Positives and Negatives: Fulham 2-1 Brentford

Jack Stroudley analyses our derby day win over Brentford.

Wow, just wow. It really did feel like yet another one of those games where Fulham huff and puff and don’t get their just desserts. Yet here we are with three deserved points after two stoppage time goals from our Welsh wizard Harry Wilson. I’m currently writing this 10 minutes after full-time so I will try my best not to be too giddy, but here are the positives and negatives from the latest West London derby.

Positives

Our Welsh wizard strikes

I mean there really is only one place we can begin really is there? Harry. Wilson. A player whose really struggled for minutes this season but boy did he deliver on Monday night. The flick for the first goal is absolutely sumptuous and his ability to be in the right place at the right time for the winner deserves immense credit. Outside of the goals he was exactly what we were crying out for with his tenacity and driving ability on the door. It was an incredibly toothless performance (which I will get onto later) but Wilson will certainly be knocking on the door for a start on Saturday.

Lord Nelson

Fans have been calling for Reiss Nelson to start for weeks and for the most part he delivered yesterday. In a game which seemed like we could play all day and not score, Nelson was a bright spark in (for the most part) was a dim attacking display. Continually being the most available option, driving with the ball alongside some intricate passing. His finishing let him down ever so slightly but Nelson was a standout on his first Premier League start for Silva, it certainly won’t be his last.

A sigh of relief

A truly magical night at the Cottage, the occasion and last minute goal will live in the memory, but in the context of our season that’s a huge result. If the game had finished 1-0, given our domination we would’ve seen heads dropped and Silva’s side go four games without a win. The ability to turn it round at the end and just the overall occasion should allow us to springboard into Saturday and beyond. It’s an incredibly boring and sensible take after what we’ve just witnessed but one that I feel is quite important.

Negatives

Toothless on the Thames

Ultimately we won the game so who really cares, but it’s worth quickly talking about. If it wasn’t for Harry Wilson, Fulham would have once again dominated a game and had nothing to show for it. Our ability (or lack of) to carve out clear chances is a tad concerning given our attacking talent. Time and time again we found ourselves on the edge of the box with crosses being well defended, shots being well blocked or attacks fizzling out. Again, I’ll go back to my original point. Who really cares after a turnaround and a night like that, that ending is why we all love football. I think it’s just something worth noting (up the Fulham, cheer up Fabio Carvalho x).