Crystal Palace beat Fulham as Edward Nketiah turns one chance into a cup win

Crystal Palace spent long spells under pressure at Fulham, but Edward Nketiah scored with their first shot of the night to settle a 1-0 Carabao Cup win at Craven Cottage. He finished in the 37th minute from Óscar Mingueza's cross, on Palace's first shot of the game and his 10th touch. Dean Henderson then made four saves, including point-blank stops from Alex Iwobi and Gonzalo Garcia, to protect the lead.

Palace's efficiency at Craven Cottage

The scoreline leaned on a brutal bit of efficiency. Palace did not need long possession spells or a stream of chances, just one sharp move down the right and one finish from Nketiah. His goal was Palace's only shot on target in the first half, and it was the sort of moment that changes a cup tie without changing the general feel of the match.

Luke Power at dailymail.com wrote: "Make no mistake about it, Crystal Palace were bad here. Not particularly gritty or rugged, more downright lucky." Standard Sport were just as blunt in their match report, saying: "Sage’s team will play in the Carabao Cup quarter-final but Fulham will wonder how after they dominated virtually every aspect of the game against a team lacking in confidence and low on ideas."

Henderson keeps Palace alive

That view is hard to argue with when Fulham kept pushing after the break and Palace kept leaning on Henderson. His four saves were the difference between a nervy finish and a cup exit, and Palace's best spell of the night came in goal rather than in midfield or attack.

Nketiah was Palace's best attacking performer as well, with a 7.41 rating, while Henderson posted the highest mark on the night at 7.56. Nketiah's finish was also his first League Cup appearance of the season, and it came across 71 League Cup minutes. Palace reached the Carabao Cup quarter-final with a 1-0 win at Craven Cottage, and they go through with one clear lesson from this tie, the cleaner chances do not always belong to the side that dominates the ball.