Tottenham’s struggle for consistency persisted as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Fulham in a dramatic encounter at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Fulham captain Tom Cairney made a significant impact after coming off the bench, scoring a superb equaliser before being sent off for a reckless challenge on Dejan Kulusevski late in the game.
The match began with Fulham creating the better chances, but their profligacy and a series of saves from Spurs’ stand-in goalkeeper Fraser Forster kept the visitors at bay. Despite Fulham’s early dominance, Tottenham took the lead in the 54th minute. Brennan Johnson, displaying his clinical finishing, volleyed home his 10th goal of the season following a swift counter-attack.
Fulham, however, refused to back down and found their equaliser just 13 minutes later. Substitute Cairney, who had been introduced moments earlier for the fortunate Sasa Lukic—who escaped a second yellow for a foul on Heung-Min Son—fired a brilliant shot past Forster from Alex Iwobi’s pass. It was Cairney’s first Premier League goal in a year and his first away league goal in an astonishing 14 years.
The match turned controversial when Cairney, initially the hero, became the villain. In the 85th minute, VAR intervened to highlight a dangerous foul in which Cairney raked his studs down Kulusevski’s calf. Referee Darren Bond reviewed the incident and promptly showed the Fulham captain a red card, leaving Marco Silva’s side to defend with 10 men for the final five minutes of regulation time and seven minutes of added time.
Spurs pressed relentlessly in search of a winner, but Fulham, who had controlled large portions of the game and finished with more shots on target than their hosts, held firm. Bernd Leno made crucial saves to deny Son and Radu Dragusin in the first half, while James Maddison saw a free-kick deflect off the post.
Fulham might have taken the lead earlier, but Raul Jimenez squandered two excellent first-half opportunities. The Mexican striker’s heavy touch on one occasion and a miscued effort on another allowed Forster to preserve Spurs’ clean sheet until the second half.
The result leaves Tottenham fans frustrated, with boos ringing around the stadium at full-time. Spurs have now won just one of their five Premier League matches following Europa League fixtures, a worrying trend for Ange Postecoglou’s side. Missing key players like Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, and Dominic Solanke, Spurs looked disjointed and lacked their usual sharpness.
Tottenham now sit seventh in the table, three points off the top four, and must regroup quickly as they face Bournemouth on Thursday. Fulham, meanwhile, move up to 10th, just one point behind Spurs, as they continue to demonstrate resilience under Marco Silva despite their winless streak extending to four matches.
