From the outside at least it appears there is only one club in west London worth following if it is goals and attacking swagger you are looking for. But after this enthralling encounter Fulham can justifiably feel they deserve to be spoken of in similar terms as their neighbours Chelsea.

Waking up on Sunday morning, and having got over the frustration of twice losing the lead to a Reading side yet to record a Premier League win this season, Martin Jol's men could reflect on having scored as many goals, 19, as the European Champions – albeit having played one game extra – and one more than Manchester City and five more than Arsenal from the same number of fixtures.

They have become eye-catching entertainers and will continue to be so should Dimitar Berbatov maintain the level of performance he delivered at the Madjeski on Saturday.

The Bulgarian was his typical languid self, barely breaking out of walking pace at times, but his control and delivery of possession were captivating and allowed Fulham to open up Reading on many occasions. And then there was his goal after 88 minutes, a masterclass in movement and finishing, and a strike which, had it not been for Hal Robson-Kanu's scrappy late equaliser, would have sealed a win that would have moved them into the top four.

"You can see he [Berbatov] is a really good player and we're disappointed he couldn't be the matchwinner," said the Fulham captain, Brede Hangeland. "Overall we have really talented players [in attack] and when they're fit it must be a headache for the manager. A good one, though."

Indeed, on the eve of this game Jol had spoken of Fulham now having better attacking options than "at any time over the last decade" and, with Berbatov supplemented by fellow summer signings Hugo Rodallega and Mladen Petric, the Dutchman's assertion does not appear a wild one.

Alongside them is Bryan Ruiz, who came off the bench to score Fulham's first goal with a rasping drive from the edge of the area and then set up their second, scored by Chris Baird, who himself has two goals in his last two appearances. In general it feels as if the departures of Clint Dempsey and Mousa Dembélé are no longer being sorely felt.

"What is my best forward line? That is still a problem and it's already October," said Jol. "But it's a luxury problem."

Reading's problems are more concerning. The team remain in the relegation zone and without a clean sheet or a victory after eight games back in the top flight, but they can take heart from the spirit they showed here, with Gareth McCleary and Robson-Kanu both getting them back on level terms in the last five minutes of the match after Mikele Leigertwood had given them the lead with an excellent long-range drive.

"I'm playing the game, not the outcome," said a defiant McDermott, whose side's next game is Capital One Cup tie with Arsenal.

"The outcome will be in May and wherever we end up, we end up. We did exactly the same thing last year; people talked about promotion, and someone said, 'It's yours to lose', but I just concentrate on playing the game. People should also remember that 20-30 years ago this club was in whatever division, but it certainly wasn't this one."

Man of the match Dimitar Berbatov (Fulham)