Fulham manager Marco Silva was delighted that Fulham got what we deserved from Monday’s local derby even if it was left later than he would have preferred.
Despite dominating Brentford, we looked set to depart the Cottage empty handed courtesy of Vitaly Janelt’s thunderbolt, but Harry Wilson came off the bench to net a dramatic stoppage time brace and win the game for his side.
With 68 per cent possession and 26 shots to the Bees’ five, it was a just outcome.
“I agree, we definitely deserved the three points,” Silva said. “No doubts about it.
“Tonight, we saw a little bit of what has been our season so far – being dominant in most of the games, the best team on the pitch most of the games, creating much more chances than the opposition side.
“But the reality that, in some moments, we didn't get so far the points that we deserve from the game. And tonight is more or less the same story.
“From the first minute, on the front foot was Fulham, first 20 minutes of the game I think we did create two or three clear chances to score.
“And from nowhere – they didn't have anything until that moment – the shot 25 yards from the goal, and they scored.
“The reality is that we didn't lo
se the confidence, we tried and tried, kept pushing them back and trying many different ways to try to score, and the result was really unfair at half-time.
“I told the players that we have to keep pushing hard, and it's going to be tough for [Brentford] to keep always blocking everything. I have to give credit to them. They defended really hard their box, 10 players always around their box, a lot of bodies there, but the reality is that we didn't give up.
“We tried everything from the bench, with Adama, and after with Tom Cairney, with Rodrigo, to put more fresh legs, with Harry Wilson in a different position.
“Normally, Harry Wilson plays more on the right-hand side. In that moment, we tried him a little bit closer to Rodrigo in the pocket areas to arrive.
“We know that he smells it, he has good timing to arrive in the box. We were rewarded for that, the players were reward for that.”
The noise inside Craven Cottage after Wilson’s winner was incredible, and the place was naturally a hive of euphoria at full-time.
Asked to sum up his feelings, Silva replied: “Of course, the emotions were there in the end of the game – the touchline, the players, the fans.
“I think it was a great night for the fans. They are going to have, for sure, a good night.
“In the end, we are here in football to give these type of moments for them. The main thing is to give them these type of moments. And for the players as well, tomorrow I'm going to see them with a different smile, for sure, in their face, because they deserve it.”
With the talent Silva has at his disposal in attacking areas this season, Wilson has struggled for game time, but his ridiculous cameo will no doubt have given his Head Coach food for thought ahead of another London derby at Crystal Palace on Saturday.
“It's been tough, and I understand this,” he said. “I have been having some conversations with him, it's being a tough season for him in terms of minutes.
“All the players want to play more, and Harry is a good example of that. He's not getting the minutes probably that he wanted.
“Adama started to have a very good impact in the beginning of the season, Alex has been one of the best players so far in our team, too. And, of course, with the impact of Emile so far, it’s not easy to find space for everybody. Because of that, it’s been tough for him.
“He's been on fire in the national team, to be honest, he's been scoring such important goals in the national team. With a Fulham shirt, we know that he's capable to do it.
“He has to wait, he has to be patient, and when the chance comes, he has to take it. He had a great night, great 15 minutes from him, and he helped the team to win, and that’s the most important thing.”