Fulham ended Newcastle’s unbeaten start to the Premier League season with a 3-1 victory at Craven Cottage.
Marco Silva called for ruthless finishing from Fulham on Friday and he got just that as Raul Jimenez’s impressive first-half strike helped him to his second in as many Premier League matches.
Emile Smith Rowe continued his fine start to life in west London to double the lead and, after Harvey Barnes pulled one back for Eddie Howe’s men, Reiss Nelson dealt the final blow in second-half added time to seal the three points for Fulham.
Newcastle came out of the blocks firing and they had a goal chalked off for offside. Joe Willock combined with Joelinton, whose first effort was saved before he slotted home the rebound, but Willock did not hold his run.
The warning shot shifted the hosts into gear and they went down the other end to score a legitimate goal of their own. Adama Traore ran down the right flank, cutting inside to find Jimenez.
The Mexican, with his back to goal, brought the ball down before he rifled his strike on the half-volley into the bottom right corner.
Fulham had the bit between their teeth and, after new-boy Smith Rowe’s long-range strike was denied by the bar, Jimenez evaded Dan Burn with a run in behind but his finish was aimed at Nick Pope who saved.
Smith Rowe’s persistence paid off as he helped Fulham double their lead in the 22nd minute. The winger, who joined from Arsenal in the summer, drove forward, playing a one-two with Alex Iwobi and his poked finish had too much on it for Pope to deal with.
Newcastle needed answers after the break and they caught Fulham napping as they pulled a goal back. Jacob Murphy picked up a pocket of space and drove forward. He made a simple pass to Barnes, who cut inside and buried his effort with a well-placed finish which clipped the post before going in.
The goal invited pressure as the nerves grew around Craven Cottage. Newcastle began to throw numbers forward in search of a leveller but centre-backs Joachim Andersen and Calvin Bassey put their bodies on the line consistently to bail Silva’s men out of danger.
Among those Newcastle players who looked lively was Anthony Gordon. After 70 minutes, the England international slalomed between white shirts on the break, but some good defending forced him onto his weaker left side and his strike was stopped by Bernd Leno.
The tension for home fans eased in added time, when Nelson got on the end of a defensive error and smashed home the third.
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