MARCO Silva said he was “proud” of his Fulham side but conceded they may have been too “emotional” as they were knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Liverpool at Craven Cottage on Wednesday night.
Trailing 2-1 from the first leg of the semi-final at Anfield, Fulham fell 3-1 behind on aggregate when Luis Diaz scored 11 minutes in.
Fulham, roared on by their supporters, levelled on the night through Issa Diop fourteen minutes from time.
But Jurgen Klopp’s side were relatively comfortable as they hung on to their lead to secure a place in the final against Chelsea at Wembley, a repeat of the decider two years ago when the Reds won 11-10 on penalties.
“I am proud of our journey in this competition and this season. From when we played the first time [in the second round] against Tottenham we showed our ambition and our desire to go on in this competition,” Silva said.
“Our attitude was serious and our ambition we have to be proud of it. We kept the semi-final open against the team which is at the top of the Premier League and they have been so consistent in games.
“We have to be proud of it and unfortunately we did not win the game, but we needed it to go to extra-time.
“As a club and myself as a manager I am proud of the fans, there was a great atmosphere here.
“We tried to start strong to give an impact straight away, but we were too nervous and too emotional.
“Our first actions when we had the possession was to lose many balls.
“First time they went [on the attack] they scored and in the moment we have to be realistic, we have to be better.
“It created more difficult scenarios for us and performance-wise it was not our best performance.
“We are capable to do better, but even so in terms of commitment and desire it was there. Moments like this are a step forward.”
“This was the full cup experience,” Klopp said. “Open game, second half they started a bit wilder. We don’t score. They got the equaliser. But the boys did really well and I am really happy.
“The only thing that counts in the end is that we are through,. The very young ones have been incredible, so happy to see their reaction in the dressing room.
“They are all exceptional and they all worked extremely hard. This was not the night to shine, this was the night to qualify for a final. You heard from Marco Silva how much reaching a final would mean for Fulham, we had to prove and we did.
“Everything great about the Carabao Cup final. Around that we have to be focused on all the other competitions as well and that is what we will do.
“It is so perfect. Wembley is a special place and I am really happy for everyone involved they can have that experience.”
