After thumping mighty Liverpool, the Craven Cottage underdogs were only seconds away from another, even bigger surprise at Etihad, but it ended up in tears for the charming minnows!Manchester City grabbed a late 2-1 win through Erling Haaland, who netted from the spot after Kevin de Bruyne was taken down in the box three minutes into the stoppage time.Even without their injured star, Aleksandar Mitrovic, the Cottagers fought bravely and deserved a point against underperforming champions.It was an intense first half, packed with action on both ends of the pitch. At first, it seemed the hosts would easily brush aside Fulham, especially after Julian Alvarez put City in front after 16 minutes. It was a simple link-up between Gundogan and Alvarez, and the talented striker stuffed it perfectly under the crossbar for 1-0.JULIAN ALVAREZ WE LOVE YOUpic.twitter.com/vwSdMJg7CK— 17 (@DxBruyneSZN) November 5, 2022 But then – when everyone was expecting a genuine avalanche of goals in the back of Fulham’s net – the tables turned instantly. Josh Stones’ one was disallowed due to offside, the visitors bounced back, and all of a sudden, it was a totally different ball game.Joao Cancelo knocked down Harry Wilson, and the referee sent him off, rewarding the guests with a penalty. Andres Pereira had no mercy from the spot, and the game was back to a stalemate.Why Cancelo received a red card #MCIFUL pic.twitter.com/zKtnUFyBSW— The Premier League Club (@TPLCSports) November 5, 2022 Despite the expectations of City’s second-half storm, ten-man favourites struggled to impose domination and create any credible chances for scoring.When he realised things are definitely not going according to plan, Pep Guardiola made several changes. Haaland and Foden were brought off the bench, and the latter was given another pretty awkward assignment – Pep gave him a handwritten note he took to Gundogan. No one knows what Guardiola wrote on it, but the fact is that Cityzens didn’t look like they’re able to top the stubborn rivals.From Pep to Ilkay via Phil (©Getty images sport)Haaland, though, found the back of the net some ten minutes before the final whistle, but it was disallowed due to a narrow offside. However, it was not over yet, and the dying moments of the game brought us all the drama and climax.Erling Haaland (Manchester City) with a Penalty Goal vs. Fulham, 11/05/2022 pic.twitter.com/DZzD28Iloz— Ben Fallmann (@BenFallmann) November 5, 2022 Such a shame for Fulham, but Marco Silva’s boys have nothing to be ashamed of after this courageous resistance to the European superpower.PREMIER LEAGUESaturdayLeeds – Bournemouth 4-3 (1-2)/Rodrigo 3 pen, Greenwood 60, Cooper 68, Summerville 84 – Tavernier 7, Billing 19, Solanke 48/Man City – Fulham 2-1 (1-1)/Alvarez 16, Haaland 90+4 pen – Pereira 28 pen/Nott. Forest – Brentford 2-2 (1-1)/Gibbs-White 20, Zanka 90+6 og – Mbeumo 45+3, Wissa 75/Wolves – Brighton 2-3 (2-2)/Guedes 12, Neves 35 pen – Lallana 10, Mitoma 44, Gross 83/20.30: (2.50) Everton (3.30) Leicester (3.15)Sunday15.00: (2.75) Chelsea (3.25) Arsenal (2.85)17.00: (3.50) Aston Villa (3.35) Man.Utd. (2.21)17.00: (4.10) Southampton (3.50) Newcastle (2.04)17.00: (1.99) West Ham (3.50) Crystal Palace (4.40)19.30: (3.45) Tottenham (3.50) Liverpool (2.24)***odds are subject to change
