Fulham 1-2 Bolton: Stelios sneaks extra-time winner

On-loan midfielder Danny Guthrie had put the visitors ahead with a stunning 25-yard drive on his debut.

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But the goal only succeeded in waking Fulham from their slumber as boss Lawrie Sanchez's gamble to go from one striker to three paid off when David Healy's third goal of the season forced extra time.

And with Fulham looking the side most likely to take the tie, Stelios appeared to shove Paul Konchesky off the ball before sweeping in the ball home from six yards to howls of protest from the home players and fans.

A fuming Sanchez took a swipe referee Steve Bennett for allowing the goal and disallowing an effort earlier in extra time from Diomansy Kamara.

'I'm fed up with referees who come to Fulham and disallow perfectly good goals,' said Sanchez, whose side lost against Middlesbrough earlier in the season when a Healy shot crossed the line but was ruled out by officials.

With Sammy Lee's side rooted in the bottom three and with an eye on Saturday's vital trip to Derby, the Bolton boss opted to make nine changes from the side that drew with Spurs.

Sanchez, by contrast, opted to make just three changes from Saturday's 3-3 thriller against City, with goalkeeper Antti Niemi not included and Alexei Smertin and Healy dropping to the bench.

The alterations hardly contributed to a classic cup tie in the first half. But, on 57 minutes, Guthrie lit up the hitherto drab affair.

Chris Baird's attempted headed clearance fell invitingly for the midfielder, on loan from Liverpool, who smashed home a left-foot drive.

Sanchez opted to throw caution to the wind with just over 15 minutes left on the clock, bringing on Healy for defender Baird, having already introduced Diomansy Kamara for ineffective winger Hameur Bouazza.

Northern Ireland striker Healy did not disappoint, latching on to the ball inside the area as Bolton failed to clear their lines before grabbing the equalizer with 12 minutes of normal time left.

Extra time bore little resemblance to what had gone before, with Fulham piling forward in search of the winner and Bolton looking to counter at every opportunity.

But with just three minutes remaining before the dreaded penalty shoot-out, Stelios, in his first appearance of the season after undergoing a hernia operation in the summer, poked home the winner.

Lee said: 'Stelios had been out injured but he has come in tonight and scored a goal. He has scored important goals in the past for Bolton and it is a nice habit to have.

'We are not going to get carried away by this but any win you get is good for your confidence, it should be a massive boost to our morale.'