Terrell Works, George Okkas and Callum Osmand grabbed the goals as Fulham cantered into the Premier League Cup semi-finals with a comprehensive 3-0 win over Crystal Palace at Motspur Park this evening.
Winger Works, who is enjoying an outstanding campaign for Ali Melloul’s men, got the hosts off to the perfect start when he surged clear of a square Palace rearguard to reach a pall from Delano McCoy-Splatt and rifled past a stranded Joe Whitworth. The young Whites were completely in control during the first twenty minutes and the visitors were indebted to Whitworth’s reflexes as their number one repelled a venomous strike from Okkas when the midfielder returned a half-cleared with interest.
Palace gradually tested the Fulham defence, but found the home backline in a miserly mood. Alex Borto was alert to the danger when the lively Adler Nascimento progressed to a crossing position and the imperious Luc de Fougerolles produced a timely intervened as Victor Akinwale eyed up an opportunity. A marauding Josh King almost doubled Fulham’s lead when he rattled the side netting with a deflected drive after beating his man with alarming ease.
Nascimento spurned a glorious chance to level five minutes before the break when the winger latched onto a through ball from Colin Farquhar but fired past the post. Palace immediately paid the price for that miss as they failed to deal with a spinning McCoy-Splatt in the area and Okkas arrived to bury the loose ball into the corner. Borto made a routine stop from Farquhar’s header right on the stroke of half time after the centre back connected with Justin Devenney’s deep cross to keep the home side’s clean sheet intact.
Fulham remained on the front foot early in the second period with King guiding a precise cross from Okkas wide of the target. The game was still very open with Farquhar heading wide from another Devennney ball and Daniel Imray flashing a drive across the face of goal, but they were punished for their prolificacy nine minutes after the interval. Osmand nodded in a terrific cross from Matt Dibley-Dias to end any doubt about the identity of the semi-finalists.
The young Whites made have the margin of victory more convincing were it not for Whitworth’s heroics. The Palace goalkeeper denied Works a double and then saved smartly from Osmand. The visitors kept playing their progressive football until the end, with Borto brilliantly keeping out Imray’s strike at the back post from Roshaun Mathurin’s cross to provide conclusive proof that it wasn’t to be Palace’s night.
FULHAM UNDER 21s (4-5-1): Borto; Tanton, Amissah, Araujo, de Fougerolles; King (de Jesus 90+2), Okkas (Olyott 72), Dibley-Dias, McCoy-Splatt (Nwoko 83), Works, Osmand (Loupalo-Bi 72). Subs (not used): McNally, de Jesus, Nwoko.
GOALS: Works (7), Okkas (42), Osmand (54).
CRYSTAL PALACE UNDER 21s (4-3-3): Whitworth; Imray, Watson, Farquhar, Devenney; Rodney, Jemide, Ferguson (Gibbard 64); Malthurin, Nascimento (Williams 64), Akinwale. Subs (not used): Francis, Izquierdo, Agbinone.
REFEREE: Alan Dale.
