Fulham manager Marco Silva has expressed satisfaction with the performance of Samuel Chukwueze, after his goalscoring return in their 2-1 win over Brighton on Saturday, SportPremi reports.
The Super Eagles superstar had missed the past few weeks of action alongside Alex Iwobi and Calvin Bassey due to action with Nigeria at the 2025 African Cup of Nations tournament, but returned with a goal in Saturday’s clash.
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With the home side a goal down in the second half after Yasin Ayari’s first half strike for the visitors, Silva turned to Chukwueze who had started on the bench, and the winger made an important impact in the match, netting the equalizer for the Cottagers.
It was his third league goal of the season and takes his goal contributions to seven in just three starts and seven substitute appearances.
The 26-year-old moved to Fulham on an initial loan deal during the summer transfer window from Italian side AC Milan and it is almost certain the English club will make the deal permanent at the end of the season.
Harry Wilson netted a stunning free-kick in stoppage-time to complete the comeback and seal a 2-1 win for the Cottagers, as they moved up to seventh on the league standings.
What Marco Silva said after Fulham’s win over Brighton
During his post-match press conference, Silva was satisfied with his side’s improved performance as they bounced back from last weekend’s defeat to Leeds United and also hailed the impact of Chukwueze on his return.
“The reality is that we scored a great goal for us – simple, but great. The pass from Jaochim, the opposite run from Chukwu, and they know we need it against teams that come to press so high.
“We need runs in behind, we need players to chase them in behind. A great moment from both, from Andersen and from Chukwu to equalise the game”, he added.
“A big win for us. Probably a fair result should be a draw, in my opinion. I think it’s harsh for them to lose the game the way they lost.
“It was like that in some moments where we have deserved much more from games and we didn’t. This afternoon, it came in our favour, and we won a big three points for it”, Silva continued.
The Portuguese also remarked on match winner Wilson, who is out of contract in the summer and has not extended at the club.
“We are in the fight, we are trying to keep him. If you ask me if it’s going to be easy, I say it’s not going to be easy. The more he scores, many more clubs are going to be around him. This is football business. When a player goes to the end of his contract, this kind of thing is going to happen.
“I know he’s happy in our club and how much he’s enjoying the moment. It’s up to the club to do the maximum to keep him”, the Portuguese concluded.
Fulham are now up to seventh on the EPL standings with 34 points and will visit Old Trafford to face Manchester United in their next match.
