Marco Silva’s assessment as Fulham beat 10-man Chelsea

Fulham boss Marco Silva was delighted that his side managed to pick up all three points against Chelsea despite not playing at their best in the second half.

The Cottagers opened the scoring in the 25th minute after ex-Chelsea man Willian cut inside on his right foot and curled a shot towards goal, deflecting off Trevoh Chalobah and past Kepa.

Graham Potter’s side drew level just after the start of the second half when Mason Mount’s free-kick was turned over the line by Kalidou Koulibaly.

The Blue were reduced to 10 men after Joao Felix was sent off on his debut for the club in the 57th minute, losing control of the ball and arriving late in his tackle on Kenny Tete.

Silva’s side wrapped up all three points after Carlos Vinicius met Andreas Pereira’s looped cross towards the back post.

“I’m delighted with the result,” Silva told BT Sport.

“I was pleased with the first half – second half was not at our best level.

“This is the good thing we can take as a group. Our players know that we didn’t play at our best level in the second half, and we were able to win a football match against a top side.

“Even if they are in a bad run, they are Chelsea. I said yesterday that they are Chelsea and everyone knows what that means – top-quality players with a great manager.

“It was a tough game for us. In the first half, we didn’t start the game well – we took some time to adjust.

“After we adjusted, it balanced the game.”

Speaking on Felix’s red card, Silva added: “It’s always important when you’re playing against 10.

“It was then our obligation to go and try to win the football match. It was a great night for our fans – it’s everything we want to give them.”