Eberechi Eze hailed as 'unbelievable' by Oliver Glasner in guiding 'really rusty' Crystal Palace to FA Cup semi-finals

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Eberechi Eze capped off a memorable week with the opening goal in an FA Cup quarter-final at Craven Cottage, as Crystal Palace beat Fulham 3-0. Eagles boss Oliver Glasner thought his side were "really rusty", so was thankful the "individual quality" of Eze could bail them out in the first half, as a Wembley trip awaits.

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Oliver Glasner hailed an "unbelievable" goal from Eberechi Eze as Crystal Palace overcame a "rusty" start to beat Fulham and reach the FA Cup semi-finals.

Palace reached the last four of the competition for the first time since 2016 - when they went on to make the final - with a 3-0 win over Fulham.

The Eagles took charge of the match with two goals in four minutes late in the first half, from Eze and Ismaila Sarr.

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Eze’s goal saw him cut in from the left and fire a shot from outside the box into the far corner.

"It's unbelievable - the individual quality," Palace manager Glasner told ITV Sport about the goal.

"Then we have the confidence in our structure waiting for the right moments. It was so important, the first goal, because we got the belief back.

"We were really struggling in the beginning. You need something when you're struggling in the game, some positive actions to get the belief back."

The match was Palace’s first since their win over Ipswich Town on March 8.

"Key No. 1 was to survive the first 20 mins," added Glasner. "We were really rusty after three weeks with no competitive game.

"We only had one training session before this game with everyone coming back from the national team. The structure wasn't good and everyone struggled."

Although Eze’s goal was the standout moment for Palace, Glasner also praised the "team effort" as Fulham were shut out in front of their own fans.

"It's not fair to only talk about one player because it was such a great team effort," said Glasner.

"In the second half there was a lot of pressure because if they score one goal it would be a tight game again. It's a great group and everyone is here to help the team."

Silva: Defeat a 'big punch in our stomach'

Fulham manager Marco Silva described his side's FA Cup exit as a "big punch in our stomach".

Optimism was high at Craven Cottage leading up to the game, with Fulham pushing for European qualification in the Premier League and in with a genuine chance of winning silverware.

But Silva bemoaned his side's inability to take chances and prevent them at the other end.

"No-one expected what happened after [the first 20 minutes], but the game is not 20 minutes," he said.

"We had two great chances in those 20 minutes from Pereira and Muniz, but the reality is we didn’t score. We were not strong in both ends [of the pitch]."

Silva also commented on the first-half controversy surrounding Adam Wharton, who was on a yellow card but avoided further punishment after kicking out at Rodrigo Muniz.

"Against 10 men, anything can happen, but 80-90% of the time we are going to win that game," Silva said.

"If you ask me what is my opinion, of course it should have been a second yellow card. Rogrigo is there, the ball is not there, and if you kick an opposition player it should be a second yellow card."

The draw for the FA Cup semi-finals will take place on Sunday, March 30.

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