Andreas Pereira nets brace as Fulham win at West Ham

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Andreas Pereira found the net twice, leading Fulham to a rare victory over West Ham in the Premier League.

Despite a shaky start, Fulham seized an early advantage when Konstantinos Mavropanos failed to clear Alex Iwobi’s tricky delivery into the box. Pereira capitalized on the error, skillfully evading Lukasz Fabianski before calmly slotting the ball into the net.

The Brazilian midfielder extended the visitors’ lead by tapping in from close range at London Stadium.

This win marks Fulham’s first Premier League victory at West Ham since 2001. It also completes their league double over the Hammers, a feat not achieved since the 1965-66 season, propelling them to 12th place in the table.

Despite the loss, David Moyes’ West Ham side failed to enhance their European qualification prospects by surpassing Newcastle and Manchester United into sixth place.

The match witnessed a prolonged halt just before the end of regular time due to a serious head injury suffered by George Earthy. The 19-year-old, making his league debut for West Ham, collided with teammate Edson Alvarez, resulting in a distressing moment. After receiving medical attention for approximately seven minutes, Earthy was stretchered off the field and substituted by Maxwel Cornet.

Pereira punishes West Ham

It feels like a distant memory since Fulham secured a commanding 5-0 victory over West Ham in the previous encounter at Craven Cottage back in December.

The goals had dried up for the Cottagers in recent weeks, but following Pereira’s early goal, there was a sense that they could rediscover their scoring touch.

Pereira remained a constant threat throughout the match, coming close with two half-volleys in the first half before ultimately converting Iwobi’s pass to double the visitors’ lead.

Rodrigo Muniz also posed a significant threat, but despite his impressive form with four goals in his last four games, he was unable to find the back of the net against Fabianski, who thwarted three of his attempts.

Securing three points against West Ham provides Marco Silva’s team with a glimmer of hope, narrowing the gap to seventh place in the table—the final guaranteed European qualification spot—to eight points.