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Aleksandar Mitrovic joined Fulham from Premier League side Newcastle in January and has scored three goals in four starts for his new club

Aleksandar Mitrovic scored his third goal in as many games as Fulham beat Derby County to secure a 10th win in 13 matches and move above their promotion rivals into fourth.

Mitrovic's deflected shot after a slick short corner and an angled Ryan Sessegnon strike put Fulham in control.

Derby, who have collected just 12 points from 30, rallied and Tom Huddlestone's 18-yard shot made it 2-1.

But the Londoners held on despite some strong late home pressure.

Cameron Jerome and Richard Keogh both went close in stoppage-time but Fulham were good value for a win which takes them to within five points of second-placed Cardiff City.

The Rams struggled to cope with Mitrovic's physicality all afternoon and the big Serbian striker had already threatened to open the scoring in a lively start at a bitterly cold Pride Park.

Sessegnon also had a shot saved by keeper Scott Carson, while Andreas Weimann saw an effort ruled out for offside at the other end following a slick move.

But Mitrovic reacted smartly to turn the ball in after good approach play by Stefan Johansen and the Norwegian midfielder then teed up Fulham's second.

A mistake by Richard Keogh gifted possession to Johansen, who played in teenager Sessengon for his 13th goal in his past 18 Championship matches.

The visitors could easily have added to their lead against a Derby side lacking in confidence, with Mitrovic and Floyd Ayite both wasting chances before the interval.

Gary Rowett's Derby side upped both the quality and tempo on the resumption but Huddlestone's fine strike was all they had to show despite a frantic finish which saw Jerome's effort brush the post.

Derby manager Gary Rowett said:

"Certainly from the start of the game we were very, very good, very aggressive and made it difficult for Fulham to play out.

"But once again, the reality is we made two very poor mistakes for the goals and from starting the game really well, we are 2-0 down at home.

"If I'm being honest, in the 10 minutes before half-time we looked a bit sorry for ourselves, two or three players had their heads down and we started to feel it wasn't going to be our day and I don't want that, we have to show fight."

Fulham head coach Slavisa Jokanovic:

"I started working with Ryan Sessegnon when he was 16 years old and I believe he can be part of the English national team for the World Cup.

"Experience is important but he is a really expert player for his age at this moment. It's evident that if he doesn't have any injury problems, he will be a top player.

"He is not a kid, he is a man and he gives myself, the club and his team-mates many things and we try to support him and make him still better than he is right now."

The match was just one of five in the Championship that managed to beat the cold weather