Fulham vs Brentford. Premier League.
Craven CottageAttendance21,798.
Report and free match highlights as Aleksandar Mitrovic grabs 98th Fulham goal to earn 3-2 win over west London rivals Brentford; Christian Norgaard, Ivan Toney earlier complete two-goal comeback from Bobby Decordova-Reid and Joao Palhinha's first-half strikes
Sunday 21 August 2022 07:31, UK
Aleksandar Mitrovic went from zero to hero as he put a hatful of wasted chances behind him to secure Fulham a sensational late 3-2 win over Brentford at Craven Cottage.
Mitrovic had missed a number of gilt-edged opportunities in either half before he finally proved the match winner with a trademark back-post header to settle the first top-flight meeting between the two west London rivals, in a game even beaten manager Thomas Frank admitted was "fantastic to watch".
There were just 44 seconds on the clock when Bobby Decordova-Reid bundled home after full debutant Jay Stansfield had hit the bar, as the hosts made a dream start and threatened to blow Brentford away.
Joao Palhinha doubled the lead with a thumping header from Andreas Pereira's superb corner, before the Bees finally registered their first shot of the afternoon in the 27th minute.
Even as the Cottagers' dominance faded they still remained in full control until Christian Norgaard volleyed home Mathias Jensen's corner a minute before the break to stun Craven Cottage.
Ivan Toney thought he had brought Brentford level four minutes into the second period as Thomas Frank's team re-emerged as a different prospect. Although he was denied by a tight VAR offside call, he would get his goal from Yoane Wissa's square ball with 20 minutes to go.
There was still time for a rollercoaster of a game to take another turn, however - and the previously out-of-sorts Mitrovic would be the man to make it happen, burying his 98th goal in a Fulham shirt in the final minute for the winner.
"I asked our players to start the second half strongly, to not give them the belief, but they are strong, they started to play more direct, and they started to create some problems for us," a victorious Marco Silva told Sky Sports.
"We let the game to their way, direct balls, and they are stronger than us in those types of situations. But I have to congratulate our players, even after they equalised, our reaction was really good. We started to play again, and getting that winner was a very good feeling."
Looking to back up two creditable draws with Liverpool and Wolves with a first win of the campaign, Fulham gave themselves a dream start as Mitrovic's blocked shot fell for Stansfield, who struck the bar from close-range before Decordova-Reid stabbed home the opener with less than a minute on the clock.
The intensity of the home attack was too much for Brentford to bear, with Pereira pulling the strings in midfield and the hosts' front three constantly looking to exploit their high line. After surviving a number of near misses they fell two behind when Palhinha powered home a Pereira corner to put Fulham in full control.
A couple of stoppages around yellow cards for the hosts on the half-hour tempered their momentum slightly, but they had still been untroubled before Norgaard volleyed Jensen's corner at the near post out of nowhere a minute before the interval.
The hope Brentford took from their comeback goal stayed with them after the interval and Toney's great turn and finish four minutes after the break looked to have brought them level, before a VAR call ruled he was inches offside when he first received the ball.
Mitrovic should have restored Fulham's two-goal lead when played through inadvertently by a wayward Josh Dasilva backpass, but was denied by David Raya's superb reaction stop. His profligacy then looked like it may cost Fulham then when Toney did get his goal, tapping home from close range from Wissa's ball across the six-yard box to bring Brentford level.
The visitors looked the more likely to grab a late winner with their tails up from a second two-goal comeback in three games but were unable to turn their territory into more clear chances, and instead, Mitrovic wrestled back Fulham's lead in the final minute, rising above Bryan Mbeumo at the back post to head home Kevin Mbabu's cross.
That would prove the final act in a breathless derby in west London, and enough to earn Fulham the spoils and settle a historic afternoon at Craven Cottage.
Fulham head coach Marco Silva told Sky Sports:
"It's a great afternoon for us, I think everyone enjoyed it. We deserved the three points, overall we were the best team on the pitch, in the first half we controlled almost all of the game, but unfortunately for us they then scored just on half-time.
"I asked our players to start the second half strongly, to not give them the belief, but they are strong, they started to play more direct, and they started to create some problems for us. We let the game to their way, direct balls, and they are stronger than us in those types of situations.
"But I have to congratulate our players, even after they equalised, our reaction was really good. We started to play again, and getting that winner was a very good feeling.
"These types of things, you keep learning and growing as a team; we should have shown more maturity when they started playing this type of game, but it's all part of the process. We have shown the togetherness, everyone fighting for each other, and it's a great afternoon for our fans too."
Brentford head coach Thomas Frank told Sky Sports:
"What a game for the neutral, it must have been fantastic to watch.
"What we showed to come back in the game is extraordinary, fighting back and fully deserved to get back at 2-2. Then, of course, it's heartbreaking to see the last one going in, but it's quality from Fulham and Mitrovic knows what he's doing.
"Unfortunately, David [Raya] couldn't save the last one; he had three other chances where David did a top job. Apart from the last 20 minutes, perhaps the last 5-6 too, I was very pleased with the performance.
"This group of players' mentality is extraordinary, the determination to keep going, the cool heads to keep trying to do the right thing. I think it was a 2-2 game, but it happens when you go for the gold, sometimes you lose. But if we keep going with this mentality, hopefully we win the next one, and then it's three points rather than two which is better."
Sky Sports' Ron Walker at Craven Cottage:
"Marco Silva's sides have always had three things in common - playing the right way, prioritising attack over defence and struggling to defend set pieces. Saturday's victory was a microcosm of that style at Craven Cottage, and showcased how different this Premier League campaign is likely to go compared to their last under Scott Parker.
"Fulham got their fans off their seats from the first minute - for Bobby Decordova-Reid's goal, as well as anything else - with their front-foot football, full of intensity and tempo. In the end, they could not keep it up for 90 minutes but still with better finishing from Aleksandar Mitrovic would have sealed their first victory back in the top flight far earlier than the final minute.
"This was perhaps more of a litmus test than their opening two games, with Brentford the kind of side they will look to replicate this season, and both will be aiming for similar outcomes come the end of the campaign.
"On the basis of this, they look capable of passing that test. There's a long way to go this season, and even if Fulham do end up being relegated from the Premier League for the third season in a row, you can't imagine it will be anywhere near as drab as in 2021."
No one got into the final third more (eight times), or made more passes into it (12) than Pereira, who ran the show for Fulham for most of the 90 minutes at Craven Cottage.
His positioning, energy on the ball and passing all looked like that of a seasoned Premier League attacking midfielder and was not reserved for open play, with a pinpoint delivery from his corner finding the head of Palhinha for Fulham's second goal.
If the ex-Manchester United midfielder keeps up this sort of form for the rest of the season, then his £10m price tag will look like daylight robbery by the Cottagers.
Fulham travel to Crawley in the second round of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday; kick-off at 7.45pm. Also, Brentford travel to Colchester in the same competition; kick-off at 7.45pm.
