Fulham vs Rotherham United. The FA Cup Third Round.
Craven CottageAttendance15,083.
Report as De Cordova-Reid finds the top corner from outside the box to send Fulham through; Championship side Rotherham had goal ruled out for offside but Premier League hosts were on top for much of the contest; fourth-round draw on Monday from 7.50pm
Saturday 6 January 2024 07:08, UK
Marco Silva lauded “top professional” Bobby De Cordova-Reid and said he deserves his recent success after he scored the only goal during Fulham’s 1-0 win over Rotherham in the FA Cup third round.
The Jamaica international capitalised on a mistake and scored his second in as many games after Sunday's winner during Fulham's 2-1 victory over Arsenal in the Premier League.
Victory for Marco Silva's team has kept them in both cup competitions ahead of Fulham's Carabao Cup semi-final clash against Liverpool later this month.
And Silva, who previously hailed De Cordova-Reid's leadership, believes his goal will lift his confidence after he netted his fifth of the season.
Silva said: "He deserves it because he's a top professional, he's a vocal guy and one of the great examples we have at the club in terms of focus, able to play in any position and he's always there.
"He deserves all the credit and he deserves these good moments and good weeks.
"It's important for us and him because he needs these type of moments to lift his confidence and he needs the confidence to keep going in the direction we want him to be.
"Bobby has the capacity to score and tonight it was a great strike from him."
A cagey first few minutes in west London saw Andreas Pereira showcase his quick feet before his driven shot cannoned off a defender. Fulham appealed for a handball but referee Simon Hooper waved them away and a corner was given.
Rotherham had little to show for their efforts, and their low defensive line invited pressure in the 20th minute.
Fulham's De Cordova-Reid threatened with a cross and the Cottagers' Championship opponents were fortunate to not go a goal down from the following corner when Rodrigo Muniz's effort was blocked.
De Cordova-Reid opened the scoring in spectacular fashion after 24 minutes.
Rotherham's attempt to play the ball out from the back ran into trouble when Harry Wilson's press forced a turnover and De Cordova-Reid's long-range effort flew past Viktor Johansson into the top-left corner.
A lethargic Rotherham rarely ventured into Fulham's territory but Jordan Hugill's offside goal from a Tom Eaves cross added to their frustrations.
Fulham nearly doubled their lead in the 42nd minute but Pereira was denied by a post.
Right-back Kenny Tete marauded forward and delivered a dangerous cross to the unmarked Pereira, who struck the ball into the ground before it cannoned off the woodwork and into the path of Harrison Reed, whose close-range shot was deflected behind for a corner.
Fulham continued to be lively after the break. The dangerous Tete surged forward and his drilled cross caused Rotherham 'keeper Johansson to fumble the ball. The Sweden international's blushes were saved when he made a stop from six yards out.
The hosts slowed the game down and dominated the ball but the game burst into life through Issa Diop after 76 minutes.
The centre-back picked up the ball and cut through Rotherham's midfield before a neat combination with Timothy Castagne saw the towering defender's first-time strike narrowly miss the target.
Fulham countered from a corner during five added minutes but Carlos Vinicius' shot was saved after Willian squared it to him.
Fulham boss Marco Silva: "Job done, which was the most important thing for us really. Professional performance, we clearly deserved to go through in the competition.
"It was our obligation to control the game the way we did, to not give almost anything for them. I don't remember one save from Marek, no shots on target from them.
"When you make eight changes from one XI to the other, of course it always has an impact from a performance point of view.
"We always had the possession, I think until the first goal probably more than 80 per cent of possession, [but] not many chances to be honest. But we scored, we created three or four chances to score more goals, and [gave] nothing for them."
Rotherham boss Leam Richardson: "You are always disappointed when you lose. Congratulations to Fulham. We wish them well in the next round. For large parts we contained them. We did the best we could. You could see from the substitutes they brought on, the quality that they have.
"In the second half, we were better and we got up the pitch a little bit. We have then got to have those moments of quality in the final third. We have got to better with the ball at times. We wanted to create a better quality of chance and take the game further up the pitch but that will come with more time on the training ground to work with each other."
Fulham's next game is on Wednesday when they travel to Liverpool for the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final, live on Sky Sports; kick-off 8pm. Marco Silva's side then go to Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday January 13; kick-off 12.30pm.
Rotherham's next outing is at home to Stoke in the Championship on Saturday January 13; kick-off 3pm. The Millers then play away to Middlesbrough on Saturday January 20; kick-off 3pm.
