Fulham vs. Tottenham: Spurs Will Best Cottagers in Crucial EPL Showdown

When Tottenham and Fulham meet on the pitch at Craven Cottage on Saturday, we will bear witness to two teams headed in opposite directions.

Tottenham, coming off of home wins against West Ham (3-1) and Liverpool (2-1), sits fifth in the table with 23 points, three behind Chelsea in third and West Brom in fourth.

Fulham, on the other hand, finds themselves without a win in their six previous Premier League matches, though they did keep Chelsea from finding the back of the net earlier in the week, playing to a scoreless draw.

While the Cottagers have done an admirable job of defending their turf at Craven Cottage, playing to a 3-1-2 record and holding a 13-to-7 advantage in goals over visiting clubs, their match against the Spurs isn't going to end well.

Fulham will be without the services of striker Carlos Ruiz, their talented midfielder who had been shredding opposing midfielders for much of the season. According to the Cottagers' official Twitter account, neither Ruiz or midfielder/striker Alex Kacaniklic is ready to return from hamstring injuries:

"

Jol says Bryan Ruiz and Alex Kacaniklic are still a week away from fitness

— Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC) November 27, 2012"

The Cottagers will also be without key defender Brede Hangeland who is still out of action due to a suspension, making a formidable challenge for Fulham that much more difficult.

Tottenham will be getting defender Steven Caulker back from illness, and both Clint Dempsey and Moussa Dembele, who left Fulhman during the summer transfer window to sign with Tottenham, will be fired up to face their former teammates for the first time as members of the Spurs.

I'm calling this one a 2-1 victory in favor of the Spurs, with Dempsey and Jermain Defoe netting goals for Tottenham while Dimitar Berbatov does the scoring for the Cottagers.