FULHAM 3-2 SOUTHAMPTON: REPORT

Claudio Ranieri has a dream start to life as Fulham manager, as his side edged Southampton in a five-goal thriller at Craven Cottage.

Two goals for Aleksandar Mitrovic and one for Andre Schurrle cancelled out Stuart Armstrong's double for the Saints.

The introduction of Ranieri has also brought the Cottagers just their second win of the season in the Premier League.

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HOW IT HAPPENED -

Ranieri was unsurprisingly given an outstanding ovation as he entered the Craven Cottage pitch before the kick-off.

However, it was an unhappy start for the Italian, as Armstrong rewarded Southampton's impressive start to the game as he poked home for 1-0.

Fulham's reaction was excellent, though, and Mitrovic's equaliser was soon added to by Schurrle's far-post finish from Ryan Sessegnon's cross.

Southampton were perhaps a tad unlucky to be going in behind at half-time; but they were soon level after the break, when Armstrong smashed past Sergio Rico for his second.

Mitrovic's volley was too much for Alex McCarthy on the hour mark and the Serbian had his second and Fulham's third.

Source: Evening Standard

Ranieri was a very animated figure on the touchline; much like we remember him from his Chelsea and Leicester days.

Despite some late Saints pressure, the South Coast side are now nine Premier League games without a victory and the pressure continues to grow on manager Mark Hughes.

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THE MANAGERS -

Fulham manager Ranieri has insisted there is still much more work to do despite the side's second win of the season.

"It was important to come back and come back with a victory," Ranieri said. "It is a little step but important for the enthusiasm and everything.

"It is important to continue in this way. Now we have to forget what we did and improve. Next is Chelsea and it is important to maintain ambition and mentality.

"I am confident with my team. We made some good things but we have to work hard to improve on defending."

Southampton manager Mark Hughes has revealed him and his Saints team were left "scratching their heads".

"We have had similar stories in other games (this season)," Hughes said. "We scored a good goal and then all of a sudden we find ourselves behind in a game we dominated.

"The two goals are poor from our point of view. We talk about fundamentals until we are blue in the face. We allowed Mitrovic too much space on two occasions. You look back on the game and we are scratching our heads considering what we produced.

"I don't think there is a huge amount wrong with how we are going about our business. For the most part we need to keep on going and make sure we are better in the key moments that define a result."