Fulham 1-1 Liverpool (agg 2-3)
Whilst Fulham players will have welcomed last weekend's break, they may have felt some apprehension when Liverpool won 4-0 at Bournemouth. Tuesday night's result at Stamford Bridge – a 6-1 victory for Chelsea over Middlesborough – will have also added to the pressure.
Unlike the Whites, Middlesbrough had a goal advantage from the first tie, but Chelsea gave them short shrift. Still, there was a large and enthusiastic crowd in Stevenage Road on Wednesday eager to gain entry to the second leg of the League Cup semi-final.
Turnstiles
The Craven Cottage turnstiles, with their combination of Edwardian and 21st Century technology, are slow at the best of times and have real problems dealing with paper tickets so the 'queues' were a heaving mass of humanity.
Some supporters singing, chanting and gesticulating with understandable gusto broke off when they saw this 84-year-old in their midst. I had not found their high spirits intimidating (and my daughter was there to protect me) but I appreciated their consideration.
We got through the turnstile with 10 minutes to go but I hear that people queuing for the Johnny Haynes Stand had a much longer wait. Paradoxically it was easier than usual to get to our seats because so many people were still outside. Every seat had a cardboard clapper and there was a multitude of black flags and white flags available for waving.
I did refer to seats but the self-appointed rulers of the Hammersmith End had decided to stand throughout the match and everyone else had to do the same. I doubt if it makes any difference to the players and the stand is not designed for it nor are the gangways kept clear by stewards.
The match
Liverpool attacked from the start looking for the goal that would demoralise the opposition but Fulham withstood the first five minutes and went on the offensive themselves. Timothy Castagne's low drive won a corner which gave Joao Palhinha clear sight of goal - one of those 'If only' moments. Then keeper Caoimhin Kelleher intercepted a promising centre by Timothee Robinson.
The match was effectively decided in the 11th minute. Castagne misjudged Jarell Quansah's long pass allowing Luis Diaz a clear run on goal. The Colombian's low shot took a slight deflection but Bernd Leno would normally have saved it. Fulham now had to score at least three times to gain a place in the Final.
The Reds' lunatic fringe had as usual beaten security and one numbskull threw a flare onto the pitch delaying the re-start. When play resumed the Whites stuck to Marco Silva's game plan and tried elaborate passing movements but apart from Willian they seemed to lack positivity. Mistakes occurred too often. It was not until the 67th minute when Harry Wilson appeared (why was he not in the starting line-up?) that the real fight-back began.
First Palhinha's shot struck his teammate Raul Jimenez but still needed a save from Kelleher then in the 77th minute Wilson beat Conor Bradley and put in a low centre which Quanah could not block and the ball went into the net off Issa Diop. At this point, as Silva later remarked, the game became a cup-tie – though never a bad-tempered one that required much intervention from referee Simon Hooper.
Extra time looked possible but Fulham's lack of a consistent goal scorer counted against them. The club had dared to dream and now must move on to the FA Cup and then the need for Premier League points. Three evening home matches in seven days!
The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and unless specifically stated are not necessarily those of Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
