The Tanner Report : Fulham 2 Charlton 2
In an entertaining derby Fulham once again failed to beat their peers thereby supporting my view that Fulham look a formidable side but only against inferior opposition like Millwall and Reading.
Recently promoted Charlton, under the stewardship of Lee Bowyer, could not be classified as inferior although they have the lowest budget in the Championship. Last week they beat Leeds. Bowyer set up his side to frustrate Fulham and they had much the better of the first half which closed with them one goal up.
Changes had to be made and off came Stephen Sessegnon, whose passing and crossing were dreadful, and the injured Harry Arter for Bobby Decordova Reid and Harrison Reed.
Bobby Reid was many’s man of the match in their midweek victory over Reading and he had a fine second half, setting up Ivan Cavaleiro for the equaliser and going close on 3 occasions.
It poses a problem for Scott Parker.
I would not drop Stefan Johansen who always puts in a good shift and improves the performance of Tom Cairney. So there is no obvious place for him other than as impact sub.
Having equalised, Fulham showed their defensive frailty when Alfie Mawson was out-jumped and Charlton went ahead again. Cue a Fulham onslaught in which the bar was struck three times. Alex Mitrovic forced the ball over the line for an equaliser.
But the winner never came.
You could not begrudge Charlton their draw. Jonny Williams in midfield caught the eye with his energy and their keeper Dillon Phillips played a blinder. Yet for all of this it was a game that Fulham could have won.
I watched the game on SKY which could have been renamed Charlton TV. The panel consisted of current player Lyle Taylor, an ex-player Chris Powell and presenter ex-player Scott Minto.
Not surprisingly the coverage was almost entirely focused on Charlton, particularly when Lee Bowyer joined the discussion after the match.
Analyst Keith Andrews observed a Fulham win would be a “travesty” but I have seen loads of Fulham games when they dominated one half only to lose. This raises yet another issue in the Great Debate. One would expect neutrality in any broadcast.
Fulham are still crying out for a strong defender. Bizarrely, when we had a free kick in the dying embers, Mitrovic was shooed away for Mawson – not known for his touch on the ball – to blaze the ball over the bar.
It’s that sort of poor call that meant Fulham, who could have gone top, are currently seventh.
