Nketiah sends Crystal Palace past Fulham and into the quarter-finals

Crystal Palace knocked Fulham out of the Carabao Cup with a 1-0 win at Craven Cottage in the fourth round. Eddie Nketiah scored in the first half to put his side into the quarter-finals and ease the pressure on Pierre Sage. The decisive move began with Oscar Mingueza breaking down the right and crossing; Nketiah turned the ball in with a fine touch. It was Palace’s first shot of the match and, according to the account of the game, its first attacking move.

Fulham had earlier had a chance to go in front, but Dean Henderson saved Robinson’s attempt. Palace took the lead, yet the hosts continued to create opportunities. From a corner, the ball reached Alex Iwobi after a flick at the near post; his close-range effort was stopped by Henderson. Palace’s goalkeeper also kept out another effort from close range with his legs. Fulham pressed after the break and found one more major opening in stoppage time, but Henderson palmed away Gonzalo Garcia’s header to prevent an equaliser. Palace, meanwhile, missed a chance to make the result safe when Fulham’s goalkeeper saved a close-range shot.

The defeat ends Fulham’s cup run, with the club going out at home. Before the tie, Fulham sat 15th in the Premier League with 8 points from 8 matches, while Crystal Palace were 17th on 7 points. Fulham had 2 wins, 2 draws and 4 defeats, scoring 8 and conceding 10. Palace also had 2 wins, but with 1 draw and 5 defeats, and had scored 9 while conceding 19. Fulham therefore held a 1-point advantage over Palace.

Recent league form also favoured Fulham: across its previous 5 Premier League matches, it had won twice, drawn twice and lost once. Palace’s record over the same spell was 1 win, 1 draw and 3 defeats. Those differences did not decide this cup tie, where Nketiah supplied the goal and Henderson protected Palace’s lead through to the final whistle.