Fulham coach Marco Silva was frustrated by a sub par first half performance by his Fulham side as they were edged out 1-0 by Aston Villa on Tuesday night. A 21st minute Tyrone Mings header was enough to see the hosts secure the three points on an uneventful night at Villa Park. Despite a response in the second half, Silva was left ruing the tone that was set in a quiet opening 45 minutes.
Marco Silva said: “It was two different halves if I can say that. The first half was not good enough. We were shy and not aggressive enough off the ball. We conceded a completely sloppy goal and that created the best scenario for Villa. They were quiet at that moment and they calmed down the game. The first half was clearly not our level, the standards were not at the level we normally play. We had a lack of desire and will to match the opposition side. In the second half, even though we didn’t create enough chances to equalise the game at least we were completely different. Our pressure was completely different, much more aggressive on the ball & off the ball. It was a more difficult half because they set an individual block. They closed the spaces and in our front line we did not create enough. We controlled the ball in the second half & had lots of possession but we had only a few chances around the box. I saw a reaction in the second half but it is clear we have to improve what we did in the first half. “
After an injury to Willian during the warm-up, a second blow followed promptly after the start of the match with Harry Wilson being forced off through an ailment of his own. Despite losing two in-form cogs in his attacking line in recent weeks, the Head Coach was quick to stress he expected more from his side.
Marco Silva said: “We will have to assess them. They are two completely different things. Willian felt his hamstring during the warm-up. Let’s see if it is serious or not. They will assess him again tomorrow and we will see. Harry was completely different. He felt something in his stomach. He didn’t feel very well last night. This morning he felt ok, ready to go to the match but he started to feel it again at the beginning of the match. It is never good when you have a plan. You plan something with your eleven and you lose one and then after 5 minutes of the game you lose another player. Of course this is not the best scenario for us but this will not be an excuse for us. We are talking about the two best players on the pitch in the last two games that we won. Willian against Everton and in the last game against Leeds Harry was the best player on the pitch. It is not the best when this type of thing happens but this will not be an excuse for us. It was a moment for the players who came in to pop up and show their quality. This was our reality. If you compare the eleven that played against Villa in our first game at the Cottage our front line was completely different.”
