A disappointed Greg Morley reports from the away end at Craven Cottage…
Coupled with Charlton Athletic’s bland 1-0 loss to Bournemouth the previous weekend, their 3-0 defeat away to Fulham in front of the Sky cameras on Friday night has given the side a major cause for concern.
Wind back six months to when I found myself in the away end at Brighton on the back of another 3-0 drubbing. The result was bad enough, but it was the sheer lack of goalscoring threat that made the match so unbearable to view. Managed by Jose Riga at the time, Charlton were barely averaging a goal every two games at times, and there was a sense of inevitability amongst the supporters that if we conceded first, the game was over. It was an uncomfortable acceptance that the club’s fans had for much of the second half of last season, and the Craven Cottage experience on Friday evening smacked of deja vu.
Admittedly, with star man Igor Vetokele missing through injury and suspension to Yoni Buyens, taking points back to the Valley was always going to be an uphill task. The challenge was made doubly difficult by the rapid improvement Fulham had been making since sacking Felix Magath.
It would have been hard to imagine Bob Peeters saying anything other than to keep the game tight in the opening exchanges, with the home side sure to come out all guns blazing.
Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened.
Just six minutes on the clock and Scott Parker, of all people, was given space from six yards out to blast his shot in off the underside of the crossbar.
The worst possible start was then followed up on 12 minutes when Hugo Rodallega capitalised on a number of defensive mistakes to make it 2-0 to the Cottagers.
For all of Charlton’s work ethic and possession second half, it was an inability to regularly test the Fulham keeper that made the night so torturous. Moments of hope were shunned by a misplaced pass or ill-discipline in the final third. The best chance was a header by Johnnie Jackson which Bettinelli did well to palm away for a corner.
There was a strange feeling of ‘same old story’ with the third goal. Hugo Rodallega calmly slotted home in the final moments to add gloss to their victory. He was simply never going to miss, it was probably their first shot on target of the second half.
The full-time whistle could not come quick enough after that third goal, and hopes must now shift to this Saturday’s match at home to Sheffield Wednesday. A scrappy 1-0 victory will suffice; there’s little hope for a completely free-scoring Charlton just yet.