Raúl Jiménez scored twice as Fulham ended a run of three successive Premier League defeats with a 3-1 win at Sunderland. The Mexican striker, who turns 35 in May, headed Fulham into a 55th-minute lead from Alex Iwobi's corner and then converted a penalty after Brian Brobbey was adjudged to have tugged Calvin Bassey's shirt. Iwobi's deft chip late on sealed the win after Enzo Le Fée had briefly reduced the deficit from the spot.
Sunderland, who have now won only two of their past 11 league games, were left to rue clear chances missed by Romaine Mundle and Nilson Angulo. Manager Régis Le Bris admitted his side were not good enough. "It's a tough day," he said. "We couldn't find the right way to express our quality. We got too sloppy to impose our ideas. We have to find solutions rather than searching for excuses."
Le Bris had fielded a very attacking starting XI, with January signings Jocelin and Angulo deployed as touchline-hugging wingers, but the team's balance looked off. Jocelin's Premier League debut ended after 39 minutes through injury, while Nordi Mukiele had earlier limped off with calf trouble. Despite those setbacks, Sunderland relied on the defensive nous of Dan Ballard and Trai Hume to contain Fulham during a first half in which both goalkeepers were largely underworked.
Jiménez had a quiet first half, collecting a yellow card and appearing fortunate to avoid a second, but he proved decisive after the break. Sunderland had missed a glorious chance through Mundle before Jiménez's header, and after his penalty made it 2-0, Le Bris introduced captain Granit Xhaka from the bench following an ankle injury. Sunderland swiftly earned a penalty when Ryan Sessegnon fouled Ballard, and Le Fée sent Bernd Leno the wrong way to reignite the contest. However, Harry Wilson's counter-attacking pass set up Iwobi's superb chip over Robin Roefs to restore Fulham's two-goal advantage.
Fulham manager Marco Silva praised Jiménez, saying the club had paid less than the widely reported £5.5m for the striker in July 2023. "For the price we paid Raúl has done very, very well indeed," Silva said. "It was a big win, a very important win and a well-deserved win. We showed quality, maturity, commitment." The victory moved Fulham up the table, while Sunderland face growing concerns after their promotion-winning momentum has stalled.
