Steve Sidwell halved the deficit early in the second half, but Johnson proved to be too good on the day and finished off a counter-attack before grabbing his hat-trick with a penalty.

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at the action between the two teams.

Match statistics

Fulham
Shots: 17
On target: 5
Possession: 59%
Corners: 10
Fouls: 15

Sunderland
Shots: 10
On target: 6
Possession: 41%
Corners: 6
Fouls: 13

Was the result fair?

Apart from the opening stages of the game, Sunderland were better on the ball and clinical in front of goal. Adam Johnson was a threat throughout and caused Fulham problems all afternoon. However, the Black Cats also defended well and goalkeeper Vito Mannone did not have much to do. A thoroughly deserved victory.

Fulham's performance

The hosts gave as good as they got for the first 15 minutes, matching Sunderland in all areas. However, once the opening goal went in, they failed to respond and lacked a cutting edge. Dimitar Berbatov and Adel Taarabt were wasteful, while Clint Dempsey had a quiet day. Manager Rene Meulensteen will be worried with the lack of leadership at the back and the failure of his attacking players to produce in key areas.

Sunderland's performance

Gus Poyet's side finally produced their cup form in the league and this could be a turning point in their season. They hurt Fulham with inventive attacking play and looked in control as the match wore on. Defensively, Wes Brown and John O'Shea were solid, while Mannone showed good reactions when called upon. At no point during the 90 minutes did Sunderland look like a relegation-threatened side.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Adam Johnson: Johnson was key to this victory. He opened the scoring with a sublime free kick and then finished off a brilliant counter-attacking move in the second half. A late penalty completed his hat-trick. Today he showed what an inspirational player he can be.

Biggest gaffe

With Fulham chasing the game at 3-1, Philippe Senderos stuck out a lazy leg to concede a penalty. It was a clumsy, thoughtless tackle and typified his side's performance.

Referee performance

Mike Dean had a solid game, although he did show six yellow cards. Apart from that, he got most decisions right and had little choice but to award the penalty.

What next?

Fulham: The Cottagers host Norwich City in an FA Cup third-round replay on Tuesday night.

Sunderland: Sunderland welcome Southampton to the Stadium of Light next Saturday.