Fulham Vs Manchester full time report
It was a case of lost opportunities for Manchester United as they lost 2 points at Craven Cottage. Fulham once again proved to be the bogey team. The match ended 2-2 and the incident on everyone’s minds was the missed penalty by Nani. It was a match of 2 halves in more way than one. Manchester United started the match on a positive note and took the lead early through a Scholes Trademark shot. Fulham however found their feet and got them back in the game midway through the first half. Had they taken any one of a number of chances before the break it would have been level before half time.
However things did not change much in the 2nd half. United continued to press but Fulham kept responding with counter moves. Early in the 2nd half Luis Valencia's cross from the right fell for Paul Scholes eight yards out and his goal bound shot was brilliantly blocked by Brede Hangeland.
Fulham broke and won a corner, eventually the ball came in from Damien Duff from the right and Aaron Hughes glanced a header wide off the far post.
Bobby Zamora was fouled by a combination of Paul Scholes and Jonny Evans and Fulham had a free-kick, just right of centre, about 25 yards out. Bobby Zamora took it and after his right-foot free-kick slammed into the wall, he hit a left-foot volley way off target.
Then came the moment United had been fearing, there was a cracking leveller from the hosts. Damien Duff called upon all of his skills to trick his way past Patrice Evra on the halfway line on the right and he found Bobby Zamora, who ploughed into the area and pulled the ball back for Simon Davies to hammer past Edwin van der Sar from 10 yards. It was a lovely work of art.
Manchester United looked rattled, however they quickly gathered themselves and, Paul Scholes went down in the Fulham area, but looked like he just slipped, there weren't any real appeals for a United penalty.
Mark Hughes made a change for the home side, with Clint Dempsey making way for Moussa Dembele, their new signing from AZ Alkmaar. Fulham played the ball into the box from the right and it looked like Nemanja Vidic had got a handful of Moussa Dembele's shirt at the near post. Referee Peter Walton waved the Cottagers away. Despite loud appeals for a penalty.
Ferguson decided to influence the game with a change, and it was Nani on for Park Ji-Sung. Moments later United nearly went in front as Patrice Evra's cross from the left was headed goal-wards by Dimitar Berbatov and after his header deflected off Paul Scholes, David Stockdale reacted well to make the save.
There were more changes shortly afterwards Manchester United brought on Ryan Giggs and Michael Owen for Javier Hernandez and Luis Valencia. United were looking a bit more threatening as the game wore on, with Ryan Giggs' corner from the right headed narrowly wide of the far post by Nemanja Vidic.
With just 6 minutes left in the game United seemed to have found an unlikely winner when, Ryan Giggs sent over yet another corner from the right and Brede Hangeland was unsighted as the ball hit his left shin and beat David Stockdale and the defender on the post to creep in.
Moments later it looked like game set and match, when Duff handled the ball inside the box and a penalty was awarded to Manu. Nani stepped up, but David Stockdale dived away to his right and pulled off a super stop. It was justice served probably as the penalty should not have been given in the first place as it was an accidental hand ball by Duff. United must have feared how much the miss would cost them, and within a minute Fulham got a corner, which was flung in from the right and up got Brede Hangeland as he went from villain to hero and thumped a header in off the fingertips of Edwin van der Sar to make it 2-2.
United looked shell shocked, but looking at the match as a whole it was only fair that Fulham got a share of the spoils. However not a great start to the season for Manchester United with Chelsea knocking in 12 goals in 2 games, and Arsenal also getting 6 in their last outing.
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