Angel the villain as Clark rescues Fulham

Fulham 1 Aston Villa 1

Juan Pablo Angel looked to have condemned Fulham to defeat when he put Villa ahead in the 53rd minute with a neat glancing header. But he then missed two penalties.

The home side had already wasted their own gilt-edged chance when Andy Cole missed a 59th-minute spot-kick.

Villa paid for Angel’s wastefulness when Clark dispatched a low shot into the bottom corner of the net for a last-minute leveller.

Fulham had begun the contest in a spirited fashion and in the opening minute Tomasz Radzinski let fly from 18-yards which Sorensen did well to hold.

Hitzlsperger then flashed a brave header just wide of van der Sar’s left-hand post from Nolberto Solano’s cross.

Both sides were guilty of giving the ball away far too cheaply in the first half.

In the 47th minute Lee Hendrie entered his personal contender for the miss of the season when he somehow managed to turn a cross from Solano over the crossbar from three yards.

Five minutes later Hitzlsperger tried his luck from 25 yards but the ball went harmlessly wide.

But Villa had clearly increased the tempo and in the 53rd minute they took the lead.

Angel’s glancing effort was adjudged to have crossed the line despite a last-ditch attempt to clear the ball by Lee Clark.

The goal brought an immediate reply from Fulham and the home side felt they should have had a penalty when Cole went down under Ridgewell’s challenge.

However, in the 59th minute referee Chris Foy awarded Fulham a spot-kick when Mellberg brought down Boa Morte.

The Villa players were incensed by Foy’s decision but their anger turned to relief seconds later when Cole shot wide.

In the 75th minute Villa were awarded the first of two penalties inside six minutes when Moritz Volz fouled Moore on the edge of the six-yard box. Angel’s effort was saved by van der Sar.

Amazingly Angel missed a second spot-kick in the 81st minute when van der Sar again saved.

The drama was completed in the final moments when Clark made Angel pay for his double error by firing home from 18 yards.

FULHAM: Van der Sar, Volz, Knight, Rehman, Rosenior, Clark, Diop, Pembridge, Radzinski (John 68), Cole (McBride 73), Boa Morte.

ASTON VILLA: Sorensen, De la Cruz, Mellberg, Ridgewell, Barry, Solano (Djemba-Djemba 79), Hendrie (Davis 64), Berson, Hitzlsperger, Cole (Luke Moore 45), Angel.

Referee: C Foy (Merseyside).