Boro burst out of the blocks
MIDDLESBROUGH are breathing down the necks of the top two after flying out the blocks at Fulham – and boss Aitor Karanka believes more fast starts is exactly what will get them there.
Strikes from Albert Adomah and Grant Leadbitter inside the opening 20 minutes got the visitors off to a dream start in west London, where Karanka’s old Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho once again took in a Boro game.
The result leaves them third, a point off top with two games in hand on leaders Burnley and one on second-placed Hull.
Karanka said: “When we start well it is difficult to stop us and we were better than them.We needed to win and we have done that without conceding a goal. The performance was really good, and we managed the game from the first moment.
“The last five minutes of the first half was quite difficult, but second half we remained calm and played a really good game.
“We have another game on Tuesday and one on Friday, so I will continue to make changes.We have a really big squad so it’s important I pick the right players.”
Slavisa Jokanovic’s side began with three at the back to counter their high-flying opponents – but the Fulham manager will have been pulling his hair out as his plans went out the window inside three minutes when Adomah headed in the opener.
Stewart Downing rolled back the years as he weaved down the left wing. Dribbling past Richard Stearman, the former England man was allowed time to send a floating cross towards the back post, and his opposite winger was afforded acres of space to nod home.
And things went from bad to worse for Fulham as Boro doubled their advantage.
Downing slipped the ball to the overlapping Ritchie De Laet inside the area. The full-back pulled it back for Gaston Ramirez who was tripped by Chris Baird and Leadbitter, who missed from the spot against Cardiff on Tuesday, stepped up to convert the penalty.
Moussa Dembele had entered the fray for Fulham by this point as he replaced the injured Ryan Fredericks, and the young striker’s arrival certainly boosted his side as they attempted to rally before the break.
The Frenchman’s bicycle kick forced Dimi Konstantopoulos to tip over and the hosts came even closer to a breakthrough before half time. Ross McCormack’s cross was met by Stearman, his header beating the keeper, but De Laet was on hand to clear off the line.
The second half was rather a non-affair with Boro in complete cruise control.
Jamie O’Hara, on as a substitute, had the best opportunity to launch a comeback but dragged his shot wide and Fulham’s miserable afternoon was completed when Stearman was shown red late on for fouling Jordan Rhodes as the last man.
Jokanovic said: “We made some chances but that was not enough. They deserved their three points.
“The sending off, sometimes it’s not so clear for me to see. Possibly he was the last player and I don’t know whether he was in a dangerous area.
“It meant that we could not push on for the last few minutes, because we made the important mistakes at the beginning of the game. The result is bad, it’s very clear, and we did not make a good performance.We are inconsistent.
“Some days we do a good job and some days we don’t.”