Fulham into FA Cup fourth round as Adama Traore torments Watford

Marco Silva’s second string were too much for Tom Cleverley’s kids. Spearheaded by the incisive Adama Traoré and depth indicative of their Premier League status, Fulham beat Watford in a battle of heavily rotated teams to reach round four.

Also advancing are Everton, who defeated Peterborough United, of Sky Bet League One, 2-0 hours after sacking Sean Dyche and Cardiff City, who won 1-0 away to Sheffield United in an all-Championship tie.

Cleverley, 35, is a young head coach and his team at Craven Cottage were also youthful. They set up pragmatically and Rocco Vata, 19, scored a terrific equaliser but Fulham made it nine games unbeaten comfortably.

Silva, the Fulham head coach whose exit from Watford in 2018 was tempestuous owing to interest from Everton, got one over his former employers. With no relegation fears and a strong squad, Fulham winning their first FA Cup this season is unlikely but not unthinkable. Their only negative of the night was the half-time withdrawal of Rodrigo Muniz.

“He felt something in his back and it was impossible for him to come out for the second half,” Silva said. “We have to assess him tomorrow.”

Cleverley, the 12th permanent Watford head coach since Silva’s reign, is having a very solid first full season in the dugout but a fourth straight loss is hardly ideal at a club with notoriously impatient owners.

Everton sack Dyche hours before FA Cup tie

While both clubs are ninth in their respective divisions, the line-ups displayed clearly the disparity in depth between the Premier League and Championship. Three of the seven Watford players to come into the side from Saturday were 20 or under, meaning they had five such players in their XI.

Fulham also made seven changes but among those coming in were Traoré (capable of tormenting even the best defences) and Andreas Pereira (a Brazil international).

“If we were to have three or four injuries then we would be very thin,” Cleverley said. “I think the Premier League clubs have the luxury of losing three or four through injury and still have huge numbers of quality to pick from.”

The early stages featured some menace from Traoré and Watford’s back five defending resolutely. It was ironic, then, that a rare Watford chance led to their downfall.

After an effective press gave Tom Ince a sight of goal that was cut off by Joachim Andersen, Fulham ruthlessly exploited the space created by Watford’s advance. The ball was fed to Traoré on the right and his low cross was stroked home by Rodrigo Muniz.

Game over? Not quite. Almost inconceivably given the preceding balance of play, Watford levelled spectacularly seven minutes later. Vata turned into space and, greeted by passive defending, unleashed a rasping shot from 30 yards that found the net.

Despite losing Muniz at half-time, Fulham soon flexed their superior depth. Silva sent on Raúl Jiménez for Muniz and the Mexico striker’s impact was immediate. After Antonio Tikvic, 20, fouled Traoré just inside the area, Jiménez converted his third penalty in his past two appearances.

This time there would be no sensational Watford equaliser. Instead, Andersen volleyed in from the second ball of a corner and the tie appeared won in the 65th minute. In the 85th, Timothy Castagne’s header from Martial Godo’s cross eradicated any lingering doubt.

Fulham (4-3-3): S Benda 5 — T Castagne 7, J Andersen 6 (I Diop 67min, 6), J Cuenca 7, R Sessegnon 6 — A Pereira 7, S Lukic 6 (H Reed 77), E Smith Rowe 6 (J King 66, 6) — A Traoré 8, R Muniz 7 (R Jiménez 46, 8), A Iwobi 7 (M Godo 68, 7). Booked Cuenca.

Watford (5-4-1): J Bond 6 — R Andrews 7, R Porteous 6, A Ogbonna 5, A Tikvic 5, Y Larouci 5 — T Ince 6 (K Baah 67), E Kayembe 7, P Dwomoh 6 (L Louza 31, 6), R Vata 8 (G Chakvetadze 67, 6) — M Doumbia 5 (A Nabizada 89). Booked Kayembe.

Referee M Donohue.