Fulham v Villa player ratings

Mark Schwarzer: 7
Rarely called into action by a fairly blunt Villa attack but did everything asked of him and was a commanding presence inside his penalty area.

Sascha Riether: 7
A willing worker from full-back. Found plenty of space but couldn’t deliver the telling crosses when it mattered.

Aaron Hughes: 7
Immense at the back for Northern Ireland against Ronaldo and co in midweek, the ex-Villa player had an easier time of it against his former employers although there were some nervy moments in the closing stages as Fulham defended their lead.

Brede Hangeland: 7
Composed at the back as ever. He and Hughes kept Darren Bent quiet. Had a tougher time against Gabby Agbonlahor but the fact Schwarzer was under-employed underlines the good work Hangeland and the rest of the defence put in.

John Arne Riise: 8
The Norwegian will have earned a Saturday night in front of the TV following an afternoon of non-stop running. Aside from Dimitar Berbatov, he was Fulham’s main attacking outlet and Villa’s diamond midfield meant he was unopposed until he reached right-back Matthew Lowton.

Hugo Rodallega: 6
Subdued in an unfamiliar wide-right role. Pressed into action in that position after the withdrawal due to illness of Damien Duff. Rarely saw the ball in the second half and sliced a shot horribly wide just after the restart.

Chris Baird: 7
Capped a solid performance on his 200th career league appearance with a late goal – only his third for the club. Provided a defensive screen in the first half but was perhaps guilty of recycling possession too slowly in the second half.

Steve Sidwell: 6
A low-key display against his old club. Gave the ball away too often, particularly in the second half when Villa began to flood the midfield. Blazed a shot over when he would have wanted to hit the target.

Kieran Richardson: 6
Overshadowed first by the overlapping Riise, who provided a much greater threat from the flanks, and then by his replacement Ashkan Dejagah.

Mladen Petric: 7
Dangerous in the first half but faded in the second, and was replaced by midfielder Mahamadou Diarra when boss Martin Jol felt he and Berbatov were not linking well together.

Dimitar Berbatov: 7
A focal point for the attack, particularly in the first 20 minutes when he threatened to take apart the Villa defence on his own. Dropped too deep in the second half as he went looking for the ball and would’ve earned a higher mark with a goal, or at least a greater goal threat.

Mahamadou Diarra: 7
As Jol said afterwards, his introduction improved Fulham’s use of the ball in midfield. Used his strength and experience to manoeuvre the ball out of the congested central area and to the flanks.

Ashkan Dejagah: 7
An improvement on Richardson’s ineffective display despite only playing 20 minutes on his Fulham debut. Before Baird’s winner, he came closest of all the players to breaking the deadlock in the second half, Guzan tipping his effort over.

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