Fulham boss reveals one downside to Chukwueze’s performance against Manchester City

Samuel Chukwueze was on fire in Fulham's 5-4 loss to Manchester City at Craven Cottage, claiming two goals off the bench as he opened his Premier League account, Soccernet.ng reports.

The AC Milan loanee has been in good form over the last three games, bagging two goals and two assists, and this pleased Fulham's head coach, Marco Silva.

Another inspirational performance from the Super Eagles star saw him share jokes with City boss Pep Guardiola after the game.

Guardiola Chukwueze #FULMCI pic.twitter.com/L9FEyQ9pVS

— Shina Oludare (@sportingshina) December 2, 2025

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Marco Silva praises Chukwueze's impact, again

The Portuguese manager lauded the Nigerian forward in Fulham's 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur three days ago, while his club and national teammate Alex Iwobi chimed in, nicknaming him ‘Chuwku-magic'.

His performance tonight was no less inspiring, as he lifted his teammates as Fulham knocked on City's doors for an equaliser that never came. Still, Marco Silva was delighted with the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup winner.

“He's already making an impact. Last Saturday, he did it,” the former Watford head coach said in his post-match presser.

“As a part of our plans and from the physical point of view, we decided to manage him because he had his first almost 90 minutes against Tottenham.

“Of course, we put him on the bench. We wanted to play with ESR [Emile Smith-Rowe] and Alex [Iwobi] there, almost without a winger, with Alex and Sander [Barge] in the middle.

“The impact was massive from him again, but I have to talk about other players. The performance from Emile was a very good one, and he's showing that he's getting better.

“We changed at half-time because we needed more energy from Castagne on the right-hand side, and I have to praise Josh.

Fulham to lose Chukwueze to the AFCON 2025 tournament

The reeling effect of Chukwueze's good form means Marco Silva's good work on the fleet-footed player could be undone in a few weeks.

The former Villareal attacker suffered injuries upon his return from the National team in September and October.

He's created goals and now found the back of the net himself, but the Fulham manager is sad he'll lose one of his jokey cards to the AFCON tournament.

“Chukwu is just showing his quality; he has quality on the right and on the left. He can make the right decisions as well

“He's getting better and better. Unfortunately, we're going to lose him in 15 days time like it was three times in the last three months, but it is what it is, and till then we have to get the best from him and let's hope we can do it on Sunday again,” Marco Silva concluded.

Away from Chukwueze, Fulham will also be without Alex Iwobi and Calvin Bassey during the AFCON tournament. The trio were included in Eric Chelle's preliminary squad.