Browne’s wake up call puts 10-man Terriers to sleep
WING ACE ZAHA PAIN ON PARKER
ALEX NEIL hailed his team after they shrugged off a 3am midweek return from QPR with two Alan Browne goals in two minutes against
10-man Huddersfield. Striker Fraizer Campbell marked his
200th career league start with an eighthminute goal for the Terriers.
The former Manchester United man slotted home through keeper Declan Rudd’s legs after a superb threaded ball from Lewis O’Brien had set up the chance.
But the game was turned on its head by Browne. First he side-stepped a challenge and picked his spot, firing across keeper Ben Hamer.
And Browne’s second goal followed a mistake by Hamer.
He dropped Joe Rafferty’s lofted cross, flattening defender Naby Sarr in the process, with Browne ready to pounce and lob the ball back into the net.
It went from bad to worse for the Terriers.
Sarr – who had been a rock in defence – was given a straight red card after pulling down Emil Riis Jakobsen as he went through on goal.
Pipa hit the post for Town with an angled drive in added time, with Riis Jakobsen firing against the bar in the final action of the game.
The Lancashire club went 12th after the win with 10 points – all won away from their Deepdale home.
Boss Neil was adamant that Preston should have had a penalty when Brad Potts went down under a Sarr challenge.
But he was quick to pay tribute to his team.
Neil said: “The boys deserve an unbelievable amount of credit because we got back at
3am in the morning from the game in London when we beat QPR.
“Huddersfield had an extra day’s rest.
“And that extra day’s rest is so important.
“You could see we were tired towards the end.”
He added: “Really pleased with the result, really pleased with the performance.”
Huddersfield had attacked from the off, with Campbell putting them ahead and then glancing a header wide.
Scott Sinclair then missed a great chance for Preston when he scuffed his shot wide of goal with only the goalkeeper to beat.
The game was then turned around by Browne in favour of the visitors with that two-minute two-goal spell, before Sarr’s red card.
It was the first defeat in five games for Huddersfield.
Manager Carlos Corberan said: “The first 10 minutes of the second half meant we couldn’t get something from this game.
“We need to learn from this.
“The opening minutes of each half are always important.”
HUDDERSFIELD: Hamer 6; Sarr 6, Stearman 7, Schindler 6 (Diakhaby
(58th) 6); Hogg 6; Pipa 7, Bacuna 7, O’Brien 6 (Eiting (58th) 6), Toffolo 6; Mbenza 6 (Koroma (71st) 6), Campbell 7
PRESTON NORTH END: Rudd 7; Rafferty 7, Bauer 7, Storey 7, Hughes
7; Johnson 6 (Maguire 84th), Ledson
6 (Harrop 90th); Sinclair 6 (Barkhuizen
(72nd) 6), Browne 8, Potts 6; Riis Jakobsen 7
STAR MAN: Alan Browne
REF: Joshua Smith
ROY HODGSON’S promise that there was plenty more to come from red-hot Wilfried Zaha proved spot on.
The Crystal Palace winger was at his dazzling, scintillating best at Craven Cottage yesterday as he put sorry Fulham to the sword.
Zaha produced his fifth assist in six games to set up a first Palace goal for the club’s forgotten £7.5million Dutch midfielder Jairo Riedewald.
And then he sealed the points for the visitors midway through the second half with his fifth strike of the campaign.
If anyone doubts Zaha is now firing on all cylinders, the fact he has already matched his goal and assist stats for the whole of 2019-20 ends the debate.
Eagles chief Hodgson, whose troops have 10 points, said: “Wilfried was great today – making one and scoring one. He’s started this season so well.
“I’ve never doubted his commitment to the cause and that he’s going to win us matches with his skill and ability. We’re very happy with him and he’s happy here.
“He was a constant thorn in the side of Fulham. We could have scored a few more.”
On the plight of his old c l ub, Hodgson added: “They’re close to my heart and I hope they stay up. I believe they will.”
Maybe, but one point from a possible 18 represents Fulham’s worst ever start in the Premier League.
Under-pressure Craven Cottage boss Scott Parker said: “Confidence is an issue. At 0-2, versus a team comfortable without the ball, it became difficult.”
Fulham host relegation rivals West Brom next Monday and Parker added: “It’s a massive game – but today was a massive game and we’re still sitting here without the points.”
Fulham got their top-flight campaign up and running seven days ago with a hard-earned draw at Sheffield United.
But if they were hoping to continue here where they left off at Bramall Lane, they were sorely disappointed.
Yes, they had plenty of possession but the majority of the best openings came from the Eagles.
Zaha was particularly impressive – and with a bit more fortune might have had a hat-trick inside 30 minutes.
As it was, he did not have a goal to his name at the interval but played his part in creating his side’s opener.
It arrived eight minutes in when Zaha cut through the Fulham rearguard and forced a superb save from Alphonse Areola.
The rebound fell to the Palace man, who this time slipped in Riedewald for a straightforward finish past the by-now stranded keeper.
Soon after, Zaha was again running the hosts’ defence ragged and only the sharp reflexes of Areola prevented him doubling the lead.
But he had only himself to blame for flashing a header wide at the far post in the 23rd minute following a pin-point pass from Andros Townsend. Fulham finally woke up after that - and at least created some pressure as they started to press with purpose.
That was almost rewarded with a 26thminute equaliser when deadline day arrival Ademola Lookman, who had scored last weekend, came close to repeating the trick.
Antonee Robinson put him clear but Lookman’s powerful effort smacked off the post and Aleksandar Mitrovic was unable to keep the rebound down, blazing it over the bar.
A second-half fightback from Fulham seemed unlikely and then became out of the question when Palace grabbed a killer second after 64 minutes.
Michy Batshuayi was the architect, skipping down the right before crossing for Zaha to fire in from a yard out.
If that was not bad enough for Parker’s men, substitute Aboubakar Kamara received a straight red at the death for a savage foul on Eberechi Eze.
All of which meant skipper Tom Cairney’s blistering 25-yarder in added time was scant consolation for the West Londoners.
FULHAM: Areola 7; Aina 6, Adarabioyo 6, Ream 5, Robinson 6, Lemina 5 (Reed 79th), Anguissa 6 (Kamara (66th) 4) Loftus-Cheek 5 (Reid (74th) 6), Cairney 6, Lookman 7, Mitrovic 5
CRYSTAL PALACE: Guaita 7; Clyne 7 (van Aanholt 77th), Kouyate 7, Dann 7, Mitchell 7, Townsend 8, Milivojevic 7, Riedewald 8 (Sakho 85th), Schlupp 7 (Eze 76th), Zaha 9, Batshuayi 8
STAR MAN:
REF:
Fulham’s next game:
Palace’s next game: