Fulham’s clinical thrashing of Peterborough in their third round FA Cup clash was a credit to their consistency, manager Mark Hughes said.
The Cottagers boss has been under pressure this season, but after back-to-back wins, Hughes said the 6-2 win can propel them into form in the Premier League, in which they are 14th.
“We’re playing well at the moment and it’s important that we have continuity to our performances and selection,” Hughes said.
“That was the thinking behind it. We’ve got plenty of time to recover before the next game as well, so I was pleased.”
The seventh-placed League One side tested Hughes’ men early, forcing saves from Fulham shot-stopper David Stockdale, but a Diomansy Kamara hat-trick, and goals to Dickson Etuhu, Zoltan Gera and Jonathan Greening ensured a rampant victory to the top flight club.
Hughes said if not for Stockdale heroics to deny the lower division club early on, the game may have taken a different dynamic.
“If they’d produced then, it could have been a different day,” Hughes said.
“It’s always important to go in with the right mindset when you go up against lower-league opposition.”
“There are historically many examples of teams that have underestimated lower opposition and we weren’t going to allow that to happen to us.”
“We’ve got a big game next week away (at Wigan), so it’s important we go into that game on a positive note, which we certainly have done with today’s performance.”
Peterborough manager Gary Johnson said the class difference between the two sides was evident in the score line.
“I thought we gave a Premier League side a problem, scored two goals in front of our fans. They were magnificent, so I was pleased that we gave them something to cheer about,” Johnson said.
“It was their (Fulham’s) clinical finishing and their power and pace when they get into your defending half.”
“To be fair to them, the two wide men and the two strikers were fantastic on the day. We’re just not at that level yet.”
Sun 9 January, 2011
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