Fulham kept the pressure on the Championship top two and boosted their chances of a top-six finish by beating Preston North End 2-0 at Craven Cottage on Saturday. 

The Cottagers grabbed a vital victory that moves them nine points clear of seventh ahead of a run-in that sees them face a number of their promotion rivals.

Scott Parker's side did well to absorb some significant pressure in the first half before a David Nugent own-goal gave them the lead after 58 minutes.

Aboubakar Kamara sealed the victory in the fifth minute of stoppage time, capping off a lightning-quick break by firing the ball into the back of the net.

Fulham have to travel to another play-off contender, Bristol City, on Saturday but before the focus switches to that game, here are three things we learned about the West London side from the victory against Preston...

Michael Hector continues to prove his importance. 

The German defender was fantastic for Fulham on Saturday, continuing what has been a hugely impressive start to life in West London.

Hector only officially signed with the club in January but has become integral to this side and you feel he will be key if they're to secure promotion.

In the first half, he made two goal-saving interventions in his own box, while he showed real composure to start the break that led to Kamara's late goal.

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They showed they can be adaptable.

Fulham dominated possession on Saturday but they had to absorb a lot of pressure, as Preston pushed hard to make a breakthrough.

The victory was an important one as Parker's side showed that they can be adaptable and are able to find a way to win games that do not necessarily go their way.

They will likely have to claim a few more results this way in the conclusion to the season, as they have games against some of the division's top sides still to come.

Marek Rodak appears to have returned to form after a brief wobble.

The 23-year-old's performances against Millwall and, particularly, Barnsley, a few weeks ago will have been a worry but he looks back to form now.

He was impressive against Preston, making some important saves and ensuring his side kept another clean sheet.

Rodak has been excellent over the last three weeks, it seems he is back in form at the perfect time with just 10 games left of the season.