Claudio Ranieri was not downbeat about the defeat against Arsenal and was impressed with the chances created by Fulham.

Fulham went into the break 1-0 down after Granit Xhaka poked home from close range, and shortly into the second-half Alexandre Lacazette doubled that lead.

The Fulham Manager then made three quick substitutions and one of those, Aboubakar Kamara, halved the deficit with twenty minutes to go and almost assisted Aleksandar Mitrovic only to be denied by Bernd Leno.

Arsenal regrouped however and Aaron Ramsey and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang ensured the game finished 4-1.

“It was a strange match because when you come to Arsenal you know the quality of the players is different, because we are in the relegation zone and they are in a higher position,” said Ranieri.

“I was so pleased with my players because in the first 30 minutes we played so well, we pressed high and we created two great chances to score goals and the Arsenal fans weren’t happy with their team.

“But when they created the first chance we made a mistake because the goal came from the heart of the box and we were too wide in that position.

“After they created another two chances, we have to stay more concentrated in every circumstance. In the second-half again we made mistakes and they scored again.

“And after we reopened the match, 2-1, and then we created another two chances to draw the match.

But then of course after we were tired and the skill of the players of Arsenal was amazing and they created more chances and they could score more goals.

At the end it’s 4-1 and we have to shut up and say well done to them,” he said.

When questioned whether he had to put an arm around Ryan Sessegnon after he nearly opened the scoring for Fulham in the first-half before firing wide, Ranieri said he was happy to see his side making opportunities.

“I’m very satisfied with Ryan because it’s important to create chances there are matches where you score chances and there are matches where you don’t score the goals.

“That’s it, now we have to stay together again, we know every match is crucial to us, not just Arsenal, not just Burnley, it’s important to stay positive.

“To see what happened today, I showed to my players their mistakes because when you play the big teams they move the ball very quickly and the movement must be quick to close all the space.

“My defence has improved a lot but when you play against these kind of players who are fast, skilled, that is where you are to improve more,” said the Fulham Manager.

Kamara was at the heart of the controversy against Huddersfield Town for taking and subsequently missing a penalty intended for Mitrovic but Ranieri insisted that there is no rift with him and the player.

“For me it is finished. I have no grudge. He apologised immediately to me, the Club, his teammates and for me it is finished there because I need all the players,” said Ranieri.