Fulham Vs. Stoke City, 2012 Premier League: Pogrebnyak Scores In Debut Win

Pavel Pogrebnyak scored a goal on his debut with Fulham to inspire the Cottagers to a 2-1 lead against Tony Pullis's Stoke City. Despite many questioning the former Stuttgart man's ability when he moved over to the Premier League, he was superb in latching onto John Arne Risse's wayward shot and blasting past Thomas Sorensen to open the score a quarter of an hour in, and Fulham were able to double their lead when a superb Clint Dempsey strike ricocheted back off the crossbar, hit the goalkeeper in the back, and rolled into the back of the net.

Stoke were dire in the first half but came back with a vengeance after the break, forcing their hosts into something that resembled a football match. They were hardly a major force, but they did manage to reduce the deficit when Ryan Shawcross converted as corner from very close range. Fulham still looked like winners though, and Dempsey continued his rampage through Premier League defences only to be denied by Sorensen and then the post late on.