Fulham 3 West Ham 2:THEY MAY be counting down to the Europa League final but Fulham continue to move upwards. With the biggest match in the club's history scheduled for May 12th, Roy Hodgson made seven changes to the team that started Thursday's victory over Hamburg yet his side still beat West Ham to climb into the top half of the Premier League.

This was not the campaign’s most ferocious contest. With West Ham seemingly satisfied that their top-flight survival is already a virtual, though not mathematical, certainty, proceedings began at a sedate pace.

Goalkeepers were an irrelevance until the 22nd minute, when Rob Green hurtled off his line to prevent Erik Nevland from connecting with a through ball. One minute later it was Mark Schwarzer’s turn to remind onlookers of his presence as he plunged to his left to push a 20-yard shot form Mark Noble behind for a corner.

The one newcomer in Fulham’s line-up who is realistically in the reckoning for a starting place against Atletico Madrid next week was Clint Dempsey, and he showed his class with a swivel and smart curling shot from outside the box in the 25th minute. Two inches lower and it would have been a delicious goal.

Seconds before half-time Dempsey put Fulham in front following a move of deadly simplicity. The United States midfielder chested a long pass into the path of Davies and darted into the box to collect the return and fire past Green.

Fulham’s deserved second goal, in the 58th minute, came about in fortunate fashion, a snapshot from Chris Baird deflecting in off Carlton Cole. That was the first significant contribution to the game from a striker who has aspirations of earning a place in England’s World Cup squad. Three minutes later, however, Cole asserted himself more auspiciously, cutting the deficit by flicking a Noble free-kick into the net at the near post.

Then West Ham shot themselves in the foot. A series of defensive errors ended with Jonathan Spector presenting the ball to Nevland wide on the right. The Norwegian crossed low to the back post, where the unmarked Stefano Okaka tapped into the net from close range.

The substitute Guillermo Franco turned a Scott Parker cross into the goal deep into stoppage time but there was no escaping the fact that this had been another wretched performance on the road from a team who have not won away since the first game of the season. “We have not been good enough away all season, and I am the first to take responsibility for that,” said Gianfranco Zola.

Hodgson, meanwhile, felt that familiar feeling of jubilation. “I didn’t want an after-the-lord-mayor’s-show feeling and I didn’t get it. The players who came in fully justified our faith in them.”

Faith in Hodgson is growing too, with media reports suggesting he may replace Rafael Benitez at Liverpool this summer. But the Fulham boss insists he is happy at Craven Cottage.

“I am happy here at Fulham,” he declared. “I have got a contract here at Fulham. I am happy with the job I am doing. My name is sufficiently strong at the moment to be linked with other jobs and, of course, that is flattering and it is nice to hear.”