Pep Guardiola believes the quality of his Manchester City players “made the difference” as they beat a “fantastic” Fulham team 4-1.
The Premier League leaders made it through to the fifth round of the FA Cup at the expense of the Cottagers.
Fulham are also top of their division with promotion back to the top flight looking very possible.
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And Man City manager Guardiola has praised the Championship pace-setters, insisting that he suffered a lot against them.
“I suffer a lot,” he told BBC Sport. “We played against a fantastic team. I enjoyed a lot watching them [Fulham] and suffered a lot watching them because they know exactly what to do on the ball. The quality of our players made the difference in the end.
“We have seen how many Premier League teams this weekend suffered to qualify. [Manchester] United are out. This cup is tricky. We conceded and it was 0-1. But after that we equalised quickly. The second half was much, much better.”
On how important the FA Cup is, Guardiola added: “A lot, a lot. What a competition. There are a lot of surprises. I saw the game West Ham played against sixth division. I said they [Kidderminster] play good.
“We are in the next round and we will see the draw. We’re happy to be there.”
City midfielder Fernandinho added: “This was typical of the FA Cup. Fulham started the game a little bit better than us. I am glad we equalised so quickly. Overall it was a good game and we controlled it.
“I’m happy we got through. We knew they had so much quality up front. At Manchester City you have to show your quality every second you are on the pitch.
“The FA Cup is really important. I hope we can make the final and give the fans a trip to Wembley.”
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