Super sub Harry Wilson strikes again as Fulham edge out 10-man Crystal Palace | first division

After three unbeaten matches, this was a return to desolation for Crystal Palace. Oliver Glasner's men were outplayed by a very active Fulham, Emile Smith Rowe and Harry Wilson scoring the goals as Palace finished with 10 men, while Daichi Kamada was sent off.

Fulham were more accurate across the board and deserved the lead provided by Smith Rowe late in the first half. But the fight for a second persisted, and nerves would have been frayed in those final moments, even after Kamada's 76th-minute red card for a sliding tackle on Kenny Tete's shin. But Wilson contributed once again as a substitute, having scored twice in injury time to beat Brentford at the beginning of the week. This time his role was to close, not to save Marco Silva. Wilson's arrival in the 82nd minute was followed by jubilation just 39 seconds later.

Palace emerged without key men (Eberechi Eze and Adam Wharton among those missing), but with a touch of optimism from recent fortnights. a first The season's league victory came courtesy of Tottenham's generosity.to Carabao Cup quarter-finals booked with victory at Villa Park. Just a Late winner disallowed at Molineux had stood in the way of perfection. Injuries and suspensions led to an ad hoc midfield, with Marc Guéhi joined by 21-year-old Justin Devenny, captain of the under-21 team, on his debut for Palace's first team.

The question for Silva was whether Wilson would be rewarded with a starting role after a cameo to rival Christopher Walken as Captain Koons. Another season on the bench was ordered.

The first minutes had little quality and composure on the part of both teams, but, steadily, Fulham He began to threaten. Alex Iwobi moved into the center to play with teammate Reiss Nelson, whose shot was forcefully parried away by Dean Henderson. Nelson's runs from the left posed danger, but his finishing touch remained absent; He shot wide after cutting in from the wing minutes later. While the visitors dominated possession and were much cleaner in the middle (hits, movements, everything), the hosts took little care of the ball when they tried.

One example came midway through the first half, when Nathaniel Clyne's clearance bounced off Iwobi into the path of Smith Rowe, and a sliding (and quite dangerous) challenge from Maxence Lacroix was required to prevent the attacker from pressing.

The best way in for Palace was through the heart of Jean-Philippe Mateta, the Frenchman up top routinely raising his arms to make Selhurst jump. He headed over the crossbar after jumping high to receive a free kick and nearly opened the scoring near the end of the first half. Ismaïla Sarr advanced down the right, her deflected cross soared into the air and Mateta slipped between Bernd Leno and Joachim Andersen to head home. Leno made a touch, the ball slid into the net, but Andersen, back at his old workplace, cleared it off the line.

Instead, it was Fulham who took the lead before the break, taking advantage of Palace's lethargy. Lacroix's pass from behind went straight to Smith Rowe, who played one-two with Raúl Jiménez before moving his left foot into the area to finish. Henderson had enjoyed a good half and lent a hand, moving to the left, but the net was still bulging.

Smith Rowe was celebrating again seven minutes into the second half when Fulham showed their pace on the counterattack. Jiménez led the movement from left to right, Iwobi launched a provocative cross for the first time and Smith Rowe was at the end. Then came VAR and those pesky offside lines. Selhurst burst into a song of hope.

But the direction of the game refused to change as Fulham launched repeated attacks. Henderson stood out by denying Andreas Pereira twice. Nelson, although impressive in his build-up play, remained allergic to scoring, shooting wide again when he found space in the box.

Wilson was the man who provided a sense of calm, racing into the box to receive a wonderful pass from Iwobi before slotting home. He even had a second in stoppage time, but it was rightly ruled out for a handball in the lead-up. Although there is still a week left.