Fulham boss Marco Silva has been quoted by the Fulham’s website as giving his honest verdict on Leeds United’s Spanish manager Javi Gracia and Leeds itself, ahead of Tuesday night’s FA Cup fifth-round clash at Craven Cottage.
Gracia, 52, got off to the perfect start on Saturday when he masterminded a controlling performance against fellow strugglers Southampton. A 1-0 win thanks to Junior Firpo’s goal, but a game that Leeds could have won by more.
Not only three points, but a massive win that saw Leeds take three points off of Southampton, too. With Everton losing to Aston Villa, it saw Leeds climb out of the drop zone. A massive victory – as Gracia prepares for his second game.
As Chris Sutton states, Gracia’s priority will be keeping Leeds in the Premier League. But, Leeds fans will be desperate for the club to go as far as possible in the FA Cup. A competition that Gracia knows well, taking Watford to the final.
Silva gave his verdict on Gracia, the unpredictability of Leeds given that the Spaniard has only been in the job for one match – and that, the club’s support is big. He has full respect for Leeds but is desperate for Fulham to progress.
“As you know, it was just Javi’s first game,” Silva said. “It’s difficult to predict the way they are going to be. They are always going to be Leeds and probably even in a better mood, more confident after the massive win for them.
“Full respect to Leeds, we know their capacity, the support they have. We know what type of support they have. A proper cup tie. Two good teams that want to go through. It is our aim to play in the Quarter-Final of the FA Cup.”
Fulham boss Marco Silva gives honest verdict on Javi Gracia and Leeds
It depends a lot on how Leeds are going to line-up. Gracia could decide to weaken his side, in order to rest our best players. Max Wober was a surprise inclusion on Saturday after his shoulder issue – and Diogo Monteiro could come in.
Tyler Adams, Willy Gnonto, Patrick Bamford – even Illan Meslier. They could all be rested ahead of a clash against Chelsea in which the Whites will feel they have a real chance of winning. But Gracia will also know momentum is key.
With four days in between Chelsea and Fulham, it might be that Gracia risks his best players in order to gain that extra boost. It is a difficult one to predict, but either way, Fulham away is going to be a tricky tie for whatever Leeds side.
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