Fulham, who suffered a dismal defeat at the hands of Everton on Saturday, adding to their growing league woes. It was another demoralising loss for Fulham at Craven Cottage, their fifth defeat in the last eight games. That defeat leaves their side four points adrift of eighth-placed Brentford. Even with an electric first half, the home side could never put away the visitors, and in the end lost out to the Toffees’ grit.
The match played out with Fulham on the front foot at first, allowing them to display their attacking prowess. They were not able to turn this initial boost into a long-lasting lead. Everton were quick to take advantage of their set-piece opportunities, which have become a far too common theme for Fulham’s recent woes.
Everton’s Resilience Shines
Michael Keane emerged as a standout player for Everton, scoring the opening goal with a powerful header from a deep corner delivered by Dwight McNeil. The goal survived a VAR check for a potential foul on Fulham’s keeper, Bernd Leno. It escaped a near disastrous offside call to show how close margins can determine match outcomes.
Following Keane’s goal, Vitaliy Mykolenko leveled the score for Everton just before half-time with a deflected shot that caught Leno off guard. This equalizer came during a wild three-minute stretch. When he found the back of the net, it completely flipped the momentum of the game in favor of the visitors.
“We were the best team on the pitch. The first 30, 35 minutes was the level we want. Last 10 minutes, we started to lose some of the main things we had to be in control of the game.” – Marco Silva
Fulham quickly got an equalizer on a great strike from Raul Jimenez that gave the Cottagers the lead once more. The Toffees response was immediate, and their equalizer was testament to their forward pressure, forcing mistakes and being ruthless in punishing defensive errors.
Fulham’s Missed Opportunities
On another day, Fulham could have scored three in the first half, controlling the game, creating several chances and forcing NYCFC keeper Matt Freese into notable saves. It should have been 3-1 when Harry Wilson almost doubled his tally only to be denied by a wonderful fingertip stop from Everton’s keeper, Jordan Pickford. This play would come to symbolize Fulham’s bigger issues on the day, allowing most of their early control to fade out of the match.
Marco Silva bemoaned his side’s lack of control at crucial periods in the clash. He highlighted their recent defeats as a result of not being switched on, not being focused, especially in terms of set-pieces and dead-ball plays.
“It is the story of the last three or four games. Goals have come from set-pieces. We have to be willing to fight, do our job well and we didn’t. It’s about concentration and focus.” – Marco Silva
The coach was ashamed of his team’s performance. He urged them to look past these failures so that they don’t repeat the same mistakes going forward.
Defensive Errors Cost Fulham
The crucial moment for Everton would once again be delivered on a defensive howler from Fulham.… it turns out that Leno really misread a shot from Beto. The ball went through his hands and into the bottom right corner of the net. The mistake would be an expensive one as it gifted Everton an important opener that they would go on to not lose their grip on.
Moyes told reporters that he was pleased with Keane’s professionalism and impact, particularly with his squad hit by injury problems. He noted that Keane’s readiness played a vital role in Everton’s success during the game.
“He’s a great boy, great pro. Sticks at his work. Showed his high level of professionalism by being ready for the game, because we had an injury to Jake (O’Brien) and obviously with Tarky (James Tarkowski).” – David Moyes
Quite frankly, the battle for Fulham is just beginning. They need to bounce back from this loss and climb their way back up into mid-table comfort. They would only be four points off Brentford. If they want to find themselves in the upper half of the league’s standings, they’ll need to address their defensive woes and play more like they did before the All-Star break last season.
Leave a Reply