London, March 29 Crystal Palace secured their place in next month's Wembley final with a 3-0 victory over Fulham at Craven Cottage, repeating their earlier league win at the same venue this season. Three clinical goals from Ebere Eze, Ismaila Sarr, and Eddie Nketiah put the Eagles firmly in control, as they overcame a slow start to dominate the tie.
Oliver Glasner made a sole change to his side, with forward Jean-Philippe Mateta returning to the team and Nketiah dropping to the bench.
Fulham initially threatened with Rodrigo Muniz testing Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson early on, but his shot drifted wide. Palace struggled to assert themselves in the opening stages, with Fulham enjoying more possession, though they struggled to create clear-cut chances. A low shot from Joachim Anderson was blocked by Jefferson Lerma, and a follow-up corner was cleared.
Palace came close to breaking the deadlock through Jefferson Lerma’s long-range volley, which struck the crossbar. But it wasn’t long before the Eagles did take the lead. Eze latched onto a pass from Tyrick Mitchell and fired a low shot into the far corner past Fulham keeper Bernd Leno.
Just five minutes later, Eze was involved again, this time playing in Sarr, who headed the ball home to double Palace's advantage.
Fulham started the second half strongly, winning several corners, but Palace remained dangerous on the counter. Eze and Sarr combined well on a break, but Leno denied them a third goal.
Fulham made two attacking substitutions, with Emile Smith Rowe and Adama Traoré entering the fray, but Palace defended resolutely. A scramble in the box was cleared by Sarr, and in the 75th minute, Nketiah sealed the win with a composed finish after a brilliant pass from Daichi Kamada.
The victory saw Palace become the first team to reach the final four, with Nottingham Forest slated to play Brighton & Hove Albion later today. On Sunday Preston North End will host Aston Villa and Manchester City will be facing AFC Bournemouth.
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