A heartbeat ago Slavisa Jokanovic thought Emerson Hyndman needed protecting from the Championship dogfight.

Fast forward to Saturday, and the young USA international scored the winner against Cardiff.

The Fulham head coach wondered out loud whether the 5ft 7ins would stand up to the buffeting of a relegation scrap .

But after Hyndman stepped up a gear in training, he fought his way back into the reckoning to first get on the bench and come on as a sub against Birmingham and pop up with the injury time winner against the Bluebirds.

Take a look at our fabulous match gallery below.

In the middle of March Joka said: “It’s a bad moment for him and a bad moment for us.

“He’s 19-year-old; we assess him constantly, and I’m very sure he’s going to have a future.

“He has a great potential, but where we are right now…

“He needs more help and we’re in the position where the team can’t help him enough. We need to find a more comfortable situation for the team and for him.”

But now: "I try to use all the players I have apart from (keeper) Joe Lewis, who it's difficult to get minutes for. It’s what I have in my hand, and daily I can change my opinion."

A switch of opinion and a first-ever goal for the 19-year-old Texan means Whites are a mere five points from guaranteed Championship safety.

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