Marco Silva has hailed Raul Jimenez’s tenacity in weathering the storm of a 10-game goal drought and tipped the Mexican for a hot streak.
Jimenez registered his first Premier League brace in almost four years as Fulham hammered sorry Nottingham Forest at Craven Cottage on Wednesday night.
The 32-year-old now boasts three top-flight strikes in his last four games, and Fulham manager Silva expects the confidence boost will only see him thrive further.
“In anything, it is so important to be resilient, to keep working and working through difficult times,” said Silva. “When there’s darkness all around it is tough, but eventually the sun will shine again. For Raul, he had to go through some darkness, but he never let his attitude or his work rate drop.
“This is not the most important thing in the world at all, of course, but it can feel quite tough if it is not going well. Raul has had to be patient and has to deal with frustrations, but that almost made him work even harder, he has never let his standards drop.”
Alex Iwobi claimed a goal brace, too, with captain Tom Cairney also on the scoresheet as Fulham ripped into a meek Forest side in total disarray.
Jimenez’s first League double since January 2020 was the talk of the Fulham night, though. His last top-flight brace came before his traumatic skull fracture that threatened his life, never mind his career.
He has had to graft steadily to rebuild his career since that November 2021 injury, but now looks on the cusp of a fine run of form.
“His first goal against Aston Villa, that was a relief for him,” said Silva. “You could see his confidence start to come flooding back after that and it was like a weight had gone.
“He still has the quality that he has shown in the last five years and more in the Premier League.”
Fulham punished Forest’s lax defending and lack of bite at every opportunity. Silva’s men left Forest boss Steve Cooper on the brink of the sack, after five defeats in six matches.
"He had to go through some darkness, but he never let his attitude or his work rate drop"
The Fulham boss was most pleased with the clean sheet, however, despite the hatful of goals.
“Let’s hope we have turned a corner in defending, because we are working hard to do that,” he said. “It’s a great result and the players deserve all the credit.
“We’re back here on Sunday against West Ham and now we have to build on this again in another big game.”
