Reading FC were the unfortunate victims as the Whites emerged from their mid-winter slumber with a seven-goal thriller.
In fact, Reading must have wished that the match had been postponed for a second time. Desperate for a home victory they suffered the first of their misfortunes immediately after the start when Scott Dann was injured and the back four had to be reorganised. Josh Laurent, switched to right back, muffed a clearance, presenting Harry Wilson with a simple goal.
It is fair to state that the home team appeared to recover from these initial setbacks. After Marek Rodak had made a fine save from Mamadi Camara, Andy Carroll found the net twice in spectacular fashion only for the assistant referee to deem each effort offside. Reading were still in the game until just before the interval when Tom Holmes mistimed his sliding tackle on Wilson in the penalty area and Mitrovic added to his remarkable tally.
It was well into the second half that Aleksandar Mitrovic and Antonee Robinson combined to give Wilson his second goal of the evening and the torrent started. A 68th minute corner allowed Kenny Tete to divert Mitro’s header past Luke Southwood. Two minutes later the irrepressible Wilson put Kebano on the scoresheet before a Tosin Adarabioyo header brought the score to 6-0.
The Royals must have drawn slight comfort when Silva replaced Wilson with Rodrigo Muniz – but instead, the substitute just added to their problems. He finished a powerful run with a shot that was parried by Southwood, and Mitrovic slotted the rebound past the suffering keeper.
I have previously urged caution when fans have predicted a record-breaking season – but two 7-0 away wins in weeks have made me reconsider.
Blackburn Rovers, the other recipients of that pounding, will have had further nightmares after hearing about Tuesday evening. The Evening Standard was less impressed, headlining its report: “Andy Carroll Goes Viral for Two Stunning Disallowed Goals In Fulham Rout”.
FA Cup
The third round of the FA Cup has produced some wonderful football this year – but not at Ashton Gate.
As expected, Marco Silva did not select the strongest possible line-up for the recent visit to Bristol City by retaining only Tosin and Fabio Carvalho from the starting eleven that had lost to Sheffield United before Christmas.
Muniz, Domingos Quina and Nathaniel Chalobah were among the fringe players given the opportunity to display their talents. Apart from Paulo Gazzaniga in goal (who was rightly named Fulham’s Man of the Match) they failed to meet the challenge.
The best action of a mediocre first half, somewhat dominated by City, came in the closing minutes. Bobby DeCordova-Reid shot wide, then Gazzaniga confidently saved a more accurate effort from our former striker Chris Martin.
Although Fulham improved after the interval there was little hint of a deciding goal apart from another bicycle kick from Muniz (keep trying, Rodrigo).
After 25 minutes, Silva sent on Mitrovic, closely followed by Harrison Reed and Neeskens Kebano, but the game remained goalless and dragged on into extra time, which can hardly have been what the Head Coach wanted. However, Silva did make good use of the regulation change allowing further substitutions in the additional half-hour.
Fresh for the fight, Harry Wilson turned the match to Fulham’s advantage when his low centre eluded everyone and found the net. The other new participant, Tom Cairney, drew a good save from Max O’Leary, who then frustrated Kebano. Most of Fulham’s few shots on target came in extra time.
Ironically, a match where neither side showed much commitment resulted in the mouth-watering fourth round prospect of a trip to Manchester City.
The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and unless specifically stated are not necessarily those of Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
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