Sub Nevland sparks Fulham win

Fulham take a giant step towards European football with a 1-0 win at home to Stoke.

Fulham move up to 7th, Stoke still not guaranteed safety.

Fulham took another giant step towards playing European football next season with a 1-0 win at home to Stoke. Substitute Erik Nevland scored the only goal of the game after 29 minutes to lift the Cottagers up to seventh place in the Premier League, ahead of London rivals West Ham who lost to Chelsea. Stoke, meanwhile remain on 39 points and in 12th place, although Portsmouth can leapfrog them if they win their game in hand against Newcastle on Monday. Fulham's goal came from a Rory Delap throw-in, deep inside the Fulham half. Nevland broke through the centre of midfield and rode Glenn Whelan's sliding tackle. He played the ball wide to Andy Johnson who took a touch to control it before sliding it across the six-yard box where Nevland was on hand to tap it in. Stoke had few chances to get on level terms, the best opportunity falling to Liam Lawrence who sent a fierce drive wide of Mark Schwarzer's right-hand post. Fulham were the better side in a dour contest that lacked urgency and quality for much of the 90 minutes. Stoke, with their Premier League future almost assured for another season, only began to play with any confidence and potency in the second period. The first half was a largely forgettable affair, brightened only by Nevland's strike. Stoke initially had the lion's share of possession but they did little with it. Long-throw expert Delap should have done better when he sent an angled drive high over the crossbar in the 10th minute. The reverse fixture earlier this season failed to produce a goal and there was precious little to enthuse in terms of clear-cut chances in the first 15 minutes. In the 17th minute, the hosts had a lucky escape when goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer made a hash of collecting a corner by Lawrence. Fortunately for the home side, Ricardo Fuller was unable to seize the chance to put away the loose ball. Fulham were forced to make a change in the 20th minute when striker Bobby Zamora went off injured to make way for Nevland.

Scrappy

There was little cohesion about Fulham's play and that was further underlined by a wayward pass from Danny Murphy that wasted a chance to put Clint Dempsey free on the left-flank. Their best effort was a 20-yard drive from Dempsey that flew wide of the upright in the 24th minute. But, in the only memorable event of the first period, Fulham broke the deadlock in the 29th minute with a goal of elegant simplicity. Nevland raced clear of Whelan on the half-way line before passing the ball to Johnson on the right flank. The England international delivered a low cross back into the penalty area where Nevland supplied the finish. The goal pushed Fulham ahead of West Ham in the race to qualify for the UEFA Europa League next season, but four minutes later there was more concern for Fulham when Johnson required lengthy treatment to a leg injury. It was Fulham's second enforced change to their attack and while they struggled to re-adapt, Lawrence sent a 25-yard angled drive just beyond Schwarzer's right-hand upright.

Missed chances

Fulham should have made it two in the 39th minute when Murphy and Paul Konchesky engineered an opening with a well-worked free-kick. But Dickson Etuhu somehow put Konchesky's cross over the bar from point-blank range. Two minutes before the break Dempsey and Konchesky combined superbly down the left but the latter's cross was headed over at the near post by Nevland. Fulham continued their dominance after the restart and a cross from Murphy was perfectly plucked from the air by Sorensen with Kamara lurking close by. Kamara was looking increasingly dangerous and he deserved better after a mazy run into the penalty area was thwarted by one defender too many. But Stoke managed to resist the pressure and enjoy a mini resurgence that saw a Lawrence effort well held by Schwarzer in the 60th minute.

Searching

Some sloppy defending by Etuhu gave Stoke a corner in the 62nd minute but Dempsey leapt high to clear the danger. The visitors had more urgency than the home side as they searched for an equaliser but they lacked the cutting edge to make the most of their possession. The home side had resorted to hitting long balls in the direction of Nevland and Diomansy Kamara and there was growing frustration among the Craven Cottage faithful. Ryan Shawcross almost levelled for Stoke when he rose to meet a corner from Lawrence but saw his effort bounce over the crossbar in the 68th minute. Ricardo Fuller then squandered another chance by blasting his angled drive high over the crossbar. The Stoke striker should have done better with a close-range header in the 83rd minute but he could only direct it wide of the target. Stoke continued to push for an equaliser but they ran out of ideas and time as Fulham held on to move into seventh place.

Fulham	Team Statistics	Stoke City
1	Goals	0
1	1st Half Goals	0
2	Shots on Target	0
5	Shots off Target	8
5	Blocked Shots	4
5	Corners	7
9	Fouls	14
1	Offsides	1
1	Yellow Cards	2
0	Red Cards	0
78.4	Passing Success	63.9
12	Tackles	19
83.3	Tackles Success	73.7
67.8	Possession	32.2
50.2	Territorial Advantage	49.8