Fulham at Bournemouth

Fulham travels to Bournemouth in a match we've been looking forward to ever since the schedule came out. The match will be on ESPN+ with kickoff at 10am EDT on Saturday.

We all figured that this game would be meaningful given the competition and the time of year and it has delivered. This one could determine the title winner. If Fulham wins, it is all over except for mathematical confirmation and they go up as champions. If Bournemouth wins they would be six points behind Fulham with a game in hand. Bournemouth would still have a shot at the title, but it would still be challenging. The game in hand is versus Nottingham Forest, so three points are not certain there and their remaining matches against Blackburn and Millwall will be tough.

Like @jumpkutz I really want to beat Bournemouth. And like @SoCalJoe I also appreciated hearing Tim Ream say it wasn't over yet. I never thought Scott Parker was the best choice for Fulham, but he is a generally nice guy and got good results in the Championship. However, when I think back now to last season I get angry at what Parker squandered. This team that has been goal scoring wrecking ball in the Championship has many of the same pieces as last season when they could hardly get the ball in the net. I know the competition is far stiffer in the Premier League, but it still seems clear now that this team under-performed and a few more key goals would have made a huge difference for a team that had 13 draws. So more than beating Bournemouth, I want Fulham to beat Parker. A hat-trick from Mitrovic to claim the all-time second-tier scoring title would be the optimal outcome.

That's what I want, but I'm not sure it will happen. Bournemouth has the stingiest defense in the league and they have more to play for than Fulham. I'm also not sure of the mental state of Fulham right now. Mitrovic and Ream still clearly had their game-faces on after winning promotion, but I'm not sure if everyone else will be ready. I know Silva will give it his best shot to deliver the final three points that we want. Hopefully Fulham closes out this storybook season with a fitting denouement.

 

Going with a draw, as a point each really benefits both teams (Bournemouth are looking to lock up promotion).

I really dont want this season to end. Too much fun!

 

Unable to watch. Was it a penalty?

 

It was a penalty. I have to feel if we didn't spend the last 10 minutes wasting time we would have had that one. The team lost focus. Disappointing

 

The highlights:


A draw was probably a fair result on the balance of play, but what a ridiculous finish! Fulham just lost concentration in the last 60 seconds. For the previous two minutes they had effectively been running out the clock earning corners and throws down in the Bournemouth end. Then for some reason they throw it long and give up a free kick - that was mistake #1. Then when the ball quickly goes into the box Tete backs off from Bournemouth's Smith rather than playing close to a guy in a dangerous position - that was mistake #2. Then Wilson rashly flies in because Tete has left Smith unmarked and Smith rightly earns the PK - mistake #3.

Prior to that I was pretty happy with this scrappy match - which was the last thing I had expected from Fulham. I figured they'd come in flying and score for fun or get beaten by a team with more to play for. Instead Fulham was doing the hard work of grinding out a win - Fulham earned 7 yellows and gave up 26 fouls! I don't think Silva had any respect for Bournemouth's set-play capabilities so they were willing to get tough.

I thought Bournemouth might be able to equalize until Seri was subbed in. He was all over the place once he came on - cutting out passes, picking up loose balls in the box, maintaining possession. At that point I thought Fulham had it wrapped up because Seri just took over. Sadly, he didn't get the result he deserved.

Silva was red-carded at the end so does that mean he'll miss the remaining three matches?

 

Match yesterday had a combined 41 fouls and just 5 shots on target. Gross.

Despite the late late concession and tomfoolery, Fulham's probability of winning the league increased from 98.4% to 99.65%!