Nick Ames was at Craven Cottage tonight. His report is here for your enjoyment and edification. Thanks for reading this MBM, hope you’ll join us tomorrow for some hot FA Cup quarter-final action. Nighty night!
Fulham boss Scott Parker talks honestly to Sky. “I was disappointed tonight ... we didn’t deserve anything from the game ... the best team won, to be honest with you ... we huffed and puffed and were a little bit fortunate to go in 1-1 ... we missed a massive chances in the second half but the best team won ... you’re always in the game with Leeds, you always have a chance because of the way they play ... our desire and work ethic was there, but we fell short in certain moments ... the game became too erratic, they want it to be like that, they’re the best at it ... under stress, we didn’t make good decisions ... there are eight games left ... eight finals ... we have put ourselves in a great position ... this is a blip but we’ll regroup and come back fighting ... this is part and parcel of the Premier League.”
Patrick Bamford talks to Sky. “The lads deserve a lot of credit, because they had to do a lot of my running tonight. I was struggling.” At which point the Sky feed goes down. But that’s something, right?
Twenty-seven costly seconds of second-half action have seriously compromised Fulham’s attempt to avoid the drop. Ademola Lookman fluffed a glorious opportunity to put the hosts ahead from six yards. Leeds went straight up the other end, Patrick Bamford setting up Raphinha for the winner. It was a good evening for Bamford, who also scored Leeds’ opener. Apart from a brief period before half-time, Fulham were second best all night. They remain in 18th on 26 points, having played two games more than 17th-placed Newcastle. Leeds are a comfortable mid-table presence with 39 points.
FULL TIME: Fulham 1-2 Leeds United
A deserved victory for Leeds. Fulham remain in the relegation zone, their opportunity to leapfrog Newcastle United squandered.
90 min +4: Mitrovic and Lookman attempt a combination down the middle, but the latter is flagged offside. Fulham’s jig looks up.
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90 min +3: Leeds replace Roberts with Koch. Then Phillips is booked for delaying the restart.
90 min +2: Loftus-Cheek is booked for a poor challenge from behind on Raphinha.
90 min +1: Loftus-Cheek wins a corner out on the left. Anguissa flicks Lookman’s corner on. At the far post, Struijk knocks the ball back into the danger zone, where bedlam briefly flares. Ayling manages to hack away and the ball deflects out for a goal kick.
90 min: Fulham will have five extra minutes in which to find an equaliser and secure a precious point.
89 min: Lookman sends a free kick long towards Mitrovic, who gets half a head on the ball, but only sends it sailing harmlessly towards Meslier.
87 min: Anguissa bundles Alioski to the floor, just to the left of the Fulham box. A free kick. Raphinha loops it towards Llorente at the far post. Fulham half clear, but Alioski has the chance to volley goalwards from a tight-ish position on the left. His low screamer is well saved by Areola. Corner, from which nothing develops.
85 min: On the touchline, Scott Parker, pensive going on morose, looks resigned to his fate.
84 min: Klich sends an effort towards the top left from distance. Just over. Fulham are still in this, but only just.
83 min: Another corner for Leeds, this time out on the left. Raphinha takes. Ayling, at the near post, flashes a header across the face of goal; Harrison, at the far stick, can’t turn it into an unguarded net. Leeds are getting closer and closer.
81 min: Dallas charges down the right and sends a low diagonal shot across goal and inches wide of the left-hand post. Fulham are suddenly living a little dangerously, with Leeds looking dangerous again on the break.
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80 min: ... Alioski tries to meet the corner on the volley, but no Paul Scholes he. That one’s away to Putney.
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79 min: One corner leads to another, and then Meslier confidently claims Lookman’s delivery at his near post. Leeds go straight up the other end and win a corner of their own, Klich off Robinson down the right. And from that ...
78 min: Ayling misjudges an aimless long ball and chests it out for a needless corner. Can the hosts make anything out of the gift?
77 min: Bamford can’t continue. The sweat continues to pour off him, and he’s not moving totally freely either. He trudges off, to be replaced by Klich.
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75 min: Quite a lot of players out there look knackered. Sweat is dripping off Bamford, while an out-of-sorts Ayling has resorted to energy gels. No wonder, this game has been played in the red zone since the get-go.
73 min: In between those two chances, Fulham replaced Aina with Tete.
72 min: Raphinha flashes a shot across the Fulham goal from the left. Up the other end, Lookman again fails to connect properly when close to goal, although this chance is much less gilt-edged. He spins and aims for the bottom right. The pea roller ends up in MEslier’s arms.
71 min: Cavaleiro wins a corner down the right. Lookman takes. The ball’s flicked on at the near post. It flies behind Mitrovic, who in desperation tries a scorpion kick, but connects only with fresh air.
69 min: ... so much so that he’s sent scampering free down the left by Roberts. Raphinha jinks into the box, along the byline, sends Aina off to the shops, nearly rounds Areola, but can’t quite complete the task of walking the ball into the net. He changes tack, flicking backwards to ... nobody. Fulham clear.
68 min: Raphinha is back up and about.
67 min: Play is stopped with Raphinha down injured. He’s hollering quite a lot, Aina having stood - accidentally, rather than maliciously - on top of his foot. On come the medicine men.
65 min: Some uncharacteristic behaviour from Leeds, who slow the game down deliberately. Fulham are getting a little agitated by the time they’re taking over free kicks and throws.
63 min: Fulham make their second change, replacing Reed with the more forward-thinking Loftus-Cheek.
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62 min: No penalty, and the resulting corner isn’t much cop.
61 min: Reed is brought down on the right-hand touchline. The free kick is curled into the mixer. The ball balloons up off Bamford’s boot, then up onto his arm, and out for a corner. Fulham want a penalty, so there’ll be a VAR check.
60 min: That’s a lovely finish by Raphinha, who was working in limited space at full tilt. Can Fulham respond again?
GOAL! Fulham 1-2 Leeds United (Raphinha 58)
Lookman should have put Fulham ahead. Now, 27 seconds later, they’re behind. The ball is lost in the centre circle, and Bamford barges forward with purpose. He shuttles the ball ahead to Raphinha, who breaks into the box down the inside-right, performs a quick soft-shoe shuffle, and pokes the ball into the bottom right!
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57 min: A free kick for Fulham out on the left. Reed hoicks a long diagonal towards Mitrovic. Leeds half clear. Lemina comes again down the right and crosses low. Lookman, six yards out, attempts a clever backflick. The ball sails harmlessly wide left.
55 min: The fourth Leeds corner ends the sequence.
54 min: Fulham half clear the corner, but then Harrison drives down the right and nips between Aina and Anguissa, into the box. Not sure how he got through that space, but he managed it. He shoots low and hard towards the bottom right from a tight angle. Areola parries out for another corner.
53 min: Like London buses, it’s another Leeds corner. The ball ends up at the feet of Alioski, 20 yards out. His shot is deflected wide left for Leeds corner number three.
52 min: Alioski rolls a ball down the left for Raphinha, who earns Leeds their first conrer of the game. Raphinha takes it himself. Fulham deal with it easily enough.
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51 min: Lemina is booked for climbing all over Dallas’s back. He kicks the ball away in frustration, which is never a good idea, but the referee doesn’t respond to that.
49 min: Robinson chases a ball down the left at full pace. He’s shoulder-barged - legally, from the side - out of play by Phillips. But the Fulham full-back crashes into the advertising hoardings, and he requires a minute or so to regain his composure. Happily, he’s up and about again quickly enough.
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47 min: ... Alioski sticks out a leg to divert Reed’s low right-wing cross out of play. The ball nearly finds the top-right corner of his own goal. Just wide. Nothing comes of the next corner.
46 min: Mitrovic is immediately in the thick of it, part of a move that wins a corner down the right. From that ...
Leeds - who are currently on a run of 15 matches without a win in London - get the second half underway. Chances are they’ll not be particularly pleased to see the arrival of Aleksandar Mitrovic, on for Maja; he’s scored four in his last four appearances against them.
Half-time entertainment. It’s been a good week for Arsenal, as David Hytner explains.
HALF TIME: Fulham 1-1 Leeds United
A half of two halves comes to an end. Leeds were utterly dominant for a while, until Fulham woke up and started causing all sorts of mayhem themselves. Great high-velocity entertainment. More, please!
45 min +3: Raphinha curls a preposterously good free kick along the corridor of uncertainty. Ayling and Bamford somehow both miss an opportunity to trundle it in at the far stick, but the flag goes up for offside, so it doesn’t really matter. What a ball, though! Raphinha’s set-piece skills are sensational.
45 min +2: Roberts is bowled over by Anguissa, just to the left of the Fulham box. A free kick in a dangerous position. Raphinha to take.
45 min: There will be four additional minutes to the first half.
44 min: Cavaleiro shakes and shimmies to make a little space, 25 yards out, then threads a shot towards the bottom left. Meslier reacts well to smother.
43 min: The first lull of the evening. Everyone deserves their breather. It’s been a wonderful half of free-flowing football.
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41 min: One corner leads to another. Lookman’s delivery causes momentary bedlam in the Leeds six-yard box. The ball’s eventually hacked clear, but Leeds can’t continue defending like this. Fulham know what works now.
39 min: Leeds are suddenly all over the shop. Struijk’s poor back header nearly allows Maja to pick up possession and round Meslier. Leeds half clear. The ball’s worked back to Anguissa, who lashes a drive towards the bottom left. Meslier does exceptionally well to parry, Llorente bashing the rebound out for an emergency corner.
GOAL! Fulham 1-1 Leeds United (Andersen 38)
Lookman sends the corner into the six-yard box. Andersen sticks a leg around Ayling and forcefully guides the ball into the net. Easy as that. Leeds have now conceded 15 goals while defending set pieces this season, four more than anybody else, and it’s easy to see why.
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37 min: Lookman’s persistence down the left forces Alioski into conceding a corner. That leads to another, out on the right. Lookman to take ...
35 min: A worrying stat for Fulham has just been flashed up by Sky: they’ve conceded first 13 times this season, going on to draw one and lose 12.
34 min: Ayling loops in from the right. His cross nearly finds Roberts, just inside the box, but Anderson reads the danger well and heads clear.
32 min: Lookman slips a clever ball down the inside-left channel, into the path of Robinson, who is travelling at the speed of sound. But he can’t quite sort his feet out, miskicking terribly. Goal kick, though along with the Maja shot that was brilliantly parried by Meslier, Fulham are starting to make things happen upfield at last.
31 min: Bamford, overly excited, picks up a booking for a rash late challenge on Cavaleiro.
GOAL! Fulham 0-1 Leeds United (Bamford 29)
Bamford, fully healed, opens the scoring! A Leeds throw out on the left, deep in Fulham territory. It’s flung to Harrison, who reaches the byline and cuts back. Bamford, racing ahead of Tosin, slams into the bottom left from six yards. No more than Leeds deserve.
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28 min: Ayling makes good ground down the right and curls a low cross into the Fulham mixer. Bamford is sniffing around, but Tosin reads the danger and clears.
26 min: Lookman whips the free kick to the near post, where Raphinha turns the ball out for a corner. From the set piece, a ludicrous pinball game breaks out. Meslier punches clear but Fulham quickly instigate some more bagatelle. The ball breaks to Maja, ten yards out. He spins and lashes what looks like an unstoppable shot towards the top right. Meslier sticks out a strong arm and makes an exceptional reaction save. Leeds eventually clear, but what a manic moment!
25 min: Alioski clumsily fouls Cavaleiro out on the Fulham right. There was no need to make the challenge, and now the hosts have a chance to load the box. Lookman will take the free kick.
23 min: Bamford looks a little more mobile now, having been limping quite badly before. So he keeps going. Reed eventually gets up, and quickly gets his revenge on Roberts with a sly clip. This could be a battle to keep one eye on.
21 min: Bamford took a whack from Lemina while the Fulham player was executing his miscued clearance on 19 mins. For a second it looks as though he’s not going to be able to continue, but Roberts has winded Reed, so he’s got time to see if he can run it off.
20 min: Phillips threads a pass down the inside-right channel to release Raphinha, who throws a couple of dummies before slotting the ball across Areloa and into the bottom left. But the flag goes up for offside. This one was a much more obvious decision, no need for VAR to get involved here.
19 min: Another Leeds free kick is swung into the box from the right. Lemina miscues his attempted clearance, but the ball squirts into the arms of Areola.
18 min: Maja busies himself on the edge of the Leeds D, but can’t quite get a bouncing ball to sit right for him. Leeds clear. The first 12 seconds apart, Fulham have offered nothing in attack.
16 min: A free kick for Leeds, 25 yards out. Raphinha blooters it straight into the wall.
14 min: Ayling’s celebration was lovely, too. Wearing the widest smile, genuinely thrilled, he undid his top-knot, releasing his 80s metal hair and strumming an invisible guitar. A sad segue from major to minor.
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12 min: Leeds haven’t let that setback deter them. They’re still barrelling around at 101mph, dictating the pace of this match.
NO GOAL! Fulham 0-0 Leeds United
10 min: Poor old Luke Ayling. He celebrated his first-ever Premier League goal in style ... only for VAR to stick its neb in, and judge Roberts to be an armpit hair offside earlier in the move. Such a shame, because that was a clever and perfectly executed finish. A brilliant header that deserved a better fate. But this is the game we have now.
GOAL! Fulham 0-1 Leeds United (Ayling 8)
Harrison slips a ball down the left for Roberts, who twists and turns and crosses long. Ayling, racing in from the right, steers a sensational looping header over Areola and into the top left. What a finish!
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7 min: Ayling whips in a cross from the right. Bamford is lurking, but the ball is a yard or so too far in front of him. Aina does extremely well to clear. But ...
6 min: Tosin hoicks long towards Meslier, the ball dropping towards the six-yard box, on target. Meslier has plenty of time to think about the catch, so high has Tosin blootered the ball into the sky. The keeper does extremely well to gather.
5 min: Leeds, attacking the Hammersmith End in this first half, look in the mood. They’re pinging the ball around with their usual intensity. Struijk nearly releases Raphinha down the right with a glorious diagonal pass, but Robinson reads the danger well.
3 min: No goals yet, but somewhere in the multiverse, it’s already 1-1.
2 min: Leeds go up the other end, Bamford barging down the inside-right channel, holding off Andersen, and backflicking in the hope of finding Phillips. Tosin does well to lash clear, just in time.
1 min: Happily for Leeds, nothing comes of it.
12 secs: Fulham launch long. Alioski heads the ball off a confused Struijk’s back, allowing Cavaleiro to pick up the loose ball and earn a corner. What a farce!
Fulham get the ball rolling ... but only after everyone takes the knee. There’s no room for racism. Kick it out.
The teams are out! Fulham are in their famous white, forcing Leeds into third-choice burgundy. A symmetrical switcheroo from the corresponding fixture at Elland Road, where the Cottagers sported third-choice red. It’s a clear and crisp night in west London, though the grass has been given a good old drink, courtesy of the sprayers. We’ll be off in a minute or two!
Pre-match postbag o’pessimism.
“It’s heart in mouth time; if we lose tonight and Newcastle get a result against Brighton I reckon that’s it. Mind you, it seemed like that was it after about three games - now it’s the hope that kills you” - Richard Hirst.
“The lack of goals in last week’s draw against Chelsea left me questioning the meaning of life. Then a Mourinho team conceded three goals in Europe last night. Is modern football just chaos theory now? Hopefully all existential crises will be headed off by tonight’s rip-roaring goalfest, right?” - Justin Kavanagh.
A very brief chat with Marcelo Bielsa, who is asked about Patrick Bamford’s failure to break into the England squad. “He would have been saddened by the decision but he has a series of games coming when he can accumulate merits.”
Scott Parker talks to Sky Sports. “The main focus is us, what we need to do to win against a good side ... but we are getting to the point of the season where psychologically there’s a lot on for us ... getting out of the bottom three would be massive for us ... we need goals and people in the team who can find a yard, and Josh Maja has got that ... he’s the one tonight that will hopefully win us the game.”
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Fulham make two changes to the team named for the 3-0 home defeat to Manchester City last weekend. Antonee Robinson and Josh Maja replace Kenny Tete and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, both of whom drop to the bench.
Leeds meanwhile are unchanged from their goalless draw with Chelsea at Elland Road. Patrick Bamford has shrugged off the hip problem that curtailed his gametime last Saturday.
The teams
Fulham: Areola, Aina, Andersen, Adarabioyo, Robinson, Zambo, Reed, Lemina, Ivan Cavaleiro, Maja, Lookman.
Subs: Tete, Hector, Odoi, Mitrovic, Ream, Loftus-Cheek, Bryan, Kongolo, Ramirez.
Leeds United: Meslier, Ayling, Llorente, Struijk, Alioski, Phillips, Raphinha, Dallas, Roberts, Harrison, Bamford.
Subs: Koch, Poveda-Ocampo, Casilla, Helder Costa, Berardi, Gelhardt, Klich, Shackleton, Jenkins.
Referee: David Coote (Nottinghamshire).
Preamble
Fulham and Leeds are the two most unpredictable teams in the Premier League. On the one hand, the Cottagers have lost two of their last three; on the other, they’ve recently won comfortably at both Liverpool and Everton. They’ve lost nine Premier League home games already, but they’ve kept six clean sheets in their last 11. They’re in the relegation places, but haven’t looked like a relegation-bound team for a while now. They’re hard to put your finger on.
Leeds, meanwhile, are Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds. We’ll not insult your intelligence by belabouring the point.
The corresponding fixture at Elland Road was a mini-classic, Leeds storming into a 4-1 lead, Fulham coming close to pulling back level. That one ended 4-3, so Leeds can complete a first league double over Fulham tonight since 1985. For their part, Fulham will be looking for a win that would take them out of the bottom three, sending Newcastle into the mire instead. It could go either way, there’s little point trying to predict this one. Kick off is at 8pm GMT. It’s on!
