Wilson the hero again as Fulham down 10-man Crystal Palace to move into top six
Following a concerning start to the season in which Palace had picked up just one win (D4, L5), the hosts made a slow start to proceedings, ceding possession to a front-foot Fulham side.
Keeping his place in the starting XI after a promising display against Brentford, Reiss Nelson fired a couple of early warning shots before Emile Smith Rowe looked to have the goal at his mercy, only to be denied by a sliding Maxence Lacroix.
The Eagles grew into the contest as the half wore on, seeing a Marc Guehi head wide and Jean-Philippe Mateta’s header cleared off the line by former Selhurst Park favourite Joachim Andersen either side of a half-volley from Alex Iwobi at the other end.
However, despite their improvement, a stoppage-time mistake from Lacroix at the end of the half handed Fulham the initiative, with Smith Rowe playing a one-two with Raul Jimenez before striking low past Dean Henderson.
An injury crisis at Palace restricted their bench options as both teams came out for the second half unchanged, albeit with Daniel Munoz taking up a more advanced position on the right.
Making his first league start, Justin Devenny’s set-piece delivery was plucked out of the air by Bernd Leno, who launched a counter-attack that ended with Smith Rowe tucking in Iwobi’s low cross, yet VAR came to the rescue for Palace, ruling out the would-be goal for offside.
A close-range effort from Andreas Pereira was thwarted by Henderson, but Fulham remained largely in control as the game entered its final stages.
The Cottagers had kept just one clean sheet from their last six Premier League games on their travels, but after Daichi Kamada was dismissed for a reckless challenge on Kenny Tete, Marco Silva’s side had just 14 minutes of regulation time to see out the win.
That impending suspension will give under-fire Oliver Glasner a further headache, with his side conceding a second when Monday’s super sub Harry Wilson struck again with a low finish following a swift breakaway.
Incredibly, Wilson thought he’d repeated his trick from earlier in the week, but unfortunately for him, the Welshman’s second of the afternoon was ruled out for a handball.
The defeat leaves Palace mired in relegation trouble, just one point above the drop zone with a solitary win to their name after 11 league matches.
Meanwhile, three points here lift Fulham to sixth in the standings, building on a dramatic late victory over Brentford last time out to go level on points with Chelsea, Arsenal, and Aston Villa for the time being.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Emile Smith Rowe (Fulham)