Fulham 2-0 Crystal Palace
Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-2 Fulham
'Did you watch the match last night?' That is not a question that I utter too often but any neutral football fans who tuned in to Wolves v Fulham on Tuesday evening will have been amply rewarded.
They might have needed some context. Fulham's head coach Marco Silva is no tinkerman; he prefers a settled team that consistently performs his brand of football.
The players' recent capitulation to Crystal Palace prompted changes and I don't think many fans would have demurred if Silva had fielded his B side at Molineux, so long as he kept Bernd Leno in goal.
Calvin Bassey, Alex Iwobi, Antonee Robinson and Raul Jimenez were benched, though they were not the only ones who had underperformed. The most exciting incomer was Ryan Sessegnon making his first Premier League start since his return to the club.
Some spectators regularly drift into home matches after the kick-off (and do likewise in the second half). Perhaps they copy this at home and delay switching on the television. If so, I will tell them what they missed.
When Fulham kicked off the Wolves broke up two forays and the ball came back to Leno. After the usual interplay Joachim Andersen fed Rodrigo Muniz in midfield. The Brazilian, though double marked, was able to turn and supply Andreas Pereira, who sent Sessegnon racing down the left to score. VAR confirmed that the timing was perfect.
The second half saw the home side retain the ball from kick-off and tarry in their own half. As Fulham had shown, it's a reasonable tactic – when it works. Somehow Adama Traore found himself with the ball and his superb pass left Muniz facing goalkeeper Jose Sa.
One delicate chip and the ball was in the net – flipping magic, as the delirious fans chorused, or déjà vu all over again, to quote the TNT commentator. At 64 seconds it had taken slightly longer than the first.
Of course the victory was not as simple as that. Wolves fought all the way even though Mateus Cunha did not create his customary havoc. Jean-Ricner Bellegarde constantly threatened Fulham's left and it was his centre that led to Joao Gomes's fierce 18th minute equaliser. The home side could not repeat that in the second half.
Fulham's next live TV appearance will be on Sunday when they visit Manchester United in the FA Cup. What can possibly go wrong?
Disappointing defeat to Crystal Palace
'Lovely sunset, shame about the match' was one comment that I overheard as a dejected crowd trudged away from Craven Cottage last Saturday. It was impossible to disagree. How could the team that had conquered Nottingham Forest just seven days earlier offer such an ineffectual display against Crystal Palace?
The Forest and the Palace games had similar starts – Fulham being caught out on its right flank and the visitors almost scoring. This time it was Jean-Philippe Mateta who gave the home supporters an early scare. Then came the twist.
Far from taking charge the Whites looked vulnerable in defence and nervous in attack. Bernd Leno made a couple of confident saves but his colleagues failed to display the same self-belief.
Initially the Hammersmith End focused its ire on the referee Rob Jones, who allowed Palace some meaty tackles, notably one by Chris Richards on Emile Smith Rowe and another by Will Hughes on Calvin Bassey.
The latter action appeared from most angles to be a foul but Jones saw it as a coming together. It led to a corner and the visitors' first goal, inadvertently headed past Leno by Joachim Andersen. The crowd bayed at Mr Jones "Silva's right, the refs aren't bright" (or words to that effect).
Hopes that a half-time roasting from Marco Silva would prompt a revival proved abortive. Mr Jones increased his popularity by validating Maxence Lacroix's last-ditch tackle on Raul Jimenez in a rare Fulham breakaway.
This decision (almost certainly correct) nearly doubled the visitors' tally. Palace accelerated and a neat Eberechi Eze backheel gave Mateta a goal that was (after a tortuous delay) ruled offside by VAR.
Silva's substitutions brought scant improvement. Andreas Pereira's optimistic shot rebounded to send Mateta ghosting upfield through a frail defence. The Colombian Daniel Munoz completed the move, scoring from a tight angle. By comparison Fulham did not have a single effort on target.
Shame about the match indeed but Tuesday night made up for it.
The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and unless specifically stated are not necessarily those of Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
