Fulham coach Marco Silva was quick to praise the connection between his team and Fulham fans during the 2-0 win over Southampton.
A packed-out away end saw goals from Carlos Vinicius and the returning Aleksandar Mitrovic secure a club-record 15th Premier League win of the season.
Marco Silva said: “Really good to see the way we performed and the way we deserved the three points away from home. To get a clean sheet as well, the feeling was great. We saw it during all of the match but to see it at the end, the connection between the players and fans as well is a great feeling for me, something that you are working to achieve more and more.”
The result relegated rock-bottom Saints to the second tier, although they had made Fulham work hard for their win.
Marco Silva said: “We expected some reaction from Southampton. We knew that it was probably the last chance for them to keep believing, and we prepared the game for that. We did a very good offensive transition for our first goal and of course after that moment, the game became easier for us because we started to control the game. And after the second goal, we completely killed the game in my opinion.”
With Mitro back available after serving an eight-game suspension, the boss had a choice to make between his top scorer and in-form Carlos Vinicius.
Marco Silva said: “I decided to start with the 11 that did a very good game against Leicester, and Carlos deserved to start as well.
Of course, when you have Mitro ready to go, it’s a temptation to start with him because he’s top goalscorer and he’s been a crucial player for me and this football club.
Marco Silva said: “But I knew what Carlos can provide and deliver for us. He’s been playing well, he’s helped the team and I knew that if I needed, Mitro is going to be there ready to go. It was nice to see him score, it was nice to see Carlos score as well. A very good headache for me to decide for the next one.”
