Marco Silva praises Manchester United star who 'created problems' vs Fulham
Man Utd were knocked out of the FA Cup after a penalty shootout defeat to Fulham.
Manchester United were knocked out of the FA Cup after a penalty shootout defeat to Fulham in the fifth round of the competition. Victor Lindelof and Joshua Zirkzee both had penalties saved by Bernd Leno after a brilliant Bruno Fernandes strike canceled Calvin Bassey's earlier opener.
United rarely threatened in the opening exchanges of the game, and it was not until they made changes in the second half that they finally started to trouble Fulham regularly. Chido Obi went close to a memorable winner on a couple of occasions, but Ruben Amorim's side could not get through before the agonising shootout defeat.
It means United's full focus will now be on winning the Europa League, with a trip to face Real Sociedad coming up later this week. Amorim will need to get his team selection spot on for that clash, and Fulham boss Marco Silva has already named one dangerous player who should be involved.
Marco Silva praises Manchester United star who 'created problems'
Speaking after the memorable shootout win at Old Trafford, Marco Silva praised his Fulham players for holding on against United, particularly after the introduction of Alejandro Garnacho from the bench. The Argentine forward was not risked from the start due to an injury he suffered last week, but he made up for lost time with an impressive substitute appearance.
“It was our goal, definitely,” Silva said after the win. “We wanted to be in the next stage, we wanted to play in the Quarter-Finals. And I really believe, and it's my feeling, that we deserve to be there. We knew that the way Man United is going to play, it's not easy to come here and to take the control of the game, knowing that they love the open space to counter-attack.
“First half, we were not at our best. We said some things at half-time, and I think the team improved last 30 minutes of the second half, even with the reaction and the goal from Bruno. I think we controlled the game, we started to find always Sander Berge alone every single moment of the game, and after from that we built, to Saša, or Emile, or Andreas as well. And all the extra-time was the same – we took the control.
“To come here and to take the game to their defensive half, we know always that we take risks in that situation, because since Garnacho came in, they had the pace of him to create problems, and that was the only problem they created, from counter-attack situations. They had chances, like we had as well. In that aspect, I think the game was balanced, but much more us in control, much more taking the responsibility to control the game on the ball – it is our way, our identity. And overall looking at the game, I really believe that we deserve to be in the next stage.”