Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images

News

HomeNewsFulhamEnglish Premier League

Marco Silva hints he could hand Fulham talent who ‘can score goals’ his first Premier League start of the season against Crystal Palace

Giuseppe Labellarte

Thu 7 November 2024 17:15, UK

Fulham are gearing up for their final Premier League game before the November international break as they head to Crystal Palace for a 3pm Saturday kick-off.

The Cottagers, currently ninth in the Premier League table, will hope to secure a top-half spot going into the final international break of 2024.

Fulham will be up against an Eagles side hovering just above the bottom three, although their form has improved somewhat, with four points from their past two games.

In addition, Palace overcame Aston Villa in their Carabao Cup clash last week, so their confidence will be high.

Marco Silva, speaking at Thursday’s pre-match press conference, hinted he could hand first Premier League start of the season to a Fulham talent who “can score goals”.

READ MORE: Barcelona’s Pedri suggests Fulham have one of the strongest players he’s ever seen

Harry Wilson ‘pushing’ for Fulham start against Crystal Palace

The player in question is Harry Wilson, who was the hero of the day against Brentford with a superb stoppage-time brace.

Wilson, who came on in the 82nd minute, got Fulham back in the game with a sumptuous back-heel flick which looped into the Brentford net on 92nd minute.

Then, in the seventh minute of stoppage time, the 27-year-old connected with a cross from the left and thumped a header home to seal all three points.

When asked by the whether Wilson could now get his first start of the season, Silva said: “He’s pushing, definitely.

“Not just because he scored the two goals and gave us the three points and had a massive impact in that game. All of us, we know him very well.

“Slightly in a different position [on Monday], more in the centre of the pitch, but he has that capacity to smell the right moments when to go inside the box. He can score goals.

“As I said, not just because he scored twice that he’s knocking on the door. He is working really hard to get the chance again.

“It’s been tough for me to leave him out, but the competition is really hard for the positions.

“Adama (Traore) had a very good start of the season, like Alex (Iwobi), who’s been one of the best players for us so far.

“Of course, Harry can play in different positions as well, and to answer directly to you, of course he’s working hard to get the chance from the starting XI.

“Sooner or later, it could be Saturday, sooner or later he’s going to have [that chance] because he has the quality to do it. But, as I said, the competition is really high for the positions.”

Harry Wilson’s stats so far this season

Wilson has made six Premier League appearances for Fulham this season, though all of them have been off the bench.

He also started both of Fulham’s Carabao Cup games, playing 87 minutes against Birmingham and 77 minutes against Preston North End.

After Fulham take on Palace this weekend, they then host Wolverhampton Wanderers on their return to action after the international break.