Manchester City 2 Fulham 3

[Mighty T.A.L.]

As Sven Goran Eriksson and his deflated players embarked on a bizarre lap of honour, a team which deserved the plaudits remained in their dressing room to celebrate an escape act that will be all the more remarkable if they can use this win as a springboard to survival.

Fulham were down and out shortly after 4pm on Saturday.

They trailed Manchester City by two goals, while Birmingham and Bolton occupied winning positions. If manager Roy Hodgson had slumped any lower in his seat, he would have been waving his legs in the air.

Then Fulham's relegation rivals faltered and Diomansy Kamara was summoned off the bench to inspire a sensational comeback. As the Senegal striker fired the winner deep into injury time, Hodgson rose to his feet and raised his hands to the skies as if to give thanks for divine intervention.

Hodgson and his old friend Eriksson might not be the most animated managers in the Barclays Premier League, but the Fulham boss said: "That's why we're still working because we do have that passion, energy and enthusiasm.

"I try to behave in a more dignified fashion than perhaps I did 20 years ago, when I didn't only punch the air but I kicked every second ball that came over the touchline."

Hodgson's sense of perspective extends to Fulham's hopes of survival which, though boosted by the dramatic events at Eastlands, are still far from bright. Even if the London club win their final two games — a monumental match at home to Birmingham on Saturday and a trip to Portsmouth, who have an eye on the FA Cup Final — they must rely on results elsewhere.

"It won't be easy," said Hodgson. "It's all very well saying that if we win the last two we can stay up. I must remind myself and the players we've won only six all season."

He also refused to confirm that Kamara will be in the starting lineup against Birmingham, despite the substitute's heroics.

Fulham were behind to Stephen Ireland's wonderful opener and Benjani's close-range strike when Kamara replaced David Healy with less than half an hour remaining.

He took six minutes to embarrass keeper Joe Hart with a low shot through his legs. Danny Murphy equalised at the second attempt after Hart had saved his penalty, and the midfielder threaded the pass for Kamara to race free of a static defence to blast a late winner.

While Hodgson will have done his job prospects no harm in the eyes of Mohamed Al Fayed, Saturday's events will have given an edge to Eriksson's summit talks with owner Thaksin Shinawatra. Having indicated he would assess the Swede's position at the end of the season, the ex-Thai Prime Minister warned he will not go on a spending spree. This season's target is a top-10 place, he said. Next season is Europe, and a Champions League spot in year three.

"That is when I will be prepared to spend a lot of money to take us into the top four," said Thaksin, rather unconvincingly. "The message is this: I will not be spending huge amounts of money this summer but the following summer I will."

What bearing that has on Eriksson's shopping list remains to be seen. It could be argued that City's capitulation has strengthened Eriksson's case for new faces and yesterday he was involved in 'cordial discussions' with Thaksin, his advisors and chief executive Alistair Mackintosh at a Manchester hotel.

Yet the sight of Sven and his players completing a pathetic lap of honour to mark the final home game would not have filled the owner with great optimism.

Eriksson said after the defeat: "The really bad thing is that we showed we are not yet a great team capable of fighting for a Champions League place. If we want to take the next step then we need more players. It's important to know how much money we can spend this summer. As long as it's clear what's going to happen then everyone will be happy. This is about the future. But I don't need to speak about my future, Dr Thaksin does. I've a contract for two more years."

The Daily Mail

[Lemmy]

this is a embarassing result for Man City, but it gave Fulham a lot of hope. If only they played like this throughout the season