In the end, Championship challengers Fulham were no match for Manchester City, who strolled to a 4-0 win in the FA Cup Fourth Round.
Manchester City struck early and often as they claimed their ninth consecutive victory over Fulham while booking a place in the FA Cup fifth round as their defense of the trophy continues.
The visitors were almost immediately in serious danger, as Tim Ream pulled down Gabriel Jesus and was sent off before İlkay Gündoğan converted from the spot. Down a man and down a goal against one of England’s very best sides, the situation already looked dire, but considering that the team was without star striker Aleksandar Mitrović, the Championship’s top scorer, it proved a task too great.
Pep Guardiola made eight changes from the team that defeated Sheffield United, opting for cup regulars such as Claudio Bravo, Phil Foden, and Eric García. Shortly after the opener, Bernardo Silva danced around the edge of the area before firing home from long range on his preferred left foot, and although some life fell out of the tie from there, Jesus managed to grab a brace in the span of four minutes to make City the first team in Europe to score 100 goals in all competitions so far this season.
City could have scored more, but absolutely dominated this match, holding 71% of the ball and putting 14 shots on the Fulham goal, whereas the visitors managed just one shot across 90 minutes.
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Next, City will look to book a place at Wembley in the second leg against rivals Manchester United in the Carabao Cup semi-finals, where City hold a 3-1 aggregate advantage heading back to the Etihad.