Fulham v Chelsea: Starting XIs announced for Premier League Matchday 1 at Craven Cottage
Fulham and Chelsea have published their starting lineups for the Premier League Matchday 1 fixture at Craven Cottage in London on Monday, August 24, 2026. The teams meet as both clubs begin the 2026-27 season under newly installed Spanish head coaches.
After Marco Silva's departure, Fulham appointed former Real Madrid interim manager Alvaro Arbeloa as head coach; he is joined on the staff by Cesar Palacios and Gonzalo Garcia, who signed from Los Blancos. Fulham's squad includes recent acquisition Shea Charles, who joined from Southampton. Chelsea have also been active in the transfer market and will field new signings including Pep Chavarria, Valentin Barco and Maxence Lacroix. Xabi Alonso has been appointed as Chelsea's head coach for the match.
Fulham's starting XI is Bernd Leno; Timothy Castagne, Calvin Bassey, Jorge Cuenca, Antonee Robinson; Sander Berge, Alex Iwobi; Oscar Bobb, Joshua King, Cesar Palacios; Gonzalo Garcia. Their bench listed Benjamin Lecomte (gk), Kenny Tete, Harrison Reed, Rodrigo Muniz, Ryan Sessegnon, Emile Smith Rowe and Luc De Fougerolles.
Chelsea's starting lineup is Robert Sanchez; Joshua Acheampong, Maxence Lacroix, Levi Colwill; Malo Gusto, Reece James, Romeo Lavia, Jorrel Hato; Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers; Joao Pedro. Their substitutes include Mike Penders (gk), Valentin Barco, Pedro Neto, Enzo Fernandez, Jamie Gittens, Danny Welbeck, Geovany Quenda, Pep Chavarria and Estevao.
The Matchday 1 fixture is scheduled for Monday, August 24, 2026, at Craven Cottage in London, England. For viewers in India the kickoff time is 12:30 AM IST on Tuesday, August 25, 2026.
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The article was written by Sushruta, who has spent over two years covering football with a focus on Indian and international competitions; alongside football he has reported on a variety of sports and, as noted in his biography, when he is not following the action he can usually be found binge-watching movies or getting lost in a good book.
