Mark Schwarzer returned to the starting line-up as the Whites secured their first win of the Barclays Premier League season. In Damien Duff’s absence, Mousa Dembele started on the left of midfield with Clint Dempsey leading the attack alongside Bobby Zamora.
Fulham started brightly and looked lively in attack with Dembele, Dempsey, Davies and Zamora all looking to get on the ball. The Whites had the first of many penalty appeals turned down on seven minutes when a driving run from Dickson Etuhu pulled Wolves’ defence out of shape, allowing Simon Davies to get through only for the Fulham midfielder to be clipped by a defender and brought to ground.
The visitors took the lead somewhat against the run of play on nine minutes when a cross from Kevin Doyle found Jelle Van Damme free at the back post - the Wolves player calmly side-footed past Schwarzer to give his side the lead.
There were certainly signs that Wolves’ opening goal had not affected the run of play. Fulham continued to press forward and some fine link up play between Zamora and Dembele looked to have the better of the Wolves defence..
But there were worrying moments on 27 minutes when Bobby Zamora was tackled by Karl Henry. The Fulham player remained down and required oxygen before being stretchered from the pitch, having sustained what looked like a serious injury - Zoltan Gera came on in his place. The change saw Dembele move up front with Gera playing out wide.
As the half-time break approached, Wolves had successfully been able to turn the game into a scrappy affair, with little space being given. Sylvain Ebanks-Blake incurred the wrath of the Cottage faithful just before the whistle when he led into a challenge with Brede Hangeland with his right hand, catching the Fulham defender in the face.
The second-half started with a change for Fulham, Chris Baird replaced John Pantsil at right-back after the Ghanaian picked up a yellow card late in the first-half.
Despite the fiery nature of the first-half, Fulham resumed the game in a composed and measured fashion. The rewards were reaped immediately as the Whites passed their way through their opponents and netted the equaliser on 49 minutes. Mousa Dembele drilled a low left-footed shot past Hahnemann after a cross from the left fell kindly for him.
An inventive overhead kick from Zoltan Gera just after the equaliser almost handed Fulham the lead, unfortunately the ball sailed just over.
There was another penalty appeal for the Whites on 56 minutes when Simon Davies was played clean through. His first touch allowed Marcus Hahnemann to close the space and thankfully wrestle the ball out of Davies’ possession.
Mark Schwarzer produced a good save just before the hour mark to deny a header from Kevin Doyle. But the action soon switched to the other end where a smart pass from Dembele was just clipped past the far post by Davies. Fulham were on the hunt for the winner.
As the half progressed Fulham were looking ever more in control, certainly in terms of possession, the Whites were keeping Mick McCarthy’s side penned back for longer periods than in the first-half. Wolves’ attacks, whilst more fleeting, still carried enough threat to keep the Fulham defence on their toes.
Christophe Berra entered the book on 76 minutes, becoming the fourth Wolves player to be cautioned. He was immediately followed into the referee's records by team-mate Karl Henry.
Clint Dempsey was replaced by Eddie Johnson on 82 minutes as Mark Hughes looked to push on for a winning goal.
Berra was dismissed following his second yellow card of the afternoon after he blocked the run of Eddie Johnson. From the resulting free kick Mousa Dembele drilled a powerful effort past Hahnemann, sending the Craven Cottage crowd wild.
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Fulham v. Wolves
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Hughes' Wolves Reaction 
A late free-kick from Mousa Dembele clinched all three points for Fulham on Saturday afternoon at Craven Cottage. However, the win over Wolves came at a cost – with Bobby Zamora suffering a broken fibula in the first-half.
"If the injury is as we think it is, it's likely to be four months," Fulham Manager Mark Hughes said after the game.
"If the surgeon goes in tomorrow and finds other damage rather than just the break, which is four centimetres above his ankle, it will be even longer than that. The four months looks like a minimum.
"There's always a danger if you get tackled from the side or from behind that players' legs can get trapped.
"I don't think there was any intent to hurt Bobby. You don't expect the circumstances of the injury to be the result of a challenge like that, but it can happen.
"Wolves were competitive as you'd expect. Mick McCarthy sets his teams up to compete for every ball. The Premier League is competitive and I've had similar criticism in the past. Sometimes it's warranted and sometimes it isn't.
"Maybe today some of the fouls were made to break up our momentum and maybe at times were a little bit cynical. I'd never criticise any team for trying to be competitive against us - that's part and parcel of the Premier League."
Dembele’s brace helped the Whites secure the win and Hughes was pleased with the Belgian international’s contribution.
"Mousa was excellent again and is an exciting player. When he's in possession you expect something positive to happen," said Hughes
"There aren't that many players in the Premier League who have that ability. At times it felt like things were going against us - losing Bobby and we had two stonewall penalties turned down.
"When those things conspire against you, you believe that you won't get what you deserve but we were rewarded in the end."
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A Win For Bobby The celebrations were somewhat muted following Saturday’s 2-1 win over Wolves after star striker Bobby Zamora was carried from the field of play during the first-half following a serious injury.
Speaking after the game on Saturday evening, Dickson Etuhu dedicated the win to Zamora before heading off to see his friend and colleague in hospital.
“That win was for Bobby,” said Etuhu. “It was hard because Bobby’s one of our best players and he’s going to be a big loss for us. We’re going to go and see him now in the hospital but that win was definitely for him.”
Fulham endured a tough battle against Wolves on Saturday and once again showed tremendous character to come from behind to claim all three points. Etuhu noted the tough conditions on Saturday but praised his team for another true team effort.
“It was a tough game in difficult conditions,” explained Etuhu. “It was extremely humid out there and it was difficult to get about, but I thought we deserved the win.
“The Premier League is a very difficult league. You can be on top of a game and then one chance - goal. That was really Wolves’ only chance of the game but we showed character.
"Mousa [Dembele] did well again and got two goals but we kept going. There’s a tremendous sense of togetherness at this Club. We want to turn the draws into wins and today was a game that we definitely wanted to win and we delivered.”
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ფულჰემი, ევროპის ლიგის I ფინალისტები :( (III ნაწილი)
