Player Ratings: Burnley 2-3 Fulham

We take a closer look at Fulham's triumphant away day against Scott Parker's Burnley

Hallaluah! The 74-year curse at Turf Moor has finally ended as we’ve got Marco Silva, so Jeff off Scotty Parker. It’s so much nicer writing after Fulham’s triumphant win, rather than in my last column following that atrocious Everton performance.

That makes it two back-to-back away wins for the Whites. Let’s take a look at that electric performance, as we hope to continue these away-day vibes going into our quarter-final at St James’ Park on Wednesday.

Bernd Leno

Despite conceding twice, Leno put on a superb performance against Burnley, stopping three one-on-one opportunities with convincing saves by making himself big, as well as three extra divings saves to deny Burnley and extinguish any hope they had for the majority of the game. I’m still looking for a bit more of a commanding presence when it comes to incoming corners, but tonight he was a big part of our victory, besting the 2.96 of expected goals on target to concede. 8/10

Kenny Tete

A pretty average performance from Kenny for the standards he’s set. Unusually for him, he found himself dribbled past on three separate occasions, losing more ground duels than he won. His highlight of the game for me was barging the Burnley defender out of the path of Smith Rowe for that superbly worked first Fulham goal - straight off the training ground! 6/10

Joachim Andersen

A fierce match-long battle with Armando Broja saw the young Albanian centre-forward eating Andersen’s dust! This is where Joachim thrives, a less speed-based fight and more based in strength, awareness and intellect. Great defensive contributions and ball distribution to match as usual, a really positive display from our​​ Danish captain. 6.5/10

Calvin Bassey

Calvin bossed and bullied his way across the entire pitch today, you could make an entire highlight reel for the season in those 90 minutes as he took no prisoners. Crowned his performance with an almighty header from Wilson’s deft cross and would have had two if he didn’t completely lose composure at the last moment, where he should have set up his team-mates, but I love the intention and drive. It’s clear he and Jedi need to work on some positional awareness and discipline when you look back at the two goals conceded, but hopefully that will be re-instilled with more gametime together. 7.5/10

Antonee Robinson

Such a hot and cold performance and this may divide the fanbase a little, but overall i’m going positive with this one. There’s no denying Robinson had a bad first half defensively, forcing a save out of Leno by passing the ball straight to the Burnley striker, poorly marking the wrong man for their first goal and some questionable marking at the back post for the second. However, he won the corner for Fulham’s first goal with good attacking intent, and played a superb long through ball to Wilson for the second, with really positive playmaking. His athleticism and aggression going forward adds a huge threat to our attack and pinned Burnley back into their own half on a number of occasions which we’ve lacked so much this season. I’m giving him some grace on his first start for a long time after that injury. 7/10

Sander Berge

I really enjoyed this centre midfield partnership again and Sander’s return to Turf Moor was a haunting experience for the home fans. It’ll be no surprise to Fulham fans that Berge was the most accurate passer in the match with 93%, helping us to grasp the play, dominate possession and out-parkerball Scott Parker… with the added intent and flair of Silva to make it actually count, while being able to enjoy some sexy flicks and tricks. Played a superb through ball to Wilson who was unlucky not to do better, also some brilliant playmaking to setup the brilliant counter-attack which led to Fulham’s third match-winning goal. 7.5/10

Alex Iwobi

Despite having a quieter performance compared to his fellow Nigerian teammates who he will be jetting off to Morocco with for AFCON, his understated display exuded class, composure and control, with silky touches and passages of play safeguarding the ball in the middle of the pitch alongside Berge. In this particular match the combination worked and the gameplan was executed very well. It’ll be interesting to see what happens on his return in the middle of the pitch and whether this becomes the default for Fulham going forward. 7/10

Emile Smith Rowe

This is it, right? The player we’ve been holding our breaths for since our record-breaking signing was made has finally emerged this season. His positional awareness, intelligent runs, pinpoint passing, pressing and end product seem to have finally materialised. Today was another comprehensive performance, topped off with that fantastic first goal as he lost the entire Burnley defense with his great run from the corner to calmly slot it home for our opener. Minus one dreadful back-pass in the second half, which forced Leno into another one-on-one save, this was a superb outing. In my opinion, he’s the man who should be owning that starting berth in central attacking midfield for the rest of the season. 7.5/10

Samuel Chukwueze

While I’m looking forward to seeing Kevin take his opportunity, we’re going to miss this man so much during AFCON. His confidence and competence in possession is astounding, as he demands control of the ball in dangerous positions while having the cahunas to take players on, coupled with the ability to actually beat them. His on-the-ball prowess meant he drew numerous free kicks for Fulham, and the well-worked counter attack saw Samu earn another fully-deserved assist to set up Harry Wilson for the winner. Can be criticised for misplacing key passes on four separate occasions, including a criminally heavy through ball to Iwobi, but overall massively positive and filling me with hope for the season. 7.5/10

Harry Wilson

Unplayable. The thought that we nearly let him transfer to Leeds United on deadline day is now a harrowing one as Harry is in the form of his life, which we started to see glimpses of last season. His direct involvement in every goal this match with two assists and his scintillating strike into the bottom corner is testament to his ability and fanatical form. He deserves his moment in the limelight and I hope he grasps it with both hands, as one of Fulham’s longest serving players, it’s a genuine pleasure to see that smile on his face. I’m not saying he is single-handedly saving Fulham’s season but… just thank you Harry. Wow. 9.5/10 - man of the Match

Raul Jimenez

Not a ‘Raully’ strong outing today from the Mexican, at least not in an attacking perspective. Positionally he was all over the pitch, making some excellent defensive contributions and link up play. But ultimately never looked like scoring, and as per usual when that 70-minute mark hit he looked finished. I’m not knocking his work rate, it’s just when you don’t have a single shot or win any aerial duels, you’re not going to have much impact. 6/10

Substitutes

Sasa Lukic

Came on for Iwobi in the middle of the pitch and threw himself about. Provided a good amount of energy and aggression to have an impact and was a key factor in helping us to see out the game. 6.5/10

Josh King

Raul needed to come off, but watching Josh play upfront against Burnley’s big centre-backs was nothing short of tragic, even if it was short-lived. He couldn’t get a sniff of the long balls when they were played his way as he just doesn’t have the physicality to compete. Much improved when Adama was brought on and he played back in his natural position, began linking up play and getting involved defensively. 5.5/10

Adama Traore and Timothy Castagne brought on during the 86th minute.

Marco Silva

This match was an excellent display of how Silva-ball is superior to Parker-ball and Marco managed the game almost perfectly. The setup was strong, as there was a distinct intensity to Fulham’s play throughout the whole match and the intention to attack with potency seemed ever-present. I appreciated that Silva didn’t jump into unnecessary early substitutions while we maintained momentum, waiting until the 77th minute to begin making changes, which worked reasonably well.

There’s still a lot of work to be done to reduce the amount of chances and goals we’re conceding, but I’m hoping with Robbo back, with a bit of gametime, we might start to see those stats improve over time. In a fairytale world where the Khan’s back Silva in the transfer window early January in an attempt to secure his services, we could see Fulham’s season take a turn in the right direction. If we can make it to the League Cup semi-final after Wednesday, the narrative of our season could shift too. Perhaps I’m a little too optimistic, but what’s supporting Fulham without a little hope? 8.5/10