Emile Smith Rowe scores on his home debut as Fulham sink Leicester
Emile Smith Rowe scored on his home debut as Fulham claimed a 2-1 win over Leicester at Craven Cottage.
Smith Rowe opened his Premier League account for the Cottagers with a placed finish in the 18th minute.
Despite losing their lead when Leicester’s Wout Faes equalised with a header, Fulham bounced back from last week’s late defeat at Manchester United with a winner from Alex Iwobi earning them their first three points of the season.
Fulham found their groove early on through Adama Traore, who pulled the strings on the right. The rapid wide-man forced goalkeeper Mads Hermansen into action with a driven shot with his left foot towards the bottom right corner before he created another chance with a deft reversed pass moments later.
Traore’s first season in west London was marred through injury but he is now fit and looked eager to impress manager Marco Silva, with the early signs suggesting he is an adequate replacement for the departed Willian.
His quality start to the match continued when he was instrumental in Fulham’s opening goal.
Traore drifted into the midfield where he skipped past two players before slipping through Smith Rowe. The attacking midfielder showed composure in a one-v-one scenario, placing his effort into the corner to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.
Fulham’s bright start was undone when a misplaced pass by Calvin Bassey put his side under pressure before Leicester equalised from the subsequent corner in the 38th minute.
Brighton loanee Facundo Buonanotte delivered a wonderfully curled inswinging corner which met the head of defender Faes, who powered his effort into the bottom left-hand corner to make it 1-1.
The goal was originally ruled out for offside but referee Darren Bond was sent to the monitor and