MANCHESTER City had to settle for a point against Fulham after a thriller at Craven Cottage.

The Blues twice trailed, but recovered to take the lead at 3-2 and looked to be heading towards victory.

However, substitute Danny Murphy equalised for the home side. Martin Petrov scored a brace either side of Emile Mpenza's effort for City, with Simon Davies and Hameur Bouazza on target for Fulham.

Three weeks ago Fulham came back from 3-1 down to draw with Tottenham - from whom they had just bought Murphy, and they managed to rescue another point against City.

It was David Healy and the lively Bouazza who gave the home side the early impetus.

Richard Dunne, returning after suspension, made a superb tackle to deny Healy an early strike but let Davies escape him at the near post to head in Bouazza’s left wing cross in the 13th minute.

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City replied when Michael Johnson spread the ball out to the left and Petrov cut in past Chris Baird’s tame challenge to fire a low shot which Antti Niemi could only help into the net.

Two minutes after the break Fulham led again when Dunne tripped substitute Diomansy Kamara and Bouazza fired the free-kick through City’s dishevelled defensive wall.

That lead lasted only a minute when Niemi could only palm out Petrov’s shot for Emile Mpenza to notch an easy header from the rebound.

Petrov seemed to have won it 11 minutes later after Elano was allowed to go through and feed him for a shot that went in between Niemi’s near post.

Fulham looked to be the victims of injustice but then along came Murphy, who had been part of a double substitution in the 65th minute, to take advantage of Vedran Corluka nodding off and rifle home a point-saver.

The same player almost won the contest for Fulham with a long-range deflected free-kick which Kasper Schmeichel clawed away from under the bar.

In a frantic finish City substitute Geovanni was only inches too high with a stoppage-time snapshot which almost brought City a winner.

But the point was enough to move them back up the table into second, while Fulham are fourth from bottom - two points clear of the relegation zone.

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