Gonzalo Garcia's lack of goals, he insisted he would remain patient with his young players, backing them to improve.

• He said: "I believe in young players, and maybe it would be easier for us to sign a player with more experience who can perform straight away. I will be patient with young players. Maybe they need time to perform. I know it's hard for the supporters, but it's really nice when you believe in someone during the difficult moments because they will score goals."

• He stressed the importance of picking up a victory against Newcastle before the international break, admitting his side are not in a comfortable position and need to make home advantage count.

• He said: "We are far from where I want us to be, but we're taking small steps. I told my players the other day, you win because you believe, and that's what confidence means: you believe in yourself when you're not winning. We know that we have to fight every game. We have very good support at home, we need to win games."

You can listen to Fulham v Newcastle on BBC Radio 5 Live here

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England manager Thomas Tuchel has named his squad for November's matches against Croatia and Spain.

Key talking points include no Cole Palmer again, no Phil Foden, no Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and a return for Ben White, while Fulham's Josh King is included.

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), James Trafford (Leeds United), Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace)

Defenders: Ezri Konsa (Arsenal), Marc Guehi (Man City), Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Real Madrid), Lewis Hall (Newcastle United), Jarrell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen), Djed Spence (Inter Milan), Ben White (Arsenal).

Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Jobe Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Josh King (Fulham), James Garner (Everton), Elliot Anderson (Man City), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Declan Rice (Arsenal).

Forwards: Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds United), Anthony Gordon (Barcelona), Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool), Morgan Rogers (Chelsea).

Get more reaction on the squad

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Aston Villa and Fulham.

Here are some of your comments:

Villa fans

Liam: A very frustrating evening. First half, I thought we played well, created chances but didn't take them. Fulham played well, kept hold of the ball and deserved their goal - albeit a mistake from Zion Suzuki, who I thought up until then had kept us in the game. Disappointed to only get a point.

Roderick: Were the players' minds on Barca? It certainly looked like an absent-minded display, which is so unlike Unai Emery's team. Fulham controlled the second half and will probably be feeling unfortunate not to have taken all three points. Please, Villa, don't repeat this display on Tuesday.

John: Villa were lucky to get a point. Yes, Suzuki made a bad error for the Fulham goal, but if it wasn't for him Fulham could easily have had three or four with the chances they had. He's been brilliant for us since he joined so let's not get on his back for one error.

Alex: It's two points lost, definitely. The penalty miss cost us and also the obvious error by Suzuki. However, he also saved us with excellent stops several times. What was frustrating was the drop-off in intensity and inability to handle Fulham when they turned up in the second half. We ground our way back into it but too late, unfortunately. Should be three points, with the game having been dead and buried by half-time.

Fulham fans

Brian: A good point but when are we going to use Rodrigo Muniz from the start? Gonzalo Garcia doesn't have what's needed in the Premier League and the lack of goals is damaging us.

John: Getting there, but the big gap is the goalscoring ability, which needs to be resolved soon.

Charles: The talk is all about how Villa gifted us a point through Suzuki's mistake, but the stats tell a different story - one of a match where Villa were probably lucky to have come away with a point. Fulham need to keep their heads high and confidence up. I think the results will keep coming.

Jan: Best performance of the season. Just need a striker to put away the chances. Maybe Santa will provide an early present!

Michael Emons
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Fulham experienced a tough start to the season under Alvaro Arbeloa, who became head coach in the summer after Marco Silva left.

They gathered just two points from their first six Premier League games as pressure mounted on the former Real Madrid boss.

But there has been an upturn of late and this was another encouraging display, after 1-0 wins over promoted Hull City and Coventry City in their past two league matches.

Arbeloa will be delighted with how Fulham responded to going a goal down just before the break against Aston Villa.

The visitors were the better side in the second half, with Gonzalo Garcia twice having chances inside the opening 10 minutes.

Zion Suzuki did well to save from Alex Iwobi, with the follow-up deflected over for a corner, before the goalkeeper then made his defining error.

Arbeloa should be pleased with the defensive performance that helped his side hold on for a point, despite late Villa pressure, with centre-half Calvin Bassey named as man of the match.