Marco Silva knows Wolverhampton Wanderers have turned a corner since Julen Lopetegui was installed as their head coach.
Having won just two of their 15 Premier League matches prior to the World Cup, Wolves have now won four from eight under the guidance of the former Spain and Real Madrid boss.
“He has had a very good impact, I have to say,” Silva said. “You can see that in the results, you can see the confidence in their team as well.
“But the Premier League is really tough and you never know what is going to happen. They had two very good results [against Liverpool and Southampton], and last week against Bournemouth they lost the game.
“The Premier League is tough, you never expect an easy game. We analyse them, we know what they are able to do, but of course our focus is ourselves, what we can do or not.
“Very good players, good manager. Since Lopetegui came in, you can see some improvements and it will be a tough game.
“A team that spent a big amount of money last summer, in January they did more or less the same, and they want always to improve the squad.
“It will be a tough one, but it will be tough for them as well. They come to play against us at the Cottage, we are in a very good moment and, of course, we want to keep going.”
That defeat at Molineux by Bournemouth last time out saw Wanderers miss the chance to put some distance between themselves and the bottom three.
It’s the first time the club has had to look over their shoulder since promotion in 2018, but Silva still expects Friday night to be a keenly contested battle.
“It will be tight, a tight game, definitely,” he stated. “I think it is going to be the details that are going to decide that match tomorrow. This is my feeling right now.
“I know that they are not in a normal position for them in [comparison to the] last few seasons. Normally we can see them, in the seasons before, in the top half of the table every time. It’s something new for them this season.
“They are improving, I think, even if they lost their last game, we can see some improvements in their results, getting the three points in some games to put them in a better position right now and much more confident, and it will be a tough game.”
Scoring goals has been a problem for Wolves this season, with no side netting fewer than their 17 in the top flight.
None of their current strikers are off the mark in the league this season, but Silva pointed to the quality they have up top when a journalist put it to him that it could be a quiet evening for Fulham’s defence.
He replied: “I understand what you’re saying, but they have [Raul] Jimenez, Diego [Costa] and Matheus Cunha, who they signed last January, he’s a top player.
“And you know, like I know, if Jimenez is in his best level he’s a top striker in the Premier League, and they have Diego with his experience that he has at this level, he can always be a threat.
“And when you have, around their strikers, the players they have, they can be always a threat for any team. I understand what you said, because it’s a fact, but of course we believe that they can punish you if you switch off in any moment.
“They are really strong on the counter-attack, with skilful players in that moment. They have a player like Ruben [Neves] who can score from many areas of the pitch as well – you have to be aware of everything.
“You have to keep the focus on the strikers because we believe that they can punish you if you are not in your best level.”
