Fulham fights back to beat Arsenal in EPL

LONDON: Fulham denied Arsenal the opportunity to end the year top of the Premier League after it fought back from a goal down to claim a 2-1 win on Sunday. Bukayo Saka’s early goal was cancelled out by Raul Jimenez before Bobby De Cordova-Reid’s second-half strike ended the host’s three-match losing streak.

Fulham rose to 13th in the table with 24 points after 20 matches. Arsenal, which was top of the table on Christmas day, has ended the year fourth after going winless in its last three matches.

The visitor started the match on the front-foot and found the breakthrough just five minutes in as Gabriel Martinelli ran into the box from the left and went for the finish. Fulham keeper Bernd Leno’s diving parry denied Martinelli, but the ball went to Saka who finished from close range.

The host was unshaken by the early setback and continued to build pressure, which paid off near the half-hour mark as Tom Cairney’s cross from the left flank was met by Jimenez for a swift finish, restoring parity.

Marco Silva’s side maintained the momentum into the second half and took the lead near the hour-mark, when Andreas Pereira’s corner created a scramble in the Arsenal box before De Cordova-Reid fired it into the net.

Fulham almost scored its third when Pereira’s late free kick rattled the crossbar. The result marked the first time Fulham won a game after going a goal down in 24 league matches.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said it was “a sad day” to see his team end the year on two straight losses.

RESULT: Fulham 2 (Jimenez 29, De Cordova-Reid 59) bt Arsenal 1 (Saka 5)