It as a fixture that has not given Newcastle much joy in recent years. The Magpies have not beaten the Cottagers on the road since 2007, when Sam Allardyce was in the hotseat on Tyneside. A Joey Barton penalty gave Newcastle a 1-0 win on that day.
The Geordies have only played twice more at the Cottage since then, but their record at Fulham's historic home is far from impressive, their 2007 triumph was Newcastle's only success in their last five visits to the stadium.
However, Newcastle go into this fixture on the back of a three game winning streak, and will be confident of securing another positive result as they look to maintain their top six challenge.
The Magpies' task will be made more difficult by the absence of Yohan Cabaye, who is a doubt for the game after sustaining ligament damage in the win over QPR.
Fulham have injury troubles of their own with Moussa Dembele and striker Orlando Sa both absent through injury.
Cabaye's possible absence would present Toon boss Alan Pardew with a difficult decision. Dan Gosling, Mehdi Abeid and Haris Vuckic have all played in central midfield in the absence of Cheick Tiote, who is away on African Cup of Nations duty. Danny Guthrie will likely fill one of the spots in the middle of the park after an efficient display against Fulham's West London rivals.
Hatem Ben Arfa replaced Cabaye in the immediate aftermath of Cabaye's injury, and the Clairefontaine academy graduate produced an encouraging performance from both an attacking and defensive standpoint.
Pardew now must determine whether he wants to employ a defensively minded player such as Abeid in place of Cabaye, or a more creative force in order to give his side more options going forward.
Whatever he decides, Pardew must ensure that his side is well balanced and able to deal with the considerable attacking threat that Fulham pose through the likes of Bobby Zamora, Bryan Ruiz and Clint Dempsey.
Fulham are a dangerous prospect at home and have demonstrated this on many occasions, most recently in their 2-1 victory over Arsenal just a couple of weeks ago. Despite this I believe that Pardew should opt for a more aggressive team selection, and deploy the expressive talents of Vuckic and Ben Arfa from the start.
If Newcastle are to finish in the top six then they need to be taking maximum points for fixtures such as this one, therefore, in my opinion, an attacking lineup designed to exploit spaces in the Fulham midfield makes sense against a team that likes to stretch the field and play an open, free-flowing game.
Pardew has a myriad of options available to him should Cabaye miss what is another vital clash in Newcastle's European charge, but in the absence of Cheick Tiote, it is the performance of Danny Guthrie that will hold the key to Newcastle's fortunes against Martin Jol's side.
Indeed, if Guthrie struggles, then Newcastle may find themselves overrun by a dynamic Fulham midfield. However, if he is able to retain possession and use it intelligently, as he has done on many occasions this season, then Newcastle will have a good chance of ending their rotten run at the Cottage.
The Geordies have only played twice more at the Cottage since then, but their record at Fulham's historic home is far from impressive, their 2007 triumph was Newcastle's only success in their last five visits to the stadium.
However, Newcastle go into this fixture on the back of a three game winning streak, and will be confident of securing another positive result as they look to maintain their top six challenge.
The Magpies' task will be made more difficult by the absence of Yohan Cabaye, who is a doubt for the game after sustaining ligament damage in the win over QPR.
Fulham have injury troubles of their own with Moussa Dembele and striker Orlando Sa both absent through injury.
Cabaye's possible absence would present Toon boss Alan Pardew with a difficult decision. Dan Gosling, Mehdi Abeid and Haris Vuckic have all played in central midfield in the absence of Cheick Tiote, who is away on African Cup of Nations duty. Danny Guthrie will likely fill one of the spots in the middle of the park after an efficient display against Fulham's West London rivals.
Hatem Ben Arfa replaced Cabaye in the immediate aftermath of Cabaye's injury, and the Clairefontaine academy graduate produced an encouraging performance from both an attacking and defensive standpoint.
Pardew now must determine whether he wants to employ a defensively minded player such as Abeid in place of Cabaye, or a more creative force in order to give his side more options going forward.
Whatever he decides, Pardew must ensure that his side is well balanced and able to deal with the considerable attacking threat that Fulham pose through the likes of Bobby Zamora, Bryan Ruiz and Clint Dempsey.
Fulham are a dangerous prospect at home and have demonstrated this on many occasions, most recently in their 2-1 victory over Arsenal just a couple of weeks ago. Despite this I believe that Pardew should opt for a more aggressive team selection, and deploy the expressive talents of Vuckic and Ben Arfa from the start.
If Newcastle are to finish in the top six then they need to be taking maximum points for fixtures such as this one, therefore, in my opinion, an attacking lineup designed to exploit spaces in the Fulham midfield makes sense against a team that likes to stretch the field and play an open, free-flowing game.
Pardew has a myriad of options available to him should Cabaye miss what is another vital clash in Newcastle's European charge, but in the absence of Cheick Tiote, it is the performance of Danny Guthrie that will hold the key to Newcastle's fortunes against Martin Jol's side.
Indeed, if Guthrie struggles, then Newcastle may find themselves overrun by a dynamic Fulham midfield. However, if he is able to retain possession and use it intelligently, as he has done on many occasions this season, then Newcastle will have a good chance of ending their rotten run at the Cottage.
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