LONDON — After the softest of finishes at Stamford Bridge – two goals from Harry Wilson at the death turned a West London derby in Brentford’s favor – Fulham sit remarkably high in the Premier League. It’s not just that they are ninth. The top four are only three points away. Newcastle and Manchester United sit in the rearview mirror. As Frankie Valli resonated around SW6, you couldn’t take your eyes off Fulham.
At the center of this rise and the exciting events of Monday night was Antonee Robinson. Harry Wilson will grab the headlines for his brilliant brace, particularly a 93rd minute equalizer that will surely be in the running for goal of the season, but it’s fair to wonder whether Brentford’s normally excellent rearguard was worn down by a pinned left flank by the American International.
From the start, Robinson and the former Arsenal duo of Emile Smith Rowe and Reiss Nelson glided alongside him, dragging the Brentford defense to the touchline with wide overloads designed to create a route for one of the three to break through. would slide in a direct pass. Twice it was Robinson who offered that killer shot, each of his teammates denying him only with good defensive coverage within the first 17 minutes.
It was no surprise to see two Hale End children knitting patterns they have been working on since they barely left primary school. Robinson, however, has spent most of this season with Alex Iwobi ahead of him. He didn’t seem to miss a beat. He remained the man who could do it all for Fulham. Nobody had so many touches. Nobody launched more crosses, even if his teammates had to wait until the 98th minute for one to land on their heads, Harry Wilson’s goal was worth the wait for the home fans. Only Nelson surpassed Robinson in expected possession value of passes, only Smith Rowe in chances created, only Iwobi in expected assists. In almost every attacking metric you can imagine, the Fulham left-back was at or near the top.
That the equalizer came from Fulham’s right perhaps spoke to a Brentford defense that had been putting too much into repelling the threat on the opposite flank, where 1.12 of the Cottagers’ expected 1.55 assists came from. When a flick of Wilson’s left calf broke the bloody Brentford, Craven Cottage knew there was something left in this contest. .
Robinson then sent in a right-footed cross, Wilson’s shoulder went off and Fulham were rewarded for a game they had dominated before and after Vitaly Janelt’s shot. In the center of that domain, his left back.
But here’s the thing. Robinson absolutely could have been forgiven for a quiet night offensively. After all, he was facing one of the most intimidating assignments for a left back in the league. It has been a thankless task this season trying to stop Brentford’s star striker Bryan Mbuemo. No matter what the circumstances are, no matter how the day goes, he will get his shot and there is a good chance it will end in a goal. However, not when he’s paired with Robinson.
For the first time this season, Mbeumo finished a Premier League match without a shot to his name. The duels had not gone the way he wanted, Robinson had suffocated him. One of the fittest strikers in the league barely even sniffed.
Marco Silva’s first inclination is to give credit to the collective and rightly so. Kenny Tete was no less effective against Keane Lewis-Potter and in front of the back four Sander Berge was winning possession at a remarkable rate. Brentford would finish this match with just five shots and 0.59 xG. They would have gotten better numbers at Tottenham and Manchester City.
“We played sixty or seventy percent of the time in our offensive half,” Silva said. “Not giving any chance not only to Mbeumo, Lewis-Potter, [Yoanne] Wissa, [Mikkel] Damsgaard also behind the striker. We didn’t give them any chance to make a dangerous counterattack. Our reaction when we lost the ball was top-notch. Our balance was always there.
“It was Brentford’s fifth game away from home, they have played against Manchester United, City, Tottenham and Liverpool, I think away from home. If you look at those games, they have always been creating opportunities, they have always been a threat in the attacking line .Tonight we kept them very calm, we didn’t give them anything to create opportunities other than [one Carvalho] chance.
“We didn’t give anything for them.”
Silva may not want to cherry-pick people, but hey, we’re an American publication. And this is a special American international. Monday might have been the best version of Robinson, but he’s not far above the levels he’s been hitting since at least the start of last season. That’s enough time for it to be fair to call him what he is: one of the best players in his position in the Premier League, at the very least. It is no surprise then that Fulham are enjoying such a brilliant start to the season.
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