‘We were dominant’ - Marco Silva basks in glory after ‘leaving nothing’ for Newcastle United
Newcastle United were trounced 3-1 by Fulham at Craven Cottage yesterday
Marco Silva insisted the better team won after Fulham ended Newcastle United’s unbeaten start to the season.
Eddie Howe’s men gave themselves a mountain to climb at half-time, with the hosts coasting to a comfortable 2-0 lead. Harvey Barnes fired back immediately after the restart but the Magpies failed to force an equaliser with that momentum.
Fabian Schar had the best chance to pull level when Bern Leno’s sloppy goal kick found him just inside the area. However, instead of squaring to Alexander Isak, the Swiss international skewed a shot wide - much to the relief of home supporters.
Fulham struck late on to bury any chance of a Toon comeback, inflicting Newcastle their first Premier League defeat at Craven Cottage since 2014. Silva ended the host’s run of six straight losses to the Magpies - with two coming earlier this year.
They now sit just two points behind Howe’s side, who play Manchester City next weekend. Speaking post-match, Fulham boss Silva called his side “dominant” and fully deserving of the three points.
"It was a very good first half in the image I like us to play, creating problems in different ways for the opposition and really enjoying embracing the challenge in front of us,” he said. “We built from the back and, every time we arrived in central areas, we should have scored more goals from the moments we created.
"We were dominant, the best team on the pitch in the first half, and we left nothing for a side with top players. It showed the capacity we have as a team. We conceded a late goal against West Ham (last weekend) and it took a bit of time to organise, but we had more chances for 3-1 than they did for 2-2."