Author: Barkha Roy
Fulham secured a place in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Norwich at Craven Cottage. Carlos Vinícius and Alex Iwobi were the heroes for Marco Silva’s side, who recovered impressively from their lacklustre 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace at the weekend.
In the early stages of the match, Fulham tested Norwich down the left flank, with Willian and Fode Ballo-Toure creating a goal-scoring opportunity for Vinicius, who unfortunately headed the ball over the bar. Vinicius later redeemed himself when Willian’s precise throw reached Iwobi on the by-line, and he crossed for Vinicius to score the first goal.
Silva’s request for more creativity in attack was answered as Fulham continued to threaten, with contributions from Harry Wilson, Willian and Tom Cairney. Norwich, however, missed a golden chance to level the game when Tony Springett failed to convert Przemyslaw Placheta’s cross in the 19th minute.
Norwich began to turn the tide in the second half, with Sam McCallum and Kellen Fisher trying to test the Fulham defense. Fisher’s shot from outside the area narrowly missed the target, denying Norwich a deserved equalizer.
Fulham maintained their lead, with Willian’s corner finding Wilson, who hit a deft volley into the net. However, a last-minute save from Adam Forshaw kept the score at 1-0.
In the 72nd minute, Fulham doubled their lead when Iwobi combined with Wilson to put the ball into the bottom corner, opening his Fulham account. Norwich refused to back down and found hope in the 75th minute when Borja Sainz scored after a counter-attack led by Adam Idah.
Despite Norwich’s late pressure, Fulham held firm during the five minutes of extra time to secure the win.
With this achievement, Fulham advance to the fourth round of the Carabao Cup and will face Ipswich in a match scheduled for the week beginning October 30.
Coach Marco Silva also opted to include Rodrigo Muniz in the line-up, while Andreas Pereira remained on the bench. For Norwich, Brazilian midfielder Gabriel Sara came on during the second half of the game.