Silva in no doubt Fulham facing worst run of injuries

Kenny Tete, Reiss Nelson and Harrison Reed are all set to miss the Boxing Day trip to west London rivals Chelsea.

Fulham manager Marco Silva at Craven Cottage. Pic: Ben Whitley/PA Wire.

Fulham boss Marco Silva says there are “no doubts” this is the most injury-hit period he has faced since his installation at Craven Cottage more than three years ago.

Kenny Tete, Reiss Nelson and Harrison Reed are all set to miss the St Stephen's Day trip to west London rivals Chelsea while Sasa Lukic, Sander Berge and Emile Smith Rowe will face late fitness tests ahead of the Stamford Bridge trip.

The 47-year-old Silva was adamant he and his team are doing everything they can to mitigate injuries, but the shrinking numbers remain a concern as the Cottagers prepare to take on the Premier League’s most in-form side.

“Yes, yes, no doubts about it (being the worst)”, said an emphatic Silva.

“Some injuries you can control, the way you manage the load and the way you prepare your players – we are talking about more muscular things.

“But when it comes to knocks, when it comes to injuries in the knees, ankles and all that stuff, the intensity of the game is not something that really you can control.

“It’s sometimes really unlucky because knocks and big tackles and big challenges, sometimes these types of things happen, and with us we’ve been really unlucky in the last month.

“It is what it is. We have to react and probably, if you can, to prepare yourselves in the market.” 

Enzo Maresca’s Blues have made it four wins from their last five league contests while Fulham have claimed just one victory across the same period, drawing four times.

Fulham have not scored at Stamford Bridge since Boxing Day 2011 so Silva knows his side have their work cut out for them, pointing out the “extra quality” of Cole Palmer.

He is nevertheless buoyed by the fact this season has already seen a number of against-the-odds encounters played out.

Silva, whose side drew 0-0 with Premier League basement-dwellers Southampton on Sunday, added: “I think the Premier League this season is showing that every single weekend or midweek game, every fixture, you can feel that… I’m not calling them surprises but always some results that people didn’t expect.

“And that shows how competitive this league is, all the clubs prepare themselves well and of course, when you are playing the most competitive and the best league in the world, these types of things come up.”