Osman double sinks Fulham

Leon Osman scored twice as Everton finished their season in style against Fulham.

Everton secure fifth-place finish

A Leon Osman brace ensured that Everton clinched fifth place in the Premier League with victory over Fulham. Former Fulham player Louis Saha almost scored in the opening minutes of the game when he headed a cross against the bar. Osman then gave the visitors the lead on the stroke of half-time when he latched onto Steven Pienaar's delicate through ball before rounding Mark Schwarzer and finishing calmly. Fulham pressed forward in the second-half but were unable equalise, Bobby Zamora squandering their best opportunity. Osman put the game beyond doubt in the closing minutes with a fantastic strike from the edge of the area. Despite the defeat, Fulham successfully qualified for the new-look Europa League as Tottenham were defeated by Liverpool.

Early chance

Home manager Roy Hodgson was given a standing ovation before the kick-off, but his side failed to rise to the occasion and struggled to create any chances against the FA Cup finalists. Indeed Fulham had a lucky escape as early as the third minute when a cross from Osman was headed against the cross bar by Saha. Three minutes later Schwarzer was forced to dive low to his right to keep out a 20-yard shot from Jack Rodwell. Fulham's first real opportunity arrived in the 10th minute when a low cross from Erik Nevland just eluded Zoltan Gera at the far post. Five minutes later a lovely curling cross from Paul Konchesky was met at the far post by an unmarked Gera but his header was poorly directed and well saved by Howard. Everton hit back with Tim Cahill testing Schwarzer from 20 yards but the Fulham goalkeeper dealt with the threat by diving low to his left. Fulham began to look more dangerous and Gera sent a thunderous effort just over the bar from 25 yards. But the Toffees eventually took control of the game and Pienaar forced Schwarzer into a save when he let fly with a 25-yard shot with 30 minutes gone.

Deadlock

Saha almost broke the deadlock in the 37th minute when his 18-yard shot looked destined for the corner of the net but for Schwarzer who dived to his left to tip the ball around the post. Fulham proved they were still a threat on the break when Gera found Diomansy Kamara at the far post, who should have done a lot better but screwed his shot wide from an acute angle. Everton took the lead in the 45th minute when Pienaar's ball enabled Osman to beat the offside trap, round Schwarzer and place the ball into the empty net. After the break, Schwarzer had to be at his best again to keep out a firm header from Saha. Saha forced the Fulham keeper to turn his effort round the post after Osman's cross had found him unmarked in the penalty area.

Mix-up

Fulham defender Brede Hangeland and keeper Schwarzer were guilty of a lack of communication in the 64th minute but luckily for the home side, Everton were not quick enough to take advantage of the mix-up. John Pantsil ran 40 yards before shooting wide of the target as Fulham continued to search for an equaliser. The hosts replaced Nevland with Bobby Zamora in the 68th minute but it was Everton who continued to look the stronger of the two sides. Schwarzer had to be alert to cut out a cross from Osman as Cahill lurked on the edge of the six-yard box. Fulham squandered a great chance to equalise in the 84th minute when Zamora got clear of the Everton defence but his shot was superbly saved by Howard. Osman made sure of a fifth-place finish for the visitors when he cut inside and curled a 20-yard shot beyond Schwarzer in the 87th minute.

Fulham	Team Statistics	Everton
0	Goals	2
0	1st Half Goals	1
4	Shots on Target	10
8	Shots off Target	4
4	Blocked Shots	3
2	Corners	2
16	Fouls	12
2	Offsides	5
0	Yellow Cards	0
0	Red Cards	0
74.5	Passing Success	75.3
17	Tackles	16
64.7	Tackles Success	87.5
51.4	Possession	48.6
44.8	Territorial Advantage	55.2