Marco Silva wants Fulham to reach FA Cup semi-final as manager in 500th match

The 2024/25 FA Cup will see the quarter-finals, with Fulham hosting Crystal Palace. Coach Marco Silva said he very much hopes to lead Fulham into the FA Cup semi-finals.

In the round of 16, Fulham took the lead with a goal from Calvin Basel, but lost to Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes near the end of the second half. However, they eventually eliminated Manchester United 4-3 on penalties and successfully advanced to the quarterfinals.

It is worth mentioning that Marco Silva, 47, is about to reach the milestone of his 500th game as a coach. Fulham said, "I feel good, but I also feel a little older. This is an important game, for us and Crystal Palace as well. 500 games is a good number, but for me it's just another focus game because it's our next match in this important competition."

“It’s been a long journey and I started at a younger age than most managers. It’s been a special journey and I’m proud of what I’ve achieved so far, but I want more and I want more in the future. It really speaks to the progress we’ve made since returning to the Premier League, but it’s no accident that we reached the FA Cup quarter-finals in our first season, the League Cup semi-finals for the first time last season and we’re in the quarter-finals again this season.”

Call on the team to create more scoring opportunities

“It’s not just about the way we play in the games, but also about the mentality we have for the club in each competition,” continued Marco Silva. “I remember when I first joined the club, we played the first few games in these cup competitions and we have completely changed the way we play and the mentality of the team. Since then, we have achieved better results in these competitions.”

In addition, Marco Silva shared, “The club didn’t make the semi-finals of the English League Cup last season, but now we have advanced to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup. If you ask how it feels to have the opportunity to reach the semi-finals, of course it is great, but for a club on the right track and for a group of ambitious players and staff, this is the necessary progress.”

Looking back at the record, Fulham has won 1, drawn 3 and lost 1 in the last 5 matches against Crystal Palace, including the second Premier League match this season, where they lost 0-2 to Glasner's team at home. When talking about Crystal Palace, Marco Silva said, "This will be an extremely intense game, and the opponent is a team with excellent physical fitness and difficult to beat. They usually adopt a 5-defender system, with two technically excellent midfielders and 3 forwards who can create threats at any time."

"We have to do better in this game and, most importantly, we need to create more chances to score than last time. We didn't have enough chances last time because if we want to win, we have to score.