No sooner a tentative mention is made of a Uefa Cup place than a setback rolls in from nowhere, writes Yann Tear.

Roy Hodgson was fantasising about a return to European football before Wednesday night's home game against Hull and right on cue, disappointment followed.

It did not soothe the Fulham boss' mood that the defeat to an injury time goal was unlucky and that his team should have won.

The fact is a first home loss since West Ham's visit in September has dented the European ambitions before they have fully taken root.

After confounding so many expectations with draws where defeat was expected and home wins galore, they lost what looked to be a banker home win against a side in freefall and without a win in 10 matches.

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The frustrations were summed up on the final whistle by John Pantsil's apparent rage towards Hull's Craig Fagan.

Instead of the customary solo lap of honour the Ghanaian is famed for after home matches, he was being restrained by Fulham staff as he tried to continue his spat with Fagan.

The exact cause of his distress was unclear, but Hodgson reported that Pantsil complained of 'abuse,'rather than the nature of a challenge on him by Fagan as the game drew to close.

Fulham were not quite at their fluid best but felt they did enough to win it.

In an energetic spell at the start of the second half, Bobby Zamora had penalty appeals turned down after he appeared to have been impeded by Kevin Kilbane.

Clint Dempsey sent an angled drive towards the top corner from outside the area which keeper Matt Duke clawed to safety and Paul Konchesky had a similar effort palmed over the bar a few minutes later.

In between, Andy Johnson had a close-range header nodded off the line,

But perhaps the nearest Fulham came to scoring was just past the hour when Simon Davies' low cross was somehow missed by Zamora - albeit with a Hull defender doing enough to put him off.

Poor Zamora. A goal in his last home game against West

Brom was supposed to have liberated his confidence but he did not look like adding to that second league goal of the season.

Bookmaker Paddy Power seem so confident in his lack of prowess that they are offering money back on all bets placed on this Saturday's FA Cup tie against Man United if the striker scores.

Hull had posed no threat to Mark Schwarzer whatsoever, but two subs combined to rub salt into the wounds - Richard Garcia's low cross from the left being turned in by Alberto Manucho.

The Angolan striker is on loan from Man United and it was as if he was serving notice of the forces from Old Trafford gathering on the horizon for two raids on Craven Cottage this month.

Fulham had been harbouring hopes that their superb home record - bettered only by United in the Premier League this season - would work its magic, even against the seemingly unstoppable champions.

Now the task of unsettling Alex Ferguson's men in the FA Cup this coming weekend and in the league clash on March 21 look tougher than ever.

"We lost in the final minutes a game which we didn't really deserve to lose," Hodgson said. "There's no worse way to lose a game. It's the ultimate football nightmare. You can't write a worse scenario for a player or coach."

Next Up

MAN UNITED

Craven Cottage Saturday 3pm FA Cup QF, 5.15pm Manager: Sir Alex Ferguson Position last season: Champions Form Guide: It won't have escaped anyone's attention that United, having already clinched the World Club Championship and Carling Cup,are in course for five trophies. They are cruising to a third Premier League title in a row and have lost only once in 29 matches in all competitions since a visit to Arsenal in early November - a Carling Cup semi-final at Derby which they reversed in the second leg anyway.

Players to look out for: Edwin Van Der Sar and the evergreen Ryan Giggs will be worth savouring - assuming they are not rested ahead of the Champions League clash with Internazionale next week.

Most recent meetings: Man United 1-0 Fulham (18 Feb 2009); Fulham 0-3 Man United (1 Mar 2008); Man United 2-0 Fulham (3 Dec 2007) - Prem Lge. Head-to-head record: FFC Wins: 11 MU Wins: 39 Draws: 15

Match Facts: The Whites have lost their last eight clashes with United following the 3-0 defeat at Old Trafford last month and won none of the last 10 clashes. They last held United to a draw just over four years ago - thanks to a Pape Bouba Bouba Diop thunderbolt. Fulham's only success in seven previous FA Cup pairings came in 1908 in the first ever meeting between the sides. United beat Fulham 2-1 when the teams last met in the cup - also a quarter-final clash - at Old Trafford in March 2004 when two Ruud Van Nistelrooy goals cancelled a Steed Malbranque penalty. [25a0] Forecast: Fulham will surely make a better game of it than at Old Trafford last month. But it probably won't be enough even to earn a replay.

In Midweek

BLACKBURN ROVERS

Craven Cottage Wednesday 8pm Premier League Manager: Sam Allardyce Position last season: 7th Form Guide: Rovers are battling for their lives,but having ditched Paul Ince early in the season and plumped for the no-nonsense Allardyce, they have had only two defeats in 10 league games since he took over. Rovers' crucial 2-1 win at Hull lifted them out of the bottom three at the weekend - though they are back in the mire after a 0-0 draw with Everton in midweek. Players to look out for: Striker Roque Santa Cruz is the danger man.

Most recent meetings: Blackburn 1-0 Fulham (20 Sep 2009); Blackburn 1-1 Fulham (8 Mar 2008); Fulham 2-2 Blackburn (25 Nov 2007) - Prem League. Head-to-head record: FFC Wins: 24 BR Wins: 32 Draws: 22 [25a0] Match Facts: Fulham - beaten 1-0 at Ewood Park earlier this season - seek their first win against Rovers in six meetings. Their last win came in December 2005 when Pape Bouba Diop and Luis Boa Morte netted in a 2-1 win at the Cottage. Rovers last won by the Thames four visits ago (2-0). This match was originally frozen off in Jan.

Forecast: Fulham have been on a roll at home and lost only once in the Prem, but Rovers' desperation for points could just frustrate the Whites for once. [25a0] Gazetteforecast success rate: 17 correct out of 33 (52%).