Marco Silva expressed satisfaction after Fulham secured a hard-fought goalless draw against Nottingham Forest in their latest Premier League clash.
The encounter at City Ground proved to be a tightly contested battle, with both teams struggling to carve out clear scoring opportunities.
Forest thought they had broken the deadlock midway through the second half when Dan Ndoye found the net, but the effort was ruled out for offside.
Meanwhile, Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno was rarely troubled as the visitors maintained a disciplined defensive structure throughout the match.
For Silva’s side, the stalemate carried extra significance as it marked their first clean sheet in the league since late December.
As a result, the Fulham manager was encouraged by the defensive solidity shown by his players.
“First half was very balanced. No chances, we had one great one from a set piece. Big hance from Calvin. It was a game that probably needed a goal from one team or the other to open up,” said Silva.
Although Fulham managed to move the ball into promising areas during the first half, Silva admitted the team lacked the final spark required to create clear chances.
“We arrived with balls in dangerous areas, but our inspiration in that moment, the decision was not at the level that allowed us to create chances because the space was there during the first half.”
As the match progressed, the tempo shifted and the contest became more open, influenced partly by changing conditions.
“And the second half, a little bit more of a broken game. The conditions and the weather created a different scenario in the game. It was a tight game.”
The match also saw moments of controversy, including a penalty decision that was eventually overturned due to offside, which added further tension to the contest.
“After the penalty that was offside and all that stuff, it created different emotions in the game and from that moment, both teams were trying to win the game.”
Despite the lack of goals, Silva emphasized that the clean sheet represented a positive step for Fulham, especially after defensive struggles earlier in the campaign.
“When you are able to keep a clean sheet, it’s always a good sign.
“It’s something that we have been missing in many moments of the season.”
With Fulham aiming to regain consistency in the Premier League, Silva will hope the defensive resilience shown at Nottingham Forest can serve as a foundation for stronger performances in the weeks ahead.
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