Crystal Palace 0-2 Fulham: Emile Smith Rowe and Harry Wilson strike either side of Daichi Kamada red card as Cottagers move up to sixth

You can ill-afford to present a player of Emile Smith Rowe’s quality chances on a silver platter. Doing so once is reckless. Doing it twice is just plain ridiculous.

Not least on a day where a spate of injuries and suspensions forced Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner to start Marc Guehi in midfield and name two goalkeepers and three teenagers on the bench. His patched-up Palace were the masters of their own downfall.

They had their warning when Nathaniel Clyne’s charged-down clearance landed at Smith Rowe’s feet. On this occasion, Smith Rowe’s first touch was uncharacteristically heavy, allowing defender Maxence Lacroix to dive in and avert danger.

The rueful look on Smith Rowe’s face after he clambered back off the turf told you he wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

He didn’t have to wait long for his next gift. This time it was Lacroix, who went from hero to zero, as his sloppy pass was charged down by Smith Rowe.

Harry Wilson doubled the lead in the 83rd minute to seal the three points for the Cottagers

The defeat leaves the struggling Eagles just one point above the relegation zone 

Raul Jimenez slotted Smith Rowe in on goal and he finished with aplomb past goalkeeper Dean Henderson.

The 24 year old celebrated his third of the season by shushing the home fans. Not that those instructions were needed given how little Palace’s players had given the home support to cheer about on an afternoon Fulham played with more precision and authority.

Just when it looked as though the day couldn’t get any worse for Palace, it did so inside the final 15 minutes.

First, Daichi Kamada flew in high on Kenny Tete and was rightly given his marching orders by referee Michael Salisbury.

And then moments after coming off the bench, Harry Wilson put the game out of sight by applying the finishing touch to Alex Iwobi’s brilliant pass.

A job well done by Marco Silva’s side, then, who unsurprisingly started brightly off the back of Monday’s dramatic late win over Brentford.

Reiss Nelson should have done better when he was slipped in by Iwobi, but Henderson saved comfortably with his feet.

Chances were few and far between for the hosts, though Guehi may have felt he could have done a little better when he headed wide from a corner.

Smith Rowe produced a fine finish after capitalising on an error at the back from Palace

Smith Rowe found the far corner to break the deadlock and silence the home crowd 

Wilson put the game to bed with another calm finish after being played in on goal

Joachim Andersen received a warm welcome back to Selhurst Park on his first return since swapping south for west London during the summer.

Those Palace fans were pained to see the Danish defender in the right place at the right time, however, to hook Jean-Philippe Mateta’s strike off the line after his effort had only been partially stopped by Fulham goalkeeper keeper Bernd Leno.

Then came Smith Rowe’s moment as he got the goal his perseverance and Fulham deserved. Henderson will wonder whether he could have done better to push the strike wide after getting both hands on the ball.

Palace showed more promise in the opening moments on the second-half than they had done in the entirety of the first as Leno denied Daniel Munoz before debutant Justin Devenny blazed the rebound over. That promise was short lived.

Daichi Kamada flew in high on Kenny Tete and was rightly given his marching orders

The referee was quick to brandish the red card and reduce the home side to 10 men 

They were reprieved moments later when VAR disallowed Smith Rowe’s second for off-side after he had finished past Henderson.

That boost rallied the home crowd but did little to deter Fulham.

Wilson came off the bench to cap the comfortable win after Kamada had seen red and was only denied a successive brace after VAR overturned his late strike for handball.