'Big club with a great fanbase' - Fulham boss Marco Silva gives Sunderland verdict

Fulham boss Marco Silva described Sunderland as a ‘big club with a great fanbase,’ although he seemed less impressed by the Black Cats on the pitch.

Sunderland held the Premier League side to a 1-1 draw at Craven Cottage in the FA Cup fourth round, with Tom Cairney cancelling out Jack Clarke’s early opener.

It was a pulsating cup tie though which pretty much everyone seemed to enjoy – except Silva.

"Typical FA Cup match,” Silva said after the game. “We knew we would face a big club with a great fanbase.

“It was a too open for a manager to like and we gave a goal too early. In our offensive part we were dominant. We created enough chances to score but gave them more chances than we would like.

"We were not able to win the game this afternoon so have to do the job in 10-15 days away from home."

Despite him clearly being impressed with the Sunderland support, he was less forthcoming in praise for the Sunderland players.

In fact, he seemed to feel like everything Sunderland got was a result of something his side did badly rather than something the visitors did well.

“We conceded a cheap goal but overall in the game I think we’ve created enough chances to score more goals. On the other side I think we gave many opportunities for them to score as well and some counter-attacks where we gave the ball away in certain moments.

“We lost some important challenges and that was the part of the game I didn’t like.”

Read more Sunderland news