Marco Andreolli struck deep into injury-time to deny ten-man Fulham a famous win over Italian giants AS Roma at Craven Cottage.

Roy Hodgson's side defended their lead heroically in the closing stages, following Stephen Kelly’s dismissal for a reckless challenge on former Liverpool ace John Arne Riise, leaving the referee with no option but to point to the spot.

Mark Schwarzer saved the resulting penalty from French forward Jeremy Menez, but only after referee Paul Allaerts had initially given Brede Hangeland his marching orders in a case of mistaken identity.

The beleaguered official was mobbed by Fulham players after his assistant identified Hangeland as the culprit, only for Kelly to own up and force the referee into an astonishing u-turn.

The West London outfit looked to have secured three points over Claudio Ranieri’s side, after Norwegian defender Hangeland had put his side ahead on 24 minutes.

The defender rose majestically above Roma goalkeeper Doni, meeting Bjorn Helge Riise's corner with a powerful header, much to the delight of the home fans.

Fulham boss Hodgson made four changes from the side that beat Hull 2-0 on Monday night, Jonathan Greening, Zoltan Gera, Riise and Kelly all being given an opportunity from the start.

Hodgson has impressively balanced his Premier League priorities with the demands of Europe this season and was mindful of his selection ahead of Sunday’s trip to Manchester City.

Fulham coped superbly in the absence of striker Andy Johnson and captain Danny Murphy, which suggests Hodgson has strength in depth at his disposal this term.

The Cottagers largely dominated proceedings throughout the first-half, with their esteemed opponents offering little going forward, shorn of the services of their talismanic captain Francesco Totti through injury.

Fulham have been excellent in the Europa League this season, after a deserved 1-1 draw away to CSKA Sofia in their first European appearance for seven years and a 1-0 victory over Swiss side Basle.

A win would have put them firmly in control of Group E, however they remain the quartet’s last unbeaten side and a draw leaves them with an excellent chance of qualification.

Italian midfielder Daniele De Rossi thought he had equalised for his side just after half-time, only for the assistant to correctly raise his flag for offside.

The home side were put under pressure in the closing stages as i Giallorossi swarmed forward in search of an equaliser.

Fulham flew into tackles and chased every lost cause to protect their lead, but could not hold out long enough to deny former Chelsea coach Ranieri on his return to England.

There was late penalty drama and awful refereeing decisions before the real drama unfolded in the dying seconds.

A corner squeezed its way through to defender Andreolli who smashed a volley past Schwarzer, and off the head of substitute John Paintsil, to grab his side a point with virtually the last kick of the game.

Fulham (4-4-2): Schwarzer; Kelly, Hangeland, Hughes, Konchesky (Paintsil 46'); Riise (Duff 75'), Greening, Baird, Gera; Zamora (Nevland 61'), Kamara.

Roma (4-2-3-1): Doni; Burdisso, Mexes, Andreolli, Riise; Brighi (Pizarro 47’'), Guberti, Taddei (Vucinic 63'), De Rossi Okaka Chuka (Perrotta 47'); Menez