Smith Rowe’s late touch denies Manchester United after Fernandes’ penalty anguish at Craven Cottage

Emile Smith Rowe stepped from the bench to turn in Alex Iwobi’s skidding cross and secure Fulham a 1-1 draw, a contest shaped as much by nerve as by nuance. Manchester United had already squandered a golden opening when Bruno Fernandes blazed a first‑half penalty over after a long VAR delay, and they would come to regret it.

United still moved ahead after the break, Leny Yoro’s header from a corner cannoning in off Rodrigo Muniz for an own goal that carried a whiff of controversy. But Marco Silva’s changes wrestled back momentum and Smith Rowe overturned the script, ensuring both sides remain winless while Fulham at least halted a run of eight successive home defeats against United.

VAR, a long wait, and a rare miss

The game’s key fault line opened at a first‑half corner. As Mason Mount tried to attack the delivery, Calvin Bassey threw him to the turf while, in the same phase, Luke Shaw bundled over Rodrigo Muniz. Play continued for one minute and 23 seconds before VAR Darren England advised referee Chris Kavanagh to take another look. Kavanagh awarded the penalty after a lengthy check.

What followed was chaos of a subtler kind. As Fernandes set his routine, Kavanagh accidentally collided with the Manchester United captain on the edge of the box. After composing himself, Fernandes sent his kick soaring over the bar — his first miss from the spot since December 2023. He later admitted the contact put him on edge but accepted responsibility, saying he simply struck the ball badly.

A lead found, and questioned

United eventually carved an advantage from another set piece. Yoro rose to meet a corner and his header took a decisive touch off Muniz, wrong‑footing Bernd Leno for an own goal. It had the feel of a release after Leno’s first‑half resistance to earlier efforts from Matheus Cunha and Fernandes.

Yet Fulham protested the goal’s legality. Bassey argued Yoro had used two hands in his back, and on co‑commentary Gary Neville observed that the United defender was ‘lucky to get away with that’. The debate inevitably echoed the earlier penalty award against Bassey, adding another layer to an officiating subplot that threaded through the night.

Silva’s bench turns the tide

Marco Silva’s changes shifted the rhythm. From the right touchline, Iwobi zipped a cross that skidded through the six‑yard box, Raul Jimenez swung and missed, and Smith Rowe ghosted in behind a flat‑footed defence to prod home with a little under 20 minutes left. Altay Bayindir, exposed by the breakdown in front of him, could offer no reprieve.

The equaliser felt earned. Fulham had asked questions throughout, and with fresh legs they finally found the detail United had lacked — a decisive touch in a crowded box. Smith Rowe’s instant impact ensured the game’s balance reflected the overall contest.

Goalkeepers under the microscope and a frantic finish

Both keepers shaped the mood. Bayindir showcased the best and most brittle parts of his audition: calm with the ball — his long, floated pass set Cunha away for a first‑half chance — but indecisive at corners, once stumbling and elsewhere allowing himself to be crowded. He also produced sharp work, notably a feet‑first stop to deny Josh King and a parry from Iwobi at the edge of the area, before getting caught in no man’s land from a late corner as Joachim Andersen flicked across goal and missed.

Leno, by contrast, radiated assurance. He denied Cunha more than once, palmed aside a skidding strike from Fernandes, reacted to Amad Diallo after the interval, and in stoppage time surged through a crowd to punch cleanly and relieve pressure when United were turning the screw.

Selection subplots and the bigger picture

Ruben Amorim’s United remain a work in progress. The goalkeeping conversation rumbles on: Bayindir kept his place with Andre Onana travelling but on the bench, and Royal Antwerp’s Senne Lammens has been monitored. Amorim experimented again — Mount started as a false No 9, Luke Shaw operated in a central defensive trio, and the second half brought Benjamin Sesko and Diogo Dalot, with Mount later dropping deeper.

Silva’s picture is also evolving. Muniz, the subject of interest from Atalanta and Leeds, started and ran the line despite his unfortunate own goal; Andreas Pereira was omitted as Fulham searched for craft in other ways. Fulham’s battling point ends a sequence of eight straight home defeats against United, while both sides continue to look for their first league win of the campaign.