Familiar failings for Foxes as formidable Fulham finally find away formula

First half goals from Ademola Lookman and Ivan Cavaleiro helped Fulham to a 2-1 victory over high-flying Leicester City on Monday night, which saw the Cottagers escape the relegation zone.

Lookman’s goal came from a counter-attack on the half hour mark, with Cavaleiro finally ending Fulham’s penalty hoodoo less than ten minutes later to double the lead.

The hosts did pull a goal back late on through Harvey Barnes, but in truth Leicester were poor and Fulham were good value for their first away win of the season.

Scott Parker’s side picked up where they left off in the second half against Everton last weekend, looking solid defensively as a unit and looking more organised than they have in recent weeks.

Fulham started the game playing 4-3-3 with a back four of Ola Aina, Joachim Andersen, Tosin Adarabioyo and Antonee Robinson; a midfield three of Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Bobby Decordova-Reid and Harrison Reed; a front three of Ruben Loftus-Cheek on the right, Cavaleiro on the left, and Lookman in the middle.

Leicester were struggling to create any real clear-cut chances. Fulham looked like they had learnt their lessons of the first half against Everton last time around. Leicester did start to grow into the game though and just as they were starting to threaten, Fulham hit on the counter to take the lead.

After the goal Fulham’s formation changed. Decordova-Reid moved to right-wing back to make it a back five, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek filling in at central midfield and Cavaleiro moving in just behind Lookman.

It meant Parker’s side stayed compact, reduced space for Leicester’s creative players, and meant they had pace going forward to hit on the counter. And that is where the second goal came from. Decordova-Reid was blocked off by Christian Fuchs in the box and after a VAR check a penalty was given.

There was much discussion in the press box about who would take Fulham’s penalty after their misfortune from the spot in recent weeks, but there was little doubt on the pitch with the visiting team players giving the ball to Cavaleiro before the penalty had even been awarded.

Unlike last weekend where the Fulham forward slipped and kicked the ball twice, this time he found the net, despite Leicester City goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel guessing the right way.

Scott Parker’s side continued to look dangerous on the attack as the half went on, and could have added to their tally before the break if not for a good save from Schmeichel to deny Cavaleiro his second and Fulham’s third.

Leicester did also change formation in the first half in an attempt to nullify Fulham’s threats, going 4-2-3-1 with Luke Thomas moving up to left wing from wing-back and James Maddison moving into the middle of the three behind Jamie Vardy.

This change did not have the impact Brendan Rodgers would have hoped for and at half time he made two changes with Cengiz Under and Harvey Barnes coming on for Thomas and Dennis Praet.

Despite the changes in personnel Leicester resorted back to their starting formation of 3-4-3. Ünder did bring a more direct threat than Praet, and Barnes is more attack minded than Thomas, and the home side did threaten more after the break, although still were limited to shots from range.

Fulham at this point looked happy to defend a two-goal lead in search of their first away win of the season and only their second win of the season. Their attacking threat was lessened, and their game management was on show.

For the most part, the London side managed the game well, frustrating their lofty opponents to half chances.

Fulham did have a couple of chances to further extend their lead, the best of which fell to Lookman on 74 minutes, but after being found by Robinson in the box, he cut back and fired straight at the Leicester City goalkeeper.

Leicester finally managed to carve out an opening with five minutes to play when Jamie Vardy headed down for Barnes to fire into the net and give the hosts hope, and they could have grabbed an equaliser in stoppage time when a scramble in the box just did not fall their way before Fulham cleared.

An equaliser would have been harsh on the visitors though, who defended well throughout and deserved their victory on the balance of play over 90 minutes.

For Fulham they are now out of the relegation zone and can hope to build on a great three points in their bid to stay in the Premier League this season, but for Leicester this was more of what fans have come to expect over recent seasons.

Wins against your Arsenals, your Manchester Citys, and Wolves are almost expected now from the Leicester faithful. When it comes to facing struggling sides however, they often struggle themselves to break them down.

The decision to start with Justin and Thomas at wing-back rather than more attacking options like Barnes, Under or Albrighton is not one that was popular with supporters, with many suggesting it was too defensive an approach.

With how the game unfolded it is difficult to argue with that viewpoint, especially given that Rodgers took Thomas off at the break for a more attacking option. That said, with Fulham’s goals coming on the counter having more attacking options might not have prevented this result, and could even have made it worse.

Whatever the answer is for Leicester when facing bottom half sides, they need to find it soon if they are to have any chance of challenging for the Champions League this season. A win would have seen the Foxes move top of the league tonight, but another title will be a long way off if Leicester cannot solve this issue.

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