NIGHT ARRIVAL SAVES DAY
SAM ALLARDYCE saluted new recruit Mbaye Diagne as his great navy-blueand-white hope after this early six-pointer ended all square.
West Brom’s chief was staring down the barrel at half-time after the Cottagers ran riot – but only had one goal to show for it.
But he threw the big loan signing from Galatasaray into the mix – and his arrival immediately gave the Baggies a focal point.
Within 20 minutes the entire course of the game had been altered as the powerful targetman put himself about and gave the hosts a vital outlet.
Thanks to goals from Kyle Bartley and Matheus Pereira the Baggies turned the tables on Scott Parker’s side and moved within sight of a vital triumph.
But Ivan Cavaleiro jumped off the bench to nod home at the far post to level, leaving both bosses with justifiable gripes at the final whistle.
Parker was unhappy that the game wasn’t over at half-time. And that was a valid view.
Allardyce was just happy, after four goalless games at the Hawthorns, to find a route to goal. And he was especially pleased to land Diagne.
He said: “He only arrived at 8pm on Friday night. He sent me a text with a few emojis on it.
“I understand he wears some colour in his hair. I replied saying that he should turn up with his hair in blue and white stripes.
“I’m delighted to see him. I want to say a massive ‘thank you’ to him. I have searched and searched and this guy has accepted to come and join us in this battle.
“And that’s not an easy decision, leaving Galatasaray to come here and make a difference to us.”
The Baggies were fortunate their season wasn’t over by the interval. The Cottagers were one goal to the good but it could have been plenty more.
The visitors went ahead early on. Mario Lemina played a ball into Aleksandar Mitrovic’s feet and the big forward set Bobby Decordova-Reid in on goal down the right. The wideman finished with ease.
There should have been more. The goalscorer ran through again in pretty much an identical position but this time hit the post.
Ademola Lookman also had justifiable claims for a penalty turned down.
Allardyce showed he was worried, making a change midway through the half – although it was his second switch at the break that changed the game, Diagne immediately putting Fulham’s defence under pressure.
Their equaliser came within two minutes of the restart. Kieran Gibbs played a short pass inside
POINT MADE: Cavaleiro gets the Cottagers’ crucial equaliser to Matheus Pereira and the playmaker’s cross was deflected into the path of Kyle Bartley. The centre-half made no mistake.
Diagne then wriggled clear on the right and Pereira met his low cross at the near post, the ball squirming in via a deflection.
Parker made changes of his own. Substitutes Harrison Reed and Cavaleiro combined with the latter nodding home unmarked at the far post.
Parker said: “The game should have been out of sight at halftime. I thought we were fantastic – they had to make changes 20 minutes into the game.
“You can’t play any better than we did in that first half. It should have been three or fournil at half-time.”
WEST BROM: Johnstone 6; Ajayi 6,
Bartley 7, O’Shea 4 (Grant (23rd) 6) Furlong 6; Gallagher 6, Livermore 6, (Phillips 83rd) Pereira 7, Snodgrass
6, Gibbs 5; Robinson 5. (Diagne
(46th), 7)
FULHAM: Areola 6; Aina 6 (Tete
81st) Andersen 7, Adarabioyo
6, Robinson 6; Aunguissa
8, Lemina 7 (Reed (72nd)
6), Decordova-Reid 6
(Cavaleiro (72nd) 7);
Loftus-Cheek 7,
Lookman 6,
Mitrovic 6
STAR MAN:
Fulham’s next game:
GOOD MBAYE: Diagne starred for the Baggies