Fulham vs Man United

Craven Cottage was rocking for eighty-nine minutes. Fulham led, pressed, created, and thoroughly outplayed one of the biggest clubs in the world and the most successful club in Premier League history. Then Matheus Cunha — after having laboured for much of the game — found a moment of luck in the 89th minute to level the score. Manchester United escaped with a point they probably did not deserve.

For sixty-one minutes, this was a game that showed some promise, but lacked finishing. Both sides had moments, but it was Fulham who were creating the lion’s share. United looked disorganised and unconvincing in midfield; Fulham pressed high, and were quite effective in winning the ball back, but could not get it past Lammens. In the 63rd minute, Calvin Bassey drove forward and smashed a shot on target that was saved by the goalkeeper Lammens — but the rebound bounced to Lisandro Martínez, who was trying to shield the ball and give it back to the goalkeeper, but unfortunately poked it into his own net for a calamitous own goal, giving Fulham a 1–0 lead. Craven Cottage erupted. Fulham led. Deservedly.

For big stretches of the game after that goal, Fulham controlled the match. They pressed, they created half-chances, they kept United pinned back. Carrick’s side could barely string five passes together. The crowd sensed a famous win. The three points felt certain. United had nothing to offer. The clock ticked down.

Then Cunha. And lady luck. In the 89th minute, Cunha hit a hopeful shot from outside the penalty area, and that took a wicked deflection off a Fulham player, skipping past a wrong-footed Bernd Leno to equalise at 1–1. The United fans celebrated with the desperation of a side that knew they had been outplayed, but also knew the only thing that mattered was the final score. Fulham’s players stood in disbelief. Craven Cottage went from pandemonium to heartbreak in the space of thirty seconds.

For Manchester United, this was a point that was won because of the fact that Cunha did take a shot, and they got lucky. This was not a performance that showcased a lot of quality and incisiveness. Carrick’s side are 12th with five points — not yet in crisis, but worryingly short of any coherent attacking identity outside of moments of individual inspiration. The draw felt like a defeat to almost everyone watching. battleSTAR Galáctico: Matheus Cunha — it was his decisive action that helped United emerge with one point. He was the only player who seemed to believe they could do it despite the lacklustre show by most of the others.

Fulham have two points from five games. They are 19th in the Premier League. Their performances are better than that number suggests — this was their second draw in five games where they were the better team. However, the gap between deserving more points and actually having those points is growing wide enough to raise questions about Alvaro Arbeloa and his future at Craven Cottage. The international break arrives at a difficult moment.