Three ways Marco Silva can overcome Fulham’s injury nightmare against Bournemouth
Fulham are in the midst of an injury crisis that has highlighted the club’s poor summer transfer window activity.
Fulham will face Bournemouth in the Premier League on Friday night, looking to end on a positive note ahead of the international break.
Aston Villa beat Fulham 3-1 last time out on Sunday, leaving Marco Silva’s side with two wins, two draws and two losses from their opening six games.
Raul Jimenez went off injured for Fulham in that match and joins Rodrigo Muniz on the sidelines, with both of Silva’s striker options currently missing through injury.
Marco Silva faces injury crisis at Fulham ahead of Bournemouth clash
Silva was vocal about Fulham’s lack of summer transfer business, bringing in only a handful of signings during the window.
As a result of the injury crisis, Silva has now been left with the head-scratching conundrum of how to formulate his side.
Silva was slammed for playing Adama Traore as a number nine against Aston Villa, and the Spaniard failed to make an impact on the game.
Fulham have plenty of options at attacking midfield and out wide, but Silva has a distinct lack of options upfront now that his first-choice strikers are out of action.
1. Marco Silva puts faith in Jonah Kusi-Asare
One piece of summer business that went under the radar in West London was Fulham’s loan move for Bayern Munich forward Jonah Kusi-Asare.
The Swedish-born striker turned 18 just three months ago and can also represent Ghana at the international level.
Kusi-Asare is the only fully fit recognised number nine at the club currently, and Silva’s first option could be to entrust the young striker with his first Premier League start.
2. Kevin and Samuel Chukweze play as split strikers
Silva’s second option could be to play his two main summer signings in the absence of Muniz and Jimenez.
Playing a front two would require a change of formation from Silva, but Samuel Chukweze and Kevin offer different profiles that would make an interesting front pairing.
| 2024-25 stats | Samuel Chukweze |
| Goals | 3 |
| Assists | 2 |
| Passes into final third | 18 |
| Shot-Creating Actions | 49 |
| Key Passes | 27 |
Kevin can hold the ball up with his technical ability, while Alex Iwobi, Joshua King and Chukweze run beyond him.
It would be a risk as Silva would likely have to sacrifice a body in midfield, but this method could offer Fulham some extra firepower.
3. Joshua King played as a number nine
King has shown his capabilities in running the channels and running behind opposition backlines throughout his first six starts this season.
With King playing as a number nine, Emile Smith Rowe could deputise at the number 10 position while retaining the status quo elsewhere in the line-up.
Silva will have a difficult call to make when announcing his lineup on the South Coast, and any option is likely to be unconvincing in the eyes of Cottagers fans, in the absence of Muniz and Jimenez.