Fulham boss Rene Meulensteen believes that his side squandered the initiative after coming back from two goals down against Manchester City at Craven Cottage yesterday.

The Dutchman was pleased with how his team mounted a second-half comeback after goals from Yaya Toure and Vincent Kompany had put the visitors ahead at the break.

Jesus Navas and James Milner won the points late on for City, leaving the Cottagers in the bottom three over Christmas.

"At half time we really assured ourselves by saying 'listen, we're sitting here 2-0 down from two set-plays, but making sure that playing-wise we are giving a good account for ourselves, and if we can claw one goal back we can get back into it' and that's what we did," Sky Sports News quotes Meulensteen as saying.

"We had a little bit of a similar scenario away to Everton; we get the equaliser, it's 1-1. Stabilise yourself, just give yourself a bit of breathing space, knock the ball about and that third chance would have come without a shadow of a doubt because we were positive as much as we could be.

"But then to lose a third goal, which is avoidable, that is very disappointing, it makes all the good work undone."

Fulham have won one and lost eight of their last nine games in the Premier League.