Fulham were knocked out of the FA Youth Cup at the hands of Arsenal, falling to a 2-1 defeat at a sold-out Motspur Park.
Andre Harriman-Annous and Max Dowman gave the Gunners a two-goal lead, before an own goal brought the hosts back into the tie.
The Whites huffed and puffed in the second-half but couldn’t find an equaliser, exiting the competition in the Fifth Round.
Fulham rattled the woodwork inside ten minutes when Seth Ridgeon won the ball in the box and lashed a shot against the post, before Farhaan Ali Wahid volleyed the rebound wide.
At the other end, Arsenal attacked down the right and when a cross was put back across the six-yard line to Harriman-Annous, only a super reflex save from Dino Kaiser kept out the first-time finish.
Ridgeon found an opening again, this time picking the pocket of Arsenal’s midfield and driving forward, but his shot was straight down the throat of Gunners goalie Jack Porter.
The visitors took the lead when Harriman-Annous chased Ife Ibrahim’s ball down the middle, getting there before Kaiser, to slide into an empty net.
The initial response to falling behind was positive, although Harriman-Annous threatened again, almost flicking a Dowman cross on target.
Macauley Zepa took matters into his own hands, cutting in from the right and shooting from distance, but his effort was wayward. Moments later, Alfie White tried his luck but Porter got behind the drive.
Instead, the away side doubled their lead when Dowman got away from the Fulham defence and slotted past Kaiser from a tight angle.
A moment of fortune just before the break reduced the deficit, when Ridgeon’s shot cannoned off a couple of Arsenal defenders and eventually trickled over the line from Samuel Onyekachukwu’s touch.
Fulham forced the first chance of the second-half immediately after the restart, but Tom Wingate couldn’t get the right connection as he met a ball in from the right.
The hosts kept pushing and created an excellent chance when Jon Esenga’s free-kick was headed back across goal and Aidan Evans nodded just wide.
Logan Cooke’s foul on Harriman-Annous gave Dowman the chance to increase the lead from the spot, but Kaiser read it superbly and pushed away the effort.
A clever corner routine saw Esenga play it along the floor for Wingate, but the forward’s effort hit the stanchion.
Another Esenga set piece caused issues five minutes before the end; this time Evans sent a header just wide of the post when he rose highest in the middle.
Arsenal sub Daniel Oyetunde found himself in on goal as the Whites got caught on the break, but Kaiser was quick off his line to pounce on the ball.
A late rally proved fruitless as our North London opponents held on to secure their place in the Quarter-Finals.
