A week after Fulham’s fabulous home win over Nottingham Forest, here was ample evidence that Marco Silva’s side are some way short of the standards necessary to enter the European places. The Whites dominated possession but struggled to lay a glove on a well-organised Crystal Palace side, who turned a tight contest into a war of attrition and profited from an own goal from their former defender Joachim Andersen before Daniel Muñoz delivered a delicious second to clinch a club record fourth top flight away win in a row.
Where Palace were robust and ruthless, Fulham flailed around in the final third before flagging alarmingly. Silva’s side struggled to trouble Oliver Glasner’s three centre halves failing to force Dean Henderson into a save during a frustrating afternoon when the Fulham head coach admitted that his side slipped below the levels he demands. The warning signs were there as early as the third minute when the in-form Jean-Philippe Mateta surged away from Andersen and Calvin Bassey before drilling a shot into the side netting.
The fit-again Ebere Eze sparkled alongside Ismaila Sarr behind the in-form French forward and drew two sharp saves from Bernd Leno after finding the sort of space behind Sander Berge and Sasa Lukic that Fulham’s central midfielders didn’t afford Forest last week. Palace’s pretty passing patterns were allied with a sense of steel that has underpinned the revival after a slow start to the season. The visitors might have assisted by a laissez faire approach from referee Robert Jones, who ignored a series of aggressive tackles on Emile Smith Rowe before infuriating the home fans by waving play on when the tenacious Will Hughes dived in on Calvin Bassey,.
The Merseyside official further incensed the Hammersmith End by stopping play before a Palace corner to warn Andersen not to hold onto the visiting attackers. Jones was watching Hughes deliver the set-play when Sarr shoved the Fulham defender in the back and the Danish international diverted the ball beyond Leno at a crowded near post. Boos rang out at half time, largely directed at the referee rather than Fulham’s failure to ask probing questions of Palace’s miserly back-line, but the pattern continued after half time.
Raul Jimenez ran himself into the ground but the Mexican veteran never came closer to troubling Henderson than when he burst onto a threaded through ball from Alex Iwobi before Maxence Lacroix produced a superb saving tackle to deny the former Wolves forward. Fulham’s football was never as fluent as it was against Forest – and they ultimately paid the penalty for a lack of incisiveness in the final third, even if Mateta’s powerful finish from Eze’s exquisite flick was eventually adjudged offside after a torturous VAR delay.
But the visitors appeared to gain confidence from breaching Fulham’s defences. Only a splendid reaction save from Leno prevented Lacroix from doubling Palace’s lead and Jimenez bravely blocked a volley from Jefferson Lerma. Palace suddenly seemed able to flood through the middle of the park with ease, as evidenced by the way in which the Eagles punished Andreas Pereira audacious attempt to equalise from 30 yards out. Mateta motored past meek challenges from Pereira and Tom Cairney and arced a pass out to Munoz on the right. The wing-back skipped inside Bassey and shot superbly into Leno’s top corner from a tight angle.
There was no way back for Fulham – with Cairney following Emile Smith Rowe in limping out of the contest injured long before the final whistle. Leno made a smothering save as Mateta threatened to add a third, whilst a chastening afternoon for Silva’s side was summed up when Jimenez’s wayward shot struck Pereira and still didn’t force Henderson into a save.
FULHAM (4-2-3-1): Leno; Castagne (Diop 80), A. Robinson, Andersen, Bassey; Berge (Cairney 50; Willian 80), Lukic; Traore, Iwobi (Muniz 80), Smith Rowe (Pereira 58); Jimenez. Subs (not used): Benda, Cuenca, R. Sessegnon, Reed.
BOOKED: Berge.
CRYSTAL PALACE (3-4-2-1): Henderson; Lacroix, Guehi, Richards; Munoz, Mitchell, Lerma (Wharton 81), Hughes (Devenny 90); Sarr (Kamada 75), Eze (Chilwell 90); Mateta. Subs (not used): Turner, Clyne, Kporpha, Esse, Nketiah.
BOOKED: Munoz, Guehi, Hughes.
GOALS: Andersen (o.g. 37), Munoz (66).
REFEREE: Robert Jones (Merseyside).
ATTENDANCE: 26,777.
No excuses for today’s performance, but and its a big but, Robert Jones was awful and that’s being generous. At least 4 rugby tackles more fitting at Twickenham than CC went unpunished and that gave Palace a free licence.
Silva must take some blame as well. Why did it take so long to replace ESR when it was so obvious he had been injured. During that time they scored, albeit it was disallowed by VAR.
To bring on TC when we’re struggling is not the correct option either, as he is physically weak, not the type of player to combat against a physically strong Palace team .
It seems we take one step forward(Forest game) and two steps backwards today.
Finally I notice that the FFC website are not asking for PoTM vote, I wonder why?
Bad performance against a solid organized side today !! Crystal Palace tactics were spot on !! Clogged the middle and let us beat them on the wings !!.We were just too slow to moved the ball around and we paid the price !! No even a shot on target !!
I think ESR was injured by the brutal challenge on him in the 1st half. Up until then it was an even game. After getting away with that one Palace then decided they could get away with hacking us down everytime we had a chance to threaten. 2 tackles on Bassey were disgraceful and unpunished. Once in front Palace were never troubled. Never seen Craven Cottage so angry and hostile. 24,000 people can’t be wrong about the W in the black
Todays performance was was not acceptable we must beat sides like palace also to have no shots on target was also not good enough i think a bit of complacency set in I hope Silva kicked a few up the backside at half time but it looked like he did not we are far away from qualifying for Europe our form is hit and miss also does any one know how referees are assessed and who assesses them this guy today was abysmal and was dying to give a penalty it was all about him but still take him out of the equation Fulham were still awful
Totally agree about the ref. His arrogance when Smith Rowe was fouled in the first half, mocking Fulham players for suggesting that it was a foul. just about summed up this guy’s swollen head.
But it doesn’t explain our total ineptness.
I think Keith is spot on re complacency -as if we just need to turn up and it will all work out.
Not a single shot on target after twenty plus efforts, last week, is simply not acceptable.
Too many strollers in our team and not enough steel. In fact, we have ZERO steel.
Hopefully, Silva gives the majority a major kick up the arse before the Wolves game because they are, IMO, way better than their position indicates -as we discovered when they mauled us at the Cottage.
Very bad performance today, Palace players outrun and outmuscled us. Robinson was run ragged by Munoz, Bassey found himself having to come to the left to close the damage leaving a gap in the middle. I have said this before and obvously Silva doen not agree but Cairney can never be the solution when chasing the result. His passes are always backwards and lateral, our play becomes much slower and with physically strong players domnating midfield, Tom could only cut a desolate figure. Yesterday’ result is a timely remibder that we are 6 players short of competing in Europe. With the current squad European qualification would surely mean a relagation tussle in the following season.
What a difference a week can make.
This was a crap performance from a complacent team lacking commitment and apparently a desire to win. It’s hard to believe that the whole team is so arrogant as to believe that one week’s excellent performance means they are good enough, without breaking into a sweat. Unbelievable, but that’s how it appears
It is after all a team game and if some players don’t turn up it can very quickly affect the whole team. Every player has his role, like a cog in any well oiled machine, Marco being the oil.Remove one or two cogs and the whole thing falls apart. Unfortunately, as someone pointed out we have too many strollers who operate like the British economy, Stop-Start.
Palace are a good team and you could argue that it’s no disgrace to lose to them, but to rollover without a fight is an insult to the club and the fans.
Lastly, it’s Marco’s job to prepare the team for the job in hand, in that he can’t always get it completely right, but he has to think on his feet, have a Plan B and make changes accordingly. In this he appears limited and static in his thinking sometimes.
PS. Sorry if I’m sounding a bit like I’m teaching granny to suck eggs. You all know these things, but I’m just having a cathartic moment and getting stuff off my chest.
All very disappointing:(