Fulham boss Marco Silva will sit down alone Sky Sports to discuss how his team will cope with Arsenal's set-pieces, Alex Iwobi's “stunning form” and Emile Smith Rowe's “emotional” debut against his former side.
With Fulham just three points off the European places, were you surprised by your start?
“It doesn't surprise me. I'm not saying I expected to be there at the start of the season, but the way we played can't be a surprise to me, to our players and to everyone who follows the Premier League closely.
“I have to be fair to our players, we can't be surprised because in terms of performance we've been playing really, really well. We've been one of the best teams on the pitch -game and we deserve the points we picked up, or in some cases even more.
“Maybe at the start of the season, after losing so many players and so many changes in our football club again, in terms of the team, it was more hard to expect such a fast and strong start from ourselves, but it is the truth. we signed some players who settled in well and they helped the others who were here to start the season well, as we have been doing.”
Sunday December 8 1:00 p.m
Start at 2:00 p.m
What to make of your Arsenal opponents on Sunday?
“It's a real problem. A strong team too.
“They are physical from (Martin) Odegaard to the top of the pitch. It is not easy for them to allow the opposition to create many chances during the game, but we are going to be ready. It is not the best .a week to prepare because there is almost no time to prepare the game.
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Highlights from the Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester United
“In terms of renewal, they're probably going to be in a better place than we are. They played on Wednesday (Arsenal beat Man Utd 2-0 at home). We played on Thursday (Fulham beat Brighton 3-1 at home). A difference of 24 hours, but it's a big difference when you have such a short time but it's not going to be an excuse for us to get the three points like we did last year against them twice.”
How do you approach Arsenal's set pieces?
“We have a way of protecting set pieces. We know what we are talking about. When a team like Arsenal, they have been so strong, so strong. . We know what we're going to face. Not just the players, not just the trust around the Arsenal team, around their fans about the offensive set pieces, because it's really important to trust the will and desire we go for that moment. They are very good receivers too.
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Mikel Arteta appreciates comparison between Stoke City and his Arsenal side after set-piece success
“But even to give credit to our players, last season we played twice against Arsenal. We dealt well with that moment of the game. We even scored twice in set pieces against Arsenal last season and we didn't concede. to do the same thing again we have to be focused, confident in ourselves, how we are going to establish ourselves and be strong in that moment not only defensively, but offensively as well .”
How happy are you with Alex Iwobi's form this season?
“It's been an amazing season for him. To be honest, I'm not surprised. We felt as a team, Alex and his teammates felt the same. he started the season, the pre-season matches, like the first game in the Premier League, you start to feel, 'OK, it will be even better than the previous season 'We are going to have Alex with her all the talent he has in himself, the ability he has inside himself, he is going to put everything out there this season.
Please use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Highlights of the Premier League match between Fulham and Brighton & Hove Albion
“First of all, he is a very important player for me because he is very versatile. He can play in many different positions. I can move him in one football game without making many changes. A- last night (against Brighton) he was a good example, he played in three different positions He is adding something to his game and he is getting better in attack.
What did you make of Emile Smith Rowe's early life at Fulham?
“He is a very important player for us. We are delighted to have the opportunity to sign him. We knew what we were going to sign – a talented player who had not played football in the last two seasons .We know that he is going to do, at times, a little bit down in terms of consistency, but he has to play more and more and train more and more.
Emile Smith Rowe joined Fulham from Arsenal last summer in a club record £34m deal
“It is important for him not to stop, to train every day and to be able to maintain the intensity and energy that the Premier League demands of you and in that position even more. And he must be able to respond to it. And I am very happy to be with us.
“I think he delivers what we wanted from him. And I'm going to see more consistency in the future. Yes, it will be my goal to push him forward and he will be a his goal is to be more consistent in terms of performance throughout the 90 minutes of the game.”
Do you think there will be extra motivation for Smith Rowe and Iwobi on Sunday when they face their former club?
“I don't know, really. I've already been with Alex for a long time at Everton and now it's the second season with me at Fulham. It's Emile's first time ' going to face the former club.
“It will probably be an emotional game for Emile. I'm not talking about extra motivation or not, but emotional for sure it will be for Emile and that's what it is. He's going to face a club he loves for sure, but now he's also in love with Fulham and he's going to fight and he's going to do his best for us for the game to win.”
Will you be looking to strengthen in the upcoming January transfer window?
“We have to be very careful to talk about that, first of all, because this group of players deserve all the credit and they deserve to be talked about, and maybe not about the new players coming in.
“That's the first thing in terms of their unity, their camaraderie, the quality of their commitment, they've been amazing.
“Secondly, it's about the quality of the players because we need to add someone they need to add more quality because just to have a new face – I'd rather not have one unless they add a little bit more ' our club and that extra quality costs money and we'll see if you have the budget for it.”
Source link
