23 November 2024
Fulham 1 Wolves 4
Fulham welcomed a Wolves team to Craven Cottage who were full of confidence after getting their first win of the Premier League campaign last time out. Marco Silva’s side were starting to turn West London into a venue not many sides wanted to travel to. Meanwhile, Gary O’Neil was looking to add more points to steer his team clear of the relegation places.
The hosts should have taken the lead after some good work from Robinson down the left. His cross laid it on a plate for Jimenez but, somehow, he crashed his effort against the crossbar when it seemed easier to score. It was a massive chance for the Mexican striker to get a goal against his old club and a big let-off for Wolves.
Marco Silva’s side were dominating the game and the visitors seemed to be struggling to keep them out. Tete caused problems down the right and laid it off to Iwobi outside the box. He curled a sublime left-footed effort into the far corner to give The Cottagers the lead. West London was bouncing as the ball nestled in the back of the net.
Most of the fans in Craven Cottage were hoping they were going to see a convincing win for the hosts at this stage. Wolves had offered very little in an attacking sense. Lemina then played a long ball forward which Cunha pulled out of the air before slotting past Leno to silence the home faithful. It was a superb piece of skill and finishing by the Brazilian.
Gary O’Neil’s side have always been a selling club when there is a big profit to be made. Their Premier League safety may rely upon keeping Cunha at the club until at least the end of the season. He is involved in everything they do well in the final third. Brimming with confidence, the attacker is a threat for anyone they face at the moment.
The sides went into the break all square. Fulham will feel they should have been leading, having created the more chances. Now it was down to the respective managers to get their teams to take it up a gear or two. The visitors started the day in the bottom three and if they wanted to address that, only victory in the capital would do.
Just seven minutes had passed since the restart when Cunha was at it again. This time he played a perfectly weighted pass into the path of Gomes, who drilled his shot past Leno and into the far corner. The home fans were stunned as Wolves took the lead for the first time in the game. We really had a game on our hands at Craven Cottage.
Many big teams are looking at Fulham’s Robinson right now and for good reason. His delivery from wide positions is second to none. As he put another teasing ball into the box, Ait-Nouri slid in to try and deal with it, only to see his touch send it crashing against his own crossbar. So close to an equaliser for Silva’s side, from an unlikely source.
Wolves had dropped a lot of points from winning positions this season. Cairney gifted the ball to Cunha, who needed no invitation to run towards goal. Fortunately for The Cottagers the Brazilian put his effort the wrong side of the post. The Fulham defenders put enough pressure on the forward to ensure that he could not get a clean strike off at goal.
Marco Silva then turned to his golden ticket from the bench. Wilson came on, hoping to continue his Midas touch in front of goal. It did not take long until the Welshman tried his luck from some distance. His dipping shot had Jose Sa beaten but struck the top of the woodwork before heading over. So close to making a big impact from the bench once again.
Things went from bad to worse for the hosts when Andersen went to ground with an injury. The defender was forced off with Fulham having already used all of their substitutions. It meant that they would have to finish the game with only ten men. This was like a red rag to a bull for Wolves, who felt the win was there for the taking.
Gomes played the ball into Cunha just outside the box who struck a sublime first-time shot into the top corner of the goal. No keeper in the land was getting anywhere near that one. It was a finish of pure perfection from the Wolves’ player. With only minutes remaining, it sealed victory for Gary O’Neil’s side at Craven Cottage.
The visitors were not done there however. A Fulham attack broke down and Lemina ran clear towards the hosts’ half. Strand Larsen then played the ball into Guedes at the back post, who stroked his shot past Leno to make this a convincing win in the capital. Based on this performance, it seemed baffling that Wolves had taken eleven games to win this season.
You could see just how much the victory meant to Gary O’Neil as he celebrated with the fans after the final whistle. Much maligned when they were losing every week, the manager seems to be proving his doubters wrong. It was back-to-back victories for Wolves for the first time since February and more importantly moved them out of the bottom three.
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