Marco Silva’s side defeated Burnley 3-2 at Turf Moor, with Harry Wilson involved in all of Fulham’s goals, extending their losing streak to seven games.
The defeat marks an undesirable record for Scott Parker, who currently leads the Burnley team. He has now helped his Burnley team lose six or more games in a row, a record the club hasn’t lost since 1895. It was also Fulham’s first win at Burnley in 74 years.
Burnley will be responsible for their own and perhaps Wilson’s continued struggles. The Wales international set up Fulham’s opening goal in the ninth minute. From a corner he expertly slotted the ball into the near post, where free Emile Smith-Rowe slotted it into the net.
Parker’s side then responded well and quickly came close to leveling the score, but Leslie Ugochukwu’s shot was denied by Bernd Leno, who reacted quickly. However, Ugochukwu soon found the leveler ghosting home between returning Anthony Robinson and Calvin Bassey.
Turf Moor started to move in their own half, but Burnley again switched off from a set piece, allowing Wilson to pull the strings again.
After clearing the first ball, Robinson found a free Wilson and played a lofted pass into the area. The forward then put it on the plate and Bassey beat his marker and went home.
Although Burnley started the second half well, they were no match for Fulham on the counter. From Smith-Rowe to Samuel Chukwueze, Fulham pushed forward, the Nigeria international teeing up Wilson and controlling him before Karl slotted past Martin Dubravka.
Wilson, who had two assists and one goal, has seven goals and four assists in his last eight games for club and country.
Burnley threatened a late comeback with a nail-biting goal from Oliver Sonne in the dying minutes, but Fulham held on and grabbed the vital three points, lifting them out of the relegation zone and into 13th place. They sit above Bournemouth and Brentford, who are yet to play this weekend.
Burnley, who are currently 10 points behind Fulham, are at risk of moving to six points behind 18th-placed West Ham, who play Aston Villa on Sunday, Sky Sports reports.
Wilson will develop into Fulham’s talisman at the right time
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Harry Wilson extends Fulham’s lead
Marco Silva will be available for three of Fulham’s starting 11 at Burnley until at least a week after the new year.
Samuel Chukwueze, who provided an assist for Turf Moor, Calvin Bassey, who scored on the night, and Alex Iwobi will travel for Nigeria.
It’s a big blow for Silva, but Harry Wilson has emerged as Fulham’s talisman, ready and keen to shoulder the burden of goals and assists for the Cottage.
“Everything he touches turns to gold,” Sky Sports’ Jamie Redknapp said after his masterclass at Turf Moor.
Wilson is playing his best football. The 28-year-old has contributed eight goals in 15 Premier League games this season, already well below his seven goals overall last season.
Fulham are preparing for a test during the festival period, which will be even tougher without three key players. However, if Wilson performs to his potential, he will remain highly reliable at Craven Cottage.
Wilson: I’m feeling good so far.
Fulham goalscorer Harry Wilson told Sky Sports:
“It’s a big win for us. We were disappointed in the last two games. We played really well for that long period of time, so it hurt to end up with no points.”
“We knew how big a deal it was to come here tonight and get the win.”
Regarding his condition, he said, “I’m feeling really good. I’ve been feeling good throughout the season and played a lot of minutes, so I feel fit.”
“As an attacking player, it’s nice to have good numbers, and that’s been the case in the last few games. It was good to get some assists that led to goals today.”
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Emile Smith Rowe’s pop-up gives Fulham the lead against Burnley!
Parker: “Even though we’re fighting for our lives, we’re conceding carelessly.”
Burnley manager Scott Parker told Sky Sports:
“It’s frustrating and disappointing. We’re back in the game, fighting for our lives and two mediocre goals.
“The cold reality is that we can’t afford to concede at the moment. It’s déjà vu.
“The source of frustration is that we’re playing the game and showing our quality and they’re giving me absolutely everything – you can see that – but the fact is in a critical moment, we’re giving ourselves an absolute mountain to climb.
“In this sector, it’s proving very difficult. We need to improve on that. There’s no denying that. We need to think about exactly how we can do that.”
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Leslie Ugochukwu’s cool finish takes Burnley to level
Silva shocked by Fulham’s poor performance at Burnley
Fulham manager Marco Silva told Sky Sports.
“With all due respect to Burnley, we had to (win) tonight.
“When I was asked about that yesterday, I was a little shocked. The reality is we’re not talking about teams not playing each other. We’re talking about not winning over 30 games here and that’s what we’re here for.”
“To get a result and be in a good position in the table. To move up the table and have more confidence. It’s clear that the players need more confidence to perform. For us, it made no sense to have that poor performance against Burnley after being away from home for so many years.”
“That’s one thing we definitely talked about and another thing.
“So much has happened in the last few years. These records are breaking the poor record of the football club. Unfortunately for the club it wasn’t much, but it’s an important victory. We deserved it, but in some moments we should have controlled the game more.”
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Calvin Bassey puts Fulham ahead
