Fulham face Everton tomorow mindful of the fact that it is their last home game before three difficult away matches at Liverpool, Tottenham and Middlesborough.

After last Sunday's doleful 0-0 home draw against Leeds United, the Whites will be keen to get three points under their belts in what may be a make-or-break month for their Premiership ambitions.

Fulham face seven fixtures in December with home games against Charlton on Boxing Day and Manchester United on Sunday 30 awaiting them at the end of the away run.

By New Year's Eve, it should be a lot clearer whether the Craven Cottage fans will be cheering their side to a top 10 finish or urging them out of a late-season relegation battle.

The Toffeemen could prove to be a sticky proposition for Fulham tomorrow, even though they will be without their imposing strike duo of Duncan Ferguson and Kevin Campbell.

Ferguson has had surgery to remove a chipped bone in his ankle, while Campbell has trapped a nerve in his back. Neither player is likely to be back in action before the new year.

So Fulham's defence which has conceded fewer Premiership goals than Arsenal may not face as severe a test as that posed by Mark Viduka and Robbie Fowler on Sunday.

But they will still need to be on their toes against a side which is currently ninth in the Premiership and which could include the unpredictable but always very watchable Paul Gascoigne.

The 34-year-old injury and incident-prone midfielder has not appeared too often this season, but should he run out at Craven Cottage tomorrow, his undisputed talent will need to be given the utmost respect.

Meanwhile, the Whites' undoubtedly talented frontline trio of Louis Saha, Luis Boa Morte and Barry Hayles will need to rediscover their way to the opposition's goal after a lean spell of just one goal in the last three games.

Route one football has never been Fulham's way, but at times against Leeds on Sunday their play was more route 66.

Saha, in particular, had more changes of direction than Madonna none of which got him any nearer to scoring.

Fancy footwork and flair are all very well, but direct action is sometimes the better option.

Fulham may want to bear this in mind as their hectic, and crucial, Christmas schedule kicks in or they could be left doing the turkey trot.

December 7, 2001 12:32