A Van Hecke of a drubbing
MITRO STARS AFTER RED CARD
ALEKSANDAR MITROVIC did the business once again as Fulham closed the gap to two points at the top of the Championship.
The striker scored a ninth goal in his past four league games as the Cottagers took full advantage of Bournemouth’s surprise home defeat by Preston.
Fulham were helped by the 30th-minute dismissal of Blackburn’s Jan Paul van Hecke.
The centre-back was sent off by referee Jarred Gillett for a clumsy challenge on man of the match Harry Wilson.
Mitrovic’s goal – his 19th from 16 league matches – came in the 19th minute, while Wilson, Neeskens Kebano and substitute Rodrigo Muniz helped themselves to two goals apiece as the visitors ran riot.
Marco Silva’s ruthless side tore Rovers to shreds at Ewood Park to claim an impressive fifth win on the spin.
It was their biggest victory of the season and just what Silva craved for his promotion chasers.
Kebano rifled in the first goal on six minutes before the deadly Mitrovic headed in a coner by Jean Michael Seri.
There was no way back for Rovers after Van Hecke’s red card and Wilson bagged a third by firing between the legs of keeper Thomas Kaminski.
The playmaker then added his second with a delightful curler.
Any hope Rovers had that Fulham’s work was done was emphatically ended with three more goals in a crazy finish.
Kebano grabbed his second by smashing home a right-footer before Muniz slotted home from close range. In injury time, the substitute fired the Cottagers into seventh heaven.
BLACKBURN (4-3-3): Kaminski 3; Nyambe 4, Lenihan 4, Van Hecke 2, Edun 4; Travis 4, Johnson 5, Rothwell 4 (Rankin-Costello 62, 4); Dolan 4 (Butterworth 63, 4), Buckley 4 (Carter 32, 4), Brereton 5. Sent off: Van Hecke 30.
FULHAM (4-2-3-1): Rodak 6; Odoi 6, Hector 7, Ream 7, Robinson 7; Seri 7 (Cairney 59, 6), Reed 7; Wilson 9, Decordova-Reid 6 (Carvalho 73), Kebano 8; Mitrovic 8 (Muniz 67, 8). Goals: Kebano 6, 79, Mitrovic 19, Wilson 54, 58, Muniz 81, 90.