Fulham boss Scott Parker has blamed his players for not being “on the road enough” as their fears of a sharp decline followed Aston Villa’s defeat.
The Cottagers were on their way to a rally in Newcastle into 17th place when Aleksandar Mitrovic made a mistake with Tyrone Mings’ mistake of dismissing the top visitors from Villa Park.
However, substitute Trezeguet scored two goals as Villa scored three in the last 12 minutes. They were leaving Fulham with three points in safety.
“From time to time in this game, you have to understand where you are and what you need. And we didn’t handle that,” said Parker.
“Sometimes you need to panic, play the game in the right place.”
“We were a small team but were irrational and made stupid mistakes. After the first goal, we gave up our momentum, and it affected us a lot. And we couldn’t go on the road enough.”
Fulham was a valuable asset in their lead before taking the reins.
Mings, who captained Villa in the absence of Jack Grealish, interrupted an attempt to get back at Emiliano Martinez, allowing Mitrovic to come in, around the goalkeeper to score.
However, Mings made amends for giving Trezeguet a cross to equalize for the first time before the Egyptian midfielder scored the second goal. Three minutes later, with teammate Keinan Davis’s help.
England striker Ollie Watkins added a third within the six-yard line.
At half-time, the game was 0-0. Villa thought they had won a penalty when Watkins came down under Mario Lemina’s challenge.
However, referee Andy Madley ruled himself out after watching the replay on the pitchside episode.
Trezeguet encourages late Villa to prosper.
With the encouraging Greek captain’s expectation for the seventh straight game, Villa looks to be in a position where they are just behind in an hour.
Dean Smith had hoped to welcome Grealish to a skin injury. But a return to training the day before the game shattered the Villa manager’s plans.
Villa had a problem without the England midfielder. Moreover, they have won just one of their last six games.
And they were looking for another disappointing result until Trezeguet had got sent off just before Mitrovic put Fulham ahead.
He scored two goals in the space of three minutes to turn the game over in his head. And before playing the third goal by setting up Bertrand Traore, who skipped Watkins to score.
With a trip to Liverpool and a home game against Manchester City, this has been an excellent return to winning ways.
After advancing to 44 points after 29 games, 18 more than they had in the same category last season. Villa has just five points from the European standings.
They will hope that Grealish will be back for next weekend’s tour at Anfield. But have at least proved it against Fulham that they can succeed without their valuable assets.
Fulham’s biggest hit
Newcastle was failing to win earlier this Sunday again. The game represented Fulham’s best chance of getting out of the bottom three held since December 2020.
It looked like it would be planning for the visitors when Mitrovic scored.
Promoted to the first team after scoring five goals in three World Cup qualifiers in Serbia, the former Newcastle player apologized for his inclusion.
But Fulham, not for the first time this season, failed to see the game over, with Villa scoring three goals in the space of nine minutes to clear the game.
Only Southampton (18) and Brighton (17) have conceded more points in the Premier League win this season than Parker.
With three points, Fulham remains in the defensive zone with seven games left. Including a home game against Manchester United. On a trip to Arsenal and Chelsea, Fulham is in big trouble.
Their last game of the season, at home against Newcastle on May 23, already looks like it could be crucial. But Parker has to make sure Fulham is in a position to stay unexpected at that point.
Substitutes have changed for us, team Aston Villa said
Aston Villa manager Dean Smith: “It’s an outstanding achievement, a win full of character in the end. We believe we have a good squad.
“It was 20 minutes ago anyway. Sometimes you need players to impact the bench. And these three who came undoubtedly did that and enhanced our performance.
“The subscribers changed the game for us. Trezeguet came and did what I asked him to do – he made an impact. He’s been unlucky sometimes this season, and I’m very happy for him.”
Fulham manager Scott Parker: “I thought we were influential enough in this game. But 15 minutes ago, I wouldn’t say I liked it at all. And it’s something we will need to fix.
“We need to be honestly honest. The last 15 minutes are not something we can brush under the carpet. If we do it again, we will not win football matches.
“The games now are getting tighter and faster as there are now seven left.
