Iwobi Injury Not Serious, Says Silva After Fulham Draw with Brentford
Fulham FC manager Marco Silva has given an early update on Alex Iwobi after the midfielder was forced off during their 0-0 draw with Brentford FC on Saturday.
Iwobi, who was making his 318th Premier League appearance, started the match well but had to go off in the 43rd minute after picking up what looked like a hamstring injury. The Nigerian went down after chasing a loose ball and could not continue, although he was able to walk off the pitch without help. He was replaced by fellow Nigerian Samuel Chukwueze.
Fulham missed Iwobi’s presence after he went off, as they struggled to create chances and failed to register a single shot on target at the Gtech Community Stadium. Brentford had the better chances but could not score, thanks to some fine saves from Bernd Leno.
The result leaves Fulham in 12th place on the table, just three points behind Brentford, who sit seventh, with only a few matches left this season.
Speaking after the game, Silva said the injury may not be as serious as first feared, but confirmed that more checks are needed.
“First reaction I got from Alex – it’s not so bad, but in the next 24-48 hours, we will be more clear about it. A big impact when we lost him,” Silva said.
The Fulham boss also explained how much the team missed Iwobi after he went off.
“Second half, we dropped in the last 30 minutes, we lost control. We lost a lot when we lost Alex. We lost duels. They were in more control, the save from Leno comes from a situation where we can’t lose the ball. Leno popped up and showed his quality,” he added.
Fulham will now wait for the scan results and hope the injury is not serious, as they push for a possible European spot with five matches left in the season.
