Nketiah sends Crystal Palace into the quarter-finals and eases pressure on Sage

Eddie Nketiah sent Crystal Palace into the League Cup quarter-finals at Fulham’s expense. His goal secured the win and gave Pierre Sage some respite, with the manager under scrutiny after poor results. Palace have now reached the last eight of this competition for the third consecutive time. It was also their fifth win over Fulham at their own ground in 18 months, according to the match report.

Palace had to overcome a difficult first half to progress. Cheick Doucouré returned in midfield for his first senior appearance since January 2025, following a succession of injury problems, but the side looked short of sharpness. They failed to touch the ball in Fulham’s box during the opening half-hour and had only 22% possession over that spell. Still, Óscar Mingueza broke down the right and delivered a cross for Nketiah, who finished with a deft volley.

Arsenal are 2nd with 21 points, while Tottenham are 14th with 9 points, a 12-point gap.

Sage made 10 changes, including the return of captain Dean Henderson in goal. The goalkeeper then produced a crucial injury-time save from Gonzalo García. Fulham have not beaten Palace at home since January 2005, a run that now stands at 10 matches. The home supporters booed their team at the final whistle.

For Álvaro Arbeloa, the defeat was a setback after several weeks of progress. Palace’s win contrasted with their 3-2 victory at this ground at the start of September, which was described as extremely fortunate. Sage had been forced to rotate heavily after a demanding week: Palace travelled to Istanbul for a Europa League draw with Beskitas before facing Newcastle three days later.

The next fixture could have more bearing on Sage’s future than this cup progression. Arsenal, who beat Palace in each of their two previous quarter-final appearances, have already been eliminated. Saturday’s game against Tottenham, however, will matter much more to whether Sage remains in the job when the competition resumes in mid-December. After the match, the manager applauded the Crystal Palace supporters.