It was something of a surprise to see Rodrigo Muniz’s name on the teamsheet at Turf Moor on Saturday. Everyone assumed that Armando Broja, who has been playing regularly for Chelsea, would get the nod having arrived on loan right at the end of transfer deadline day. But Marco Silva put his top January target on the bench, keeping faith with the Brazilian – even after he missed a pair of presentable chances against Everton in midweek after replacing the injured Raul Jimenez.

Muniz has had a curious Fulham career. Much of Silva’s first summer after succeeding Scott Parker was spent in a tug-of-war with Middlesbrough to sign the Flamengo forward – and the £6m that the Whites spent seemed a hefty sum for an unproven youngster who was always likely to only be a back up for Aleksandar Mitrovic. He had scarcely little game time to acclimatise to the physicality of English football but showed he knew where the net was by scoring memorable goals against Reading, Blackburn Rovers and a brilliant strike at Stoke City.

His loan spell at Middlesbrough became a miserable one once Michael Carrick replaced Tony Pulis and his re-emergence as an option up front after Mitrovic’s departure and Jimenez’s indifferent start at Craven Cottage was largely taken by the fan base as an indication of how lacking in potent strikers Silva’s squad is. But Muniz played well against Manchester United and was disconsolate after suffering a knee injury in a challenge with Harry Maguire. He tried to play on, ending up leaving the field in tears – fearing his chance in the top flight had gone as quickly as he arrived.

Silva obviously sees something in Muniz, who at 22 and barely a hundred professional games behind in, probably still has time to develop. Whether he will get that opportunity at the Cottage remains to be seen. But there was nothing to fault in his performance at Burnley on Saturday. He worked exceptionally hard, making intelligent runs to trouble the Clarets defence, and undoubtedly the moment of what ended up being an immense infuriating afternoon, came when he lofted a lovely finish over James Trafford to score his first Premier League goal after turning a hopeful clearance from Antonee Robinson into a great ball by punishing a horribly square home defence.

Muniz’s emotional reaction to breaking his Premier League duck showed just how much it meant to me. His team-mates were genuinely delighted for him – and Silva was fulsome in his praise following the final whistle. Ultimately, the Brazilian might not have enough to succeed in what is widely regarded as the best league in the world but his joy was a beautifully human moment that we all shared in.