FA Cup: Fulham destroy Spurs at Craven Cottage
Fulham 4-0 Tottenham Hotspur
Four goals in the first half gave Fulham a stunning victory over ten-man Tottenham Hotspur at Craven Cottage.
Two penalties from Danny Murphy and further strikes from Brede Hangeland and Moussa Dembele before the break sealed a comfortable win over Harry Redknapp’s side, who had Michael Dawson sent off for a professional foul on Clint Dempsey early in the first half.
The hosts took the lead after 11 minutes when Danny Murphy converted from the spot after Alan Hutton had brought down Clint Dempsey with a reckless challenge.
Murphy doubled Fulham’s lead four minutes later with another penalty, this time after Dempsey had been hauled back by Michael Dawson while through on goal, an offence that earned Dawson a straight red card.
With Spurs down to ten men, the Cottagers sought to hammer home their advantage and they did just that after 23 minutes when big defender Brede Hangeland controlled Andy Johnson’s flick on and finished to the net to end the game as a contest with more than two thirds of the clash remaining.
Three became four on the stroke of half time when Fulham striker Moussa Dembele ran at the Spurs defence and produced an accomplished low finish.
The pace of the game dropped dramatically in the second period as Fulham were content to sit on their lead, while Spurs struggled to cope with being a man down.
Fulham looked the more likely to score once more after the break, but neither side could find the net and Mark Hughes’ side eased through to the last eight, where they will face the winners of Bolton and Wigan, who played out a 0-0 draw at the Reebok Stadium on Saturday.
