Fulham’s FA Cup dream is over after falling to a humbling 3-0 defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace in their quarter-final on Saturday.
Marco Silva’s charges had been on top early on in the Craven Cottage clash, but a moment of magic from Eberechi Eze put the Eagles a goal up on 34 minutes.
The Crystal Palace winger cut inside his marker and, while still outside the box, curled in an effort which found the bottom-left corner of the Fulham net.
Four minutes later, Oliver Glasner’s side went two up thanks to an Ismalia Sarr header set up by Eze, who broke away past Sander Berge on the left flank.
Ally McCoist shared his honest thoughts on Berge after the Fulham midfielder was beaten by Eze close to the touchline for the second goal in the FA Cup tie.
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Ally McCoist says Fulham’s Sander Berge should have closed Eberechi Eze down more quickly
McCoist, reacting to the goal on ITV commentary, said he believed Berge should have been quicker in closing Eze down.
“I might be critical here of Berge but he’s got to close him down earlier,” McCoist said of the £25million midfielder.
“We see the pass to Eze here, Berge has got to get out to him. He’s got to get out to him quicker, he can’t allow him to come in like that.
“Sarr makes a brilliant run, he’s not picked up in the centre of the pitch but he makes a great run to the front post area and comes in front of [Calvin] Bassey.
“It’s a lovely ball. Maybe I’m slightly over critical of Berger but he’s got to get him in a wide area and force him back.
“He allows him to come inside to make the cross. That said, brilliant run from Sarr and a wonderful headed goal.”
Eddie Nketiah than wrapped up the scoring in the 75th minute for a comprehensive Palace win against Silva’s side.
How Sander Berge fared for Fulham against Crystal Palace
Berge was actually one of Fulham’s better players on the day, aside from the moment leading up to Sarr’s goal.
He worked hard in midfield, did well in possession and even produced a neat flick to send Alex Iwobi away down the left in the second half.
| Sander Berge stats v Palace | |
| Touches | 87 |
| Accurate passes | 71/76 (93%) |
| Key passes | 2 |
| Long balls (acc.) | 3 (2) |
| Ground duels (won) | 5 (5) |
| Aerial duels (won) | 1 (1) |
| Clearances | 1 |
| Interceptions | 1 |
| Total tackles | 3 |
Berge was accurate in his passing, won all of the duels he contested on the day, and chipped in with three tackles, an interception and a clearance.
Fulham are next in action on Tuesday night when they face Arsenal away in the Premier League.
