Match Report
Fulham (2) 3-0 (0) AFC Wimbledon
League Cup Round 02 26/27 at Craven Cottage
Thursday 27th August 2026 KO: 20:00
Referee:
Anthony Backhouse (Cumbria)
Live on Sky Sports+
|
Fulham booked their spot in Round Three of the Carabao Cup with a dominant 3-0 victory over AFC Wimbledon at Craven Cottage.
The Dons started stubbornly but our quality told as the first half wore on, and we took a two-goal advantage into the break courtesy of headers from Emile Smith Rowe and Rodrigo Muniz.
Though we created a host of chances in the second half, the third goal didn’t arrive until stoppage time, but boy was it worth the wait, with Gonzalo García showing his class with a delightful take, a goal set up by the impressive Macaulay Zepa on his debut.
The win sets up a trip to West Ham United's London Stadium in the next round.
Álvaro Arbeloa made 10 changes to the side narrowly defeated by Chelsea three days earlier, with Oscar Bobb the sole survivor from Monday night.
Despite a dominant start from Fulham, we had to wait until the 12th minute for an attempt on goal. After the Dons made a hash of their clearance following Kevin and Ryan Sessegnon’s slick interplay, Luc De Fougerolles took on an ambitious volley that cleared the target.
That provoked a good response from our visitors, who had a window of opportunity for Callum Maycock snuffed out vitally by Sessegnon, before Andy Yiadom tested Benjamin Lecomte with a well struck effort from the subsequent corner.
The tie now fully alive, Smith Rowe was denied a shot on target courtesy of an excellent recovery challenge from Steve Seddon, with Kenny Tete then nodding Harrison Reed’s corner marginally over at the near post.
At the other end, a teasing delivery from Myles Hippolyte on the left wing found the run of Maycock, whose deft first time shot sailed just wide of the upright.
It was a really entertaining contest now, with Smith Rowe alive to any loose ball, next lining up a volley with the outside of his boot that was whistled a yard wide.
Fulham were getting closer, and Rodrigo Muniz was unfortunate to see his snapshot deflect over after he’d controlled Smith Rowe’s setup brilliantly.
The resultant set-piece ended up dropping to Sessegnon 20 yards out, but his drilled strike took a nick off someone in black and white to go behind for a goal kick.
The left-back found a teammate again soon after, this time to create the opener, beating his man to nod Tete’s deep cross back into the six yard box, where Smith Rowe had ghosted in to head beyond Nathan Bishop for 1-0.
One soon became two. Again Tete was involved, digging out a cross that Muniz did brilliantly to divert back across goal and inside the post, giving Bishop no chance.
| Match Stats |
Fulham |
Wimbledon |
| Goals |
(2)3 |
0 (0) |
|
| Scorers |
Smith-Rowe 37 |
- |
| Scorers |
Muniz 42 |
- |
| Scorers |
García 90+3 |
- |
| , |
| Goal attempts |
29 |
5 |
| On target |
8 |
2 |
| Shooting Accuracy |
28% |
40% |
| Possession |
79% |
21% |
| Passes |
673 |
117 |
| Passes Success |
91% |
62% |
| Crosses |
10 |
1 |
| Crosses Success |
37% |
10% |
| Corners |
10 |
4 |
| Tackles |
80 |
71 |
| Tackles Success |
80% |
42% |
| Saves |
2 |
5 |
| Fouls |
6 |
9 |
| Offsides |
0 |
3 |
| Yellows |
1 |
1 |
| Reds |
0 |
0 |
| source: SkySports |
With Fulham in control, Arbeloa gave Bobb a rest at half-time, meaning a senior debut for Zepa.
The Academy man was quickly involved, cutting inside before chipping a cross to Muniz at the back stick, but the Brazilian’s overhead kick missed the target.
Zepa was full of confidence and created a couple of chances for himself in quick succession, seeing the first blocked and the second saved by Bishop, who then made himself big to deny Kevin a goal from the opposite angle.
Tete then nodded a header wide from Reed’s delivery, as the Whites did their utmost to put the tie to bed.
One blot on the night was De Fougerolles’ withdrawal midway through the second half, with the centre-back unable to continue after winning a meaty challenge. It did, however, provide a fellow Academy graduate with his debut, with Chibby Nwoko replacing him in a move that saw Shea Charles drop into defence.
The 18-year-old Zepa continued to get the home crowd on their feet, next bending a strike agonisingly wide of the far post from 20 yards.
Tete was then unfortunate that his speculative effort didn’t drop in time to find the top corner, before substitute Gonzalo had a low shot deflect wide after a lovely interchange with Smith Rowe.
There had been loads to like about Zepa’s performance, and he capped it with an assist, slipping in Gonzalo in the third minute of stoppage time, with our number seven rounding the goalkeeper and coolly slotting in from a tight angle for 3-0, to cap a fine night by the Thames.
Fulham 3-0 AFC Wimbledon League Cup highlights
Fulham: Lecomte, Tete, Andersen (Bassey 62), De Fougerolles (Nwoko 68), Sessegnon, Charles, Reed, Bobb (Zepa 45), Smith Rowe, Kevin (Palacios 73), Rodrigo Muniz (García 73)
Unused substitutes: Leno, Castagne, King, Slade
Goals:
Smith-Rowe 37 (header from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Ryan Sessegnon.)
Muniz 42 ( header from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Kenny Tete.)
García 90+3 (right footed shot from the right side of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Macauley Zepa.)
Yellow Card: Kenny Tete (f,48),
AFC Wimbledon : Bishop, Tilley (Nkeng 80), Yiadom, Sweeney, Seddon, Sessegnon, Maycock (Nelson 67), Harrison (McCoy-Splatt 86), Smith, Hippolyte (Hackford 80), Sasu (Stockley 67)
Unused substitutes: McDonnell, Horan, Ogundere, Hedges
Yellow Card:Nelson (f,82),
Referee:
Anthony Backhouse (Cumbria)
Attendance: 17,714
Fulham are next in action in the Premier League and visit Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Sunday 30th August at 14.00.