Fulham’s hunt for European qualification received a huge boost on Saturday as they beat Aston Villa 1-0 at Craven Cottage.
WATCH — Full match replay
Ryan Sessegnon finished before the break to give Marco Silva’s side a big win as they pressed Villa all over the pitch and have given themselves a really good chance of taking the scrap for European qualification down to the final few games of the season.
Unai Emery’s Villa had an off day and Morgan Rogers, Ollie Watkins and Tammy Abraham were also guilty of missing good chances.
With the win Fulham move on to 48 points for the season and are just two points off the top six with four games to go. Villa are still looking good for Champions League qualification as they sit on 58 points and are comfortably in the top five.
Fulham’s intensity is the key to late push for Europe
Somewhere early in 2026 Fulham lost their mojo a little with four defeats in five. Maybe it was the constant speculation about Marco Silva’s future with his contract set to run out at the end of this season. Maybe it was a few key injuries impacting their relatively small squad. Maybe it was fatigue from their intense tactics over the last few years catching up with them. Whatever it was, it’s gone now. Fulham swarmed over Aston Villa and this was a true Silva masterclass. Wherever he ends up at the end of this season, this is the type of display you’d expect from a Silva side. Berge and Lukic locked down midfield, his center backs were aggressive and every single player ran through challenges and pressed high. With four games to go Fulham have a legitimate chance of qualifying for Europe for the first time in 15 years. If that happens, Silva will surely be persuaded to sign a new contract. But even if he doesn’t signed a new deal, it’s easy to imagine what a Silva side plays like when you shut your eyes. We saw that against Villa on Saturday and he will be delighted with his side digging deep to give themselves a great chance of achieving something special. Now they have to repeat that high-energy display four more times.
What’s next?
Fulham head to Arsenal next Saturday. Villa head to Nottingham Forest on Thursday for the first leg of their UEFA Europa League semifinal, then host Spurs in the Premier League next Sunday.
Fulham vs Aston Villa score: 1-0
Sessegnon 43’
Fulham vs Aston Villa live updates!
Abraham with some wonderful skill but he lifts it way over
Oh, that is lovely from Tammy Abraham as the sub works his way past a few Fulham defenders with a lovely piece of skill and he’s in the box. But the English striker is leaning back and puts it way over the bar. Unai Emery is fuming on the sidelines. Time is running out for Villa to at least rescue a point...
Villa huffing and puffing but time is running out
Sancho, Abraham, Bailey, Barkley and Luiz have all come on for Villa as they chase an equalizer late on.
Fulham goal ruled out for a foul on Martinez
A corner is whipped in to the back post and Castagne heads home but Berge was holding Martinez and the goal is disallowed.
Wilson misses a big chance at the start of the second half
Lucas Digne makes a mistake and Harry Wilson is in but can’t finish and a glorious chance goes begging for Fulham to make it 2-0.
Sessegnon puts Fulham ahead
Martinez saves well from Lukic’s header after a great cross from Castagne, but Sessegnon is there to finish. Fulham take the lead just before half time and they probably deserve that.
FULHAM BREAK IT OPEN ‼️‼️‼️
— USA Sports (@usasports) April 25, 2026
Brilliant positioning! Ryan Sessegnon catches a rebound and sinks it into the right corner.
⚪️ Fulham: 1
🟣 Aston Villa: 0
⏱️ 41’ pic.twitter.com/b6SnKwdyDG
Watkins goes close as Villa finally wake up
Villa have gone close again as Watkins shrugs off Andersen but sends his effort just wide.
Rogers goes close on the counter
Morgan Rogers goes on a wonderful run on the counter attack and sends a low effort just wide. Great play from the Villa star.
Fulham have looked bright
Few clear chances so far but Fulham have looked decent. Villa yet to get going.
Fulham lineup
Leno; Castagne, Andersen, Bassey, Sessegnon; Lukic, Berge; Wilson, Smith Rowe, Chukwueze; Jimenez
Aston Villa lineup
Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne; Bogard, Tielemans; McGinn, Buendia, Rogers; Watkins
Fulham team news, focus
Raul Jimenez, Oscar Bobb, Antonee Robinson, Josh King, Sander Berge and Samuel Chukwueze could all come in to the starting lineup as Silva continues to try and find the right combinations of players, especially in attack, to finish the season strongly. Fulham can still qualify for Europe and that is perhaps the only way Silva will stick around. Kevin and Kenny Tete are out, while Alex Iwobi is a huge doubt after coming off injured at Brentford last weekend.
Aston Villa team news, focus
Villa will likely rotate and with Champions League qualification all but secured, and a huge Europa League semifinal at Forest coming up, that is fair enough. Abraham, Sancho, Lindelof, Buendia, Luiz and Bailey could all start. Boubacar Kamara remains out injured.
Fulham vs Aston Villa prediction
This could be a fun one as both teams will just go for it and have nothing to lose. Go for a draw. Fulham 2-2 Aston Villa.
How to watch Fulham vs Aston Villa live, stream link and start time
Kick off time: 7:30am ET Saturday (April 25)
Venue: Craven Cottage — West London
TV Channel: USA
Streaming: Watch on USA
