Fulham Vs. Manchester United Match Result Report

Despite twice taking the lead, through Paul Scholes' 150th club goal and a Brede Hangeland own-goal, United were held to a frustrating draw at Craven Cottage.

A bright start from the Reds was rewarded with a powerful long-range strike from the veteran midfielder, but Fulham manfully rode out the storm, clawed their way back into the game and equalised when Davies converted Damien Duff's low cross.

In a breathless finish to the afternoon, Hangeland struck twice from corners in the space of five minutes; first deflecting home Nani's centre to put United back into the lead, then powerfully heading in a 90th-minute leveller for the hosts. Irritatingly for United, the Norwegian's pair bookended a missed penalty from Nani which would have sealed victory.

As Wayne Rooney was left in Manchester to recover from a virus, Sir Alex Ferguson retained a 4-4-2 formation, and paired Chicharito with Dimitar Berbatov. The only other change from the side which overcame Newcastle was the introduction of Ji-sung Park, who took the place of Nani on the left wing.

Even without the injured Mark Schwarzer in goal, Fulham's line-up - also in 4-4-2 - appeared more than capable of testing United's will to avoid a third successive defeat at Craven Cottage.

The hosts were on the back foot early on as United popped passes around with conviction, but struggled to find a route through the Cottagers' well-drilled stand-in stopper was helpless to prevent United taking the lead from the ensuing corner.

Antonio Valencia swapped passes with Park and fizzed a low cross into Berbatov. The Bulgarian's controlled layoff to Scholes was inch-perfect, as the onrushing veteran arced a powerful 25-yard effort through a cluster of bodies and beyond Stockdale.

Following on from magnificent play-making displays against Chelsea and Newcastle, Scholes' landmark - and trademark - goal was yet further evidence of his enduring excellence.

Fulham's response was one of defiance, as Simon Davies hooked a volley just over Edwin van der Sar's crossbar and Jonny Evans had to be alert to cut out Clint Dempsey's through-ball for Bobby Zamora, but United's play still carried a menacing edge.

Berbatov slipped below the hosts' radar time and again, dropping deep to collect and spread the ball, while Darren Fletcher governed central midfield with an all-action display. Stockdale was twice called into action by the Bulgarian, tipping away one powerful near-post effort and clutching a stinging 20-yarder into his midriff.

Still Fulham chipped away at United, however, and it took a breathtaking double save from van der Sar to preserve parity. Dempsey's fine through-ball found Dickson Etuhu, whose first shot was parried out by the Dutchman, while his Patrice Evra was left in Duff's wake by a neat piece of trickery on the right flank, and the winger sped towards goal before feeding Zamora. The latter's tantalising pull back into the middle of the area allowed Davies to slot home.

The goal was fully merited for Fulham's spirited, controlled display after a shaky start, and it was of no surprise that both teams harboured hopes of taking all three points in the remainder of the second period.

It was United who came closest to doing so, as Chicharito fired over from 20 yards and a Berbatov header deflected off Scholes, straight to Stockdale. Nani, Ryan Giggs and Michael Owen all entered the fray, at the expense of Park, Valencia and Chicharito, and Nani soon came close with a free-kick from the edge of the Fulham area.

Nemanja Vidic headed Giggs' corner narrowly wide as United cranked up the pressure, but a collective lapse in concentration allowed Zamora to fire wastefully wide when a square ball to Etuhu would have given the midfielder a simple conversion.

Soon enough a white-clad player was on target, but at the wrong end. As the Reds turned the screw, Nani's corner landed amid a cluster of bodies, struck Hangeland on the knee and ricocheted between Stockdale and substitute Jonathan Greening on the line.

If Fulham's sense of injustice was provoked by the slapstick nature of their alive.

The importance of that passage of play materialised in the final minute of normal time. The Cottagers equalised for a second time, as Duff's floated corner was emphatically headed home by Hangeland to cancel out his earlier mistake.

Fulham's spirit was worth a share of the spoils, but Sir Alex Ferguson and his players will share seething frustration at having twice surrendered the lead, and passed up a glorious chance to seal the points. Read more...

Fulham Vs. Manchester United Highlights Video Clip

Fulham [2 - 2] Manchester United
11' [0 - 1] P. Scholes
57' [1 - 1] S. Davies
84' [1 - 2] B. Hangeland (o.g.)
90' [2 - 2] B. Hangeland

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