Silva on Luton's 'fight', Tete's contract and Boa Mortepublished at 15:09 17 May 2024
15:09 17 May 2024
Fulham boss Marco Silva has been speaking to the media before Sunday's final game of the season against Luton Town at Kenilworth Road (16:00 BST kick-off).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
In of team news, Sasa Lukic has picked up an injury and will be unavailable for selection. Issa Diop will not feature in the matchday squad due to suspension.
Silva praised the "fight" that relegation-threatened Luton Town have shown throughout their first season in the Premier League: "For them to fight until the end to stay up, shows how much they have improved. Their fans are proud of their team and you can see it every time they play."
On what he expects from the Hatters: "It will be a really tough game for us. Even if they don't achieve it [safety], they are going to fight to the maximum - and this reflects Rob Edwards and his staff."
He confirmed that Fulham have offered a contract extension to right-back Kenny Tete, stating: "We are really pleased to take the option to extend his contract. Even if it has not been the best season for him, we know what he is capable of."
Lastly, Silva had some kind words for his departing first-team coach Luis Boa Morte: "This is not just a football relationship, this is a personal relationship. We will stay friends, for sure." Boa Morte is leaving the club to take charge of Guinea-Bissau's national team.
Wolves are in the news this week for their pursuit of a vote on the scrapping of VAR.
Their wishes drew further scrutiny on Wednesday when Newcastle United winger Anthony Gordon found himself in the middle of a contentious call before offering a strong view on the technology after his side went down at Manchester United.
"Modified" is the word when we are talking about VAR going to a vote.
We are still getting to grips with it, but we have seen some good come from it. There have been some instances of indifferent decisions because calls are getting too many looks at them from so many angles.
They still do not know what is a good tackle and what is not. I think they need help from some former players, who have been in that situation and understand what the differences are in those challenges.
We keep talking about different angles and that is not going to go away because with VAR or without it, on certain challenges we would still disagree. You could have two current players in a room and they still would not agree.
It is Wolves' opinion on VAR and if they feel it is not working for them, then you can understand why they are saying to have a go without it again.
Molineux boss Gary O'Neil has been very frustrated, but he has also been balanced and tried to stay quiet. Now he does not want to stay quiet because he feels it does not benefit them and decisions are not going their way.
Overall, we have seen good things from VAR, even if it does bring with it a delay and a wait.
It would be a shame now for it to all go away when we have all the technology in place.
Michael Brown was speaking to BBC Sport's Katie Stafford
Luton v Fulham: Pick of the statspublished at 11:27 16 May 2024
11:27 16 May 2024
Here are the key facts and figures before Sunday's game between Luton Town and Fulham in the Premier League.
Luton are winless in their past six league games against Fulham, but both draws in that run have been in their most recent two home meetings with the Cottagers.
Following their 1-0 win in the reverse fixture, Fulham are looking to complete their first league double over Luton since the 1953-54 campaign.
Since their return to the Football League in 2014, Luton have only lost their final league game in one of their nine seasons (W6 D2), a 3-1 loss at QPR in 2020-21.
Fulham have not won their final league game in any of the past six seasons (D1 L5), since beating Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 in 2016-17.
Next season 'a time for Fulham to really kick on'published at 09:11 16 May 2024
09:11 16 May 2024
Image source, PA Media
Tom Cairney believes Fulham are "in a good place" and this summer is a "big moment" to "push on to the next level".
The Fulham captain reflected on his club's season on the latest episode of the Footballer's Football Podcast on BBC Sounds.
With one Premier League game remaining, Marco Silva's side are 14th in the table with 44 points - eight fewer than they managed in 2022-23 - while only three of their 12 league wins this season have come on the road.
"I'd say consistency has let us down, especially away from home," said midfielder Cairney. "We've been so good at Craven Cottage this season, which has been a big highlight and a big plus for us, but I feel like the away form has let us down on bettering last season's points total.
"I feel like the club is in a good place, the squad is in a better place than last season, but that consistency part has let us down on league position.
"We had back-to-back 5-0 wins in the Premier League, which was a nice moment. It's hard to win 5-0 as it is, but to do it back-to-back was special. We beat Manchester United away, Tottenham at home, Arsenal at home - they were big results.
"Most of it has been a big plus but I feel that next season is a time for Fulham to really kick on. This summer and next season is a big moment for Fulham, like Brighton for example, to push on to the next level. Hopefully that's what we do."
Fulham also reached the Carabao Cup semi-final this season, losing to eventual winners Liverpool 3-2 on aggregate.
Cairney added: "You've got to look at that as a big positive. Losing to Liverpool over two legs by one goal was not the end of the world, but it felt like it at the time."
Vote: Who is your Fulham player of the season?published at 10:16 15 May 2024
10:16 15 May 2024
Dan Crawford Fan writer
We asked our Fulham fan contributor for their four player of the season choices and you can now vote for your top one.
Image source, Getty Images
Calvin Bassey
It is a measure of how well Bassey recovered from a tough start to his Fulham career that he features in this conversation. With his pace and power, he has stepped seamlessly into a spot so ably filled by Tim Ream and looks like a Premier League player.
Rodrigo Muniz
The former Flamengo forward's renaissance was the feel-good story of the season. Written off by most, Muniz delivered a glut of goals when it was least expected – and his all-round game has markedly improved as well. On this form, a senior Brazil call-up cannot be far away.
Antonee Robinson
It seems incredible that Fulham signed the American left back from Wigan Athletic for less than £2m. Robinson is the archetypal modern full back - full of adventure, bravery and blistering pace. Very few wingers have got the better of him and he has been enduringly excellent this season.
Willian
What is there to say about the Brazil veteran? Willian's touch, vision and reading of a situation are remarkable and it has been a joy to watch him strut his stuff at Craven Cottage. The Fulham hierarchy simply must extend his contract this summer - it should be their first priority.
'Six points from eight games is relegation form'published at 13:06 14 May 2024
13:06 14 May 2024
Sammy James Fan writer
Despite a decent start to Saturday's game against Manchester City, a defeat by Pep Guardiola's men always felt on the cards. An unstoppable force in City very much found itself up against a moveable object in Fulham.
Our final game of the season is at Luton Town, and although the Hatters can mathematically stay up, it would need a miracle of epic proportions. Even if they did manage to score 11 goals against us, they would need Nottingham Forest to lose at Burnley, which feels unlikely.
Therefore, it feels like an opportunity for Fulham to save some face after what has been a pretty torrid end to the season. Six points from eight games since the international break is relegation form, and I really hope that does not continue into next season.
Also, every place in the division is worth millions of pounds, and a win on Sunday could see us go from 14th to 12th. It is hardly a season-defining jump, but that extra bit of revenue could be a little boost in the summer transfer kitty.
Fingers crossed we can end the campaign on a positive note.
