Fulham 3-2 QPR: Berba makes the R's pay for costly errors
Dimitar Berbatov of Fulham scores from the penalty spot during the Barclays Premier League match between Fulham and Queens Park Rangers at Craven Cottage on April 1, 2013 in London, England. (Getty Images)
I could use the old overused cliche, “a tale of two halves”, but that would be an understatement for the way this match went. QPR made Fulham look like a Champions League side in the first 35 minutes. The attack was organized, pacey and overall exciting as Fulham peppered Julio Cesar and forced their London rivals to make mistake after mistake at the back. The pressure was too much for QPR and it showed.
But mistakes struck Fulham again and a goal before halftime by Adel Taarabt made it a bit more interesting. Just before that goal, Ashkan Dejagah picked up an injury on a foul on the touchline, and was substituted off just before the half for Urby Emmanuelson. A small moment at the time, but looking back, that was the turning point of the match. After Dejagah’s injury, it was all QPR the rest of the game, and Emmanuelson was an absolute travesty on the pitch.
The roles completely reversed in the second half, and if not for Mark Schwarzer’s penalty save and another wonder save about 10 minutes later, this game would have ended with a completely different scoreline.
The good:
Dimitar Berbatov – Dimi’s touches were spectacular as always, but the most impressive thing to me about the Bulgarian was his consistency. Sometimes only showing up for one half at a time, Berbatov was one of the few bright spots for Fulham in the second half, albeit he didn’t have many chances to show it thanks to the failure by most members of the team.
Attack organization in the first half – It’s hard to pinpoint one player, but the overall structure of the attack in the first half was beautiful to watch. Passes were sent with purpose, and every move was made with an end result in mind, something that I haven’t always seen from Fulham this year.
Emanuel Frimpong – More about this in a bit, but Frimpong certainly took advantage of his chance and has carved out a bit of a niche in this Fulham squad doing just what he was known for – being a physical presence in the midfield for special times when no-nonsense defense is required in the middle.
The bad:
Giorgos Karagounis – The Greek gave away a very silly foul in the corner of the penalty area, showing Kara had a bit of a lapse in pitch awareness, and gifted some passes back to QPR late in the second half when Fulham were trying to fend off the attack with possession. He didn’t do a whole lot in the first half either, meaning his day was mostly a negative. He was definitely fouled late in the game in the Rangers penalty area though, and Lee Probert decided not to give it.
Lee Probert – I defended the referee on the Clint Hill yellow card. I believe, while a vicious challenge that had legitimate shouts for a straight red, that yellow was ultimately the right decision on the challenge. That being said, if Hill’s was a yellow, then Probert’s decision to send off Steve Sidwell for a spikes-down challenge that got the ball was a horrific decision, that thankfully didn’t have an impact on the scoreline, although it could have future impact on the lineup card for Fulham in the immediate future. And Probert’s decision to not give Fulham a penalty for the foul on Karagounis at the end of the match was a bad, bad miss as well. Probert has given both of Fulham’s red cards this year, and while Hangeland’s was spikes up and was a little more legitimate, this one is never a red.
Urby Emmanuelson – Urby came to Fulham seeking more playing time than he’d been getting at AC Milan, with the idea that he’d return and be better for it. Well, he hasn’t gotten the time, and you can only imagine he’d be getting frustrated. He hasn’t said anything about it, which you have to give him credit for. But football is a cutthroat business, and when you’re a player trying to make an impression, you have to take advantage of any precious minutes you receive. Urby failed miserably to do that, and was substituted back off when Sidwell received his yellow card. He gave away possession, he failed to clear during dangerous moments, and he missed challenges when securing the midfield was needed. You really hate to judge a player based on a few minutes of a substitute appearance, but when guys like Frimpong take advantage of precious minutes given to them and when a guy like Urby doesn’t, it’s hard to see him getting many more opportunities.
Loic Remy shoots and misses from the penalty spot during the Barclays Premier League match between Fulham and Queens Park Rangers at Craven Cottage on April 1, 2013 in London, England. (Getty Images)
Man of the Match:
Mark Schwarzer, again. His penalty save, plus the crazy stretch he made about 10 minutes later, sealed the match in retrospect. It’s obvious Mark does his homework, and he knew Remy was going to the Aussie’s left even before the ball was struck. Then he went full stretch and full dive to deny his old teammate Bobby Zamora of what would have been a well-storied equalizer. Schwarzer has saved 5 points this season with just penalty saves – Arsenal saved a point on the draw, and both Stoke and QPR secured 2 points for sure and maybe even 3 both times. He’s absolutely deserved another year, despite showing his age at times earlier on in the season.
Where from here?
A tough but important 3 points now sees Fulham just one point behind Swansea in 9th with a game in hand. How about that? Not long ago at all it was a 9-point gap. However, West Ham are just 3 points behind, and also are only on 30 matches completed instead of 31, like the Whites. Now Fulham have 5 more fixtures in the month of April. Despite having the next two away, Aston Villa and Newcastle are both chances to pick up 3 points, if not at least 1. Then it’ll be a dogfight at the Cottage against Chelsea and Arsenal, both teams with momentum. It’s not going to be an easy finish, but with the win today, Fulham are safe from the drop (even though Martin keeps insisting they’re not), and can worry about their finishing position.