Liverpool 2-1 Fulham
At the start of December 2023 Fulham stunned Liverpool by taking a 3-2 lead at Anfield in a Premier League fixture. Two last ditch goals by Waturo Endo and Trent Alexander-Arnold turned the match into a home win.
As Jurgen Klopp remarked ‘Whoever was here today will never forget’. For the Whites it was a defeat and a disappointment but the Carabao Cup semi-final gave them an early chance for revenge.
Neither Endo nor Alexander-Arnold was available for the match but Liverpool still dominated from the start so it was a shock when the visitors went ahead in the 19th minute. Virgil van Dijk’s weak header allowed Andreas Pereira to find Willian and the Brazilian shot home from a very tight angle.
Klopp will have despaired at the tame response (though he later praised his opponents’ ‘really compact defence’) and he no doubt made his feelings clear at half-time. Liverpool looked much more dangerous after the break and Ryan Gravenberch should really have equalised.
Despite the onslaught the Reds could not ignore the possibility of a Fulham breakaway. Raul Jimenez, Pereira, Willian and Bobby DeCordova-Reid were waiting to pounce.
The introduction of Darwin Nunez and Cody Jakpo changed the match. Having held the lead for three quarters of an hour the Whites had the misfortune of seeing Curtis Jones’s long-range shot bounce off Tosin’s back and into the net.
Three minutes later Jakpo converted Nunez’s cross to put the home side ahead. There were scares at both ends but no further goals. Bernd Leno earned his Man of the Match award.
Marco Silva ‘s players face a daunting but not impossible prospect in two weeks’ time. This also could be a game that no-one will forget.
Rotherham in the FA Cup
The Caraboa Cup semi-final naturally overshadowed last Friday’s FA Cup-tie at the Cottage.
The visitors Rotherham faced a team that showed eight changes from the starting line-up against Arsenal. Only Tosin, Timothy Castagne and Bobby DeCordova-Reid began both games. For the other eight it was a chance to impress Marco Silva though they would have been wary of getting injured before the visit to Liverpool.
Determined to stifle the Premier League opposition Rotherham held out for 23 minutes before unwisely playing from the back. Harry Wilson discomfited a hesitant Sebastian Revan, after which the ball ran invitingly to DeCordova-Reid outside the area. Keeper Victor Johansson had no hope of preventing his shot from finding the top left-hand corner.
The game briefly came alive and when the visitors forced a corner Fulham’s defence looked shaky. Jordan Hugill met Tom Eaves’s cross and beat Marek Rodak from close range but VAR confirmed him offside. This was the only fright for the home supporters.
Andreas Pereira hit the post and Tosin and Issa Diop both came close to scoring. Rodrigo Muniz and substitute Carlos Vinicius once again failed to establish themselves as potential leaders of the line.
Bobby’s goal was the decider as it had been against the Arsenal.
Having recently criticised exorbitant ticket prices I must record that admission charges to this 3rd Round match were extremely reasonable and attracted over 15,000 spectators. There will be few empty seats for the 4th Round visit of Newcastle.
The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and unless specifically stated are not necessarily those of Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
