Stoke City's Emirates FA Cup campaign came to an end at the bet365 Stadium as Premier League Fulham progressed to the last 16 with a 2–1 victory on Tuesday.
Bae Junho gave Mark Robins' side the lead in the first half following a flowing move involving Lamine Cissé, Tomáš Rigo and Eric Bocat. Kevin equalised for Fulham midway through the second half before Harrison Reed sealed the tie with six minutes remaining.
City's first-half dominance
Stoke started with intensity and Sorba Thomas forced Benjamin Lecomte into an early save with a powerful 30-yard drive. The hosts took the lead soon after when Junho powered past Lecomte following swift passing exchanges involving Cissé and Rigo.
Tommy Simkin made crucial saves to preserve the lead before half-time, denying Kevin on multiple occasions and Ashley Phillips blocked Rodrigo Muniz's close-range effort from Josh King's cut-back.
Narrow miss in second half
Early in the second half, Cissé came within inches of doubling City's lead. The forward raced to the edge of Fulham's penalty area and curled a strike toward the top corner, but Lecomte tipped it onto the outside of the post.
Fulham levelled just before the hour mark when Ben Wilmot's challenge on Rodrigo Muniz bounced to Kevin, who finished first time beyond Simkin.
Reed's late winner
Reed intercepted Simkin's attempted pass into midfield and slid home to decide the tie six minutes from time.
Stoke played without nine senior players but delivered what manager Mark Robins described as a tireless performance.
