Fulham fell to a 2-1 defeat against title contenders Manchester City on Sunday afternoon.
Erling Haaland despatched a penalty in the third minute, before Carlos Vinicius equalised just 12 minutes later but it was the goal from Julian Alvarez that decided where the points went on the day.
Marco made just two changes from the side that faced Aston Villa on Tuesday evening, with Bobby De Cordova-Reid and Carlos Vinicius coming in for Manor Solomon and Dan James.
It was a fast and dramatic start to the game, with referee Simon Hooper awarding a second minute penalty to the away side, which was ruthlessly put away by Erling Haaland.
What followed was a good spell of possession from Fulham, which eventually led to our equaliser in the 15th minute, when Andreas chipped in a delightful ball towards Harry Wilson, who had split between the City defence, before heading it down for Carlos Vinicius to smash home into the back of the net.
In the 21st minute however, Tim Ream was forced off the pitch after suffering what looked to be a nasty injury to his arm. Issa Diop came on in his place.
City looked dangerous down their left flank through Jack Grealish, who rifled a shot at goal in the 27th minute but Bernd Leno got enough behind it to save it impressively onto the crossbar.
In a period of the game where neither side seemed to be on top, Julian Alvarez pulled off an emphatic strike out of nothing to give the away side the lead once again.
We looked dangerous again towards the end of the first half, with a flurry of corners to see us out before the referee’s whistle.
The second half started with a poignant tribute for Fulham fan Lisa Hughes, who sadly passed away earlier in the week. The entire stadium joined together in clapping for the entirety of the 46th minute, as a mark of respect for someone truly considered one of our own.
The afternoon became more difficult for us when Andreas went down after a clash with Manuel Akanji, that saw Andreas eventually stretchered off the field.
Fulham continued their efforts and had a strong shout for a penalty when Kyle Walker appeared to pull Bobby to the floor. The referee waved away the appeals however.
It was a valiant effort from Marco’s men against tough opposition but City were able to grab three more points in their hunt for the title.
