Fulham Hands Newcastle First Loss of the Season

Raul Jimenez (center) has netted two goals in his last two Premier League matches for Fulham.

Fulham halted Newcastle United’s unbeaten start with a determined performance, denying them the chance to take the top spot in the Premier League. Fulham took an early lead through Raul Jimenez’s sharp finish just 44 seconds after Newcastle’s Joelinton had a goal disallowed for offside. Emile Smith Rowe, a summer signing then doubled Fulham’s lead with a low shot that slipped under goalkeeper Nick Pope.

Newcastle showed signs of life at the start of the second half when Harvey Barnes scored just 28 seconds in. However, despite increasing their attacking threat, the Magpies failed to equalize. Fabian Schar came closest, hitting the side-netting after seizing on a poor pass from Fulham’s keeper Bernd Leno. Fulham had chances to extend their lead but ultimately secured the victory in stoppage time.

Reiss Nelson capitalized on a poor clearance from Newcastle’s Bruno Guimarães to seal the win. With this win, Fulham climbed to eighth in the Premier League while Newcastle dropped to sixth. Smith Rowe’s performance was particularly noteworthy, as he made a significant impact after transferring from Arsenal. His goal came from a clever one-two with Alex Iwobi and he expressed confidence in his form.

Fulham’s manager, Marco Silva praised his team’s first-half performance emphasizing their need for clinical finishing after previous missed opportunities this season. Newcastle’s coach, Eddie Howe acknowledged their slow start and lack of cohesion in the first half, prompting him to make changes at halftime. Despite showing improvement, Newcastle couldn’t secure another late equalizer.

This loss meant they missed the opportunity to remain unbeaten in their opening five league matches for the first time since the 2011-12 season.