Fulham secured a confident 2-0 win over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday, thanks to goals from Emile Smith Rowe and Harry Wilson, as Palace struggled and were reduced to 10 men following Daichi Kamada’s straight red card for a reckless challenge.
The victory pushed Marco Silva’s Fulham up to sixth in the Premier League standings, with 18 points.
Meanwhile, Oliver Glasner’s Palace side, now just one point above the relegation zone, sits precariously in 17th.
Crystal Palace, missing key players due to injuries, struggled to break down a Fulham side that dominated early on. Jean-Philippe Mateta was isolated up front, feeding on minimal service as Fulham took control.
Wilson, who came on as a substitute for Fulham for the second time in five days, once again made a decisive impact, displaying his quality off the bench.
Fulham enjoyed ample possession in the first half, with their midfielders finding space and creating numerous opportunities, yet a lack of clinical finishing in the box kept the game scoreless.
Dean Henderson was forced to make two sharp saves to keep Palace in the game, thwarting Fulham’s attempts on goal with quick reflexes.
The breakthrough for Fulham came when Smith Rowe’s intense pressing led to an error from Palace defender Maxence Lacroix.
Raul Jimenez quickly capitalized on the mistake, threading a well-timed pass to Smith Rowe, who then fired a left-footed shot into the bottom corner to put Fulham ahead.
Palace nearly responded just before halftime with their best chance of the match. Mateta outjumped goalkeeper Bernd Leno to meet a cross, directing his header on target, but Joachim Andersen was alert to the danger, clearing the ball off the line to prevent an equalizer.
Fulham thought they’d doubled their lead six minutes into the second half with a well-executed counter-attack, slicing through Palace’s defense. Smith Rowe finished off the move, only for VAR to disallow the goal for a narrow offside, leaving the score at 1-0.
As Palace’s frustrations mounted, their hopes of a comeback took a further blow in the 76th minute. Kamada’s aggressive, studs-up tackle on Kenny Tete caught the Fulham right-back on the shin, prompting an immediate red card from the referee.
With Palace reduced to 10 men, Fulham swiftly took advantage. Alex Iwobi played a precise through ball to Wilson, who calmly slotted it past Henderson to secure the 2-0 lead.
This marked Wilson’s third goal in two games, following his brace in Monday’s 2-1 victory over Brentford.
Wilson thought he’d added a second for himself in stoppage time, controlling a cross and sending it into the net, but VAR intervened once more to rule the goal out for a handball.
Despite this, Fulham left Selhurst Park with a well-deserved win and continued their push up the table while Palace faces a challenging path ahead as they linger near the relegation zone.
