Fulham boss Marco Silva emphatically disagreed with Graham Scott’s decision to award Bournemouth a last-gasp penalty in this afternoon’s dramatic 1-1 draw at the Vitality Stadium.
The Whites looked set for a narrow victory over former boss Scott Parker when Aleksandar Mitrovic headed in his 41st goal of the season, but referee Scott pointed to the spot in eighth minute of stoppage time when Adam Smith took a tumble under Harry Wilson’s challenge. Silva, who was sent off for his protests, was unequivocal in his view of the incident after the match.
“For me it’s clear. Not a penalty. In one moment that the game was under control – last minute of the game – really harsh for us because our players, they fought until the end. Even the first moment, where the goalkeeper took the ball. It looks like the player who took the ball is in an offside position as well. The penalty wasn’t a penalty but even the first moment looks an offside position.”
Silva was disappointed that the visitors couldn’t claim a win that would have put them within touching distance of the Championship title, but insisted he expected a difficult game against second-placed Bournemouth.
“It was tight, there was a lot of challenges, a lot of fouls. It wasn’t the best game to see and to watch. I think both teams didn’t perform at their best level, in my opinion.
“They didn’t create one chance, apart from the last shot of Cantwell in the second half. We didn’t create many as well, obviously. We had the biggest chance to score the second goal with the crossbar ball. That should kill the game in that moment.”
