You have to admire Roy Hodgson. A week after being taken to hospital after falling ill before Crystal Palace’s game against Aston Villa last weekend, the former England manager watched almost every minute of this arm wrestle of a match standing on the edge of his technical area as two evenly-matched teams played out a stalemate.
On an afternoon that saw Fulham again show their lack of cutting edge in attack since the departure of Aleksandar Mitrovic, Palace were indebted to goalkeeper Sam Johnstone for keeping Marco Silva’s side out with a string of excellent saves. Only Eberechi Eze – making his 100th appearance for Palace – looked capable of unpicking a stubborn Fulham defence but ultimately no one could find the breakthrough in a game between two sides who look destined for mid-table again.
