Marco Silva praised goalscorer Manor Solomon but admitted he is not yet ready to play 90 minutes after his equaliser earned Fulham a 1-1 draw with Wolves at Craven Cottage.
The winger suffered a serious ankle injury at the start of the season, ruling him out for four months of the campaign, but since his return he has found the net three times in as many matches.
Solomon struck the winner at Brighton last week and also scored against Nottingham Forest, before his effort on Friday cancelled out Pablo Sarabia’s goal to secure a point for the hosts.
Silva praised the Israel international’s quality but issued a note of caution as to when he will be ready for a full match.
“When a player performs well coming off the bench of course he is showing the quality that he has, how he is helping the team as well,” the Fulham boss said.
“Of course Manor is not ready for 90 minutes but he needs minutes to play with this intensity because it is the Premier League and when you are out from playing for three or four months it is always difficult.
“The most important thing for me, for all the players, is they have to be important for the team, from the start or from the bench, that is what I demand from them.
“But I am pleased with a player who has come from the bench in the last three games, he has scored some important goals for us, and more importantly for him because it has boosted his confidence and he is different from the other players in what he has.
“His one-v-one situation is really strong and coming from the left he is important.”
Wolves were just three points above the Premier League drop zone going into the weekend but secured what could prove an important point against a high-flying Fulham side who have lost only two matches – at Newcastle and at home to Tottenham – since the World Cup break.
Manager Julen Lopetegui praised Sarabia for scoring his first goal for the club in a difficult game.
“(Goals are) always important for all the players,” he said. “The most important thing is they score for our team.
“Happy for him but also for the team. It was a pity because we wanted to win here and we didn’t do it.
“Fair or not, you can’t change it. We came here looking for the three points and I think in the end we have one point more.
“We had to be positive, it’s not an easy place to come, it’s a tough match here against a good team.”
